What 9 Essentials To Do To Help Prevent Your Beauty Routine From Aging You
By: Denise Zingale Travis / D’MAZ Lifestyle Salon tel: (216) 292-4247
Owner, Hairdresser, Reiki Master/Certified Personal Trainer
As we age, our skin, hair, and features change with us – so our beauty routine needs to change as well. Is yours working against you and adding years to your appearance? Here are a some essential changes to help prevent your beauty routine from aging you and maintaining a more youthful look.
Cleanser Review
By the time you reach 50, regardless of how your skin once was, it’s time for a cleansing review. You need a product that takes off surface oil, dirt, pollutants and make-up without removing the natural lipids. It should be a cleanser that emulsifies with water to refresh the skin, while leaving valuable moisturizing properties on its surface. This one simple change will improve your skin condition and, with this perfect balance, give you a beautifully hydrated skin even before you apply moisturizer.
Exfoliation
Replace the exfoliating facial scrub. Scrubbing your skin will cause dryness, dullness and irritation. If you want a glowing, hydrated, luminous skin well into mid-life, find something containing alpha and or beta hydroxy acids and use it regularly.
Many skincare brands currently add a very little of these ingredients, but seldom enough. Serum formulations are best. You should see an improvement in the texture of your skin almost immediately.
Top up your vitamin C.
Your skin, like every other organ of the body, depends on getting enough vitamin C. And if it is to age well, this essential nutrient is very important.
Topically applied, it is key to producing more collagen, which is responsible for the skin’s strength. (Loss of collagen is one of the reasons for later-life lines and wrinkles.) It’s also one of the most powerful and potent natural antioxidants, absorbed mainly through the fruit and vegetables that we eat.
Your Diet
If there’s any shortfall in your diet, your skin will feel the loss; your collagen will decrease and free radicals will wreak havoc. But there are plenty of other reasons for free radicals. Invest in a well-formulated vitamin C serum or cream. Look for stable, low-water formulations with a pH no higher than 3.5. (Vitamin C is water-soluble so the less water in the formulation the better.) Also, once you’ve opened the container, commit to using it daily.
Find a very good moisturizer
Our skin changes as we age. By 50, it can lose its ability to hold moisture, thus leading to dryness, dehydration and a loss of elasticity. These symptoms indicate that the skin is lacking in essential fatty acids. However, seeking out the richest, thickest cream you can find is not necessarily the answer. Look for creams with gamma linoleic and linolenic acids. These two essential fatty acids, when topically applied every day, mimic the skin’s natural lipid ceramide barrier and help to restore natural moisture without feeling greasy.
Hydrate and plump
The average age of menopause is 51, and with the drop in hormones, skin becomes dryer and brown spots can increase. Deeper folds, including the “smile” lines that run from the corners of the nose to the corners of the mouth, develop as skin loses underlying fat. This loss also “hollows out” the under-eye area.
Drinking at least 8 glasses of water daily and staying hydrated makes sure that your body will be better able to function properly, including maintaining the health and cleanliness of your skin.
Give your makeup a makeover
Make up for older women should serve two purposes. First it should add color to faded skin. Second it should conceal minor flaws and wrinkles as much as possible.
Because our skin becomes thinner and dryer, you need to update your makeup choices. Primer can be your best friend – it evens out wrinkles so they’re less visible. Find a lightweight foundation that won’t cake into lines.
Eyes & Brows
Avoid wearing excessive eye makeup, since this can work against you. Instead, enhance your natural eye shape by applying a thin line of eyeliner along top and bottom lash line, keeping it light and soft to avoid harsh lines.
As we age, our eyebrows often become sparser, which can cause us to appear older. Filling in your eyebrows with an eyebrow pencil or powder gives the appearance of thicker, fuller eyebrows which can give your face more definition and youthful look. Four techniques to also consider may be cosmetic tattooing (permanent), microblading – a “natural” semi-permanent look, microfeathering – lightly fills out the brows you already have or microshading – which is for anyone who has brows and wants a look more “done” (ex: thick and filled in).
HAIR COLOR! As many of us know, gray hairs start taking over – making our previously luscious locks coarse, drab, and dull, often adding years to our face. Finding a professional hairdresser is a must to review all your hair details; gray percentage, texture change, porosity, skin tone, and more. Only a professional can individually customize hair color just for you and make sure you get gray coverage and the most natural, flattering, youthful look!
Finally ~ Get some shut eye!
Sleep may sound obvious, but many don’t realize how it can take years off your appearance! Lack of sleep can cause thinning hair and hair loss. Red, puffy eyes and emphasize fine lines … just to name a few things. Getting sleep can trigger hormones that help repair your skin and hair!
“Do you have a hair, general beauty or wellness question? Contact me to help you prevent your beauty routine from aging you so you can look and feel the best you can!” ~ Denise Zingale Travis tel: (216) 292-4247
D’MAZ Lifestyle Salon Disclaimer: This article is provided solely for general information only. It is in no way intended to diagnose, treat, or cure any form of skin, hair, scalp or health issues and/or problems and should not be depended upon as a substitute for any consultations with qualified health professionals.
