Author: Jessaylove

Sensitive skin, or even sensitized skin, is a type that people may understand to varying degrees. They’re actually two different things. The former being genetic, and the latter a matter of the environment. Both share similar symptoms, but sensitized skin will actually have its issues disappear as the skin heals.

 

 

 

 

 

Common Symptoms

• Skin is very thin, almost translucent
• Blotchy Redness
• Blushing/Flushing almost always
• Tight, dry feeling
• Itchy or flaky dry patches
• Sensations of tingling, prickling, or burning
• Spots, bumps, or rash-like feel
• Reacts to touch or any slight product changes

Common Causes

• Skin Disorders i.e. Rosacea, Eczema – These are conditions that normally you’d be diagnosed with. There are manners of treating them, but how your skin reacts to products may be different. For something like eczema, exfoliating all the dead skin away is just not the way to go about it. Doctors recommend emollients, which are very gentle exfoliators that moisturize.
• Allergic Reaction – This can occasionally be a bit complicated as there are varying levels of sensitivity for all. In all honesty; this is one of the things you’ll notice yourself first. Whereas others might think you’re flushed, you’ll be aware that this only happens with cucumber products and so on. Even different parts of your body may react differently. Pay attention to everything from cleansers to body butters.
• Overindulgence with Skin Products – Yeah, don’t be me. Kinda. The Korean method is great and all, but trying out 3 different nose strips and 5 different masks in a day just to compare is guaranteed to make your face a wreck the next day. Overly dry, overly exposed, large empty pores just waiting to be clogged by anything. Just chill for a few days with a water cleanser and green tea or snail moisturizers if you do.
• Not Being Aware of Your Skin – Just a few rules to live by that you’ll eventually make for yourself. If your skin is dry and cracked, don’t exfoliate. If your face is oily, an oil cleanser is just adding to the heaviness. If something makes you feel bad even if the smell is what bothers you, don’t use it. Not all products are the same even as the same type and main ingredients so it’s natural that not everything will be right for you.

Advice

You really just got to trust you body on this one. Sharing is caring so if you ever find out you got a product that doesn’t work for you and returning things sounds unfathomable, give to a friend. I usually give it to M, who definitely enjoys the things I can’t.

In my personal experience, the beautiful thing that is aloe vera cannot touch my face. It’s brilliant for sunburns when I get them, and that’s probably why it took so long for me to notice with it on my shoulders or back.

However, the cooling product that normally reduces redness makes my face feel like it is burning and makes redness flare up for the the next half hour.This is an allergic reaction. It also happens with Rose, Blueberry, Pomegranate, and a few others.

I don’t even normally consider my skin sensitive but for products with those as main ingredients, it’s always a rash. On the bright side, its easy to recognize as the only two things I am allergic to also produce rashes.  I can touch or eat all of those things without issue–just not on my face in a skin product.

Some products that work great for sensitive skin and sensitive days that I’ve enjoyed or lovingly insisted on trying on friends include Nature Republic’s Green Tea Serum, Mizon’s Snail Recovery Gel, and the SAEM’s White Tea Cleansing Water.

  

You know you. You know your skin. You got this.

If you have this skin type; you are very lucky. There’s not a lot to do beyond paying attention and being healthy–but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy skincare and a lot of fun products. On this side of the equations, lots of products will work without issue so I’m going to focus on the things you might want rather than what your skin needs as much.

Common Symptoms

• Very few and at times no blemishes at all.
• Known as the most radiant complexion, not shiny or dull but rather dewey.
• Pores are small around T-zone and practically invisible everywhere else–like how makeup gurus appear on camera.
• No severe sensitivity

Common Causes

Only two for this. Good Genetics, or A Lot of Work.

Lipid production on the surface at the skin is at nice balance, not leaning towards either way. Anyone can have this, it’s the goal. Some just get a much better head start.

