My favorite cleanser for Oily/Acne Prone Skin

I've tried probably 105920532948320 different types of cleansers in my days, and this one has the perfect combination of all the things I like in a cleanser.  Keep in mind that everyone has their own preference on texture, lather, after feel of skin etc, but this one has to be hands down my favorite of the moment.

What I like about this cleanser:
-It leaves a clean feel after with no residue or slick feeling on my skin
-It helps heal and prevent acne
-Has oil control throughout the day so I'm not as oily at 12pm (usually you can cook an egg on my face)
-Prevents redness and irritation that comes with blemishes
-Has perfectly sphere micro-beads for surface exfoliation leaving my skin as smooth as a baby's bottom.

Key Ingredients:

• Diatomaceous Earth: Mineral-rich, pore-refining ingredient polishes away irregularities to reveal skin smoothness.
• Tea Tree Oil: A potent anti-irritant and antibacterial agent that controls excess oil, refines pores and balances skin.
• Glycerin, Decyl Glucoside, Butylene Glycol, PEG-60 Almond Glycerides: A complex of humectants that soften and hydrate skin.
• Urea: Helps remove dead cells, flaky patches and comedones by loosening the intracellular glue.
• Potassium Cocoyl Hydrolyzed Collagen: Loosens dead cells. Acts as an anti-irritant.
• Oleanolic Acid and Nordihydroguaiaretic Acid: This acid complex fights breakouts, reduces hyper-seborrhea and the proliferation of bacteria and inflammation. 

You can buy this at your local Sephora for a whopping $17.50 very affordable for a cleanser that lasts me about 3-4 months. 

Exfoliation for bright, smooth radiant skin~!

Exfoiliation is a very important part of a good skin care regimen.  We shed billions of skin cells everyday sometimes our natural shedding slows down due to sun damage, dry skin, oily skin, genetics, or different skin disorders.  This leads to dull, dry, or flaky skin; clogged pores; blemishes; white bumps; and uneven skin tone. Using an exfoliant steps in to help put everything in balance again. When you gently get rid of built-up skin cells you can undo clogged pores, stop breakouts, smooth out wrinkles, even help with your dry skin.

When I talk about exfoliating I'm not talking about those little beads you use on your face to scrub your top dermis off, I'm talking about chemical exfoliation.  There are two type of chemical exfoliants AHA(alpha hydroxy acid) and BHA (beta hydroxy acid).  AHA is good for sun damaged and dry skin because it exfoliates on the surface of the skin and have the added benefit of improving moisture content.  AHA content should be at least 8% to be effective.  BHA is good for oily, acne prone skin and for helping get rid of blackhead and white heads.  BHA can get through the oil that clogs your pores and stabilize your oil secretion that contributes to oily acneic skin.  BHA content should be at least 2% to be effective.

So the next time you look for a cleanser or an exfoliant make sure it has AHA or BHA with the appropriate % levels for brighter smoother black head and white head free skin :)

How to lighten brown spots and skin pigmentation

I wanted to share with you my favorite skin lightener for those of you who have sun spots, or brown pigmentation on your skin.  Pigmentation comes from hormones and sun damage and also from scars from picking at your acne.  

This product contains 2% hydroquinone plus 2% salicylic acid.  The active ingredient to lightening skin is the hydroquinone which is one of the main ingredients used on the cosmetic market to lighten skin pigmentation.  the added bonus which is the 2% salicylic acaid (also known as BHA beta hydroxy acid) is good for skin exfloiation so that the hydroquinone can be most effective.  

You can buy this product at www.paulaschoice.com for $18.95 for 2oz bottle that will last you a while as you only need a little bit.  There is a lotion version and a gel version, I personally like the gel version because I have oily skin.

Prevention: the best way to prevent further skin spots and and pigmentation is to use sunblock EVERYDAY~! I can't emphasize how important it is to use an spf with a broad spectrum that covers both UVA and UVB rays ( I will get in depth into this topic on another thread). In the meantime, use this product or any product on the market with the active ingredient hydroquinone 2% and higher. :)

My new favorite mascara that also lengthens my real lashes!

I saw a commercial for Rimmel Lash Accelerator mascara while on the elliptical at the gym and I instantly became intrigued.  I walked over to the cvs after I was done working out and bought myself this miracle in a bottle.

Their website claims that after 30 days of continued use that your lashes will appear to be 117% longer...key word is appear.  I have been using this mascara consistently for about 2.5 weeks and I do notice a difference in the length and thickness of my lashes but I'm not sure if it's 117%, but then again it hasn't been 30 days yet so perhaps it may be true. The mascara contains ingredients such as Procapil®, biiotin, keratin, and bamboo which are all ingredients that strengthen and lengthen lashes.

I not only love this mascara because it lengthens my lashes but it is also non irritating and non flaking.  It doesn't make my lashes look like *tarantula lashes*.  It lengthens and separates my lashes without clumps.  I apply one coat then let it dry and apply second coat for best results.  If you buy the mascara at rite aid they have a cosmetics policy that claims if you do not like the cosmetic you are allowed to return the used product within 2 weeks so it doesn't hurt to go and try it out, and if you don't like it just return it :)

How to lose weight with white tea

So I know most of you guys know that I have been losing some weight...so here's one of my tricks.  A while ago I read about the benefits of white tea.  They are rich in antioxidants which fight free radicals and these young unoxidized leaves are newly discovered to fight fat cells.

White tea helps to break down the fat molecules in our body and also helps by blocking fat absorbtion.  there are higher levels of caffeine and EGCC than in black or green teas.  Caffeine also helps with your metabolism and is a good pick me up in the mornings :)

While on my diet I drank at least one cup of the silver needles white tea (which was the one that suited to my taste) and I noticed a significant reduction in belly fat.  

I made a blog~!

Most of my friends already know that I love all things beauty, fashion, skin care, and makeup.  I have accumulated lots of tips and tricks through research that I have done over the years from trying endless beauty, hair and makeup products.  So I have made this blog to share this knowledge with everyone. Please feel free to leave comments and questions and I will try to answer and reply to the best of my knowledge :)