Mine is, and has been for years, Gwyneth Paltrow.

What am I talking about..?? Well, celebrity skin, of course…!!  Those beautiful women who seem to have the most gorgeous, flawless, velvety looking skin. Women who are blessed with skin like that can only be successful in life, right…!?? They were born with it, and that makes them destined for happiness, fame, and VOGUE cover shoots.

Well, I’ll let you in on a little secret… While as a woman, I admire beauty and seemingly perfect skin; as a licensed esthetician, I can tell you that while good skin can be hereditary (just like strong white teeth, or a big bank account), there is quite a lot you can do if you struggle with less than perfect skin.

The skin you were born with is the skin you have to live with. Although the upper skin layer renews itself every month, you can’t change your skin type. However, what you CAN do is keeping your skin balanced, and harmonize it by treating it with lots of TLC and good skincare products.

Skin is the biggest organ of your body, and whatever you do…your skin usually shows it first. Remember the big, red zit on the nose that showed up just before you had a big date? I found a nasty pimple on my chin the morning of a professional photo shoot. And do you know why? Because I didn’t treat my skin the way I should have.

There are 3 basic steps to healthy and beautiful skin:

1. Cleanse
2. Exfoliate
3. Moisturize

The products you choose for your daily skincare regimen are extremely important. In addition to buying products that are appropriate for your skin type, you should also make sure that the products are actually good for skin. I hear all the time that women try a new product, and their faces break out. And NO…skin does not “get used” to that new product. If your skin breaks out in hives, gets red, or starts burning, it is clearly communicating that it doesn’t like what you put on it.

Sometimes it could be an allergic reaction to an otherwise great ingredient but usually red, hot, bumpy skin is the result of such nasty ingredients as: alcohol, fragrance, dyes, or certain preservatives.

Always read the ingredient list and make an educated choice when buying a skincare product. That is what the celebrity dermatologists do for their celebrity clients..!! (Oh, Gwyneth…)

…and just FYI: Skindred Soul® products are made without sulfates, parabens, dyes, fragrance, and irritating preservatives.

Love, to you and your skin,
G-Gal

 Checking out the ingredient label to make sure a skincare product doesn’t contain alcohol is an important first step. However, there is a hitch…

 Not every ingredient that has the word “alcohol” in its name is necessarily evil. Some ingredients, such as Stearyl Alcohol, and Cetearyl Alcohol; so-called “fatty” alcohols, are completely benign thickeners and emollients. They are mild and often even plant derived.

The types of alcohol to look out for (and to avoid) are the following ones:

Alcohol
SD alcohol
Alcohol denat.
Benzyl alcohol
Methanol
Ethanol
Isopropyl alcohol
Ethyl alcohol

Now, a word of reassurance: If a skincare product has a really long ingredient list (i.e. 15+ ingredients), and at the very end you see “SD Alcohol”, don’t freak out. Chances are that the amount of bad alcohol in this product is so tiny that your skin won’t mind.

If alcohol shows up within the first third of the ingredient list; looking for another product would be a good idea…

Love your skin!

G-Gal