Monthly Archives: June 2015

Liquid Bandage

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imageThis is a must-have in your medicine cabinet/first aid kit, New-Skin Liquid Bandage. I was turned on to this liquid bandage when I first started in the spa industry. Being that my hands are my livelihood, any knick, cut or injury can put me out of service. Needless to say, I am protective of my hands but occasionally will come across a small cut here and there.

New-Skin has been able to keep me employed.  Any small cut or little wound I may have, I cover with the liquid bandage and am protected against exposing my hands to the environment.  It is a first aid antiseptic which is ideal for my kind of work.

The application is like using a fingernail polish. Unscrew the top and gently brush over he small cut or wound. Because of the antiseptic properties in the liquid bandage, there may be a burst of stinging on the open wound.  This is killing any bacteria within the wound. Reapply until the wound is completely covered and let it air dry.

The liquid bandage over time will start to flake and peel. DO NOT PULL OF THE FLAKING NEW-SKIN OVER THE WOUND.  Pulling off the flaking New-Skin directly over the wound will re-open the wound. I have found that reapplying over the older new skin is best. It may become a little thicker but not by much and is better for the healing process of the skin.

New-Skin Liquid Bandage receives 5 STARS. 5stars1

 

Face Scrub with Olive

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imageApivita has created one of the best exfoliations with the grains from olives. Both men and women will love this scrub. It is a creamy exfoliating scrub filled with great cleansing, purifying, soothing yet awakening ingredients. Your skin feels renewed but does not feel dry like how other mechanical exfoliations tend to leave your skin. The salicylic acid in Apivita’s scrub will help to treat non-active acne and give the skin a nice, deep cleanse. What I like most about this product is the cooling effect it has on your skin from the menthol.

This is a great scrub for men because it helps to soften the hair on the face allowing for a clean shave.  Just apply the scrub on the tips of your fingers and scrub the opposite direction of the hair follicle. This will help to loosen the hair from the skin.

Men could use this scrub everyday and the skin would not get irritated.  I would recommend women using it every other day just because women don’t have the facial hair growth that men have and it might irritate the skin if used everyday.

Face Scub with Olive by Apivita receives 5 STARS.  5stars1

 

 

 

 

 

Today, Yesterday, Tomorrow

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One of my hobbies is writing poetry. I thought I’d start sharing some of my written works with you. This is one of my favorite poems that I wrote last year, July 29th of 2014 to be exact, lol. I wrote it in ten minutes. It speaks for itself….

Today, Tomorrow, Yesterday

Her time was his time, his time was I time. He didn’t know another way to make a we, be an us, create a they. Tomorrow was all he could say, tomorrow.

But tomorrow’s turned into an existence of infinite time that never was spent on her but on him and his desires beyond seeing her smiles fade away.

Her love was eternal, loving him the same today, as she had every yesterday and would for every tomorrow. His love was never there for it was a lust lasting for a moment, never truly satisfied, searching for something better.

Caught up in fantasies and illusions of indulgence that would make Dracula look like his servant, thirsty for new blood, enchanting youthful victims prey to his charm, gentleman swag and snakelike tongue.

She saw him with the eyes of an innocent child, perfect in all dispositions, scarred with nightmares of past, stoic and gentle needing the love of her unwaivering heart.

He saw her as weak, a mortal with emotions, unbelieving she could love him, a fraud with a devil’s seduction, too good to be true he loathed everything about her.

Her today’s became a gasp, her yesterday’s a sigh and her tomorrow’s a choke of visions seen in her future as a mirage untouchable in her every sense.

He lives in her heart, abundant in warmth.

She is resilient, tiresome of being unloved, transparent to his heart that blows dry ice from its core.

Still she loves him, wishing his today’s would become hers, his yesterday’s would become theirs and his tomorrow’s would become ours.

I-Image Vital C

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VITAL-C-line-1When it comes to skincare collections and pairing, I-Image has succeeded in creating the optimal anti-aging, vitamin C line.  Each and every one of their Vital C products are extremely beneficial to the skin carrying rich antioxidants that help to combat sun damage, rosacea, aging, and environmental stressors such as smoking and pollution.  There is not one that is better than the other, they all have their own purpose on the skin which is to act as a treatment to the skin by repairing it and acting as an anti-inflammatory for it.

I-Image has 7 products in there Vital C collection.  They are:

vital_c_hydrating_facial_cleanser1.  Hydrating Facial Cleanser.  A cleanser that does not foam but is a creamy cleanser, gentle on the skin and effectively removes dirt and grime from the skin.

vitalcantiagingserum2.  Hydrating Anti-Aging Serum.  A serum that is not water soluble.  Of lotion content, this serum helps to penetrate into the skin providing it with a rich light-weigh moisture.

imageskincarevitalchydratingrepaircreme3.  Hydrating Repair Cream.  This is a great cream to wear at night while your skin is repairing as you sleep.  Also great for skin that has had some sun exposure and a little red, it will help to soothe the mild sunburn.

vitalchydratingeyerecoverygel4.  Hydrating Eye Recovery Gel.  To help awaken and revitalize tired and overworked eyes.

imagehydratingenzymemasque25.  Hydrating Enzyme Mask.  Use this mask as an exfoliation.  Once applied, the skin may feel a little warm tingling.  The enzyme is eating away those dead skin cells allowing your skin to revitalize the new skin cells.

vital-c-hydrating-ace-serum6.  Hydrating Ace Serum.  This water-soluble serum penetrates deeper into the skin than the Hydrating Anti-Aging Serum.  For a great treatment for the skin.  Use the Hydrating Ace Serum first and layer it with the Hydrating Anit-Aging Serum.

hydratingintensemoisturizer7.  Hydrating Intense Moisturizer.  Heavier than the Hydrating Repair Cream, this cream is great for dry and rosacea prone skin.