The harder you work when it comes to your skin, the less you end up having to. You work to repair the damage your skin has already suffered, and then take care of it to prevent any future damage. Although I don’t mean you’ll wake up with normal skin all of a sudden, getting to normal will be easier in appearance. You’ll wake up[ and do part of a routine, and you’ll look like you have a normal skin type all day. Normal as in unblemished, smooth, and dewey.

Advice

Don’t misunderstand, just because your skin is easier to work with doesn’t mean you don’t have to do anything at all. Like with all skin types, stuff builds up on the face and skin without care will age faster.

Always do with a cleanser, even if just Clean & Clear’s Morning Burst from the local drugstore.

Always listen to your skin, if it doesn’t like something it’ll show you.

Moisturizers won’t feel heavy so very popular acne fighting ones like Cetaphil will work great.

Also, every weird fun mask out there is worth trying. Do it all because why not.

I used to have normal skin before a disease changed things, and often would stick to a very mini-routine. Light face wash morning and evening. Shower deep cleaner. Exfoliate once a week. And light moisturizer daily in the winter. At some point I had about 7 products I just kept replacing for about 5 years straight.

If you don’t think there is much point in that amount of work, remember this. My pores weren’t kinda invisible, they were gone. Skin was soft as a baby 24/7. Blemishes at most, being a teenager, showed up once a month max and were gone within 3 days. Anything less than perfect, was as a result of me not doing anything out of laziness. It doesn’t take as much as you think.

Combination skin types get the worst of all worlds, and it’s extremely common. Luckily, with it being so common–there are a lot of ways to manage it. Personally, I find that combination skin types can actually handle the most ‘abuse’ with exfoliator and cleansers alike. With work, it can make its way towards normal skin pretty closely.

   

Common Symptoms

• Enlarged pores within T-zone. This part of the face is oily, and prone to the most blemishes.
• Normal-Dry skin around cheeks and chin. Dryness may vary, and redness may also be an issue.
• Blackheads consistently, especially around nose.
• Shiny and/or slightly red complexion

Common Causes

Genetics/Hormones – It’s. Everything.  Your hormones are so out of wack that it’s telling your face and glands to do two things at once. Lipid production is completely inconsistent.

Weather – Weather has the biggest effect on this skin type since it’s subject to being hanged with any balance one way or the other. Hot is more oil, cold is more dryness.

Sweat – Sweat not only contributes to the excess oil but irritates the dryer skin as well. Stay cool and rinse your face as soon as possible.

Overdoing it – Balance is key, so if you wash so much that you only care for the oily part of your face, your making the rest of your face even drier.

Advice

Rinse your face often, and wash as often as you brush your teeth.

  

If you know you’ve eaten something particularly greasy and its around your mouth, wash as soon as possible just around the area.

If you participate in the more nightly types of exercise, your skin is in a really great place after an hour. Do a light cleanse and take advantage of the pores attempting to work with you.

Multi/Rainbow masking with BonVivant is a godsend of an idea. Gray by the hairline and nose, green on forehead and chin, and pink on cheeks is a great system to start.

Overnight masks are likely to irritate, and moisturizers can even feel heavy. Rinse, rinse, rinse before after and in between for everything. Hot water for most of the routine, and cold after your skin gets all it has to absorb. Give it a few seconds and even rinse after moisturizer. The only thing to leave on your face untouched is a nice mist.

Remove makeup properly.  You’re playing with fire. Some days your mascara may stay and blend a bit with the eye bags but still make your eyes pop–and others it may cause small red bumps or irritation. Do not chance it.

Shower at night. Even if it’s a 5 minute shower, don’t let anything sit on your skin. Using the steam from the shower and a light cleanser, you can avoid the stripping properties of makeup wipes and the like.

Change your sheets often. The cleaner everything that touches your kin for prolonged periods is, the cleaner your skin is.

Remember that the work is not forever. It gets your skin to a decent enough state that daily becomes weekly or every so often. Love your skin, and yourself. Do what’ll make you proud you tried.

