Vanilla Birthday Cake

I have a massive backlog of Drafts from before I bailed on my Blog previously. Since I don't have the original images intended for them, I will find images online and use those instead. So if you see the tag #backlog in any post, you know that I had it all lined up in the past but either had some light (or very heavy) editing depending on the content I had already written. With all that said, onward to the post!

It's no secret I love Philosophy body washes. I love anything that allows me to smell like delicious edible baked goods. That and my skin is too sensitive for perfumes and I generally don't like the smell of 99% of perfume out there.

What I love about the birthday cake is that it smells just like b-day cake. The smell seems overwhelming sometimes in the shower, but it's not as strong once you dry off. That's not to say you can't smell it at all but it isn't as intense as a perfume would be. And it wears off as the day goes on.

The bodywash isn't particularly moisturizing, so use it every-other day in the winter or if you have very dry skin in general. It also might be too much for someone even more sensitive to fragrances. But I'm one of those people who get yeast infections from laundry detergent that has scent and I do just fine with it. Just don't use this directly on your genitals, and I think you will be fine.

I also don't recommend this for shampoo or bubble bath. It sucked for shampoo because I get dandruff easily and this made it worse. Also, it stripped my hair color out. In regards to bubble bath, I've still yet to find a bubble bath or bath bomb that doesn't give me a massive yeast infection. So I avoid soaking in strong smells or chemicals in any way.

You can buy it from Philosophy directly here: http://www.philosophy.com/vanilla-birthday-cake-shower-gel.html

Oh Acne!

This will probably be a recurring post topic for me since a lot of people struggle with it. I, myself, struggle constantly with acne. My goal here is to help you short cut to something that works for you or perhaps let you in on something you haven't yet tried. No matter how you cut it, face washes, creams, moisturizers, shampoos, deodorants, all beauty products are not one size fits all. What works for me might not work for you and in the end, it is YOU who have to experiment by trial-and-error. There's even the fact that your body chemistry changes over time and something that used to work for you might stop working & it's time to find something else. I'm going to try to ease your pain.


Identify your skin type
The first thing you have to do is identify what kind of skin you have. I have normal leaning towards oily skin. Oily especially in that famous T-zone. My skin is also exceptionally sensitive. I can't use peroxide (especially benzoyl peroxide at any concentration) without fear of my skin getting red, itchy, dry and in the case of open wounds, super filled with pus and 20x angier than if I'd just have left it alone. When I was a teenager, I was all about benzoyl peroxide. I thought it was a miracle. It zapped those zits dry but it left me with flaky, dry, red skin. Not pretty. Also, I find dry skin even harder to put makeup on than just flat out zitty skin.


Decide what your top concerns are
My two biggest concerns are no zits and no dry flaky skin. I don't worry so much about the unevenness of my skin tone or under eye circles - that's what makeup is for. I also don't worry about wrinkles. Not because I'm young, I'm almost 30, but because whatever. I want to look as natural an healthy as possible. Wrinkles are a sign of use. Smile lines around your eyes and mouth are good things to have. Now, unless you have a furrowed brow from being angry all the time, you shouldn't worry about wrinkles.


Develop a testing method
And stick to it! Your skin usually isn't going to react (positively or negatively) over night to a new face wash. You have to give it weeks to see if its right for you. I know. I am impatient too. But I promise to myself I will use the whole bottle of something (or like 3/4) before I determine if I like a product or not. About a month of using something gives you a better idea of if it is good for your skin or not. It will have been used during all levels of hormones and stress so you can better judge it. 


Don't get discouraged
Sometimes you'll go through a mountain of products before you find what is best for you. In the meantime, your skin is going to suck. But something I've learned over the years is that it isn't the end of the world. Life goes on. I admit sometimes acne has kept me from going to social events if it is particularly terrible. But I generally try to push on and go to events where having fun at the event would be a million times better than staying at home with my giant boil on my chin or where ever.  Keep trying til you find something that works for you. If you've tried the basics and still need help, there is always a dermatologist. I've been to plenty myself.


General pointers
Really there are only two. Wash & Moisturize. Wash your face in the morning when you get up and in the evening just before bed. You could get away with one other time (sometimes I re-do makeup for the night if my day makeup got all sweaty and gross) but don't wash your face excessively. It makes your skin flaky or conversely, could cause a serious over production of oil. Both are bad. After you wash, MOISTURIZE. I don't even care about you whining you have oily skin. There are moisturizers out there for you too. You have to replenish the oil lost in the washing process or your face will work double time to make more oil. Again, this is bad. Some people would recommend a toner in between but I haven't found that to significantly improve my skin so I say you can skip that step. Also, I only use acne treatments at night after I moisturize. It seems to be that I can't cover it with makeup during the day and I've really searched the market for something truly undetectable under makeup.  This Almay Concealer was the only one I could find that actually worked well as a concealer AND acne treatment. The problem was, the color didn't match well at all.


