Monday, 27 July 2015

No Pain No Gain

Originally published as No Pain No Gain from the Mario Badescu Skin Care Blog.

no pain no gain If it stings or hurts, it must be working, right?

no pain no gain This is SO NOT TRUE of skin care products. Don’t think that your products aren’t working simply because they’re not irritating your skin. <– Actually, this sounds kind of silly when you think about, doesn’t it? Who wants angry skin?!

Here are a few hard-core, effective skin care products that never bother our skin:

Drying Cream
This acne spot treatment is actually soothing, but it still works like a dream to dry up acne. Its legions of fans throughout the world are a testament to its powers.

Peptide Renewal Cream
Oh wow, anti-aging cream feels like heaven on your skin. That doesn’t mean it’s not working to communicate with skin’s cells, prompting new collagen synthesis.

See? No pain = tons of gain!

Originally published as No Pain No Gain from the Mario Badescu Skin Care Blog.



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Friday, 24 July 2015

A Day in the Life of an MB Girl (Part I)

Originally published as A Day in the Life of an MB Girl (Part I) from the Mario Badescu Skin Care Blog.

Kim here, reporting live (okay, not really) from behind her desk.

Friday, July 24

Mario badescu

Ignore the date. Screenshot was done preemptively of course. Always prepare early, ladies + gents!

5:00 a.m.: First alarm rings. Not sure how my phone ended up being buried deep under the covers, but they did. Don’t care either. All I want is to shut this stupid alarm off—even if it’s John Legend crooning “Good Morning”—but the effort required in finding the source of sound is too much for me. White iPhone, white sheets… what was I thinking?

5:03 a.m.: I’ve successfully convinced myself that if I just close my eyes and try to sleep, it’ll stop. It doesn’t. John’s getting louder. He’s not happy. I’m not happy.

5:04 a.m.: I spring up. John won. (Chrissy, you can keep him.)

…a few seconds later…

I’ve successfully recovered the phone! The push notification has four inspirational emojis: pink hearts, a star, a flexed bicep and a peach. Ugh. How was it that I used to wake up before the crack of dawn to do 1.5 hours of Tracy Anderson and get ready for my 7 a.m. commute?! That was a long time ago. Like, a looong time ago.

5:10 a.m.: Guilt settles in. I’m wasting my 20s in bed when I could—oh, I don’t know—be working out? Training myself to be a morning person like all cool and ambitious and successful people are? I’m conflicted. I’m too lazy to get out of bed, but it’s past the point of going back to sleep.

5:15 a.m.: Happy to report I’m still in bed. I check Instagram, email, Snapchat, and messages. I’m feeling accomplished and I haven’t even brushed my teeth yet.

5:30 a.m.: Finally up. Bed is made (I physically can’t leave the house unless it’s done). I convince myself that I can skip Tracy because I had rehearsal last night;* instead, I do half-hearted squats while brushing my teeth. Good enough. Better than nothing.

MA_cucumberNo workout means more time to faff around! I haven’t done a proper face mask in a month (I knooow, I’ve been busy, k?) so carpe diem! To start, I pop on a little bit of Ceramide Eye Gel (to de-puff sleepy eyes and prevent pulling at the delicate eye area when removing the mask later on. My skin’s clear at the moment but feeling a little congested with this 90-degree summer. Cucumber Tonic Mask it is.

5:51 a.m.: I’m 20 pages into Elena Ferrante’s My Brilliant Friend when it’s time to remove the mask. Am I the only one who can’t thoroughly cleanse a mask without getting water all over my robe? I contemplate stepping into the shower but that means I’ll have to do my whole moisturizing routine when I’m out—so I decide against it.

6:04 a.m.: I impress myself with how I didn’t soak the lapel of my bathrobe and continue the rest of my regimen without having to pause to change into dry clothes. Cucumber Cleansing Lotion, Vitamin C Serum, and Oil Free Moisturizer SPF 30. Always. In that order.