Oily skin, also known as seborrhea, is unfortunately acne-prone skin. Overproduction of oils within pores leads to a shine that doesn’t go away without help. Completely opposite to dry skin, you’re going to want to constantly be trying to strip away the oils and be careful of how you eat the food you do.

   

Common Symptoms

• Pores are (not always and not all at once) enlarged, easily clogged.
• Complexion is shiny or dull, with an impression of thickness.
• Skin is prone to breakouts-blackheads, pimples, and everything in between.
• Over time, blemishes get bigger and more irritated. This is the type where pimples will have full on green or yellow pus on occasion.
• Acne scars have definitely become a thing if you weren’t aware how to pop and clean properly.

Common Causes

Genetics – Here we are again. You are prone to an oily complexion, but you are not cursed with suffering due to it. It’s manageable, and after a while even just being aware goes a long way.

Hormones – In particular, androgens (male hormones in both males and females) are responsible for the maturation of the skin’s sebaceous glands. These glands increase production of oil as they mature. Fluctuations in these hormones will affect directly how oily your skin is at any time.

Stress – Well, yeah. I don’t really believe you can live in this world without that and I’m not about to tell you ways to manage stress without knowing myself. However, if you’re taking your hands and running it through your hair and across your face as a lot of people do when stressed–stop that. Don’t touch. You don’t need to be stressed over your face too.

Activity – Sweat, sweat and more sweat. It’s your enemy. Can’t stay cool? Wash away as much as possible. Cold water will keep your pores closed and uninviting.

Humidity – Summer is the worst with the heat, and even when it doesn’t get that hot living in places like England where humidity is high anyway is one of the many ways to make skin oily.

Hair – Now I don’t want to tell you how to do you. Your style is already yours. Just be aware that the oils of your hair are a common irritant.

I have an oily T-zone but I still prefer my bangs/fringe short. When my hair is curly (not straightened) I switch my middle parting to the side and keep my bangs out of the way of my forehead. This is because when curled, some of my hairs end higher and will touch my face constantly. When straightened, I prefer my bangs across my forehead. However, I have to thin them out regularly. With thick bangs, they insulate and I sweat easily so they need to be thinned out or I’ll be irritating my skin. Surprisingly, set foundation is a good layer to stop it from happening so if I’m all made up my bangs can go anywhere.

Advice

Wash your face every time you sweat. If you go to the gym, use the showers. Carry a foaming cleanser and a moisturizer. If you don’t have access to anything, cold water. Lots.

When you eat things like popcorn, or spaghetti–remember you are getting things just around your lips. The pimples that show up there on oily skin are usually from eating even just a bit messy. Be conscious, and rinse the area around your mouth quickly after meals. After a while, you might become hyper aware on the effects of actually greasy food and wash regularly then.

As a rule, you’re more likely to aggravate the pimples on your face the longer you leave them. Just pop them. However, make sure when you do that you can thoroughly wash your face right after. If you use your nails, you are at risk at damaging the skin itself around your pimple. When you pop and then wipe, you are wiping what was inside into the other pores surrounding it. After popping and cleaning, your best bet is to try and close the pores and dry them out to prevent swelling and redness from lasting as long or refilling.

To dry them out, as a quick fix because your day should have you washing your face minimum two times, use soap. All that excess oil and very drying hand soap is great at just being there for the cause.

Clay masks and charcoal masks, where the properties of it are the draw out the oil and wash it off are absolutely perfect. Try to stick with products that reduce sebum production and contain ingredients like tea tree to fight acne.

For this skin type, I have two friends with both tiny pores and large pores and oily skin, It’s a trip for sure. Be conscious and you’ll have this.

Dry skin types have it rough…literally. The natural, healthy layer of lipids on the skin’s surface are being compromised by the environment or even what you do yourself. It’s important to be able to recognize your skin type, so you can know what to do about it.

