Arcona Mandarin Brightening Peel

I am the Queen of exfoliation. Seriously, I always tell my clients it is an essential step in the fight against aging. It's is the key to radiant skin & your other products working more effectively. That being said I often have clients who over do it with aggressive exfoliants & come to me with red, peeling skin. There is a fine line & proper balance in terms of introducing chemical & enzyme exfoliants into your skincare diet. With prescriptions, I recommend slowly incorporating them into your skincare regimens. For those who are new to the game, enter Arcona's new Mandarin Brightening Peel. Never mind the fact that it smells like a cross between an orangesicle & a tropical drink, it's the perfect mild exfoliant as we head into summer. I think the term 'acid' in AHA's scares people from incorporating them into their anti-aging regimen. Acids can in fact be gentle for the skin & offer a host of benefits like reducing the appearance of fine lines, brightening, smoothing texture & are amazing in addressing acne. Besides Glycolic & Lactic acids in Arcona's Mandarin Brightening Peel, the anti-oxidant Lycopene & a unique patented lightening peptide round out the cocktail. Peptides are at the top of most Dermatologist's lists for their anti-inflammatory & anti-aging capabilities. Applied on my face, I felt nary an uncomfortable tingle- which makes me confident recommending it pretty much to all skin types once or twice a week. I even was a renegade & left it on for 10 minutes, versus the 4-6 outlined in the directions. What can I say? I love me some exfoliation!

Peace. Love. Lipgloss. M

Kinara Red Carpet Facial Kit

What girl doesn't want to look like she's ready for a walk down the Red Carpet? Especially around the holidays, with all the parties- I know I want to get my glow on! Kinara's Red Carpet Facial Kit is a cult favorite among celebrities, because it reveals vibrant skin with no downtime. The kit involves a 3 step process. (1)On clean, dry skin a peel containing Lactic & Malic Acids is applied for about 5 minutes. (2) A soothing neutralizer with Argenine is then applied to stop the peel. (3) A deliciously frothy mask follows to hydrate & further soothe. Pikea Robusta & Lysate extract in the mask plump up fine lines & wrinkles, too.

Here are Lindsay & Jodi of the Beauty Team masking. {Um no I'm not putting a picture of myself in a mask on the internet, I'm so mean- he he!} I wanted to try the system on a multitude of skin types: Lindsay's extremely oily, I'm combination & Jodi's very dry. The whole gang felt like it worked on their skin type & revealed smooth glowing skin in under 20 minutes! This time of year everyone is so busy. Clients pop in to get their brows done, but time is a luxury most of us don't have when baking, cooking, decorating & wrapping tops our lists. This home kit is perfect to prevent those holiday stress induced breakouts! I did the system last night while decorating my tree- this morning, we're both merry & bright!

Peace. Love. Lipgloss. M

Philosophy Oxygen Peel

Ever have a month that makes you feel like you've aged 10 years? That's how October was for me. When I saw Philosophy's Oxygen Peel kit offered as a today's special value, I literally thought my skin could use a breath of fresh air! The kit also comes with Philosophy's best selling cleanser, Purity & a new antioxidant lotion called Oxygen Boost.

For step one of the peel, you break apart a capsule & mix with warm water in the enclosed container.

The resulting gel is like unflavored gelatin if you've ever made homemade jam!

After applying the gel, this potion is next. While the second step already feels whipped in consistency, after you layer it onto the gel it becomes a shaving cream like frothy texture.

Gorgeous shot- I know! After the peel, I noticed my skin looked lighter & a little brighter- though no real smoothing in terms of skin texture. This peel also helps with clarifying congested skin. While I think it was fun to play mad scientist in initially mixing the peel, I think the novelty might wear off & lead to inconsistency in my using it. No matter how great a product is, if you don't use it regularly- the results won't happen. This is why I rarely recommend masks to clients- unless I know they're extremely dedicated to their skincare regimens.

Peace. Love. Lipgloss. M