New Skin Care Regimen: Week in Review

Here we are Day 8 and though I may have slacked a bit, I still see a noticeable difference in my skin.  Considering the ingredients are really nothing special and inexpensive to boot, I have to say that I was surprised at having achieved such great success.

I realize that I didn't blog about days four through seven, but did you honestly wish to hear the same information over and over again? I didn't believe so.  

Admittedly, day four was a very busy day for me.  I was busy preparing for the weekend for my husband's celebration of the big 4-0.  I was cooking and cleaning throughout the day - which is another reason I didn't blog during that time - and was thoroughly exhausted each and every night.  I did manage to do my treatment that morning, but skipped the coconut oil moisturizer, because I honestly didn't have time to allow it to set in.  

Reminder: the coconut oil stays wet for much longer than your classic commercial moisturizers.

Day five, was busier still.  I had much more cooking and cleaning to do and there were about a dozen more visitors expected than the day before's count.  I was able to get phase one of the treatment completed - hot rag/honey/hot rag - before I realized what time it was and rushed off to finish my prep.  That means there was no scrub and no moisturizer.  I could have used my old moisturizer, but I didn't wish to detract from what the true results would have been.  By the end of the evening, I was too exhausted to fully clean up my house let alone clean my face.

Day six, I awoke to a new blemish.  It was just the one, but I obviously blamed my lack of completing the regimen.  I completed phase one, then did phase two - the scrub - but again didn't have much time to allow the moisturizing effects of the coconut oil to set in.

Day seven, I was a complete and utter slacker.  I blame the dreaded monthly cycle.  I had lost all motivation for everything because of it and just wished to rest.

Today, day eight, I am happy to report that although I missed a few steps in my week, I was able to garner better results with this "natural" treatment than I have in the past with some of the more expensive skin care regimens.

*  I don't like that the coconut oil stays wet for so long, but it's something I am willing to forgive for the wonderful result of clearer and softer skin.  Be sure to allow yourself enough time to let it set in otherwise, your placement of any cosmetic will be poorly set.

*  You do want to add a teensy amount of water to the scrub mixture to keep it from being too sticky.  You don't want to add too much, because it will destroy any real outcome the scrub could have provided.  You'll understand as you begin making it, and you'll figure out your own preference on the density.

*  Only make enough scrub for the single use or the day.  If you make more than what you need, the next time you go to use it, the mixture will be more like pudding.  You can't really exfoliate with a pudding mixture.

*  I found the scrub was pleasant for my knees, elbows, and legs.  If you're going to use it to treat these areas as well, I highly recommend you do it in the tub before a shower.  It's much easier to rinse off. :D

New Skin Care Regimen Day 3

I have to say, I am pleasantly surprised about the way the treatment is working.

I have had a small breakout, but I expected it because the lady time-of-the-month is coming.  I've also been working my ass arse off outside in the sweltering heat.  Those two "activities" should have brought on a full acne breakout, from forehead to neck.  Lucky for me only two small blemishes appeared on the left side of my chin with one making itself known on the right. That's it!

This is extremely unusual.  I usually have one on the eyebrow, one on the nose, a few by the ears and then my cheeks and chin seem to compete with each other to see who can bring out the most amount of blemishes in a four day period.

Okay world, what's going to happen now? No major breakout is nothing short of a miracle for me.  My acne is one of the main reasons I NEVER like getting pictures taken. I have scarring--which no one likes to look at--add the current acne issues and it's just downright unpleasant.  I guess I will know more over the next few days.

Another quick note:  I also noticed a slight decrease in pore size. This is also unexpected, but welcomed.  I'll watch that as we go along as well.

To treat my hands, until I can get a decent manicure, I went ahead and made a little extra of the scrub again this evening.  It seems I have one finger that just doesn't want to submit to treatment. It hasn't escaped my attention that it is my middle finger.

If all goes well, I may allow people take pictures of me in the next few weeks.  Then again, maybe not!

New Skin Care Regimen Day Two

I could have sworn that I posted this last night...

