Girly thread v. soft hair and pretty faces

[Perpetual Indulgence]

Thank you!

 

[rant*N*rave]

^That's how I've always done it. My nail beds are VERY, VERY deep, so it's almost impossible to paint my nails without getting it all over my fingers. I use an orange stick to clean up the edges right as I'm painting them, and then I just pick off the chunks of color left stuck on my skin in the shower - usually just rubbing my fingertips with a washcloth is plenty to get them looking perfect, really.

Ugh, I need to adjust my Retin-A regimen to once a week for the duration of the winter. The air is very dry and now my skin, though it remains well-exfoliated and blemish-free, has started to peel again. Not OK. I'm lightening up on the Retin-A and getting a better moisturizer, probably Cetaphil. The hylauronic acid is the exfoliant. I think I need to limit its use for now.

Any recommendations for a dry-air cleanser for oily skin other than Cetaphil, preferably fragrance-free?

FYI, hyaluronic acid is not an exfoliant (it's actually kind of the opposite, in a very loose sense of the word). It is, however, an important part of skin regeneration and can enhance the results of exfoliation (and is awesome in conjuction with products geared toward cell turnover like retinoids as well as with things that tend to be drying agents). Sorry, I'm just an anal retentive biochem major and actually just had hyaluronate on a test... It's a bitch of a molecule :D (And I have a recommendation for cleanser below)



Re: the other posts about exfoliating, oiliness, and skin clarity...

For people with exfoliation problems, I HIGHLY recommend the MediMorphosis exfoliator by CosMedicine. It's extremely gentle, self-adjusting, and can be used up to 3 times a week. I have a skin problem where my skin essentially doesn't want to shed (and I have terrible keratosis pilaris...) and it makes my face look terrible, but this stuff works wonders. I was expecting it to be garbage ("self-adjusting"? really?), but since the first time I tried it, I'll never use anything else.

For oily skin issues, or really any other issues, another product I absolutely SWEAR BY (as does my best friend) is Shu Uemura oil-based facial cleanser. This is another one that I thought would be total bunk and has totally turned my skin around. I have terrible combination skin that I could never keep even until I started using this stuff, and my hormone issues (thanks mom) make my skin fluctuate between dry and oily, which makes most products worthless for months at a time. They have several varieties (regular, exfoliating, anti-aging, etc) that are all extremely gentle and extremely effective (no additives of any kind!), and even the more moisturizing types didn't make my skin angry. When you clean your face with this stuff, you will literally feel the shit coming out of your pores balling up on your skin and you can see the whiteheads and blackheads that come out. I also live in a part of WI with extremely cold, dry winters and extremely hot, humid summers and have absolutely no problems transitioning season to season with this stuff.

I also love my current moisturizer - the lotion from the Bliss "The Youth as We Know It" line. It is *extremely* light weight but still *very* moisturizing and doesn't cause issues with my combination or exfoliation-impossible skin - it works just as well when my skin is oily as when it is dry! It takes me something like six months to get through a single jar of the stuff on average, so you get a ton of bang for your buck - it's $75 a jar at Sephora, but I was paying way more for products from the drug store because of how much more I had to use (or simply getting no results and only paying a little less).


I also just picked up the new "miracle in a jar" retinoid from Philosophy (they're calling it "hpr" for "high performance retinoid" but it's just a fancy name for a slightly modified vitamin A molecule, just like every other retinoid) and have been having pretty good results with it. Unfortunately, it's not as strong as Retin-A/tretinoin (although they're using that as a selling point), but it does seem to be improving the texture and especially tone of my skin. I think I'll probably go back to prescription retinoids, but for anyone looking for a mild solution that doesn't require any thought (no worrying about putting too much on or adjusting the dose in winter vs. summer etc), it's probably a good one.

I guess for reference, my facial line up is:
Cleanser (1x daily): Shu Uemura high performance balancing cleansing oil fresh
Toner (1x daily): Bliss The Youth as We Know It toner
Retinoid (1x daily): Philosophy "miracle in a jar" hpr
Moisturizer (1x daily): Bliss The Youth as We Know It moisturizer
Exfoliator (3x weekly): CosMedicine MediMorphosis
Zit cream: over the counter salicylic acid gel
Foundation (3-4 days a week): Make Up Forever HD foundation or DinAir airbrush foundation color
And I give myself facials every week or two using the above exfoliator, a mud mask (either the plain or mint julep one from I think it's Queen Helene from Walgreens), Bioelements hydrating gel mask, then my normal toner and moisturizer. If my pores are really big/icky/bad, I use DermaDoctor Pore Perfection daily until they get better (depending on my hormones and water intake, they change quite a bit).

And always drink buttloads of water!!!!!



And I never came back and mentioned my new airbrush! So far so good! It definitely takes some practice to figure out exactly how to do foundation vs. blush vs. eyeshadow, etc., but the results are extremely impressive once you get it down. Once I get a new bottle of foundation color, I'll try to get a good before and after pic.