Common Symptoms

• Pores are small and barely visible. They’re tight, so clogged pores aren’t all that common.
• Complexion feels rough to the touch; some flakiness is expected.
• Skin appears slightly dulled.
• Red patches appear regularly, often aggravated with temperature changes.
• Lines are visible earlier on in life.
• Lacks elasticity and prone to cracking, peeling, itching, irritation, and inflammation.

 

Common Causes

Genetics – There’s not a whole lot you can do about your starting point, but that doesn’t mean it has to be unmanageable. Being prone to something isn’t quite the same as being cursed with it. You can do this.

Health – Know what you’re putting into your body with your medications, and also how your conditions affect your skin. Hyperthyroidism and PCOS are some examples of those which have negative effects on your face.

Aging – Losing elasticity usually goes hand in hand with losing collagen later in life. That youthful glow isn’t easy to maintain.

Excessive Weather – Cold air, hot air, wind, and sun can all exacerbate dry skin issues.

Heating – The dry air leads straight to dry skin. Be careful with keeping the environment suitable for skin.

Tanning – UV Rays are the enemy of dryness, and every active thing promoting it needs a bit more work to combat it.

Long, hot baths/showers – As addictive as they are, you’re consistently drying your skin out of any of its natural oils over time. Pores are opening and everything goes straight down the drain. Steam doesn’t work the way you think it does.

Soap – STAY AWAY FROM SOAP. Do not let it touch your beautiful face. It is incredibly drying and the only thing I recommend it for is drying out a blemish just taken of–and even then would hesitate for this skin type.

Misusing moisturizer – Right so, do not just put this on dry skin. One of the reasons people are encouraged to put on lotion after a shower is because their skin is damp. Moisturizers keep moisture in your skin like a barrier with topical niceties. If it is dry to begin with, it keeps nothing in and instead blocks anything else even moisture coming in after. It will clog pores and actually leave to more issues. Always apply to damp skin. and give it a minute. If it feels heavy and like a lot of excess, rinse.

Uncomfortable Clothing – Itchy is forever and usually gets worse. Get some fabric softener or ditch the rub.

Dehydration – Everyone says this–but if you ain’t gonna drink it, wear it. Don’t wanna pee every hour on the hour? Fine. Splash your face though.

Advice

Sleep masks are honestly your best friend. They will do the work as you sleep and you really need that time to let products absorb. Brands like Laneige and Mizon have a ton of water based products to help.

Using oil cleansers is a great way to start with hydration.

Constantly work your way through the steps, rinsing all the way. Make water a big part of your routine with constant intermissions of 5 splashes or so. Finish on a light moisturizer always.

Be gentle with the exfoliating. It makes sense to try and get rid of dead skin, but you risk damaging the skin just under it that isn’t ready to let go yet.

Peel masks work great, but can make you cry. Trying a face peel on its own is effective, but skin below the dead skin is especially sensitive to acidic ingredients.

Be patient and systematic, your skin is worth it. Moisture and water for everything.

I’ll be doing more specific product recommendations in the future. My skin type is combo oily and dry so I have a lot of products for all. However, I wouldn’t recommend without relying on my friend a bit with fully dry skin to double check. I’ll just tell you how it went. Much love.

 

I know you’ve probably all heard a lot about Korean skincare these past few years and there’s a lot to that. The main takeaway is that South Korean Beauty culture is real. Similar to how France has one of the most advanced perfume industries, SK has an extreme interest in skincare culture-wide. All genders are encouraged to have clear, dewey skin.

If anything, it just means that greater interest means more money into it and more options for the general public. That’s what makes it great for foreigners even, as you can find many very specific products geared to certain skin types and issues that not only work but don’t cost all that much either. I find it to be very effective, and never spent more than 20 bucks on any of the hundreds of products I’ve bought. I love it.

The longest methodology for K-beauty is know as the 10-step (give or take a few depending on your source apparently). I like to break it down as follows.

