Part 2. Am I Choosing the Right Products for My Skin Type?

Are You Identifying Your Unique Skin Type Correctly? 

The most traditional way of thinking of skin types are: Oily, Dry, Normal and Combination skin. What’s misleading about these categories, however, is that by thinking you have “oily” skin, you focus your entire regime to stripping oils, forgetting that you actually need hydration just as much as the dry skinned folks.  What’s worse is people who are acne prone automatically assume they have oily skin and over-irritate their skin, which then causes your skin to produce MORE oil because it’s compensating for the loss.  This is a very common mistake! Remember that ALL skin goes through the skin cycle from drier phases to oilier phases with different needs throughout the cycle. Yes, you may have oily skin, but your skin will need just as much restoration and hydration. Remember that it’s about finding the right oil/water balance for skin.  Moreover, all of our skins will lose moisture as we age, so everyone needs hydration- not just people with dry skin! 

Lastly, estheticians divide the skin regions by the T-zone (your forehead and nose), the U-zone (your cheeks and face up to the neck line) and the décolletage/ neck area. Combination skin suggests that one of these zones is different from the other.  For example, you might have an oily T-zone but a drier U-zone. Identifying these zones is more complex than it appears and having vastly different patches on your face suggests you may be doing something incorrectly. The best way to gauge is really by the size, shape and evenness of your pores, which is not always accurate to the naked eye. As an esthetician, I like to treat each of these areas differently, but most people don’t go into that level of detail for home beauty. 

What About People with Sensitive Skin?

This requires a whole other blog piece. The short answer is that a) everyone should be treating their skin as gently as possible and b) everyone needs to treat inflammation! Take note of the kind of allergens you react to and if your skin is showing irritation to helpful ingredients like retinol or vitamin C, you can build up to working them into your routine slowly, over time, in small increments. If you have a chronic skin condition, consult your dermatologist. As you experiment, always have a Mask Moments handy, as these masks will help relieve redness and sensitivities and soothe away irritations. 

So Now What? What’s the Best Approach for Choosing the Products for My Skincare Routine?

Instead of thinking of your skin as oily/dry/combination skin, choose targeted skin goals for yourself to build your routine. For example, you may want to target redness, uneven skin tone, blackheads, flaky skin, acne, dry skin, wrinkle prevention, firmness, etc.  Once you have products that target these skin concerns, build the rest of your around these goals. On top of your targeted goals, make sure your overall skin routine includes anti-aging and anti-inflammation goals as well. Choose the products that address these concerns and stick to it for a minimum of 30 days- give it your whole skin cycle. Change takes patience, consistency and discipline - a routine that you stick to! Results will be worth the investment! Join us on our Facebook Page (or request to be added to our private Facebook Group) and share your journey with us!

And instead of putting masking off for special occasions, build Mask Moments into your routine regularly to address inflammation and restoration. This will be the best skincare decision you make and your actions and choices WILL pay off! 

Try it for $1 today 

A friend recently reached out to ask about mask productions on behalf of someone in the business. Halfway through the conversation, we realized that she was not talking about the hydrating sheet masks or face masks but rather, about protection masks (PPEs- like the N95 or three-ply dental masks) for COVID19! 

The word “mask” has exploded on search terms and in the media lately with what’s been going on with corona, so today, I want to talk about (sheet/ face) masks for (protective) masks! 

I’ve been in Seoul, Korea the last two months and EVERYONE has been wearing protection masks to shield their face, especially since we are past the lockdown phase here and a high percentage of people have returned (albeit slowly) to fairly normal lives.  The idea is to create an extra layer of barrier to prevent the spread of contamination- both from lowering the chance of passing and catching germs including coronavirus that travel through droplets. Earlier in the US, whether one should or should not wear masks was up for debate, but it’s becoming more commonplace across the cities. I’m sitting in a fairly well occupied cafe as I write this but the staff have been turning away anyone not wearing one of these masks.

While these masks serve as preventative equipment, there are unintended side effects that affect your skin. A few weeks into wearing these masks regularly, I started getting itchy on the areas where the mask touched my face, and soon enough, I started seeing a breakout right along the outline of the masks!

You’ve seen the pictures of healthcare workers who have had to wear tight fitting masks for long periods. They have sores, skin tears, indentations from wearing PPEs for hours. While it provides an extra layer of protection, wearing these tight masks will increase dryness, irritate sensitive skin, and can cause acne. Studies also show that this can increase risk for developing infections of the skin (bacterial, fungal, viral) from poor barrier function and open sores.  And when you have damaged skin, the masks may not seal properly, increasing exposure to the coronavirus. Over 97% of healthcare workers on the frontline will experience skin issues! 

If you are dealing with this or know someone who is, please take a Mask Moment! The friction from the PPE (masks and goggles too) along with the humidity trapped inside the mask makes your skin drier. The fact that the weather has been changing (aka allergy season) does not help! 

For relief, the idea is to focus on strengthening skin barrier, hydrating your skin and relieving inflammation and redness.

Here are the DO’s and DON’Ts!

