DON'T TOUCH IT!!!

Please my people if you take one piece of advice from me...please do not pop your pimples, pick your face or squeeze anything!
First, lets discuss what is really happening when you get a pimple that has a white head. Basically acne is caused by a build up of dead skin, bacteria and inflammation under the skin, a infection brews under the 7 layers of skin which will cause the skin to become tender, itch, red and inflamed. As with any source of infection that happens in our bodies white blood cells rush to the infection site to kill off the bacteria. Once this battle is won and the infection is over the white blood cells must travel up through the 7 layers of skin to the surface to be eliminated through the pore. This is why you can watch the pimple grow. I know it is tempting to pop it and watch it disappear but most likely you will wake up the next day with it back in full force and maybe even it has multiplied....the infection was broken under the skin and released into the blood stream which causes more breakouts. Not only can you spread more bacteria and prolong a breakout but picking at the skin or popping pimples can cause scarring and marking on the skin, which in some skin tones can be permeant.
Here are some easy and helpful tips for treating breakouts:
I love using a mixture of white clay, warm water and Lavender essential oil to make a spot treatment. Make sure skin is clean, apply a small amount of this mixture to the breakout, leave on for 20-30 mins(or overnight )rinse with warm water, making sure not to break the skin, dab with a drop of Tea Tree essential oil.
You can also apply Lavender essential oil on its own as a spot treatment.
Both of these above will treat the bacterial and inflammation associated with acne.
There is also a spot treatment on the market by Bkamins, they make a clear drying, odorless Benzoyl Peroxide based spot treatment in both a 5 and 10% that does wonders. You can apply up to 3 times a day without over drying or irritating the skin.
If you must pop....PLEASE do the following:
-make sure your hands are clean
-do not use anything sharp to break the skin
-wrap your fingers in tissue
-if you are squeezing and pus and liquid are coming out, gently squeeze till the liquid runs clear, this will indicate you all the infection is out.
I know not the most sexy topic but this advice will you keep you looking your sexiest!!!

SO FRESH AND SO CLEAN

This may seem a little off my blog concept but I do enjoy sharing recipes of products we use everyday that can easily be made at home, in this case I'm talking mouth wash! This recipe below only takes two weeks to make and will give you a spicy and clean feel to your mouth.

1 tablespoon of cinnamon chips

1 tablespoon of whole cloves

1 teaspoon of anise seed

1 teaspoon of ground nutmeg

1 cup of vodka

Take all spices in a clean glass jar, pour the over the mixture, cap and shake daily for two weeks.

Strain and pour into a dark glass bottle.

THIS IS A CONCENTRATED MIXTURE.

Dissolve 1 tablespoon of mouth wash into 1 cup of water, gargle, and rinse.

Yeilds 16 treatments

ANTI AGING WONDERS

Besides knowing its important to take good care of your skin its also important to understand key ingredients to treat certain concerns(support your local esthetician!). Anti aging its super hot topic right now, has been and will always be, SO lets chat about three major player ingredients that are being talked about right now.

The first two ingredients are know as ANTI-OXIDANTS, an anti-oxidant helps fight free radical damage(extra negative ions floating around the skin cells causing them to become unstable break apart and die, free radicals are caused by sun exposure, environmental pollution and unhealthy life style habits like smoking) free radical damage can lead to signs of aging like fine lines, wrinkles and sagging skin, the anti-oxidants protect the skin. Anti-oxidant are naturally found in fruits like grapes, pomegranates and give thanks RED WINE!!!!

---Vitamin C, the only type of Vit C that can be absorbed my the skin is L-ASCORBIC ACID, if you are in the market for a Vit C based product look for this as the key active ingredient. Vit C is great at brightening the skin and helping to fade any dark spots caused by sun damage, or acne scarring. Using a serum of Vit C in conjunction with a gentle chemical exfoliant is a great place to start to treat hyper-pigmentation. Vit C also helps to stimulate collagen to minimize wrinkles.

---Resveratrol, another potent anti-oxidant found in the skin of grapes, peanuts and berries, it too can also brighten the skin as well as acts as an anti-inflammatory, keeping the internal structure of the skin calmed and soothed.

The final ingredient I would like to share are the all mighty peptides. Peptides are long complex amino acid chains that strengthen and maintain the firmness and elasticity of the skin. Visualize that your collagen and elastin fibers(which gives your skin the firmness and helps to keep it from sagging) are braided together, over time this braid will loosen due to many factors such as sun exposure and pollution. Peptides come to the rescue like knights in shinning amor and tighten the braided give strength to the skin, lifting and firming it.

GO BE HEALTHY AND FABULOUS!

