Things I Love Thursday--MD Skincare daily alpha beta peels

Things I Love Thursday is a blog carnival over at The Diaper Diaries. 


Since I love skin care so much, I thought I’d focus on a skin care product that I L-O-V-E! This really got me thinking, because since I have left the workforce I find it excruciating to spend money on myself. After all, I’m not bringing any money in, so what right do I have to spend money on frivolous (to my husband) things like beauty products? Over the past few months I have really begun to get over that. I’m not saying I am going to go out and spend buckets of money on spa treatments, but when I look in the mirror and see breakouts, the beginnings of *GASP* crows feet, and rough patches on my cheeks I feel bad about myself. When I feel bad, how can I be a good role model for my daughter? How can I teach her confidence when I’m not confident myself? I know I do not want to teach her that looks are everything, but I, personally, feel a whole lot better about myself when I FEEL good. And, being the girly girl I am, pampering myself makes me feel good. Confident. Happy. Gorgeous.

One of my favorite products to pamper myself with is a daily (well, sorta) alpha/beta peel by MD Skincare. I don’t use it every day. Once or twice a week is plenty. I don’t always have it on hand, in fact I haven’t had any in my overflowing-under-the-sink cabinet in months. However, I always come back to this product. I find this is the best way to approach a more aggressive hydroxy acid skin care treatment. Skin actually has a way of getting ‘used’ to alpha hydroxies, so if you were to use this product daily for an extended period of time it would eventually start to lose some of its effectiveness. Thankfully, this is not the same for beta hydroxies. I have an on-going love affair with salicylic acid. (please don’t tell my husband)

Alpha hydroxies work by breaking up the stuff that keeps your skin cells together, called intercellular cement. Think of your skin as a brick wall. Intercellular cement is the mortar. When that mortar is dissolved, the old, dead bricks can fall off much more easily. This results in clearer, smoother, and brighter skin.

Beta hydroxies work by helping to peel away the layers of skin. Think of how you peel the dead, dry outer layers of an onion off to get to the shiny and supple inside. That is how salicylic acid works. It’s great for keeping breakouts at bay and helping bring a nasty under the skin breakout to the surface.

I love the MD Skincare daily alpha beta peels, and when I have them, use them once or twice a week. They help to reduce breakouts, even out skin tone, reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, and help your skin achieve a bit of a glow. My best tip for using this product is to cut the pads in half and only use half a pad for each application. This makes the product last much longer so you can get more bang for your buck!

The Chemistry of Skin Care: Why pH Matters

Ahhhh one of my absolute favorite skin care topics.  YAY!  Ok, first off, let's talk about what pH is.  PH stands for 'potential of hydrogen' and, simply, is a scale to measure the strength of an acid or a base (base=alkaline).  The midway point, 7, is considered neutral.  Water is a 7.  Anything below 7 is an acid, and anything above it is a base, or an alkaline.  The further away from 7 you move in either direction, the more potent the acidity or the alkilinity of the substance. 

What does ph have to do with your skin?  Your skin has a protective barrier, called the acid mantle made up of sweat and sebum.  This barrier is good for lots of things, including keeping bacteria out of your pores.  It's called the acid mantle because, you guessed it, it has an acidic pH.  Your skin has a pH ranging from 4.5-5.5. See? smaller than 7.  At least last time I checked.

I wish I could say that all product companies pH test their products before sending them off to store shelves, but the fact of the matter is this doesn't happen like it should.  The best way for you to find out if your products are pH appropriate for your skin is to test them yourself with pH strips--like the ones you used in middle school when you learned about pH.  I will say you won't (shouldn't at least!) need to worry about this with *professional* grade products.  In school, we got to experiment with products from home.  We found that even expensive products from beauty counters like Lancome and Clinique are not alwasy pH approprate.  Also, drug store brands such as Neutrogena and Purpose are actually alkaline--which causes holes in the acid mantle allowing bacteria into your pores and ultimately causing breakouts and breeding bacteria.  Not. Good.

