My Winter Facelift

If you watched my routine at home, you’d never know that I work in the skincare industry. I use three products religiously (cleanser, serum, moisturizer) and a fourth, eye creme, only when I think about it. I love my Clarisonic, but I forget to use it most of the time. Most nights I’m too exhausted to wash my face before I hit the sack and wake up with eyeliner and mascara smeared all over my face. I’m lazy. I know.

My skin really started to change this year (I’m 44) and in an attempt to continue to chase the fountain of youth and with a sincere of goal of having great skin to start 2010, I decided that I’m going to get a winter face lift.

Not that kind of face lift! I’m talking about the do-it-yourself, no knife option. Want better skin by the Valentines Day? Follow along:

1. Commit to a skin care routine. Of course, I prefer Striking Skin Care products, but whatever you use, make sure you have the basics: cleanser, serum, moisturizer and eye creme. Use them twice a day religiously.

2. Add a retinol, vitamin C or AHA product to your routine at night. Each of these products will help to resurface and rejuvenate the skin which aids in the absorption of the active ingredients in your serum and moisturizer. Once you’ve added one of these types of products into your routine, it’s imperative that you add a SPF during the day as well (it can be in your foundation or in your moisturizer) as retinols, vitamin C and AHAs can make your skin photosensitive.

3. If it’s in your budget, try a Clarisonic brush. I am a HUGE Clarisonic fan. Their brushes range from $225 for the Clarisonic PLUS to $149 for the Clarisonic Mia, and it’s worth every penny. The brush gets your skin 6xs cleaner than with manual cleansing which helps the performance ingredients in your skin care products to penetrate more efficiently. When I use mine, I see a difference immediately. Mine is sitting in the charger, ready to be used tonight!

4. Get a deep cleansing facial. In a perfect world, I’d have the time and money to get a facial once a month. For my winter face lift, I’m committing to one facial a month for the next three months. It’s time to do a clean sweep of my skin.

5. Drink water and lots of it. I’m in a constant state of dehydration and it shows up on my skin with tiny little fine lines and a sallow complexion. It doesn’t help that I live in the land of Starbucks and have a serious caffeine addiction. Time to double up on water (and trips to the bathroom). Not only does staying hydrated make your skin look better, it also helps with brain function!

6. Get a brow wax. I know this doesn’t really have to do with skin care as we traditionally think of it, but it does work wonders for the no-knife face lift. I’m religious about getting my brows waxed and I’m amazed at the number of friends that I have that have never had it done. If you want an instant “lift” to get yourself inspired for your winter face lift, find a great esthetician and schedule a brow wax NOW!! You’ll love the results!

All that being said, the next thing I’m doing is calling my esthetician to schedule a brow wax and get this regime jump started. The goal is fantastic skin by Valentines Day and glorious skin by March.

Are you in?

Posted by Brigette, contributor


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Menopausal Skin - What is it?

I’ve been throwing around the term “menopausal skin” for a few weeks now and somebody asked me to explain what exactly that means. I’m glad she asked, because it encompasses so much more than “aging”.

Menopause brings about all kinds of changes in woman’s body. The physical changes that we most commonly associate with menopause are the end of the menstrual cycle and the beginning of hot flashes. But, menopause has a significant impact on the skin as well. The loss of estrogen causes diminished collagen and elastin production which results in loss of firmness and elasticity of the skin and the appearance of more lines and wrinkles. In fact, there are some studies that show that skin can lose up to 30% of collagen after the first five years of menopause. Women can also experience changes in texture and tone of the skin, dryness, pigmentation problems, acne and even facial hair. Aren’t you glad you asked???

One of the ways to manage menopausal aging is to use skin care products that contain ingredients known to enhance collagen production. Retinoids (Vitamin A such as retinol, retinol palmitate, retinoic acid or tretinoin) are always a good choice. Your doctor can prescribe Retin-A® or Renova® for its proven exfoliation and rejuvenation qualities. It’s a good treatment if you are suffering from menopausal acne as well.

Collagen-enhancing peptides such as the SmartPeptides found in Striking Skin Care are also excellent for restoring menopausal skin. For instance Striking Multi-Peptide Serum contains Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-14 and Heptapeptide-7. These peptides encourage keratinocyte proliferation and migration as well as collagen production. In plain English that means it makes the skin look and feel firmer while diminishing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. In fact, in an independent clinical study of Striking Multi-Peptide Serum, 94% said they had firmer skin in 14 days and 84% said the appearance of fines lines and wrinkles were reduced in 14 days.

