Beauty Myth-busting: Oils vs. “Oil-free” Part 2- Find your Holy Grail oil.

So after our highly scientific experiment of “Find the grease ring on the paper bag”, you’ve concluded that your “oil-free” products have been lying to you all along. They indeed masquerade as “oil-free” products based on a technicality. Now, before we blow this drama out of proportion, let’s evaluate: how has your moisturizer been treating you? If you’re not experiencing breakouts and you’re happy with the performance of your moisturizer, why fix something if it’s not broken? If you suspect that your moisturizer has been the culprit to your breakouts, read on.

Now that we’ve clarified that just about all moisturizers contain oil and/or oil-like fillers, let me point out that this isn’t a bad thing. In the world of skincare, the fear of oil is created by the propaganda that oil = acne. That is simply untrue. If the oil/oil-like filler in question is not comedogenic to you, you can use it to nourish and protect skin from moisture loss and environmental elements. How do you find the right oil for your skin?

Personally speaking, just about all synthetic esters and moisturizers I’ve tried break me out. They tend to leave a heavy residue that feels foreign on my skin. I prefer oils that mimic my skin’s natural oil. Natural oils really strengthen my skin and they’re much easier to wash off. After years of trying different nature-derived oils (and breaking out from some of them), I’ve found that emu oil suits me best. I can use this oil on the most acne-prone areas of my skin and it still won’t break me out. Emu oil has helped my rosacea tremendously while strengthening my skin so it’s less irritation-prone. I apply this under my mineral powder and the 2 products meld together seamlessly on my skin. Emu oil is also rumored to have sun protection abilities. I can’t say enough about this miracle oil. I bought a 2 oz. bottle of emu oil from Garden of Wisdom in January 2010, it’s now October and I still have about 70% left in the bottle!

The one downside of emu oil is that it is not vegetarian friendly. For a plant oil that is safe for most skin types, jojoba oil is a good one to try. My sister swears by jojoba oil and coconut oil for her also acne-prone skin. I’ve also been testing kukui oil once a week to see how my skin likes it. Acne-prone skin types: apply logic and use the oils in moderation. This is not because the oil will cause acne, but acne-prone has a higher chance of breaking out from any new ingredient. When it comes to trying anything new, use product sparingly, track your progress and avoid starting other new products.

Beauty Myth-busting: Oils vs. “Oil-free”- What is better for my skin?

Having been acne-prone, I am all too familiar with the acne-prone mentality. For the longest time, “Is this oil-free?” was my skincare-shopping motto. I avoided "the O-word" in my skincare and cosmetics at all costs. However, through searching and researching for my ideal skincare regimen, my knowledge on oils has been revamped forever. I can no longer imagine an “oil-free” skincare routine. Read on to find out why.

Ok, here’s the thing. In the United States, when something states “Oil-free” on the bottle, it does not mean what you think it means. It is simply telling you that the product is free of animal, plant and mineral oils. Sounds great on paper, but the reality is: many “oil-free” products feel thicker and greasier than non-“oil-free” products. Why? Well, to ensure that “oil-free” moisturizers still have a nice moisturizing texture and finish, skincare companies use synthetics esters and waxes in lieu of animal, plant and mineral oils. Often times, these fillers look, act and feel just like oils. And just as often, these fillers are comedogenic whereas the some of the aforementioned oils are not.

Here’s a trick to try: take your “oil-free” moisturizers & foundations and liberally dab them on a brown paper bag (the lunch-sack variety will work). Leave the bag at room temperature for 12-24 hours. When you check the bag again, you may see oily rings around the products. These tell-tale rings are the esters and waxes in the product, they soak through a paper bag as well as any greasy lunch!

Gasp! what do I do now? Stayed tuned for Part 2 of Oils vs. “Oil-free”, coming soon!

Image courtesy of sheenasays.com (amazing blog, go check it out!)

Beauty Myth-busting: Egg white mask for glowing, poreless skin?...hmm.

Applying raw egg white on face for skin that is smooth, glowing and poreless- sounds like a typical “natural” beauty treatment you can easily find and read about online. In fact, this was a beauty tip that had gone viral on the internet about 10 years ago. I was a frequenter of a once-popular beauty forum when a poster began posting about using egg whites on her face. The person claimed that, when used daily, egg white was causing the dead skin cells on her face to peel off to reveal the most gorgeous skin she’s had since infancy- fine lines and pores diminishing; old acne scars fading on a daily basis. Shortly after, people on the forum began jumping on the “egg white mask” bandwagon. Positive progress reports and pictures were posted on the forum daily and it seemed as if the entire forum was singing its praises.

