3 Surprising Secrets That'll Change Your Skin!

Hey Beautiful!

The three secrets I'm going to share with you today have significantly improved my skin over the years, especially when it comes to reducing the appearance of pore size, having clearer, more balanced skin and unsightly rough heels!  

Before I share these secrets, I'm going to let you in on the 3 things I NEVER do.

#1 I never use bar soap. That's because the pH is generally too high which can leave skin more vulnerable to breakouts and barrier damage. More on this to come...

#2 I never use body soap (explanation coming)!

#3 I never neglect my feet anymore since finding an easy solution (keep reading to find out what I use).

Now, let's dive in to the 3 secrets that have literally changed my skin!

Let me start by saying that if I could only recommend ONE thing for you to do it'd be to have a good cleanser like our Restorative Rose Cleanser, and this is because a good cleanser helps you balance your skin so everything else can work better and more synergistically. Ideally, you'll alternate with a couple of different cleansers for different occasions... let me explain. 

If you're skin isn't too oily, a balanced cleanser is ideal. In all honestly, all cleansers should have this goal but it's sadly not the case. And if you have super oily or breakout prone skin, you may benefit from alternating with a clarifying cleanser. In some cases, if your skin is super dry or irritated, you may want to alternate with a hydrating, gentle, milky cleanser. 

You may even want to forgo your cleanser in the morning if you've double cleansed at night and find that your skin is too dry after you cleanse in the morning. 

The goal is to have a healthy skin barrier because it protects us from everything that comes at us during the day, so starting with a good cleanser is essential. 

Which leads me to my first skin secret that saved my life: 

1) Proper Cleansing:

If you suffer from larger pores or occasional hormonal breakouts like so many of us -- listen up! 

By now you likely know that pores don't open and close, but there's something you can do to help lessen their large appearance. You can blame genetics for pore size, but they can also get larger as we age and a few variables are also to blame, such as excessively oily skin and pore skin hygiene (aka repeatedly sleeping in makeup). 

This is because the over abundance of oil on skin can actually stretch out your pores, whereas people with drier skin usually have smaller pores but more visible wrinkles.

In addition, salicylic acid is oil soluble which means it's great for breakout prone skin. 

What to do: Alternate with a salicylic cleanser and/or exfoliant like our Brighten and Reveal Pads.

I recommend exfoliating 2-3 times a week max, depending on your skin's needs and what product(s) you're using.

For more on the right way to exfoliate, visit our blog post here.

Next up is something you may find surprising! I haven't done this in years and I kept it my little secret until now, because I thought people would look at me funny. But the truth is the truth and that's what I'm here to deliver to you!

2) Body Wash Facts:

This may surprise you, but body wash is similar to shampoo so you can use them interchangeably. 

Truth be told, I haven't used shaving cream or body wash in years, although I do use a cleanser on certain parts of my body, like under arms that may harbor more bacteria -- it's simply not necessary, especially if you don't sweat a lot and have super dry or sensitive skin. In fact, if you already have super dry skin, too much soap can actually dry out your skin more. 

Bonus tip: If you suffer from acne along your hair line or around the back of your head you can use a shampoo with salicylic acid and rub a little on your skin to help clear it up. 

Speaking of dry skin, the heels on your feet are polar opposite from the tissue under your eyes, so the skin is thicker there and needs special TLC to fix, which brings me to my next secret skin saving tip! 

3) Urea Cream For Dry Heels: 

If you haven't used Urea cream before it'll be a game changer for you, like it was for me. 

Urea works to increase the hydration of your skin while decreasing rough, dry patches by softening the top layer of your skin. 

Recommendation: There are hundreds of Urea brands but I personally like this one I talk about in my blog that includes salicylic acid (Other Beauty Brands I'm Loving).

Before using it, let's just say I was scared to scratch Alex under the sheets with my feet!

Remember, the more you know the more you glow!

With love,

Jentri