*Notice that every product in the Vital C collection starts with the word, HYDRATING, each product helps to add moisture to the skin leaving it with a glowing, refreshed look and feel.

I-Image Vital C Collection receives 5 STARS.

5stars1

emerginC vitamin C Serum

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emerginCvitaminCI really like emerginC’s vitamin C serum for the skin.  I use this product on most all of my clients during a facial.  The water-soluble, stable vitamin C serum is great for all skin types.  Filled with vitamin C globules, the serum does not activate the vitamin C until it is pumped out of the container, bursting the globule.  Just pump 1-2 pumps in the palm of your hands and apply onto the skin allowing it to absorb onto the skin, then follow with an spf and/or moisturizer.

This serum can be used day and night.

emerginC vitamin C receives 5 stars.

5stars1

Skin’s MVP Vitamin

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vitamincinskincareWhen people ask me out of all the skincare products, which one would be the most important one to purchase?  I always respond by saying a vitamin C serum.  Vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid) is the best all-around antioxidant for your skin.  It can be used on all skin types and has great benefits.

vitamin_c_refreshing_whitening_sunscreen_lotionBenefit One:  SUNSCREEN.

Vitamin C naturally helps to protect your skin from harmful UVB rays with its 10% ability to screen the sun from your skin.

5-Amazing-Vitamin-C-Benefits-for-SkinBenefit Two:  ANTI-AGING.

Vitamin C helps to promote collagen synthesis within the skin contributing to prevent premature aging and collagen loss.

Vitamin-C-Foods-For-Inflammation-ReliefBenefit Three:  INFLAMMATION.

Vitamin C when applied on the skin helps to soothe and calm down any redness within the skin.

man-applying-lotionBenefit Four:  REPAIRING.

Vitamin C helps to repair damage within the skin’s cells.

bright-skin-curly-black-hair-croppedBenefit Five:  BRIGHTENING.

Vitamin C because of its acid properties helps to brighten the skin and make it look revitalized and glowing.

Australian-Skin-Institute-Vitamin-C-resizedWith all these wonderful benefits for the skin, vitamin C to me is one of the M.V.P.’s (Most Valuable Product) in the skincare industry.

Say Goodbye to Steam

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vapor_facialThe other day I gave a HydraFacial MD to a woman in her mid-thirties.  This is one of the top facials on the market using the infusion of water and rich ingredients to penetrate the skin while simultaneously incorporating a suction on the skin with different exfoliating tools.  It is one of my favorite facials to give because the skin looks refreshed, glowing and vibrant.

After I finished the HydraFacial MD on my client, I asked her if she had any questions for me.  She looked a little confused and said, “This is the first facial I have ever had that never used steam”.  I smiled with the left side of my cheek, raising the corner of my lips, mouth closed, then replied, “That is the new way of performing facials.  The ingredients are more active than products that we used to use for facials back in the day.  The new skincare companies are training us to not use steam because steaming the face lengthens the muscle fiber and we want to keep the muscles in the face tighter.”

Still with a quizzical look on her face, “But I thought steaming was used to help soften the pores and open them so you can clean them”.

I could tell she wanted more understanding of why I didn’t use steam so I tried to answer her in a way that would put her confusion at ease.  “Yes, you are absolutely right, steam does help to soften and open the pores and does create an easier way to extract blackheads.  There are products that we can use now that are just as effective as softening the skin, prepping it for extractions, that can take place of steaming the skin.  With the active ingredients we use in a lot of our facials, using the steam would be a contraindication to the treatment.”

A saddened look appeared across her face as she now understood why steam couldn’t be used.  She closed her eyes for a brief moment as to take in what I just told her and reopened them with an accepted head nod.

I smiled at her and looked at her beautiful, glowing skin and said, “Long gone are the days of the “fluff and buff” facial but if you ever want to experience the traditional European Facial, every Aesthetician can give one without using too active of ingredients.  I like feeling the steam on my skin too.”

As a licensed Aesthetician, the first time I was trained to do a facial without steam was like making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich without the jelly.  It didn’t feel like the real thing.  I felt like I was taking away the best part of the treatment that made people feel good.  Then after working more and more with the new products that don’t require steam, I realized that the steam, just like jelly, can be replaced with something just as good or even better.