DO NOT:

1. Wear heavy makeup. Instead, skip the heavy foundation that can clog pores and worsen acne. 
2. Sleep in makeup and be sure to remove it as soon as you can. (This is true for all times, actually!)
3. Exfoliate too hard but go easy on the overly physical kind of exfoliation. The friction from the masks can cause microtears in the epidermis and you don’t want to be exacerbating the area with scrubs or gommages. I would stick to enzyme washes if you must exfoliate.
4. Touch your face!! And please wash your hands before applying anything!
5. Put on anything you might be sensitive to. Even if you use it in your normal skincare routine, this may be the time to take a break from retinoids or hydroxy acids or strong vitamin C’s.  You can always come back to them once you recover but avoid anything you are sensitive to during this time.

DO:

1. Use hydrating serums with active ingredients, morning and night! 
2. Lubricate the area with petroleum jelly before putting on protective gear.
3. Frequently apply an occlusive agent (lotions, moisturizers, oils) to prevent water loss.
4. Remember to apply lip balm for chapped lips.
5. Use Mask Moments for hydration, restoration, relief from inflammation and redness. Our masks have ALL the ingredients that are your best friends right now: glycerin, hyaluronic acid, vitamin B5. And both the niacinamide and biocellulose (coconut jelly) will help reduce inflammation and redness. 

Know any healthcare worker who can use Mask Moments?  Nominate a hero to thank them for their service and we will select a winner everyday throughout the rest of April to receive a FREE mask to offer some relief as a sign of appreciation! 

Here’s how it works:

1. Follow our IG account @maskmoments and tag your hero in the healthcare field on our post.
2. Have them FOLLOW our account. Increase your chance by DMing us your stories and pictures. Multiple people voting for the same person will also count towards the entry.

When we hear “natural/organic,” we assume that such products are more “gentle.” However, beauty products are really talking about the purity of the ingredients when we say “natural” or “organic.”  There’s a danger here though, because in reality, many people have reactions and irritations to pure ingredients. (Think of all the things in nature we are allergic to, and it depends on the person!) So “natural/organic” is not necessarily safer, and in fact, so many more synthetic ingredients are better tested in labs to be safe for your skin!

If you swear by natural/organic beauty, that’s fantastic, but remember that lab tested ingredients may often be more effective, too.  For example, some people like DIY skincare with ingredients made at home (using lemon, honey, coconut oil, avocado oil etc.). Doesn’t get any more natural or organic than that!  But when used incorrectly, this can backfire and you can have irritation, whereas lab products are tested for safety and formulated in controlled in dosaged. I’ve heard some Youtubers claim they don’t use products with ingredients they don’t recognize. Beauty is personal, so  that’s a choice that I respect. But, beware when assuming that everything in nature is “safe” and “gentle.” It’s also an assumption to think that all “synthetic” or “chemical” is always “bad.” Rather, tons of lab-made, science backed ingredients are synthetic (and “chemical”- everything is a chemical you guys!) and often much better tested and can be MUCH more effective! Think of all the anti-oxidants that are lab made and work in different pathways to support anti-aging. Who are we kidding? After all, we’re trying to FIGHT nature here when it comes to anti-aging! There are also other agents that help certain ingredients absorb better or simply act as emollients.

Another example is when people fear “alcohol” in the ingredient list.  What you want to stay away from is any drying alcohol (which Clean Beauty products do not use) but some types of alcohol serve as emollients and can be hydrating. The other word people fear is “preservatives” but what you want to avoid here is toxic preservatives (listed below). All cosmetics must have certain formulations to preserve your product for your sake!  If you’re making a home made product using ingredients you bought at the grocery, you must use it right away or these products will go bad and will have an adverse effect on your skin!  

The beauty industry has come a long way and very few brands would dare include a “toxic” ingredient in their product and add anything that’s unnecessary. More specifically for “Clean beauty” though, this means that they  do not include the following: parabens, sulfates SLS and SLES, phthalates, mineral oils, formaldehydes, formaldehyde-releasing agents, retinyl palmitate, oxybenzone, coal tar, hydroquinone, triclosan, and triclocarban.

It can also  mean that they either have 1% or less synthetic fragrance and don’t use dyes.  Clean beauty brands are generally also cruelty-free, eco-friendly and sustainable. 

In case you were wondering, Mask Moments masks also fall into the natural and clean beauty category. Our premium bio-cellulose sheets are all-natural, made from fermented coconut water, which has naturally healing and restorative properties.  These sheets are also biodegradable and eco-friendly. They hold fluid 100 times its dry weight and 10 times more than fabric or paper mask sheets!

Our serums include the best, proven ingredients of nature and science that are known to be effective and take caution not to add any unnecessary ingredients.  We include NO synthetic fragrance and less than 1% of diluted essential oils- only enough to provide the aromatic therapy that calms your mind and brings focus to your senses, but not to irritate your skin! 

Ready to give it a try?

Try Mask Moments for $1 today 

Stay tuned for more questions and secrets behind the beauty industry.  See the full video.  

And why I created Mask Moments here. 

Have more questions for us? Please leave below!