6:30 a.m.: I ate breakfast. Drank it, actually, because I’ve been super inspired by the breakfast smoothies rounded up in our ‘Healthy Food for Healthy Skin’ column. Three cups of water, one banana, five cups of frozen baby spinach, one large Fuji apple, one large Asian pear, two slivers of fresh ginger, one spoonful of chia seeds, two stalks of celery, half a medium-sized head of romaine lettuce, half a scoop of vegan vanilla protein powder. This is a mean, green smoothie I tell ya.

7:00 a.m.: Jeans and a tee ‘cause it’s caj Friday at the office. A few swipes of mascara because I want to look like I tried, then three spritzes of the Facial Spray. I’m out the door.

7:25 a.m.: I hate traffic. TGIF. Also, Thank iTunes for podcasts. I’m a nerd. I’m okay with it.

7:36 a.m.: I also hate that there’s a coffee shop right across the street from the office. I make a mental note to remember to stock up on green tea this weekend. Two scoops of matcha in water, no ice. People eye me as I sip my green drink. I later find out that I have a rogue piece of hair sticking out the side of my head.

7:44 a.m.: Fridays at work means DONUTS! And BAGELS! Working here is the best.

7:46 a.m.: I eye the box greedily, then remember I downed about a liter of green smoothie goodness. Girl, you do not have the capacity to eat for another hour.

I take a donut anyway. Strawberry frosting with sprinkles because at 23, I’m still a child.

7:55 a.m.: I have my matcha, I have my hot green tea (green tea is lyfe), and I have my donut. I only have 30 emails this morning. It’s Friday.

Life is good.

.   .   . 

*Content manager by day, salsa dancer and teaching assistant by night.

 

Originally published as A Day in the Life of an MB Girl (Part I) from the Mario Badescu Skin Care Blog.



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Wednesday, 22 July 2015

Treating Cystic Acne

Originally published as Treating Cystic Acne from the Mario Badescu Skin Care Blog.

treating cystic acne

We know that Cystic Acne can be really painful—both physically and (depending on how severe your case is) mentally. It’s also the most likely to cause scarring, so proper treatment is really important.

treating cystic acneThere aren’t too many over-the-counter products available for Cystic Acne. After all, it’s the hardest type of acne to treat. It’s crucial, though, to reduce the amount of Cystic Acne you experience while speeding up the healing process; this is THE best way to help avoid scarring. It’s also just pretty nice to be able to prevent or recover more quickly from Cystic breakouts.

If you’re looking to reduce cystic acne, we’re really proud of our Buffering Lotion, a unique product that was designed specifically for Cystic Acne. Most people find it surprisingly thin and watery in texture. This makes it better able to penetrate the skin and do its work. Have you ever tried it?

More info for clear skin:

Can you exfoliate Cystic Acne?
Why you should NEVER pop Cystic Acne
When Cystic Acne happens on your back, chest, and shoulders.

 

Originally published as Treating Cystic Acne from the Mario Badescu Skin Care Blog.



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Tuesday, 21 July 2015

Fading Age Spots

Originally published as Fading Age Spots from the Mario Badescu Skin Care Blog.

age spotsThrough the years, it’s likely your skin has accumulated some sun damage. You see, age spots are more accurately called sun spots. Sometimes they are even known as liver spots, although they really have nothing to do with your liver’s functioning. These areas of hyperpigmentation are basically caused by a combination of accumulated sun damage and hormonal fluctuations.

age spotsThis is a skin problem that you can be really optimistic about—there are some very real solutions for age spots. If you’re looking to even your skin tone and brighten up areas of discoloration, there are a couple of things you need to know.

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid), for one thing, is a powerful skin-brightening agent. Kojic Acid is another. With an every-other-day application of Vitamin C and regular use of Kojic Acid, your skin care routine will produce noticeable changes in tone, reducing and fading unwanted hyperpigmentation.

age spotsCheck these out: Vitamin C Serum + Whitening Mask (with Kojic Acid)

Other resources:

Let’s talk about freckles

Learn more about Hyperpigmentation

Getting rid of age spots

Fading Sun spots

 

 

 

Originally published as Fading Age Spots from the Mario Badescu Skin Care Blog.



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