Part 1: What Causes Aging?

*Warning: Written for #skinnerds. If you just want to skip to the actual steps for the routine, see Parts 3 & 4 - coming soon!

One of the most frequently asked questions when it comes to skincare is- what’s the perfect beauty routine?  Even with a TON of info out on social media, people ask this over and over, because it’s actually more complicated than just simple rules and steps that work for all. There’s context, personal preferences, exceptions, varying skin needs and goals and varying expert advice. Read on for some background and understanding which will help you sort through the sea of info, and you can decide what applies to you. 

The Home Beauty Routine is Based on Professional Skincare Facials 

If you’ve gotten a professional facial from an esthetician before, you might recognize that the home beauty skincare routines are basically the breakdown of each step in these facials conducted at home to promote optimal skin health. (If you’re curious as to what professional facials are typically like, here’s one review of a facial done at Aesop.) Remember that the role of the dermatologist is different from licensed beauty specialists. Generally, derms will have a more clinical focus (think skin cancer, burns, and medical conditions) while estheticians will focus more on appearance, preventative, preemptive and holistic care. Then there are the cosmetic surgeons and medical aestheticians (fillers, liposuction, botox injections, etc.) and specialists that stride in between. Understanding these distinctions is important in discerning through the sometimes clashing sea of confusing info on the Internet, as experts can approach the subject from varying perspectives. 💡 

Keep in Mind

Remember that beauty is personal and everyone is different. While there are universal guidelines, there’s no ONE perfect routine to suit all.  Knowing your skin and having skin goals will help shape the routine that’s right for you. It will take observation and patience. Also, keep in mind that your skin changes and that you may want to alter your routine over time.

So How Do Home Beauty/Skincare Routines Work?

Your skin has a cycle that’s about a month long. This cycle is the process of new skin cells forming and moving up through the layers of your skin that then become dead skin cells at the top layer.  By removing the dead skin cells, we speed up the process as new skin appears beneath, making our skin look fresh and dewy. As we age, this process can slow down. The skincare routine is all about prevention, protection and promoting cell turnover. All the steps break down into two overarching actions: cleansing and replenishing.

What Happens When We Age?

Did you know that only 10% of aging is intrinsic, meaning the natural process of aging and your genetic disposition, while 90% is extrinsic aging?  That means the environment, lifestyle choices and external factors attribute to the rest. Translation: it can be prevented and slowed!! 

When we age, the biochemical changes that happen include losing tensile strength from loss of collagen, and elastic production, and  lipid production. The skin also loses the ability to bind water, causing the skin to be more dehydrated and the slowing of blood flow also makes the delivery of nutrition to the cells less efficient. There’s less energy for repairing DNA damage, and slower cell turnover as well as impaired immune function. Your skin becomes dry, the skin barrier function is weakened, and you form aging cells. These all lead to visible physical changes like wrinkles, sagging, loss of fat, and loss of firmness and tension, which leads to more wrinkles, rougher texture and thinning or thickening of the skin. Not to mention discoloration, dark spots, and uneven skin tone, making the skin look dull or lackluster.  Dilated capillaries cause redness, and your skin becomes more prone to inflammation.

So What Causes Aging Skin?   

The culprits include: Free radicals, DNA repair, inflammation, glycation & cross-linking, mitochondria (energy production), cellular garbage, telomeres, genetic clock, wear & tear, hormones, stress, smoke, alcohol. There's no ONE reason, as it's a combination of extrinsic and intrinsic factors that play a role, so we must be diligent about building a preventative system of anti-aging care at a holistic level. In other words, we need an effective age-fighting systemic plan to tackle the different mechanisms of aging. This means maintaining a healthy lifestyle, drinking plenty of water, getting sound sleep, regular exercise, balanced nutrition and managing stress on TOP of a strong skincare routine filled with beauty products that target skin-aging agents.  (Read about the types of ingredients to look for in your skincare regimen.)

Fight aging by building masking into your regular beauty routine. Remember aging can be slowed and prevented by preemptive protection and prevention!  Signing up for Mask Moments is one of the best decisions you’ll make in your skincare routine!

Try it for $1 today 

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!

Review of High End #Facial at Aesop

We’re always striving to learn more about skincare best practice to incorporate Mask Moments.  This time, I went to check out Aesop’s top-notch #facial program.  

Aesop has only one #skincare facility in the 8 countries where the retailer offers this service and in Korea, it is at #AesopSoundsHannam.

A very pleasant and qualified #skintherapist escorts your into an exclusive space on the second floor and will discuss your skin needs over warm, herbal tea.

I love their ceramics and the quotes. Every country has a different quote and the one chosen for Korea is: 

“Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.” Franz Kafka. Love it!

#Aesop is a thoughtful brand in the way they prioritize including philosophy, aesthetics and a luxury experience in all they do. That’s what stood out to me about this facial treatment. I mean, look at this room!

It was like being in a 5 star hotel. Aesop is every designer’s dream and it shows from their clever font (a modern sans-serif that looks and has the gravity of serif, for all you design nerds!) in the interior of every one of their retail fronts. Their intentional designs are very much part of their identity and they do a good job of conveying this brand experience in their facial program.  This heavenly skincare bed not only automatically inclines/declines (not to mention how plush it was), the kind aesthetician even tucked me in from head to toe (aaahhh)! Their towels, linens, sheet, being in the bathroom and changing station- all of it is part of the 5-star luxury hotel experience, fitting their brand positioning and the price tag.

Another huge component of the program Aesop’s signature #AROMATHERAPY. If you’ve ever used their hand soaps in so many hip restaurants in major cities, you will be familiar with their heavenly herbal/earthy/nature-recalling rejuvenating aroma that helps you destress and distinctly “Aesop.” Every product that is utilized as part of the facial is an Aesop product -and they use plenty of it, making you feel spoiled. 

The break down of the facial itself is in line with most facials and multi-step skincare routines.  At each step, Aesop uses their own line of products appropriate for your skin.

 1. Make up removal and first cleansing.

(Here, once my skin was clean, the esthetician observed my skin and we collectively decided that the DETOX facial would be best suited for my skin’s needs at the moment.)

2. Deep cleansing

(Second cleansing/ Exfoliation)

3. Manual technique

(where they use a facial massage technique and apply nourishing serums). This facial program also includes a head massage! (#Fave)

4. Mask

This is where all the skin restoration products are used and expected to soak deeply into your skin. They use a concoction of their products based on your skin needs and warm it to make it extra indulgent!

5. Top off with finishing layers of hydrators and moisturizers.

When it comes to products, I give most attention to what’s being used to restore and hydrate- the actual elixir of nutrients that will rejuvenate my skin (normally this is the “main event” step in your skincare routine typically best worth your investment).  In this program, the product that stood out to me the most was:

 “B triple C Facial Balancing Gel” that includes both Vitamin B and Vitamin C. This product was unique in it honey-like consistency and texture but without the stickiness. It’s almost obviously that I would choose this product because it includes ingredients key to skin and therefore we’ve also included in Mask Moments.  You can’t have enough when it comes to anti-oxidants!  I would use this product in the serum step of your skincare routine, before or after the Mask Moments coconut jelly sheet mask but before sealing it all in with a moisturizer.  

Getting one of these facials is fabulous but only lasts a few days at best. As you know #Skincare is all about consistent #maintenance, friends. 

We can’t always afford the money or the time for frequent #facials, but that is why we created Mask Moments-  so you can have salon quality facial results right at home, any time you want!

Try it for $1 today