Category Archives: Serum

Ole Henriksen 3 Little Wonders Kit

With an order from Sephora, I chose this sample kit: Ole Henriksen : 3 Little Wonders. I’m not very familiar with Ole Henriksen and was excited to get to try three of their products at once – especially the Invigorating Night Gel.

How I Used It:
On the first night, I noticed that the Invigorating Night Gel (ING) felt mildly tingly – it might be too strong to use nightly, as suggested, if it feels this tingly every night. When I put the Sheer Transformation (ST) on top, it melted in nicely but felt Continue reading

Home Treatment 01: Many Layers Peel

Here you’ll find a guide to giving yourself a thorough home facial. If you’re reading this website, I’m guessing you’ve got a nice collection of products you can use to do your own version of this treatment.
Here’s how I did it:
Sit in a hot bath, the hottest you can handle, until your face starts to perspire a bit.
Splash water on your face a few times.
Cleanse with Avalon Organics Vitamin C wash
by massaging it into your skin for a few minutes. Really take your time with this and get to know your face thru two handsful
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SkinCeuticals Hydrating B5 Gel

SkinCeuticals does a great job with serums. Their Hydrating B5 Gel is a standout. It offers the skin the water part of the water/oil mix necessary for healthy skin. That’s not to say that it’s just expensive water – the base ingredient is Hyaluronic Acid, which holds 1,000 times it’s own weight in water and is naturally occurring in our skin and other areas of the body.

Here’s how I use it:
– After cleansing, toning (if you do – optional) & applying Vitamin C serum (highly recommended if you don’t already), apply 1-2 drops to your whole face, including eyes.
– If you are dry & need additional moisture than your sunscreen offers, apply your moisturizer then your sunscreen. I use sunscreen as my moisturizer often so as to save a step.

The upsides:
The Ingredients
– There is no fragrance or color added and the list is pretty short. (unfortunately, I can’t confirm what’s ACTUALLY on that list because they don’t publish the ingredients anywhere but on the box, which is long gone)

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Skinceuticals C E Ferulic

I first learned about SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic serum at one of their training sessions when I was just an esthetic student. I was fascinated by the studies they showed using pig skin (eek!) that was treated with the serum and without. The skin with the serum showed signs of sunburn after much longer exposure to UV light than the skin without it. That sold me. Then, a few summers later, after using the serum regularly and noticing a brighter, fresher complexion on my face, I decided to do a test.
I was in the mountains near Tahoe on Echo Lake. We had to take a boat ride to the lake store and I thought it was time to test ye ole C E Ferulic. I put it on my face, arms, neck & shoulders with NO SUNSCREEN ON TOP. However, when I climbed onto the boat and leaned forward, my shirt rode up a bit to expose my lower back (which I didn’t notice until later that night).
Just over an hour later, we returned to the cabin and I assessed the damage. My face, arms & neck were ever so slightly pink (which faded by morning), my shoulders were a bit pinker (which faded by the following evening) and I felt triumphant! What wonderful findings, I thought.
And then, “gee, my lower back feels kind of tight…and hot… and, oh, warm to the touch.”

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