How to party proof your skin- (The brown person edit)

‘Tis the party to be merry

The Christmas and New Year break is the season of parties. This time of the year however, takes a toll on my skin. What with all those cocktails and the crisps I consume. Not to mention artificial heating and those sugary mince pies,. Oh and the windy gusts as I walk from party to party…umm.

I realised that I need to party proof my skin this year, so that I don’t go into 2019 with skin that needs fixing.

This last bit is especially important if you are deeper skin toned or have brown skin. ( PS: This advice is suitable for everyone) Darker skins tend to scar easily. We get Post Inflammatory Hyper Pigmentation or PIH. This is the hardest to get rid of. This is why I need to have a skincare arsenal which will help defuse the situation as quickly as possible.

• My skin used to be dry as I mentioned before, but I have been experiencing hormonal breakouts recently and feel that my skin type has changed. At the moment, my skin is dehydrated and yet oily at the same time. This is a dangerous combination anyway, but worse if your skin is like mine; Medium Olive. I get breakouts (mostly those pesky critters that occupy space on my face rent free and uninvited.) that leave unwanted visitors) PIH on my face which takes months to get rid of. My first advice is to treat your skin as sensitive and don’t introduce anything new in your routine if you can avoid it. 

 

• Hyaluronic Acid and Niacinimide are your heroes.  Hyaluronic Acid is a hydrator. It is backed by research and is known to hold up to 1000 its own weight in water, Applied topically it can be great at soothing skins by gently hydrating them. My skin loves Hyaluronic acid and  I especially love the Hada Labo Premium  Gold and the Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair. Niacinimide is an ingredient which essentially is a form of vitamin B3. It is known to brighten skin, help reduce sensitivity and repair skin barrier functions. I love using it as it seems to have a lot of hero functions with apparently no known reactions thus far. My favourite Niacinimide serums are FaceTheory C pore Niacinimide Toner, and The Ordinary Niacinimide and Zinc 10% Toner. The last one especially has a cult following and a cheap as chips price tag!

 

• I like to stick to my skincare routine; as I mentioned before: ’tis not the season to be trying new things

In the morning at the moment :for a Cleanser I use either Glossier Cleansing Jelly or once a  week for a slight exfoliation I use the Oskia Renaissance Cleanser. I use Paula’s Choice 2% BHA for my spots. My Serum of choice at the moment is either the Peter Thomas Roth Unwrinkle Turbo Peptide Lotion, or the Hada labo Premium Hyaluronic Serum, I’m using a Clarins Blue Orchid Face oil or depending on the way my skin feels skip the oil and go directly to my Sunscreen.

Hada Labo Gokujyun Premium…aka serum of dreams

On an evening I often Cleanse my face with an oil or balm cleanser like Heimish Balm Cleanser, or the Hyalamide Cleanser. I sometimes follow it with a Glycolic Acid toner ( A cult favourite seems to be Pixi Glow, however my skin loves The Ordinary Glycolic Toner and Alpha H) before I use a serum like Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair. My skin can handle only one active at a time so whilst it doesn’t mind an acid, I can either use a strong Vitamin C ( The Inkey List 30%) or a Retinol (Paula’s Choice 1% or Drunk Elephant A- Passioni). But not both. Go figure…

• Ouch 😦 this next one is hard, because let’s face it- there are temptations galore; food wise. Mince pies, Christmas pudding, (or a gulab jamun- don’t forget those asian aunties ;)Prosecco bellini  etc… but I say; try and watch the sugar intake. Sugar does wreck the collagen bonds of the skin. I don’t know if theres a definitive scientific co-relation between sugar and those pesky cystic spots. But it definitely has an adverse effect on me. And once they take residence they leave purple marks on brown skin… it takes me months to get rid of those damn scars! I told you it was hard. 😦

 

• Ah, the morning after the night before, we’ve all been there. Leave the hair of the dog alone, nor drive to the nearest Maccy d’s, But get some B vitamin supplements down you or Berocca which I swear works* for me… though the research on this is inconclusive.

 

• ‘Tis may be an Old wives tale…but get water down yer gullet. Some say that drinking two litres of water isn’t backed by scientific research. However my skin looks the better for it, so drinking the ‘ol H2O is the way to go. Get drinking, and I don’t mean liquor. Also try and have a glass of water between every two drinks if possible.( This one is hard. Especially after the fourth Margarita)

My two pennies

• For all the lists in the world- A pimple  or two, is not the end of the world.
• It’d be great we all  drank 2 litres of water, and washed and cleansed our faces everyday. It’s also okay if you got rat arsed, dragged your sorry self to bed, glitter makeup et al, waking up with the sick bucket by the bed side and mascara all over the pillow. We’ve all done it.
• Have a great time, whatever you do. Take my advice with a grain of salt or not. If all else fails. Sing Auld Lang syne at the top of your voice with a wee dram of whiskey in your hand;) See y’all in 2019- Happy New Year. Feliz 2019.

Do you have any tips, tricks or even party cocktail recipes you’d like to share? I’d love to hear from you… Love Elle xx

NOTE OF DISCLAIMER: All opinions are my own. I have no affiliations with any company, there are no affiliate links on this post and most of the products on here( full sizes ) have been purchased by me. If some samples are kindly gifted by a company, I will declare this. But this does not affect my opinion, nor sway it . Please check ingredients list of all products that you buy, in case you have allergies to any of the products that I have mentioned. Please know that allergies can happen suddenly, even with known products. If unsure, please do a patch test on your elbow, and wait 48 hours before using any of the products I’ve suggested. Please do not copy, publish any photos on this blog or contents in its entirety or otherwise without my express permission.

*PS: please do not take any medication without the advice of your physician/GP, I find that I am depleted and a vitamin B supplement or Berocca works a treat. But I’m not in a position to diagnose, and if in doubt, go without.

 

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