0. Get Rid of Everything You Can

If you’re going to be doing your face and go through all this effort, start at your worst. Get rid of every pimple, every open blackhead, anything. Now avoid squeezing literally. You could make the whole situation worse if you push in a blackhead further. Use loop tools properly, which I’ll definitely explain at some point. As for pimples, not squeezing and letting fester is utter nonsense. It’s the pores around a pimple that can be affected when a person squeezes and then wipes off instead of cleaning it. That’s where the idea of not touching it comes from. However, we all touch our faces so we are constantly spreading the bacteria the longer we leave it there. Clean, pop, clean. Always.

That being said, I like to open up my pores to begin with by splashing some hot-ish water about 10 times on my face. Water is the friend of the youthful.

1. Pre-Cleanse

SK is very clear about the most important part being the double-cleanse method. Two cleansers of different functions designed to clean and treat the face. Pre-cleansers are generally oil-balm cleansers designed to remove makeup or external residue from the skin. Circular motions.

These two are my go-to’s: Banila Co. Clean It Zero Cleanser and Heimish All Clean Balm. They are extremely good at picking up makeup with very little. So good in fact it takes longer to take the cleanser off after than it feels like it should. Can’t deny how well it actually works though.

2. Cleanse

The second step is, of course, the second cleanser. There are several different kinds of cleansers that are effective for different skin types. There are water cleansers, oil cleansers, foaming cleansers, powder cleansers, and cream cleansers. Circular motions.

For my combination skin type, I like using foam cleansers. As with combination, however, even some foam cleansers are too drying for the dryer parts of my face like around my mouth.

These are some of my current cleansers: Skinfood Egg White Pore Foam, The Face Shop Jeju Volcani Lava Cleansing Foam, and Nooni Snowflake Whipping Cleanser. The first is my favorite for everyday use for my skin. It’s light and smooth, leaving a dewey complexion. The second has some clay and exfoliating qualities, which is perfect for when my skin is both too dry and too oily. The last has a fun little tool I’ll talk about later which makes the foam feel like marshmallow fluff and is fun to play with while it works.

3. Exfoliate

This is the step for clearing your face of dead skin. Your face is constantly replacing itself at a cellular level so there is always some degree of it. Often, like around the nose area, there may be dry patches or large pores with blackheads. They’re also great for picking up looser blackheads if you have a product for it. I use a combination of one for the dead skin and one for lifting the blackheads after. Circles and water alterations, several times a week.

The Tosowoong Black Sugar Facial Scrub is my highest recommendation for exfoliating, for exactly why some reviewers don’t like it. It’s rough, but if you ad water it gets gentler. So consistently adding water to the very little needed to begin with allows it to adjust for the different areas of your face that can handle more or less. The Face Shop Blackhead Out Gel oil was the first one I’ve ever had that consistently removed blackheads even from large pores when slightly indented. Much love.

4. Tone

Now steps 2-4 are the common mini-method in western culture. The aim of toning is to restore the ph balance in your face. After being stripped and assaulted by all the super cleaning, it’s a little off and feels a bit funny. This just calms everything down to restore the balance. Apply to a cotton round and wipe. And if somehow you still got that eye makeup on, it’ll be gone after this. Toner’s can also add some love with ingredients for certain purposes: Reduce sebum production, hydrate, brightening, etc.

Gotta say, I’m not too picky with toners but the brands Etude House, Innisfree, and SecretKey are all ones I trust. In the same collection, SecretKey has a Rose and an Aloe one I just can’t use at all. Just not ingredients my face likes, even when they’re two of the easiest.

5. Mask

This is the most time consuming and infrequent part. There are many different types of masks, and that’s just increasing. The most well-known are sheet masks. They’re cloth and soaked in essences and ampoules designed to affect the face in certain ways.Other types are clay masks which wash off, scrub masks which you constantly rub across your face, peel masks which rip out your inner lining, and jelly masks which are kinda hilarious when they dry.