It's important to note that a pH that is too low is also bad--if a product is too acidic it can cause serious irritation in the skin which can also lead to breakouts, redness, and a general uncomfy feeling. 

How do you know if your product is professional grade?  If you bought it at a spa or know the Esthetician uses the brand or products in her/his line of work, it's a profesisonal product.  Some of my favorite professional grade lines include Aveda, Skinceuticals, MD Formulations, Dermalogica, and PCA skincare. 

pH is not the only important factor when choosing skin care products, but it does go a long way.  It's probably the most important factor, followed closely by ingredients.  Cheers to happy, healthy, glowy, dewy, lovely skin!

skin care, simplified.

I mentioned a few posts back that I'm an esthetician.  In short, I LOVE all things skin care.  I enjoy discussing products, but with SO many out there to choose from I'm only really familiar with a fraction of them.  What I love most is to keep things simple, so over the past year I have really simplified my skin care routine and have been able to achieve the relatively good skin I strive for.  Here is what works for me:

I chose a ph appropriate cleanser that I use morning and night (Peter Thomas Roth foaming cleanser).  In the AM I only wash from the top of my nose, down around my mouth, and my chin.  This is the area I'm most prone to blackheads and cystic acne so I take care to get that area clean.  I just splash water on my forehead and cheeks because these areas tend to get dry.  I follow with an antioxidant packed day cream with an SPF of 25 and a good eye cream.

In the PM, if I am wearing makeup, I wash my face twice.  Yup, twice.  No matter what cleanser you are using, if you have product on your face, you are going to need to wash it twice.  The first cleanse is just breaking up the makeup and not getting into those pores.  If you have a precleanser like the one by Dermalogica, you can use that and then follow with your cleanser but I choose to use my cleanser twice.  I follow with a good rich night cream packed with antioxidants and AHA's to keep my skin glowing.  If you are concerned about pigmentation, choose a night cream with kojic acid as well to help lighten those spots.  And don't forget eye cream!

Did you get that? I just cleanse and moisturize.  If I went somewhere for a week, I'd only need 4 products.  For the girl who's cabinet under the sink is literally overflowing SO much I had to add shelving on the outside this is a HUGE step. 

Well, now you know what I do to keep my skin in shape.  I am going to be adding a series of posts as we go along to help you understand why good skin care is so important--and how neglecting it can be hazardous to your health.  Your skin is your largest organ, so take care of it!

Updates and developments!

It's been a pretty exciting start to the year at our house.  Last week, we found out that Max passed his most recent actuarial exam with flying colors.  This is excellent news for us, because with each exam he passes he gets a raise at work.  It's not monumental or anything, but every little bit counts! Now, he just has some 'VEE' requirements (I have no idea what that stands for, sorry) to fulfill, which mostly entails the grown up version of worksheets and take-home tests, to earn his ASA (Associate of the Society of Actuaries). 

Other exciting news is that Staci has learned to open and close her hand along with her 'wave', so it's a REAL wave now, not just a greeting.  She throws her arm up into the air, opens and closes her hand with a GIANT smile. She is SO awesome! She has also learned to 'Hi-five'.  This is such a funny thing, too, because Shania (the dog) gets jealous and wants to hi-five me for treats whenever Staci and I do it.  I indulge her, who wouldn't?

In other news, I received a surprise phone call from a local spa who saved my resume from way back when I was looking for work outside the home--before I found out I was pregnant.  I was so flattered they kept my information and wanted me to come in for an interview.  I went, of course, who could turn that down? But not without great anxiety at even the thought of leaving my sweet girl.  I know she is nine months old, and lots of moms go back to work at 12 weeks or, sadly, some far before that.  I decided the most I'm willing to work right now is one day every other week.  We don't have any daycares looked at and since we're still nursing 6-7 times per day and a few times at night I can't imagine working more than that.  Plus, we really don't have 'Grandma Day Care' as an option since both Grandmas work full time.  The spa was beautiful and I just love the idea of getting back into the business, so I do hope they call. 

Which brings me to one more thing--have I mentioned on here that I'm an esthetician? I have a few skin care posts planned so stay tuned!