CRAY CRAY for a BLAST OF COLOR

I recently moved to the pacific northwest and I'm living in my first full on rain season...I am sorta loosing it!!! So besides lots of colorful veggies and fruits I am bringing color into my life thru my everyday look...its working! SO I JUST HAD TO SHARE MY TWO NEW RECENT DISCOVERIES:::
two amazing shades of matte lipstick from MAC....Korean Candy and Quick Sizzle! YUM!!!
Korean Candy is a wonderful Geranium shade blending the perfect tones of orange and red, Quick Sizzle happens to be in my opinion the most perfect shade of hot fusica pink, reminds me of my first lipstick I was allowed to by when I turned 12.
BE PLAYFUL, BE COMFORTABLE, ADORE YOURSELF!

kiss kiss

NAILED FROM HEAD TO TOE!!!

If any of you know me personally you know I"m obsessed with my nails, not only the shape, length, color, crazy inspired art but most important the health of the nails and the skin surrounding them. I have a ritual I try to do on the regular to both my hands and feet to keep the nails and the delicate and often ignored skin healthy and looking fabulous:
-Start by taking off any polish with a non acetone based remover, if you are a regular nail polish wearer you probably use pure acetone(thats ok I have done it too!)
-Rinse hands and or feet with warm water to remove any residue left my the nail polish
-If you file, shape or cut the nails do so now
-Take a bowl and fill half way with warm water, squeeze the juice from a half of a fresh lemon and add a few drops of non detergent based soap, some like Mrs. Myers hand soap, and a dash of baking soda. The purpose of this mixture is to soften the cuticles, brighten and whiten the color of the nails and eliminate any lingering bacteria trapped under the nail beds or in the delicate skin. Soak in this mixture for 5-10 minutes, if you are a fan of essential oils you can tincture this mixture as well
-Removes hands and feet pat dry(if you are focusing on the feet this would be a good time to file or scrub away any dry skin on the heels and pads of the feet with a foot file or pumice stone)
-Using an Orange Wood Stick or a cuticle pusher, gently push back the softened cuticles. If you desire to cut or trim just work on the excessive skin being sure not to cut too close to the actual nail bed
-Using a carrier oil like Olive, Grape Seed or Jojoba gently massage a into the hands and feet focusing on the cuticle and nail area
If you would like to polish wait 15-20 minutes to let the oil fully absorb in.

I find this treatment is great all year around and does not take much time at all.

DIVINE ALCHEMY!!!

PUCKER UP!

I'm a fan of an exaggerated lip, I've been known to put bold red lipstick on just to go get a cup of mid-day coffee. Bold and colorful lips are very Hollywood to me, remind me of my Grandma Emma and is the easiest way to jazz up a look your not %100 about. Let talk about our lips, they get a lot of attention but maybe not enough to ensure they are healthy and serving us the best they could. Our actual lips are some of the thinnest skin on our face, they are prone to becoming dry, irritated, bruised, burned, chapped and rough. Chronic dry lips is are sure indicator you are not drinking enough water so lets start with that being a basic easy step to keeping our delicate lips healthy. If you are a person who loves using lip balm or chap stick take a look at what is exactly in that little tube you can't live without....here are two major ingredients you should always AVOID: Alcohol, this acts as a great solvent for other ingredients but does noting but strip the natural oils in the tissues of our lips. Petroleum, this is one of the most common ingredients used for its ability to help a product spread and feel smooth on the skin, in this case the lips. Yes, Petroleum feels nice, silky and smooth on the surface but what happens over time is it actually "suffocates" the skin causing it to become dryer(if you are one of those people who is ALWAYS applying lip balm this may be why) and to boot Petroleum is a non-renewal resource so once we have no more that's it! Look for a product that has more ingredients like Coco or Shea Butter, Almond, Coconut or Tanamu Oil, these ingredients are not only super moisturizing to the lips but will also protect and heal the delicate skin. A few winters ago I got into the habit of weekly exfoliating my lips, it takes a 5 minutes and makes a world of difference. Start by making sure you have no residue on the lips and they are dry, take your ring finger dip it oil(Almond or Olive)then dip it sugar, I like the raw sugar cause its free of dyes and has a courser cut, GENTLY rub into your lips for 60- 90 seconds, rinse off and follow with a nourishing salve or balm. This little step will get rid of dry, dead skin and allow the properties of the salve or balm to penetrate deeper to heal from the inside out. Back to lipstick...I learned a great trick for applying lipstick from dear friend and added a little twist to it. To keep your lipstick from running and lasting longer first make sure the skin AROUND THE LIPS is moisturized and supple, this will make sure any tiny cracks around the lips are sealed, next prime the lips with a balm or salve, next apply a liner if you do, then a dab the lips with baby powder to help the lipstick set better, then apply your lipstick and finishing steps like gloss, shine or if your a product geek like me I set my lipstick(and all my make up with a spritz of toner)....then go put those juicy lips to work!!!