There’s a lot of in-between and really they’re all fun to use. Useful too. It’s 15-20 minutes of your life usually, so be determined and don’t schedule around delivery times unless you’re happy to open the door that way. I usually use sheets for when I have deliveries coming just so I can whip them off. Only forgot once.

6. Eye Cream

The skin around your eyes is poreless, unlike the rest of your face so it needs to be treated differently. The primary purpose for these creams is to reduce swelling and brighten the skin in that area. It would reduce both aspects of eye bags and in turn give an appearance of bigger and rounder eyes.

Currently using Mizon Snail Repair Eye Cream and Farmstay Snail Repair Eye Cream. A lot of eye repair creams contain the ingredient ‘snail’ which is actually snail secretions which surprising contain common beauty ingredients like hyaluronic acid, glycoprotein enzymes, glycolic acid, antimicrobial and elastin. It’s not bad. doesn’t smell, and works wonders.

7. Essence, Ampoule, Serum

Step 7 is in this specific order due to the consistencies of the liquid. You should start with the thinner liquids for your face to absorb as once the thicker ones are used, a thinner one wouldn’t absorb and instead be layered on top. Apply liberally in circles.

They are designed to specifically target specific issues, so having several with different purposes is prefect. Tea tree is great for fighting acne. Lemon is great for skin brightening. Hyaluronic acid is great for moisturizing.

8. Moisturizer

Moisturizers are very important, even for oily skin. The important thing is to get a moisturizer that suits your skin type. The safest types for most are very thin so they’re not heavy enough to block pores. That’s why body lotion is not suited for your face. Clearing out all your pores only to fill them up again is not the way to go.

A-ha! Bet you’d thought they’d all be Korean. Innisfree Green Tea Balancing Cream clearly is, but Clean & Clear Dual Action Moisturizer can actually be purchased at your local drugstore. The balancing cream I use for a typically rough session of face attack, but generally wash it off after a minute or so in order to prevent my skin from getting oily. The other one I’ll let absorb twice before applying makeup to no issue at all. It’s perfect for me.

9. Facial Mist

Mists are like a preemptive measure against being affected by sweat and oils from the hair. They keep your skin in check for a while. It’s also great for a refresher throughout the day, especially in the summer.

Sulwhasoo Hydro-Aid Moisturizing Soothing Mist smells incredible and great during hot, sticky summers. SecretKey Starting Treatment Aura Mist is great for oily skin touch ups throughout the day.

10. Sun Protection

Okay, so this is a big thing in far east Asia where lighter skin (associated with lives void of hard labor outside and royalty for classic beauty) is better. It’s not wrong at all to say that an even skin tone is easier to achieve with adequate sun protection though. Sun spots, dark patches, even freckles (like the ones that only appear in the summer) can be caused by sun damage. Sunscreen and the like is a perfectly reasonable step for the path of less damaged skin.

I’m a bit of a homebody so I don’t have a lot of recommendations for everyday use ones as when I go outside in the summer it’s gotta be waterproof and extreme

A lot of foundations nowadays have SPF but it’s certainly something I’ll look into a bit more for you guys. I mean, I have the ability to tan for the most part but I would burn after being outside at like a beach or water park in a few hours.

I normally get a blush burn on my face and the tops of my feet are immune to the sun at all somehow so I’m just a weird one really, sorry.

 

 

 

There are five main types of skin: dry, oily, combination, normal, and sensitive.

Truthfully, though your face may be mostly one–a lot of skin types are various forms of combination or depend even on weather.

Face mapping is a popular way to put breaking up your face into sections and treating them individually. There are a lot of theories on how certain parts of your face having skin issues is relative to diet or internal reasons.

I’m not about that life. Certainly to eat healthier has a lot of good effects on skin, but I wouldn’t say eat less chocolate for an instantly better jawline. Nor am I going to be that much of  a hypocrite when I have the diet of a 4 year old. I’m into thoroughly changing your skin through external products. Fixes you can buy and methods you can live by.