 

[aanallein]

I know this is the girly thread and all but I'm always battling oily skin. Have any of you tried benzoyl peroxide? It's been helping me out soooooo much. Almost as good as antibiotics (tetracycline) did.

 

[n3ophy7e]

^^ Welcome to the thread
I did indeed try benzoyl peroxide (I've had pretty bad acne since I was 12), and it just burnt the shit out of my skin!

I'm glad it's working for you though. How long have you been using it? What concentration is it?

 

[aanallein]

Been using it about a year. It's 10% concentration. I had it burn my skin too but then I realized I was leaving it on too long. About 2 minutes or so is more than enough time for it to work so I put it on every morning after shaving but before showering then wash my hair/body and then rinse off my face. It's been working well!

 

[n3ophy7e]

^^ Excellent! That's great that you've found something that works for you. For some people (like yours truly) it can take years of trialling different products before you find something that works.

 

[aanallein]

Yeah it took me soooooo long to get my skin right. It is the wierdest thing but any type of soap on my skin leads to instant breakouts. My body doesn't do that, only my face. Really any washing, scrubbing, touching, or just about anything causes it to break out. All I do now is shave every few days and use benzoyl peroxide and my skin looks as good as it did on the antibiotics (which were amazing but I don't think using antibiotics for skin clarity is a good thing).

Stupid skin..

 

[gloeek]

The only thing that has helped my skin get better is occasional exfoliating, LOTS of WATER, less caffiene.

 

[fizzle]

I just had to come in here and tell you ladies (and some gentlemen) that I just bought the whole OPI Alice in Wonderland collection :D So far all I've tried is Absolutely Alice, and I absolutely love it! I cant wait to try the rest!

 

[Pillthrill]

Info on the collection

http://www.alllacqueredup.com/2009/12/opi-alice-wonderland-collection-swatches-review.html

 

[fizzle]

I completely agree with that review about the "off with her red" I'm a little surprised that they werent more clever with that one, they could have done all kinds of things with it, its by far my least favorite in the collection. I love the other three though

 

[purplefirefly]

^^

I've been thinking about buying the whole collection myself. Your pleasure with the collection has pushed me over the edge to actually do so!

I think the colors are just great, at least from the photos that I've seen online.

I also cannot wait for the movie to come out! I think it looks fantastic!!!

 

[n3ophy7e]

^^ It looks awesome huh!! I can't wait to see it! (the movie, that is)

The "Mad Hatter" nail polish looks amazing. I can't imagine that I would ever wear it but I'm so intrigued by it :D

and less caffiene.

Hmmm I should try this to improve my skin....
But I cannot function without caffeine!

 

[Pillthrill]

"Absolutely Alice" is interesting me. But where I live I have no idea where I would find it.

 

[joannie_mhm]

Hmmm I should try this to improve my skin....
But I cannot function without caffeine!

Exercise more, sleep more, you'll do fine without caffeine

To paraphrase my boyfriend, don't let "night-time guy" fuck with "morning guy", or the other way round.

 

[n3ophy7e]

^^ Thanks hun, that is a really good point, I've had multiple major sports injuries in the last 4 months so I haven't been able to exercise to my usual capacity. Perhaps that would explain my drastic increase in caffeine intake.

"Absolutely Alice" is interesting me. But where I live I have no idea where I would find it.

Online

 

[mrs_mia_wallace]

I bought myself my first Chanel bag today (I have two others but they were hand my down from my mum)... I am so in love with this bag I think I'm going to sleep with it next to me.

I haven't figured out how to post pics using my Mac, but here's a link to what style is:

It's the most expensive bag I've bought--ran me $3,200-- but I LOVE IT. I bought it as my quitting heroin present-- if I chicken out and don't stay clean I have to get rid of it. And I love this bag so much it's almost reason enough to quit using. %)

 

[n3ophy7e]

Hey mia that's great! Very good motivation to stay clean

 

[purplefirefly]

I bought myself my first Chanel bag today (I have two others but they were hand my down from my mum)... I am so in love with this bag I think I'm going to sleep with it next to me.

I haven't figured out how to post pics using my Mac, but here's a link to what style is:

It's the most expensive bag I've bought--ran me $3,200-- but I LOVE IT. I bought it as my quitting heroin present-- if I chicken out and don't stay clean I have to get rid of it. And I love this bag so much it's almost reason enough to quit using. %)

Post pics ASAP!!!!!!!

I would love to see your new bag as I'm bit of a bag whore myself

^^ It looks awesome huh!! I can't wait to see it! (the movie, that is)

The "Mad Hatter" nail polish looks amazing. I can't imagine that I would ever wear it but I'm so intrigued by it :D

I think two of them would be exclusively "toe polishes".
The movie looks so fucking awesome! I can't wait until it comes out, I'm going to see it come hell or high water! LOL

 

[Pillthrill]

A gift to yourself is a GREAT way to try to motivate yourself Mia! Good thinking! Good luck!