Hey Kingdom,
# 2) Eating (for lack of a better term) crap!
As obvious as it may seem, eating junk food is one of the sure-fire ways to sabbotage your skin. Fried foods increase the oil in your skin, which then clogs the poors, eating sweets and too many complex carbs also produces the same results---> breakouts.
Okay, fine, so you're not prone to break outs. Fried foods and too many sweets also greatly impact the texture and brightness of your skin as well. So, even if acne doesn't result, the texture of the skin will reveal what lies inside the tummy.
# 3) Not purifying the face at night
Tip: cleanse the face before going to bed at night, and if you just can't make it that far (Hey, we understand, some nights may be rougher than others), make sure to at least wash with clean water. Another great substitute is running the faucet on very warm (until it's steaming), soak a clean wash towel in the hot water, squeeze the towel a little and place over the face for 30 seconds. Remove the towel and wipe the skin thoroughly. Steam opens up the pores and gets right into the dirt. If you just dont have the energy one night to go through the whole washing, toning and moisturizing routine, a tip would be to steam the face and wipe the excess dirt away. Et Voila! Once you wake up in the morning (and once you've regained your senses, lol) you should proceed with a througouh cleansing.
# 4) Over-using make-up sponges and brushes, skin towels, pillow cases and head-wraps!
Okay Ladies, this is definitley one of the biggest skin sins we commit without knowin' it. The usage reccomendations on some of these products are not just there to get us to spend more of our money to replace them. We should be careful to not overuse make-up tools. For example, face brushes should be washed weekly if used regularly. Brushes build up dirt, oil and bacteria. Each time a brush is used on the face, just think about it as just distributing dirt onto the face, along with the make-up. Yep, that's essentially what happens when brushes are not washed: the make-up process becomes counter-productive.
Headwraps: Now, ladies, for those who tie up or wrap the hair at night, this is something that is totally overlooked! What you place on your head also rests on your pillow (the same place your faces rests) for over 8 hours every day. Naturally, all the product, oil, and particles in the hair and on the hair scarf will rub onto the pillow. This means even if you have a clean pillow case, and clean skin, if the head wrap isn't clean, your skin will still be affected. Before you know it, your face, head scarf and pillow case are all doing the mambo while you sleep. :-)
Did you know that the averagely used cell phone is one of the most germy things we use? Studies have shown that the cell phone carries more bacteria on it than the average public bathroom toilet seat! That's right. Many of us use our cell phone frequently, and naturally we put them to our faces to talk, which means that dirt, oil and bacteria has daily opportunities to get onto the skin.
Kay, are you convinced your skin regimen could be a little tighter? There's always room for improvement!
Wishing you, and your skin a beautiful Spring!
XoXo,
G.I.F.T.
As warm weather and the summer quickly approaches, everyone is looking for ways to improve their skin. In the Summer time, the less make-up worn, the more the skin is able to breathe freely, which, in turn allows the skin to have a healthier and cleaner look. Plus, too much make-up in the Summer just isn't as practical, especially if you live in extra-warm climates. In order to get glowing, naturally beautiful skin, G.I.F.T. has come up with the top 5 Supe Skin Sins we committ everyday, and some suggestions as to how to not just get better skin, but to maintain it!
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| Neutrogena model, Gabrielle Union and her gorgeous skin |
Top Five Skin Sins
# 1) Not drinking enough (Or any, for that matter) H20!
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| Cameron Diaz w/her Fiji water |
Now, we all know drinking 8 glasses of water can be a challenge for many of us (where is the rest of the food supposed to fit, right?) but as warm weather approaches this will be key! Drinking water produces almost instant results in your skin, and of course the plethora of other health benefits.
You've all seen celebrities like Halle Berry and Gabriel Union toting aroung giant bottles of water haven't you? That's on of the tools you use to get and keep healthy skin. It's no secret, water is crazy when it comes to improving your skins appearnace, feel and glow.
Tip: Increase you water intake by DOUBLE within the next few days. Your complexion and texture of your skin will be proof of the wonders of water!
