Your Not???

Well, you should be! Who wants to run out of face...

Or..have a face that just plain looks run DOWN!

If your anything like me *not assuming you are, but you never know*

Then trying to pick some sort of routine for face care is extremely overwhelming!

Your not alone! Just perusing Shopper's Drugmart's Facial care aisle is INSANE!

And that doesn't include all the higher end products in the front of the store,

then there is free standing kiosks in department stores, bringing you

Clinique, Shiseido, MAC, Guerlain, Clarins...*head swirls*

Lord have mercy, what is a girl to do???

OKAY! So Let's Start with something you should probably have!

Cleanser:

The trick to a good cleanser is something that doesn't strip the oils

off of your face, yet strips the make-up and dirt, bacteria, oils etc. off!

Depending on the kind of skin you have, the kind of cleanser you need is different!

Oily Skinned gals are going to want something that helps control oil, Dry skin gals may

want something with more moisturizing ingredients!

Cleansers for sensitive skin: Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser is available in Wal-Mart, Fortino's and

pretty much all drugstores for relatively cheap, around 16$ for a HUGE pump bottle!

It is very gentle, and the Cetaphil moisturizer and cleanser are both my faves when my skin

is going insane-in-the-membrane!

For normal-combination skin, I really like Vichy products-- the cleansing milk is really amazing,

it isn't drying and smells lovely! Check it out online or at Shoppers!

Acne Prone Skin: You are going to want something with Salicyclic Acid (a beta hydroxy acid)

A lot of cleansers that say they are for acne prone skin will often contain this as an active ingredient!

(1-2% depending)

For those without acne *lucky ladies* then some spot treatments also containing the ingredient can help ;)

Tea Tree Oil: A naturally occuring oil from plants that is often present in skin-care products to treat acne/break-outs

It is essentially an anti-bacterial agent which can help control breakouts-- usually applied to blemishes!

If you go to a health food store, you can buy pure tea-tree oil usually for around 10-12$ CDN, just apply to blemishes,

be very careful, and never apply all over your face!

Natural Cleansing Methods:

If you are NOT on board with icky-poo sulfates and other potentially

harmful ingredients, well, amen to you sister-girl!

Don't worry though, you don't have to go through life looking like

a dirty-faced-mess, unless you want to..then more power to you!

There is a method of cleansing called OIL CLEANSING!

What it is, is using natural oils to cleanse your face.

LIKE BREAKS DOWN LIKE So although it seems counter-

intuitive *i knoww, right?* The oil actually breaks DOWN the oil

in your make-up!

HOW TO OIL-CLEANSE!?!?

Everyone has a method that is good for them, but I suggest removing

your make-up first, and then oil cleansing on clean skin, then rinsing off

If you have dry skin, you can moisturize afterwards, if oily skin, maybe toning

afterwards might help!

WHAT KINDA OIL?? Now don't go rubbing last night's KFC finger lickin' goodness

all over your face! The best kind of oil depends on you, but a favourite of mine and many others

seems to be Jojoba Oil! Feeling brave, give it a try!

When To Cleanse: I cleanse in the morning, and at night! At night, however, I always always cleanse

TWICE! I remove eye-makeup with cotton pads and baby oil, usually, and then use face-wipes to get off my foundation and other junk!

THEN I cleanse with whatever cleanser I'm hooked on at the time :)

You may be wondering WHY! Well, because if I don't, then I just rub all that oil and crap into

my pores...not very becoming ladies! You always want your make-up OFF before you cleanse, or else,

you aren't cleansing your face, but instead the make-up ON your face, or dirt/oil/bacteria *if you dont wear makeup*!

Moisturize:

I reccommend a cream during the day with SPF of atleast 15!

Depends on wear you live, really, for the summer time..probably more than SPF 30 (at least!)

I like Cetaphil during the day, and at night, I need something thicker!

I am using Nivea's Lightening Night Cream and I always use Eye cream

to help keep it hydrated and young looking! Currently using YES TO CARROTS: Eye

Contour cream-- but I hear Clinique's eye creams are amazing!

When buying eye cream or night cream, OR ANY CREAM look for ones with ingredients you need:

AHA-- Alpha Hydroxy Acids: These help exfoliate your skin, keeping your skin from looking dull

Retinoids: Used in skin care, and is a derivative of Vitamin A! It helps skin turn-over, and apparently

increases collagen production *oh la la* Which makes it popular in anti-aging treatments!

I hope that helps :)

Happy Cleansing y'all!

PS:

Here are some amazing sites, just to prove I'm not full of crap!

Seriously, check these out if you are serious about saving that face! :)

[url] http://www.futurederm.com/2008/01/01/five-ingredients-your-skin-cant-liv... [/url]

that post has 5 ingredients you need for skincare :)

1) Retinoids *smoother skin, less acne*

2) AHA's *exfoliating*

3) Antioxidant's *goji berries and green tea, anyone?*

4) Sunscreen *duh sunscreen is the best anti-aging treatment, like...ever*

5) Hydroquinone *for skin discolouration*