Tag Archives: skincare

Advice For My Younger Self

Posted on by

If you could go back in time and speak to your younger self, what advice would you give them? Would it be something specific (like here are the lottery numbers for week beginning….) or would it be something that you long to change if you only had the chance?

DSCN8580

My younger self.

Here is the advice I would give to my 20 year old self.

1. Love your skin, look after it, and don’t be afraid to get a little help if you need it.

When I was young, I didn’t really understand the need to look after my skin, despite my mom’s best advice. I would drop into bed in the early hours of the morning, face still full of make-up, and would wake up the next morning resembling a member of Kiss who had spent an hour crying. I often suffered from skin dryness, especially around the extremities of my face, and generally suffered with hydration and suppleness, and I wouldn’t have dreamed of doing anything about it.

I would certainly have never dreamt of having any sort of cosmetic or medical treatment, but this is sometimes exactly what is needed to get your skin back to tip top condition. Clinics like 23 MD offer all sorts of treatments based on the latest scientific research. This includes treatments to boost ageing skin, treat acne scars, help with pigmentation spots generally rejuvenate skin.

You do need to love the skin you’re in, but admitting it sometimes needs help is half the battle.

2. Wear those Little black dresses.

Nobody actually tells you that your figure at 20 is the best it will ever be. I was a really curvy size 10-12 at 20, and yet dressed so grungy, in baggy sweatshirts, leggings and Doc Marten boots – looking back now, it was such a waste. I should’ve been wearing something slinky and stylish – the sort of thing I would kill to wear now, when good living and having a baby means I will never be a size 10 again.

3. Go to a festival

I went to lots of music concerts when I was younger (still do), but never went to an actual festival – couldn’t really afford it as a very poor student. Now I look at Glastonbury and all I see is the mud, and bands I’ve never heard of. I really wish I’d have gone when I was young enough to overlook the mud, dirt and weather.

DSCN8587

There would be other, more profound advice too. I wish I could have given my nan and grandad one more cuddle – you really do feel that people will be around forever when you are young, and of course this is sadly not the case. But in general, I think I made lots of the right choices, and certainly wouldn’t change my husband or my boy for all the money and dreams in the world.

What advice would you give your younger self?

There’s a great post about body confidence at Freddies mummy UK. You can check it out here.

How to Keep Your Skin Smooth as You Age

Posted on by

As women get older and their skin endures a lot of daily abuse from things like dish detergent and sun exposure, they might notice that the skin on their face and body starts to appear dry, dull, and full of wrinkles and fine lines. Thankfully, though, there are several ways that you can keep your skin as smooth as possible as you get older, and a few tips are below to help you get started.

Protect Your Skin from the Sun

One of the most important things that you can do to maintain the smoothness and health of your skin as you get older is to simply wear sunscreen before you head out the door. This includes sunscreen on your face and neck, as well as on any exposed areas of your body. In fact, if you are in search of a natural cure for crepey skin, you might want to find a sunscreen that contains safe, natural ingredients that could help protect your delicate skin from harmful UV rays. After all, the radiation from the sun could lead to everything from wrinkles and dark spots, to cancer, so you definitely want to protect yourself.

Use a Moisturizer

There are a variety of high-quality moisturizers, many of which are designed to be safe for your skin because they contain natural ingredients. Definitely take advantage of these moisturizers, which you can apply to your face, body, and hands, as they are a great way to keep the skin all over your face and body super smooth as you age. And while moisturizing all year long is recommended, it is even more important during the harsh winter season when the skin tends to become even drier and chapped.

Tip: use a facial moisturizer that contains SPF so that you can apply one cream and get the benefits of moisturization along with sunscreen.

Stay Hydrated and Follow a Healthy Diet

Staying hydrated by drinking plenty of water throughout the day isn’t just great for your overall health; it’s also a fantastic way to help keep your skin smooth and moisturized. On top of drinking water, though, you also want to make it a point to eat right every day. Focus on including plenty of plant-based foods in your meal plans, so that you can get a wide range of nutrients that your body needs to repair and regenerate your skin. Foods that are packed with antioxidants, as well as vitamins like A, C, B, and E, are great choices. And if you can afford to eat organic foods more often, that is also a step in the right direction.

By following the simple tips above, you might find that your skin remains more smooth and youthful as you get older. After all, no one wants to deal with skin that is dry, wrinkled and aged looking. So, go ahead and give these easy strategies a try and see if they make a difference in the way you look and feel.

SENSSE Go! Mini Sonic Facial Cleansing Brush and Exfoliator

Posted on by

There was once a time when holidays and traveling meant that our skincare routine took a bit of a backseat. Luggage allowances meant that unless we wanted to decant all our fave products, we would instead take travel products that we had never used before just because they were easier to pack. But times have changed, the stricter policies on luggage, and the growth of hand luggage only has seen all the biggest and best brands launching travel kits, and now Sensse has created what might just be the perfect sized travel sonic facial cleansing brush – so small you can literally hold it in the palm of your hand, and chargeable through a lightweight USB. It is a brilliant little product, and one that should find a space in everyone’s hand luggage.

DEEP CLEAN, CLEARER SKIN – While other brushes rotate slower than a snail and only leave you with red, sensitive skin after use. The SENSSE Go! facial cleansing brush gently exfoliates with over 600 oscillations per minute to deeply cleanse your skin and remove blackheads and other impurities. Leaving you with visibly softer, young looking skin like never before!

The Sensse Go! facial cleansing brush makes big promises, but unlike some other facial brushes it is actually able to keep them. The brush is easy to use, you simply dampen your face, dampen the brush and then add the cleanser (your usual choice). You then switch the brush on and cleanse for about 1 minute, avoiding the eye area. You can use the brush to remove make up, but I didn’t do this, instead using my usual Micellar water for this job.

The brush is quite soothing, it does not hurt when it is cleansing your skin, there is a quite relaxing, almost tickling sensation, and although my face did go red during cleansing, this did not last, and my face felt super clean and smooth. I use the brush on the first setting for a more gentle cleanse, partly because I suffer with High Blood pressure, so keep any sort of massage gentle, but you can get a more vigorous cleanse with the second setting which is faster.

Once you have used your brush, it is very easy to clean, I just used warm water to remove any traces of cleanser, and then put the covering back over to avoid getting the brush dirty.  (The design is waterproof so no worries about splashing.) The cleansing brush also comes with an exfoliation brush which is great to use once a week for a deeper cleanse with a scrub, a real treat that will give the skin a pick me up.

This is a great little product, affordable at less than £40, and something you could use to keep your skin clean and fresh whether you are home or away. I would definitely recommend it to give your face a one minute quick fix daily.