Steaming the face is very relaxing but now longer massages can be performed during the facial, other tools can be incorporated that will make the skin have faster results.  Instead of receiving lots of facials to achieve a desired result, now only a few amount of facials are needed.  Even though the skincare industry is slowly saying goodbye to steam and weening it out of facials, it is saying hello to result-driven skincare needs.

The Facial Advancement is an article that will tell more about the advancements of facials and how they are changing in the skincare industry.

 

 

What Wellness is To Me?

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Mel Zuckerman, founder of Canyon Ranch.

Mel Zuckerman, founder of Canyon Ranch.

I remember the first time I heard the word Wellness.  I had just been hired by Canyon Ranch SpaClub at the Venetian and was attending the orientation where the founder and owner (at that time), Mel Zuckerman, educated me with exactly what it meant to him.  Wellness meant that you choose to live a healthy lifestyle that enhances your overall well-being. A healthy lifestyle meant taking care of your body, mind and spirit through alternative therapies, spiritual pursuits and consuming food that would nurture your body.

WellNess-Day-700x233On Saturday, June 13th, the world celebrated Global Wellness Day.  People around the globe chose to be well.  To partake in an activity that would exercise the body, fuel the spirit and feed the mind.  People are taking charge of their health and starting to triangulate the infrastructure of their own wellness.  The great thing about wellness is that each individual has their own kind of way to achieving their wellness.

indianladyWellness activities for me are reading, walking in nature, talking to my girlfriends, spending time with family, exercising, eating a good variety of food, praying, dancing, singing, playing the piano, writing, taking baths, taking care of my skin, inhaling, exhaling….the list continues on to whatever brings me joy and peace.

heartbeattreeoflife

 

 

Wellness is the state of harmony, patiently serving our inner-self.  To keep our heartbeat in rhythm to the universe, beating inter-connected to the existence of infinite space is wellness to me.  To know that we are all entwined within the wavelengths of light that produce the energy we create is wellness to me.  Wellness is our divine grace and the more we become aware of it, we can partake in it.

Professional Poker Player Grows Ill Without Sun

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poker faceThe World Series of Poker is taking place in Las Vegas right now and I have been receiving some of the players as clients.  One in particular, who’s sole income is from being a professional poker player, came to me and shared his story with me as I was massaging him.  After he told me his story, he asked me if I knew much about vitamin D deficiency, I responded by saying, “funny thing you ask me, I’m a blogger and I just wrote about vitamin D on my website, so I know about what you are telling me”.  He then asked me if I would share his story on my blog in which I gladly replied, “Yes.”

Here is his story as told to me:

“I never use to be the spa type of person until recently.  I got extremely ill in which my body started shutting down, I had a hard time walking, my nerves were constantly on fire and my neurological system was off, I felt like I had vertigo all the time.  My muscles atrophied and my entire body was weak, I thought I was near my last days.

You see, I’m a professional poker player.  I make my living gambling.  I’ve dropped down to zero came up 100 k, dropped down to zero, came up 200 k, dropped down to zero.  This is the roller coaster of my life.  I’ve lived in an apartment with no furniture but a laptop and  a blanket where I just had a place to sleep on the floor.  I’m a risk taker and found in my early twenties that I wanted to make playing poker my profession and so I learned from the best world champion poker player there is and haven’t looked back.

About eight months ago I was in Aruba gambling.  If I wasn’t gambling online, then I was gambling somewhere where poker was available to play.  I only do “cash” poker, I found that to be better money.  When I start gambling, I’m all in.  It’s work for me so I will gamble long hours, taking little care of my body.  I didn’t eat the best food for me, I was lacking a lot of sleep and was always inside.  My health started dwindling and I knew that I needed to go back home to the states.

When I got home after spending six months in Aruba, I went and saw my doctor.  He ran a lot of tests and one of the near diagnosis was ALS.  My fiance was in medical school before and she didn’t think that I had ALS so she started doing some research.  She found out that what was making my health so extremely bad, was from vitamin D deficiency.  All of my symptoms were attributed from lack of sun exposure, good vitamin D.

When I was in Aruba, staying in doors all the time not getting sun and rest made me sick.  When I did go outside, I was wearing long sleeve shirts and a baseball cap.  My skin was never directly exposed to the sun and I grew very ill.

Once when my fiance realized this was the cause, I started taking vitamin D supplements, getting massages to help with the nerve pain and body aches I had, and I started taking creatine. I went to GNC and found the old shcool creatine, the creatine that is monosaturated.  The monosaturated creatine is the best form of creatine to help rebuild the muscles because it is designed to give more water to the muscle.  I’ve already gained back 20 pounds and my muscles aren’t as atrophied as they were.  I still have some more muscle building and getting regular massages is helping me to repair at a faster rate.

Vitamin D deficiency is serious, I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone.  My fiance saved me by helping me find that this was the cause for my poor health state.  The doctor was going to start running tests on me for MS (Multiple Sclerosis) because they couldn’t figure out why my body and nerves were in the state they were in.  I’m feeling a lot better, I’d say that I am at 70%, I still have 30% more to get me back to where I was before I got sick.  I will never go to the extreme of poker playing as I was where my health came last.”