Day two of the skin regimen went a little better.  If you missed day one, you can find it here.  I had decided to go ahead with going through the treatment process before my shower, so it was much easier to remove the scrub from my face.  It was a much better feel than the last time when I had wiped it all off with a washcloth.  I think the plus with the washcloth, was that I felt I had a little extra dead skin removed from my face.  Whether or not that's true is unknown.  Although, my cheeks were very slightly raw, so I guess it's a bit of give and take on how one would want the treatment to progress.

I will admit one thing.  I made a bit too much of the scrub--okay, I tripled it!  I decided to go ahead and use it on my hands.  I massaged the scrub onto my hands and took a little extra time on my cuticles.  It felt very nice, and I believe my forever neglected nails sighed in relief.

The pros thus far are that I don't have to worry about a harsh stinging in my eyes, I don't smell like alcohol or  an indiscriminate chemical, and I do feel a definite difference in the softness of my skin.

The cons--I should say--con, is that the coconut oil doesn't quite sink into the skin fast enough.  I try not to touch my face, but I feel a strange wetness on my skin while walking around and can't help myself.  This also means that I cannot go to bed right away. There is a pro in that!  I get to finish up housework before going to bed. Yay!

Yes, that was sarcasm.

After I go through this process as described in the yahoo article, I may add almond dust to the exfoliating scrub once or twice a week to get the tough stuff removed.  

On to the next!

New Skin Care Regimen Day One

It is once again time for a confession.

I...am a Pinterest addict.  Yes, I, along with many other people on the net, am loving Pinterest.  I like that I have a site in which I may go to view all my bookmarks without clogging up my browser thereby filling the memory on my computer.  I like that it's an all-inclusive community, of sorts, that I can go to find something funny, edible, artistic or down right loathsome! I know what you're thinking, "Why don't you just Google?"  I could, but I'm not always looking for something in particular.  Sometimes, I'm just looking for inspiration.

All that, just to get to the point of this blog.  Shall we proceed?

Thanks to some lovely ladies on Pinterest - who seem to have the same affliction as I do, I saw an article regarding a skin care treatment which claimed that, "Four key ingredients get rid of your acne forever."  Too good to be true?  Maybe...

I'm a 30+ year old woman.  I should NOT have acne but yet, I do.  It sucks.  It's not just the occasional time-of-the-month breakouts.  Those I can handle!  There's always a few of those little buggers hanging out somewhere on my face or just under the surface of my skin.  It's annoying!

I've tried Clinique, Olay, Avon, soap and water, Murad, Proactiv, etcetera, etcetera and so on and so forth.  Nothing has ever seemed to work.  Clinique came close, but it seemed as soon as my skin figured out what I was doing, it decided to get it's revenge and changed skin types.  I didn't think it could do that, but it did.  So with my "I'll try anything once" attitude, I decided to try this.

The problem I saw was that there were no portion listings to advise you on how much of each to use for the mask.  I decided to use equal parts of the four ingredients (1 Tablespoon of each per treatment) and it seems to be doing well.

For the exfoliant I used:
1 Tbsp baking soda
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp finely ground oats

Incidentally, I did finally find the coconut oil (the moisturizing part of the treatment) at Sprouts.  I got the refined coconut oil for right around $6.00.  I couldn't imagine I would've needed chunks of coconut bits to moisturize my skin. Check your local organic market or health food store if you can't find it at your regular grocer.

I first did this treatment last night.  When I awoke this morning, I had completely forgotten that I'd done the treatment - that is until I went into my bathroom and saw my oatmeal riddled washcloth.   Thus far, it's the only part of this treatment that's bugging me.

I began examining my face.  It felt softer; dare I say, a bit smoother?  Definitely.  Upon further examination, a few of the "problem children" that I had gone to bed with the night before, were so small, that I had myself wondering if I had imagined their size! They were nearly gone!

I have already begun Day 2 of the treatment.  I do believe I will do my next treatment right before I shower so that I can rinse the exfoliant rather than using a cloth to take it off my face.  I probably shouldn't be using a cloth in the first place, but I figured the added benefit of rubbing a little extra dead cells off with the cloth couldn't really hurt.

Here's hoping that by the end of week one, I will be acne free!