Here is a "before" photo:

Here is the "after" photo at 14 days:


The formulation also contains trehalose and glycerin which are excellent at protecting the skin from dehydration while helping to restore its natural moisture balance. The result is smoother, firmer, well-hydrated skin.

The use of a good broad-spectrum sunscreen is also highly recommended to protect the skin from the sun’s aging rays as well as discourage any hyperpigmentation that may occur. Look for a sunscreen that protects from both UVA and UVB rays. There are many sunscreen options available for use over or under your moisturizer or there are several foundations on the market that contain SPF that are a good option.

I’d personally also invest in a Clarisonic Sonic Face Brush (see my post on 10/8/09). This brush cleans your skin more efficiently than manual cleansing which allows your treatment products to penetrate better and do what they’re supposed to do. The initial investment is big ($195), but the payoff is worth it.

What tips do you have for managing menopausal skin?

Posted by Brigette, contributor

Winner Drawn for Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway!!!

Congratulations to Kelly H.

of Washington, she has been randomly drawn as the winner of the Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway.

For more giveaways, stay tuned as we are posting them regularly and always on Fridays with our Free Striking Friday Questions.

Only a few more days to enter the Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway

The giveaway will end at midnight on 10/30/09. Make sure that you enter before then and let your friends know about this fantastic giveaway before it is too late!

Read more here: Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway Post

Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway - Striking Skin Care + Clarisonic Mia!

We are thrilled to be able to offer a fantastic October Giveaway, the Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway includes the Striking Skin Care System and a pink Clarisonic Mia. Total prize package worth $319!!

Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway includes:

Striking Skin Care System ($170)
• Striking Multi-Vitamin Cleanser (8 oz.)
• Striking Multi-Peptide Serum (1 oz.)
• Striking Restorative Moisture Creme (1 oz.)
• Striking Rejuvenating Eye Creme (0.5 oz.)

Pink Clarisonic Mia ($149)
Mia is the new, go-anywhere Sonic Skin Cleansing System in a great compact size. The one-button, one-speed Mia fits your active lifestyle for beautiful, glowing skin wherever life’s adventures take you.

To enter the Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway, enter your name and email address in the giveaway box in the right panel or click on our Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway Contest Page. All entries must be made by October 30th, 2009 at 11:55 pm. One winner will randomly be selected using Contest Machine. The winner will be notified via email and asked for contact information to send the Clean Beautiful Skin Giveaway prize to. For more information, visit our Clean Beautiful Skin contest page.

Clarisonic - A Must Have!

Sometimes I’m just wrong; and I was dead wrong when it came to the Clarisonic Sonic Face Brush. About three years ago, someone asked me if I had ever heard of the Clarisonic. I had not. I did a little research, looked at the price ($195) and quickly dismissed it as another overpriced gadget. Boy, was I wrong.

My moment of conversion came when I used the brush. I had been battling a horrible bout of eczema on my face for almost two years and nothing seemed to work. After two days of using the Clarisonic, my eczema was gone. That was enough to make me become a believer. My theory is that it cleaned my skin so efficiently that the products I was using to combat my eczema could finally penetrate and do what they were supposed to do.

Since then, I have been singing the praises of the Clarisonic. It makes every skin care product that you use work better. Within a week of using it, people will start to ask you what you’ve done to your skin.

Just how does it work? Here’s some information pulled directly from the company’s website:

Benefits beyond just clean skin: Clarisonic improves the appearance of skin tone and reduces the appearance of pore size

Clarisonic is the sonic technology proven to gently yet effectively loosen dirt and oil to clear your pores. The Clarisonic Cleansing System uses a patented sonic frequency of more than 300 movements per second to clean, soften and smooth your skin. In just 60 seconds a day, the Clarisonic micro-massage action cleans more than twice as effectively as manual cleansing.

Clarisonic Sonic Cleansing Benefits
• Removes 6x more makeup than manual cleansing
• Leaves skin feeling and looking smoother
• Cleanses so well that products absorb better
• Gentle enough for twice daily use
• Helps reduce oily areas, dry skin patches and blemishes
• Helps reduce the appearance of visible pores
• Reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles

I feel that this is a product that really delivers results. Within a week of using it, people will start to ask you what you’ve done to your skin. I love this product so much that after telling them my story to five of my friends and family members they have purchased the product and are now as enthusiastic about this product as I am. Just a head’s up: Clarisonic is not a “cheap date”. The brushes range in price from $225 to $149 and are available online in their web store. There's also a personalization feature for fun, or if you end up with more than one in your household. The bottom line is, if you want to get the most out of the skin care products that you are using, you’ll work this brush into your budget. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Posted by Brigette, contributor