Here's some stuff I recommend & don't recommend
To help you on your journey, here's some things I've learned. I generally love Neutrogena products. I like their Pink Grapefruit, Redness Soothing and Stress Control lines. But I do NOT recommend any face soap - or for that matter soap at all - that is solid. Even Neutrogena's solid bar is a no-go. No matter how fancy or non-comedogenic it claims to be, solid soaps usually ends up either making me break out or drying the crap out of my skin. Most Clean & Clear & Clearasil products I either hate or just felt 'meh' about. Aveeno has been alright. It didn't remove makeup well in my humble opinion, but might be good for those who don't wear makeup or just as a morning cleanser. I've had some samples of Murad Clarifying Cleanser and Time Release Acne Cleanser that were pretty nice. Just WOAH expensive so I've never bought any.

As for moisturizer, I am pretty picky. I like Neutrogena's Oil Free Sensitive Skin moisturizer pretty much exclusively. I occasionally buy the CVS knock off, but that feels waxier on my skin than the real deal. I've had lots and lots of sample moisturizers and face washes from Sephora but most have not impressed me enough for me to want to buy the product. I seriously just searched Sephora for moisturizers and none of them I recall to be particularly amazing or terrible. This one I can't offer much help on. Choose one based on your needs (oily, dry, combo) that is non-comedogenic, non-acnegenic, and oil free. That's the best advice I can give. I hear ones with salicylic acid are good for oily skin.

I like Boscia's masks. I have the Clarifying Detox Mask I use as a spot treatment when I have just popped a white head. I don't use it on all of my face normally. I also use their Luminizing Black Mask about once a month to rip out black heads everywhere. Makes my skin so very soft. I don't recommend any drug store masks as they all seem to just make everything worse. Previously mentioned in another post, I like Philosophy's Micro delivery Peel but only about once a month.


In summation
Good luck! I will post more on my recommendations and non-recommendations in later posts and go into more detail as to why/why not I like them. In the meantime, know that you aren't the only one struggling with acne. It is totally A Thing. Even as an Adult.

The Microdelivery Peel

So I mentioned before that I kind of sort of love Philosophy products. Well, this is one of them. This stuff makes your skin feel suuuuuper smooth. So if you are having roughness (mine is normally from dry skin) or want to get to that whitehead that seems to be forming, this is the stuff. It peels a couple layers of skin off so that means a zit that you'd normally get to in 1-3 days, you can get to it NOW! Also helps you squeeze black heads with ultimate ease. You can just basically scrape them off with your finger nail. Now, I don't think that was what they had in mind when they made this stuff, but that's what I do with it. 

Here's how to use it:
1. Wash and dry your face
2. Put the step 1 stuff on with your fingertips and massage for about 1 minute in circular motion
3. Put the step 2 stuff on again just as above (its an activator so it makes it foamy)
4. Let it sit for about 3 minutes
5. Rinse off with lukewarm water and you can massage it in while rinsing to get more skin sloughed off
6. Final rinse with cool water, dry face, apply moisturizer!

Here's the needed products:

Here's where you can buy it: Sephora

Here's what I look like with both steps 1 & 2 on me (I'm looking at a scary big bug on my window):

I have not tried, but would be interested to know, if their Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash does the same good job.

I got my oldest sister their Oxygen Peel for Christmas, but never followed up with her to see how she liked it.

Also, I only use this like once a month. Since my skin is so sensitive, its hard to use it much more than that. I don't need to go ripping up the first few layers of my skin just any old time. I usually save it for an important event or something coming up in a few days of using it.

Grooming Basics

Let's start off with something very basic. Daily skin care regime, dental hygiene & not smelling gross. These are things you should do every day. I shower daily, sometimes twice if I work up a sweat and would like to smell nice later when I go out to socialize.