Suddenly, glowing reviews were replaced by negative reactions. People began flooding the forum with questions and concerns about breakouts. It started with a pimple here and there followed by a frenzy of clogged pores. People tried to convince each other (and themselves) their skin was “purging” but it soon became clear that having clusters of fresh acne wasn’t leading to the perfect skin they envisioned. I witnessed this unfortunate incident unfold in a matter of months but the people who experienced negative side effects continued to nurse their broken-out skin long after that. When they finally got their acne under control, it left acne scars that etched their face for years thereafter.

I have no doubt that the egg white mask yielded wonderful results for the poster who started this trend. I’m sure she was trying to share something wonderful and didn’t have bad intentions. Problem is the majority of those who tried this had broken out severely. For that reason, I have to give this beauty tip a NAY. If I recall correctly, proponents of this mask claimed that egg whites provide a good source of vitamin A to the skin so it has a similar exfoliating effect as Retin-A (although I just looked up the nutrition content of raw egg whites, it has no vitamin A). What was most mind-boggling: raw eggs contains harmful bacteria that shouldn’t be ingested; why people thought it was okay smear a harmful bacteria-based medium on their skin is beyond me.

As a huge advocate of natural and Do-it-Yourself skincare, it’s crucial that I share an example of how “natural” doesn’t always equal safe and effective. It is becoming increasingly difficult to decipher between the good and bad of natural skincare and I want to do my part in unraveling that mystery.

Beauty Myth-busting: Shrinking Pores?

If you’ve ever read on bottles of potions claiming to shrink pores, it’s marketing fluff. Pores will not reduce in size, period. You can, however, minimize the appearance of large pores. Stay away from silicone-filled primers (if the finish of the product feels smooth, velvety and “coated”, it has some type of silicone). It’ll look pretty for now, but the silicone will build up in your pores over time. Once the residue oxidizes with dead skin cells, it will appear dark, resulting in blackheads. Using a good mineral foundation can be beneficial (my fave is Mineral Basics Complete Cover Concealer). When your skin appears flawless, you’ll be less inclined to fuss over the pores. Less fuss equals less picking at your skin, which results in healthier skin. A good mineral powder will also protect your skin from environmental elements.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, keeping your skin hydrated from the inside-out is the key to having smaller-looking pores- drink at least 8 glasses of water each day and try eating flaxseed or flaxseed oil daily. Our pores become overactive with producing oil when skin is dehydrated. Keeping skin hydrated and nourished from the inside out improves the condition of your skin over time, resulting in less overactive pores. Also, keep in mind that pores are there for a reason, they play a vital part in relieving our skin of toxins in our body. There’s no need to wear an “oil-controlling” or “pore-minimizing” lotion during the night; allow your pores to expel impurities while you sleep.

Beauty Myth-busting: BB Cream Part 2- Make your own BB cream!

Think of an ideal BB Cream as 1 part treatment and 1 part color/coverage. Essentially, mixing your tinted moisturizer (my favorite is the 100% Pure Fruit- pigmented Tinted Moisturizer) with your favorite treatment serum would yield the same results. Below is another recipe to try your hands at.

What you need:
You favorite daytime moisturizer
Aromaleigh Nocturne Overnight Mineral Treatment or SunCat Sundown Night Treatment

Starting with 2 pumps of your favorite moisturizer in the palm of your left hand, add about a 4 pea-size amount of either powder mineral treatments. Blend the mixture together using your ring finger until mixture is smooth. Apply to cleansed skin. You can adjust the amount of either products to your liking.
Mixing the mineral treatment and the moisturizer together allows the minerals to spread evenly onto skin, creating a coverage that is extremely light/natural with a subtle light-diffusing quality. In addition, now that the mineral treatment is in liquid form, it creates better adhesion and absorption between the beneficial ingredients and your skin. As always, the mixture should be used immediately; DO NOT premix 2 products and keep in another container because there aren’t enough preservatives to keep the product’s integrity.

If you’re not familiar with these mineral night treatments, please refer to each link because I think both websites did a great job explaining the products. Long story short, they’re a powder-form treatment similar to the bestselling Bare Escentuals RareMinerals Treatment without the hefty price tag or the irritating ingredients. For people with oily or acne-prone skin who are afraid of moisturizers, these are great alternatives to help nourish the skin. Despite how it’s advertised, I recommend using this in the daytime. I don’t think it’s good to apply cosmetic ingredients before you sleep at night.

If you are uncertain about which mineral treatment to choose, use the following guideline:
Aromaleigh Nocturne Overnight Mineral Treatment
- It contains trace mineral concentrate, which is what Bare Escentuals touts as their secret ingredient. This is almost an exact dupe of Rare Minerals without the use of irritating Bismuth Oxychloride. When mixed, this one has a finish that’s slightly grainy (due to the trace minerals). I don’t mind it so much because the applied look is still quite nice.
- Comes in 2 colors, LITE and Original medium
SunCat Sundown Night Rejuvenating Treatment
- While this version doesn’t contain trace mineral concentrate, the formula is mica-free (great for those who are sensitive to it). Suncat Minerals estimates that this treatment has approximately SPF 30 (this is a one-woman business so she can’t afford SPF rating tests). It also contains amino acid-rich silk powders.
- This version comes in 3 shades.