What I use face mapping for is for understanding how to treat. If your nose produces a lot of sebum, that where to focus your sebum fighting products. If you have large pores on your cheeks, that’s where you focus your pore refinement.

It’s through your personal face map that you can start off with figuring out your general skin type. From there, you can then work on spot treatments for sectional issues.

A dry skin type will not feel oil and instead have dry patches in areas. In the winter, there can even be constant burning sensations due to tiny cracks in the skin. Dry skin tends to get irritated rather easily and needs constant nourishment.

An oily skin type will feel oily everywhere. Even the slightest bit of sweat or hair rubbing across the face will usually lead to some type of blemish. In the summer, it’s particularly bad and constant. Oily skin isn’t usually just with the face, but sometimes the neck and even back as well.

A normal skin type feels neither oily nor dry, but can still suffer either on ocassion. These are the luckier types and what other skin types tend to strive for. It’s work but over time the more you treat your skin, the better it gets. It doesn’t revert unless you do, and once your get a significant stride away–it won’t even if you work a little less.

A combination skin type feels oily in the T-zone (areas 1, 2, 3, 7, 12, and 12a) and dry or normal otherwise. It usually needs several different products focused on balance so neither is too dried out or oily.

A sensitive skin type is exactly as it sounds. This is mostly normal, but reacts quite readily to environment and ingredients in products. In the same way you can have allergies or be allergic to practically everything, skin sensitivities vary.

Knowing what you’re sensitive to is really important. There is no point in suffering for nothing. If something feels bad, just stop and rinse off.

I personally have reactions to products with these 3 ingredients so far. It burns and tingles in the worst way and I last about two minutes if a sheet mask, and suffer with redness if a cleanser. Personal Disclosure: Soothing my ass.

    

First impressions are always important. The very first thing that people notice about you is your face. Whether they’re looking for recognition purposes or pure judgement, they’re going to use the image they see as a representation of you.

Your face is the one thing that you can proactively work on and give a better impression. A lot of people rely on makeup to do just that. I, however, believe working on your skin is a much longer lasting method.

Whether it’s blackheads, whiteheads, excess sebum, various types of acne–if there’s a will, there’s a way. Even if you’re one of the luckier ones, a smoother face means a smoother application of insta-worthy makeup.

Whenever it’s time for me to actually doll myself up, I hit hard on the exfoliation and double moisturizing for a flawless finish that hopefully disguises my lack of talent with anything other than foundation and lipstick.

One of the things about your skin that’s more of a pain in reality is how much it changes. Now, we’re all aware of the way puberty just messes things up, but even in adulthood or various health issues can contribute to our pains.

Growing up, my own skin went from oily and irritated to near enough perfect. Then my hormones went all over the place and suddenly dry skin, combination, excessive redness just kept popping up occasionally and then always. I fought it tooth and nail and I made it work. My skin is stronger, and so much better than it was. Even if I’m no longer a lucky one.

Puberty’s effects are mostly hormonal. The basic idea is that your body suddenly starts releasing information to the pituitary gland to produce testosterone and estrogen, which generally relate to sexual organs, but proportionally only different to biological gender. Testosterone will cause changes like increasing sebum production and hair growth. Estrogen as well as anything menstrual related tend to exacerbate skin conditions like eczema.

Any kind of health problems that affect hormones have a tendency to make it even harder as day to day the issues may change thanks to everything being out of balance. It’s with this inconsistency that it’s worth finding a routine that works for the most part but change adjust to a few changes here and there.

The most important message to leave you with is that my goal is to share everything I learned in my self improvement vanity driven journey so everyone can understand their own skin and what they can do. I research everything, and trial by error the rest. Also, I can’t draw so all these cute art things you can probably reverse image search and find someone who is good somewhere.

Thanks ^-^