# 2) Eating (for lack of a better term) crap!
As obvious as it may seem, eating junk food is one of the sure-fire ways to sabbotage your skin. Fried foods increase the oil in your skin, which then clogs the poors, eating sweets and too many complex carbs also produces the same results---> breakouts.
Okay, fine, so you're not prone to break outs. Fried foods and too many sweets also greatly impact the texture and brightness of your skin as well. So, even if acne doesn't result, the texture of the skin will reveal what lies inside the tummy.
Tip: ditch the artifical sugars for natural ones. This season, switch the candy with fruits, juicy fruits such as oranges, apples, melons, strawberries (contains antioxidants which are great for the skin!). Also, try eating foods that have been proven to inmprove the skin such as avocado and other natural fats!
# 3) Not purifying the face at night
Everyone should give the face a douse of water, at minimum before placing the head on the pillow. As we go throughout the day, the skin not only perspires, but it soaks up the elements floating around in the air such as smoke, steam, gases, dust, dirt, and the list goes on! If the face isn't cleansed at the end of the day, it means we take all of that stuff with us on the pillow case!
Tip: cleanse the face before going to bed at night, and if you just can't make it that far (Hey, we understand, some nights may be rougher than others), make sure to at least wash with clean water. Another great substitute is running the faucet on very warm (until it's steaming), soak a clean wash towel in the hot water, squeeze the towel a little and place over the face for 30 seconds. Remove the towel and wipe the skin thoroughly. Steam opens up the pores and gets right into the dirt. If you just dont have the energy one night to go through the whole washing, toning and moisturizing routine, a tip would be to steam the face and wipe the excess dirt away. Et Voila! Once you wake up in the morning (and once you've regained your senses, lol) you should proceed with a througouh cleansing.
# 4) Over-using make-up sponges and brushes, skin towels, pillow cases and head-wraps!
Okay Ladies, this is definitley one of the biggest skin sins we commit without knowin' it. The usage reccomendations on some of these products are not just there to get us to spend more of our money to replace them. We should be careful to not overuse make-up tools. For example, face brushes should be washed weekly if used regularly. Brushes build up dirt, oil and bacteria. Each time a brush is used on the face, just think about it as just distributing dirt onto the face, along with the make-up. Yep, that's essentially what happens when brushes are not washed: the make-up process becomes counter-productive. Pillow cases and linen: Same issue with our skin towels, and pillow cases. Most people would be surpised to know how long the average person uses the same pillow cases over and over again. To get and maintain healthy skin, the place we lay our faces from anywhere between 6-12 hours each day must be clean!
Headwraps: Now, ladies, for those who tie up or wrap the hair at night, this is something that is totally overlooked! What you place on your head also rests on your pillow (the same place your faces rests) for over 8 hours every day. Naturally, all the product, oil, and particles in the hair and on the hair scarf will rub onto the pillow. This means even if you have a clean pillow case, and clean skin, if the head wrap isn't clean, your skin will still be affected. Before you know it, your face, head scarf and pillow case are all doing the mambo while you sleep. :-)Tip: Change or wash your pillow case, at a minimum, once every 5-7 days. Switch up, or wash all scarves or wraps used to tie the hair down at night at least once per week (depending on how much product is in the hair, you may need to do it more often). Finally, to see a change in your skin's texture and complexion, be sure to use clean tools on your face, and never use a facial towel more than 3 times to dry the face.
# 5) Using the Phone as Part of Your Face
Did you know that the averagely used cell phone is one of the most germy things we use? Studies have shown that the cell phone carries more bacteria on it than the average public bathroom toilet seat! That's right. Many of us use our cell phone frequently, and naturally we put them to our faces to talk, which means that dirt, oil and bacteria has daily opportunities to get onto the skin. Tip: Wipe your cell phone at least once every 2 days (more if you're a germophobe, hehe) with all natural anti-bacterial cleaning wipes like these:
Kay, are you convinced your skin regimen could be a little tighter? There's always room for improvement!
Wishing you, and your skin a beautiful Spring!
XoXo,
G.I.F.T.
