How to achieve gorgeous holiday-ready skin
DEAR RISSA,
I religiously moisturize my skin, but my face looks and feels so blah. My complexion is dull and even my makeup doesn’t seem to sit well on my skin. My friend says I should exfoliate, but I don’t really feel I have time for that. What do you suggest?
SHEILA DG
Exfoliating your skin two to three times a week is a must! As our skin grows new cells, it casts off the old. These dead cells tend to accumulate on the surface, clogging the pores as well as making the surface of our skin look dull and grey. Exfoliating removes these flaking cells, revealing clearer and softer skin beneath. The big mistake most women make is that they invest in pricey skincare products and makeup but neglect to exfoliate. Your skin creams and moisturizers can actually penetrate better, faster, and more effectively through your skin’s new layer.
For a busy person like you, I strongly recommend the Malin + Goetz Jojoba Face Scrub (available only at Adora, Greenbelt 5, Makati). It actually doubles as a face cleanser. So during those days when you need to exfoliate, you can easily skip your favorite facial wash and use this instead. With just one product, you exfoliate and cleanse at the same time. Yes, it removes makeup, too!
The Malin + Goetz cleansing scrub uses two forms of exfoliation: physical polyethylene beads and gentle jojoba meal. The poly beads gently roll over the skin to slough away dead skin, dirt and other pore-cloggers. Even if you’re the type that likes to scrub vigorously, you get the deep cleaning sensation without the irritation. The jojoba meal is soft and hydrating, and gently exfoliates to stimulate cell renewal and soothe skin. The founders of the brand have sensitive skin themselves, that’s why they made sure that each product they have works for all skin types, even sensitive and fragile skin.
A friend actually gifted me with a Malin + Goetz Jojoba Face Scrub, that’s why I was able to try it. I realized now is the perfect time to start using it. The holidays can get quite stressful yet you need to look your best for all the Christmas parties. When I first tried it, I really liked how it gently but deeply and effectively exfoliated my skin. It delicately removed dead skin cells and unclogged pores without irritating my skin. This multi-tasker amazingly removed makeup, too! I absolutely loved how my face felt really velvety soft and smooth after using it. I couldn’t stop touching my face! It never felt tight and dry. It felt so smooth, hydrated, and even brighter! With this product, you can now mark great-looking skin off your Christmas wish list! RISSA
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Keep makeup natural during the day
DEAR LUCY,
How do I make my lipstick look natural during the day, even when I use a bold color? My husband says mine always looks like I am going to a dinner party, sumisigaw daw my lips kahit ang aga-aga pa (my lips are screaming even if it’s still early). Is there really a rule against using bright colors during the day?
How about my blush? How do I make sure it does not become splotchy?
MITZI
As a general rule, you would like to have a different look for the night and during the day. Your husband may have a bit of a point although you can meet halfway. For instance, apply a matte pigment to your lips using your index finger. That way, it does not look heavy even if the color is strong. There are a lot of happy nudes and pretty colors that you can choose from; put aside the reds for those times when you can let your hair down. Same goes for lacquered and frosted lips — keep them for dates and parties. Keep it simple and put-together while the sun is still out.
Even for your eyes, stick to the no-fail browns to create shadows Avoid any sharp or dramatic lines. That is how you look effortlessly pretty — at a glance, it seems like you barely have anything on and if someone were to scrutinize it up close, it is really just a clever play of light and shadow.
For your cheeks, it should not be a problem if you use a powder blush, but if you use a cream blush or cheek tint, make sure you moisturize your skin and apply very sheer foundation over it. A tinted moisturizer would be great for this, actually. This way, the blush won’t settle in your pores but will instead work into your skin for a more natural finish.
LUCY
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Desperate for a cleansing beauty booty
HI, REGINA!
I’ve always wanted a Clarisonic, but we don’t have them here. Do you think it’s worth shelling out money for, on top of the hassle of getting it shipped to the Philippines? DANA
I have a Clarisonic Plus at home that my friend kindly bought for me on a trip to New York. It’s a great gadget, especially on days when you’re too tired or feeling too lazy to be as serious about your cleansing ritual as you usually are (never a good thing), and it definitely gives you a deeper clean than you’d otherwise get, but I wouldn’t recommend using it twice daily, especially if your skin’s a little more sensitive than average. Twice or thrice will probably suffice. (I only use mine on days when I’ve worn a lot of makeup, so I suspect with Halloween coming up this week, my Clarisonic will be seeing a lot of action.)
If you’re dead-set on owning a Clarisonic but don’t know how to get it shipped in, I’ve been using a service of Globe’s GCash called American Express Virtual Pay, where they assign you an AMEX account number that charges any purchases you make online against your GCash account. They’ve partnered with a shipping company called MyShoppingBox that provides you an address in the States that you can have your items shipped to, and from there, they can ship to your doorstep for a fee. It’s all very convenient, especially if you’re like me and you desperately need to have beauty booty that isn’t available in the country. (I’m looking at you, Kevyn Aucoin!)
If you’re just curious about the whole battery-operated cleansing tool phenomenon, Olay recently released their Advanced Cleansing System here in the Philippines. It gets the job done perfectly well, and will only cost a fraction of the Clarisonic’s $200 price tag, which is a great plus. REGINA
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Send e-mail to Lucy Torres-Gomez at ltg@pldtdsl.com. E-mail Rissa Trillo at stylesos_rissa@yahoo.com or follow her on Twitter @RissaMananquil. Send Regina Belmonte your questions at vivatregina.tumblr@gmail.com or tweet her @vivatregina.