Once you make your selection, you are ready to make your “BB Cream”- Enjoy!

Here’s my disclaimer: I write extremely researched reviews after extensive, self-conducted testing. I do not review products I dislike; it's a waste of time and typing skills. This review contains products I purchased. I was not paid to write this review. My first priority is to my readers; company gratis does not guarantee placement. Affiliate and non-affiliate links are provided to inform readers of where to purchase products. All in all, you can be sure that items seen on my website are the very few products that qualify for recommendation after rigorous testing.

Beauty Myth-busting: BB Cream

There is a new cosmetic/skincare craze sweeping the Asian beauty industry- BB Cream. The name stands for Blemish Balm Cream, but from what I’ve seen BB Cream makers claim that it does EVERYTHING. Imagine a product that erases the look of pores, spots & lines, treats blemishes (albeit slowly), fights aging, contains ingredients likes caviar and diamond while leaving your skin looking flawless under any type of light using coverage lighter than a tinted moisturizer.

If it sounds too good to be true, it is. The coverage is extremely light, it won’t cover bumps and spots. BB cream typically comes in this lackluster shade of light grey and it’s oxidizes to match your skin tone. No, thank you- grey is simply not a flattering color on any skin tone. It oxidizes and turns skin-color because it becomes exposed to air and the natural oils on your skin. However, if your skin is on the drier side, you might end up wearing that mortuary tint longer than expected. I also suspect that it makes skin look porcelain-like because the grey tint literally counteracts all color from the skin. As for everything it claims it does, I dissected a popular BB Cream’s ingredient list and there’s nothing magical about it. If anything, it contained a number of pore-clogging irritants. It really is just a craze.

I was genuinely curious when I ask a friend of mine why she loves her BB cream. She couldn’t offer anything but “it’s all the rage amongst Asian celebs right now!”. When I offered her my synopsis of BB Cream, she became thoughtfully quiet for a moment and replied “…that might explain why I’m breaking out…!!!” Hmph, the things we are suckered into buying! *shakes fist at the beauty industry* BB Cream’s popularity really boggles me. With that said, the concept is great! Stay tuned as next week, I’m setting out to make my own version of the BB cream, a BB Cream with the perks and none of the setbacks.

Myth-busting: Using toilet-seat paper covers as oil-blotting sheets?

Unless you are the heir to a paper toilet-seat cover company and your parents supply you with fresh paper seat covers by the packs, I am against using these seat covers as blotting sheets. Sure, it happened to all of us; we all thought it was the best thing since sliced bread when we first heard of this nifty trick. What could be better than gigantic blotting sheets that remove unsightly complexion shine, supplied FREE of charge by the facility management of fine public restrooms you do your business in?

Well, there’s just one problem: paper seat cover dispenser has been tested and proven to be one of the dirtiest surfaces in public restrooms. How? Besides having contact with hands of nearly every person that comes into the stall, it is constantly sprayed by the toilet water. When a toilet is flushed, it sends millions of toilet water molecules skyrocketing above. Many of these molecules find their landing place on that dispenser (and that small section of paper cover that is exposed and vulnerable). If you insist on using them in lieu of conventional blotting papers, I recommend buying a fresh pack, they are readily available online.

If you would like a daintier, fit-in-your-purse version of blotting sheets, my favorite is the Boscia Green Tea Blotting Linens. $10 for 100 sheets actually beats out many drugstore varieties because they often cost more than $5 for less than 1/3 of the quantity and quality.

Beauty Myth-busting: Lemon juice and toothpaste for acne?

They are big NO-NOs! I simply cringe when I read a magazine touting these ingredients as pimple treatments. Most toothpastes contain fluoride, which actually exacerbate acne. Lemon juice is much too acidic to dab unto an open wound (yes, a popped zit is an open wound- treat it accordingly!) Lemon juice is phototoxic, which means you shouldn’t go out in the sun when you have this on your skin unless you’re begging for an adverse reaction. Lemon juice does have an exfoliating effect, but it’s much too harsh. If you leave skin unprotected by the sun, it can leave skin vulnerable to sun spots and, god forbid, AGE SPOTS! Age spots are worse than pimples; they are blemishes that never leave your face!

My recommendation: Have a blast brushing your teeth with toothpaste of your choice for minty-fresh breath and healthy teeth. Squeeze half a lemon into a refreshing glass of h20 for a Vitamin C-spiked skin & body quencher!