Here's what I use on a daily basis and in fact just used moments ago:

Left to Right:
Clear Days Ahead Oil Free Salicylic Acid Acne Treatment Cleanser (by Philosophy)
Oil Free Moisture Sensitive Skin (by Neutrogena)
Sugar Cookie Cologne Spray (by Demeter)
Hot Cocoa Shampoo, Shower Gel & Bubble Bath (by Philosophy)
Mitchum Power Gel Anti-perspirant Deodorant (by Revlon)
Oral-B Vitality Electric Rechargeable toothbrush (by Oral-B Braun)
Colgate Baking Soda and Peroxide Whitening toothpaste (by Colgate-Palmolive)



Ok, so why use all this ridiculous stuff?! To look and smell presentable to the rest of society! And maybe that special someone! *wink wink*

I love all these brands and personally use and endorse them. However, I wasn't paid to endorse them. And I won't be shy to share with you the positive and negative consequences of using any product. That said, here's why I use what I use.

Acne cleanser: 
Even if you don't have acne, I recommend some kind of face wash. Whatever works for your skin type. I have acne. It's a thing. Don't be ashamed, just take care of it! My skin likes to make black heads on my jawline and nose. It likes to make whiteheads on my nose, cheeks and chin (though occasionally just anywhere!) and I also happen to have cystic acne (which no amount of topical anything will help with). This particular cleanser washes my makeup off and doesn't over dry me. I use it in the morning and at night before going to bed. And any time I just want to take my makeup off.

Moisturizer:
I'm sure there are those of you out there who are like "But my skin is so greasy already!" Whatever. You need moisturizer. Just find an oil free one (like the one I use) or one with salicylic acid in it. I'm also sure there are dudes out there going "I'm a dude, I don't need that!" Yes, you do. If you want a lady to come near the thing you kindly call your face, but we secretly refer to as your sandpaper. My skin is very sensitive. To light, to peroxide, and to perfumes. I love Neutrogena because they make excellent skin care stuff for my sensitive skin. I do not recommend their bar soaps though. Nor bar soaps of any kind. Keep away from that stuff.

Perfume:
Honestly, I didn't start wearing perfume daily til very recently. So this step is totally skippable. I will say this kind wears off very quickly and doesn't irritate my skin/eyes (which is why I never wear any other brand of perfume). Wear it if you feel fancy or have a date. Find out if your date has an allergy to perfume or wears contacts first though. Also skip if you have those things!

Bodywash:
I'll be honest, I like Philosophy for their variety of food-smelling body washes. But they are not very moisturizing in my humble opinion. I skip their brand for all of the winter and use something very moisturizing like Aveeno or St. Ive's. Also, if you have perfume sensitivity, this stuff is NOT for you. I also wouldn't use this (or any other brand) as a bubble bath. They tend to lead to Urinary Tract Infections and Yeast Infections. Gross!

Whatever you pick, make sure you use your loofah to scrub your armpits, butt, and feet. In that order. Everything else is incidental. Those three spots are the most gross. I don't recommend for ladies to use soap directly on their lady area for the same reasons you shouldn't use bubble bath. And the same goes for gentlemen: if your junk is too perfumed, it might not taste too good and/or create an adverse reaction for your partner's... receiving area. Use plenty of running water and a washcloth to get those areas sparkling clean!

Lotion (skipped):
I don't lotion every day, but some people need it. I usually only do it once a week in the dead of winter. I like anything with cocoa and shea butter. I can recommend Palmer's, L'Occitane & St. Ive's in that order.


Deodorant:
I use this brand for a few reasons: its clear and doesn't get on all the black clothes I wear. It is a gel and doesn't flake chunks of white everywhere. It actually works. No other brand keeps me from sweating/smelling as well as this does and I am a sweaty ape. There are two catches: you must let it dry all the way before putting your shirt on. Otherwise, BLAM! It's just on your shirt. The other catch is I have noticed it does still leave a residue on all your clothes. Again, the more you let it dry, the less it will do that but it still does. I can only recommend to occasionally scrub the pits of your shirts to keep it from happening. The problem is the aluminum content (that's what's stuck to your shirt) and any deodorants I've tried without aluminum just don't keep me from stinking. Its the price I pay!


Toothbrush/toothpaste:
I recommend an electric over a manual toothbrush only because it is way more thorough and keeps me from pressing too hard when I brush (I have a slight receding gumline due to this!) I usually use a manual toothbrush in the morning and the electric at night though. Either way, you MUST brush your teeth at least twice a day. Morning & before bed. I also highly recommend before going out at night to a bar/date/social engagement. I don't care if you're just going to drink or eat. Brush your dang teeth. Gross teeth are a big turn off for me and its socially awkward when a friend has nasty things in their smile or bad breath.



So there you have it. Basic daily grooming. If you can manage to do these things on a daily basis, you've made it into society!