My Face Needs Help!

This is for all my dear readers who suffer from redness and skin reactions to certain chemicals and products. I scrubbed my bathtub and shower stall with a new product that I accidentally splashed on my face, neck, and left shoulder when I ran the shower to rinse off the cleaning product. A few hours later, my left shoulder, entire neck and face were covered in angry red hives that for the past three days has cooled into a very annoying pink rash. YUCK.
Anyway, I thought that I would share with you what I am doing to help my face heal from this unfortunate mishap.
1. WASH YOUR FACE!!!! As soon as I realized that my face was reacting to the product, I immediately washed it with my cleanser and cold water.
2. Repair serum! I have been applying liberal amounts of my Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair serum to my face and neck to help both soothe the redness and help the area heal from the irritating product at night. I have even mixed some of the product into my foundation so that my face can heal even when I'm wearing makeup.
3. Moisturize. I have a very nice moisturizer from Clinique called Redness Solutions that is especially made to help reduce redness and irritation on the face. I've been using it day and night since this happened.
4. Antihistamine pills... thank you Benadryl! Those little pink pills make me exhausted, but they help my face look a bit more normal.
5. Chocolate. Well, this doesn't really help my face look better, but it sure is nice to think about something yummy rather than my red and irritated face! LOL

Cleanse Your Beautiful Face

We all know that we should brush our teeth twice a day, but what about cleansing our face? I have combination skin, which means that parts of my face are dry and the rest is oily. The main types of skin are dry, normal/combination, and oily.

I believe that ALL skin types should be cleansed twice a day, although how the skin is cleansed should be aligned with your skin type. 

1. Dry faces should use moisturizing washes or cream cleansers that can be wiped off with a tissue. Follow with a moisturizing toner and then with your facial moisturizing cream or lotion. This will help prevent frequent cleansing from dehydrating your skin.
2. Oily faces should use oil control cleansers that help clear out pores and can usually handle harsher ingredients like salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide that combat acne. Be very careful with benzoyl peroxide if you have sensitive skin! Test a little bit of the product on your neck or cheek before applying to your whole face, or you risk the product stinging your entire face.  I learned that the hard way. Follow with oil controlling toner and oil free moisturizer.
3. Normal and combination skin often have similar routines with cleansing washes, although combination skin can benefit from spot treatments for acne with oil control products. Again, follow cleansing with a toner and moisturizer.

Here is my morning and evening routine for my combination skin.

Wash my hands and wet my face.

Put a small amount of Estee Lauder Perfectly Clean Splash Away Foaming Cleanser onto my hands and work into a lather.

Gently scrub lather into my face with my fingers paying extra attention to my oily spots.

Rinse off the cleansing foam and gently dry with a clean towel.

Pour small amount of Estee Lauder Perfectly Clean Fresh Balancing Lotion (toner) onto a round cotton pad and apply all over my face.

Follow with my favorite moisturizer! I will go into more detail regarding my moisturizer and skin serums in a different post.

Note: the main difference between my morning and evening cleansing is that I use Estee Lauder Take It Away makeup remover before I use the foaming wash.

Enjoy cleansing your beautiful face! Your complexion will thank you. :)

Tips for Shopping at Makeup Counters

I want to empower shoppers like you with a few tips regarding shopping at makeup counters like Estee Lauder, Clinique, Lancome, Elizabeth Arden, etc.

1. Have an idea of what you need to buy

This will really help streamline your shopping process. Some of you know exactly what shade of lipstick you want, others have no idea. I suggest that you have a color in mind like, "I'm looking for a nice red lipstick that I can wear out on a date." or "I really need a simple neutral lipstick that I can wear to the office." Statements like this will help your beauty adviser show you the best products to meet your specific needs. By the way, a good beauty adviser will ask you questions!

2. Try on makeup at the counter

Take advantage of the testers at designer makeup counters and try on the product. You may love that apricot lipstick, but will it flatter your skin tone? Save yourself an extra trip to return the lipstick by trying it on first. Beauty advisers are trained in hygienic makeup application and love to apply makeup to customers. Honestly, applying makeup is what I enjoy most about my job!

3. Ask for samples

Not sure if you like the anti-wrinkle moisturizer? Ask if you can take a sample home. Especially if you are already buying a product or two, any beauty adviser would be more than happy to give you a sample or two if they are available. Note that cosmetic items like eyeshadow, lipstick, blush, and concealer are difficult to package as a sample and will not be available. In my experience at Estee Lauder, most available samples include face creams and lotions, skin serums, eye creams, foundation, and sometimes mascara.

4. Ask for your name to be added the counter client list

I know this one is scary for many people, but I suggest it because you can learn about special deals before anyone else. Many makeup companies have special deals like free gift with purchase and beauty advisers will let their customers know usually a week or two beforehand. Other special events can include makeup artists coming to the counter, free sample giveaways, etc.

I hope these tips help you during your next makeup shopping experience! Enjoy!

Neutral Pink Lips

I love pink lipstick. Pink encompasses so much variety when it comes to lipstick, so I want to focus this post on neutral pink lipstick. Today, I wanted a natural look that had a little shine, but could pass for my own lip color. I used Estee Lauder Pure Color Lipstick in Tiramisu*. I really like this lipstick because the color is almost exactly the shade of my own lips, but the lipstick just adds a finishing touch to my makeup.

Applying EL Tiramisu Lipstick

I applied Estee Lauder Pure Color Gloss in Pink Kiss* over the lipstick for added moisture and shine. My lips tend to chap easily, so I love to layer a lip gloss that is similar in color to my lipstick so that I get great color and plenty of hydration for my lips.

Finished!

* I personally love to use Estee Lauder products, but I am expressing my own preferences and opinion. This post does not represent Estee Lauder.