MICHELLE’S SKIN CARE
When I was in my late early 50’s I started to notice a change in my skin. The products I had been using for years weren’t working anymore. My face didn’t really feel clean when I washed it. My foundation didn’t “melt” into my skin anymore, my concealer was drying the skin and certainly wasn’t covering up the darkness under my eyes, brought on by 16-hour workdays, multiple flights, and not enough sleep. I must be truthful, I watched numerous bloggers and I tried soooooo many different products thinking that each sounded really great. They seemed to get results and were even touted as the “holy grail” for these beautiful women. Then I realized…..wait just a minute….these women are in their 30’s with babies and I am in my 50’s….what am I doing?
This is really where my journey started. I needed to figure out what to prioritize, what I needed to change that would really make a difference and really work for me in this stage of my life. I realized that there were 3 main areas I needed to work on.
The first was my hair. My poor hair, with all the flying I was doing for my job, the stress and then the everyday washing and drying, I was in a hair crisis! My hair is very fine, and as I like to say I have to “make hair”. It caused me to have serious breakage and split ends.
Second, was my skin. I started with skincare. To me that’s really the most important aspect rather than makeup. I looked at how I needed to cleanse and care for it and what products would work best for my more “mature skin”.
Third, was my overall health. I am talking about what I eat, how I exercise, and the quality of my sleep. I am not a fan of dieting, I’ve tried them all, so I wanted to make changes that I could actually stick with while still enjoying my life, keeping me moving and helping me sleep.
Here are some of the changes I made:
For my hair, I had always thought that because my hair was fine that I couldn’t use conditioner because it would make it flat…WRONG! I use the Bain de Terre moisturizing shampoo and conditioner now, and yes, I still wash my hair every day. And once a month I use the Aqui Deep Conditioning Masque from Brazilian Blowout. I also started taking Modere Pure liquid collage. This is not cheap, but it is a MUST and a “holy grail” product for women of any age. It did take a few months, but these changes had a huge impact, and my hair continues to be in great condition.
For my skin, this one was a little tougher. The first thing I did was I started having a facial once a month. Now ladies this is an investment. The price of a facial is not for the faint of heart these days, but I go to a U Med Spa, and I joined the Monthly Facial club and it cut the price in half. Joining the club also ensures I go because you pay even if you don’t go!! The next thing I did, and this has been huge, I stopped using washcloths to wash my face. Recent findings are that they can unnecessarily irritate your skin and they can spread bacteria and germs if you wash them and use a fabric softener, or if you use them more than once. So, I now use Clean Skin Club towels. They are a disposable and biodegradable face towel made for all skin types.
Lastly, I looked at my skincare products. Now don’t think for a minute that I didn’t try another whole group of products, lol, because I did, and I ended up doing a total overhaul. I not only changed what I use but I reduced the number of products. Let me share the list of what I use.
Cleansing:
Elemis Pro-Cleaning Balm
Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser
Morning Products:
SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic
SkinCeuticals H.A. Intensifier
Elemis Resurfacing Skin Smoothing Essence
Elemis Pro Collagen Marine Cream
Armani light reviving eye cream or Le Mieux Eye Wrinkle Correction
Evening:
SkinCeuticals H.A Intensifier
SkinCeuticals Retinol 1.0 (start with a lower strength
Elemis Pro Collagen Oxygenating Night Cream
Elemis Peptide4 Eye Recovery Cream
Another product I use if I get a blemish is Odacite BI + C
Lastly for my overall health, as I mentioned earlier, I looked at what I eat, how I was getting my exercise, and how well I was sleeping. I did some dieting at first when I was diagnosed with hypertension and high cholesterol, both run in my family, and I needed to lose 30 pounds. I still worked to create an eating plan that would help me lose weight but that I could also adopt as a lifestyle change. I built up to walking 3 miles a day, 5 days a week and doing 2-3 weight workouts a week, using some Youtube videos by Vera Laro. Twelve years later I have kept the weight off, still walking and while I try to get in the weight workouts, those are still a struggle for me, lol.
So, what did I learn on this journey….
I learned that as I continue to get older and change whether I want to or not, time doesn’t stop……so I embrace it.
I learned that I am worth the money, time, and effort.
I stopped thinking I will be a size 4 or 6 again and stopped starving myself to get there……now I work at maintaining a weight that keeps me healthy, while still enjoying my life.
I have learned not to look at sizes….it varies so much between brands. I shop for things I love and make me feel good about myself.
I learned that you can NEVER have too many pairs of shoes because they always love me no matter my age or size.
Last, but not least, I know I am still me, no matter what age I am or will be …..and that I am fabulous!!
