Archive for the ‘Dry Skin’ Category

GUEST BLOG: The Benefits of Re-Hydration

Today’s Guest Blog was Written by Sherina Jamal CEO of Ancient Secrets Inc and developer of the Beauty Through Balance

After coming through colder temperatures skin on the face and body can become imbalanced, dry and dehydrated! As we prepare for warmer weather this is a great time to think about ways to naturally restore hydration and skin’s overall tone & texture.

So let’s talk re-hydration….

A product that claims to re-hydrate should offer ingredients that are small enough to penetrate and bring moisture into the skin to correct and re-balance the lipid barrier and moisture levels. Other supportive ingredients such as butters, natural plant oils, extracts and essential oils can offer nourishment, increased moisture and improved skin texture

One of the most superior ingredients that can offer this is Hyaluronic acid.  This ingredient can hold 100x its weight in water and has the ability to draw moisture into the skin.  It not only offers re-balancing of moisture levels but also can address signs of age.  Products from the Beauty Through Balance Spa line, such as the Glacial Revitalizing Mist and Hydra Skin Renewal Gel Mask both contain hyaluronic acid as well as Vitamin C, green tea, and seaweed. Both products  can be used on face & body by all skin types to re-hydrate, re-balance, soothe and repair!

The Glacial Revitalizing Mist is not only a gentle skin re-balance/mild toner but can also be applied before and after make-up application and will leave skin hydrated with a natural glow! Check out our new Gift With Purchase Promotion to see how you can receive a FREE travel size Glacial Revitalizing Mist.

Don’t forget that drinking enough water and eating mineral rich foods such as green leafy organic vegetables and seaweed can play a key role in keeping the skin re-hydrated and re-balanced!

 

*Written by Sherina Jamal CEO of Ancient Secrets Inc and developer of the Beauty Through Balance spa line locally made in BC Canada. Sherina is an established educator in the areas of natural skin care and ingredients and her articles have been published in top spa, health and beauty magazines. 

 

As always, just for being a follower of our blog, enter coupon code BLOG10 for 10% off your next purchase! Also, remember to follow us @spaboutique on Twitter, like our Facebook  page, and check out our boards on Pinterest! You could be the lucky winner of one of our many contests!

 

Skin Care Secrets

Dry, Itchy, Flaky, Red Skin? Must be Winter.  Whether it’s the Cold or the Wind or the never ending Wet – by the time we get to February, my skin is in desperate need of a little TLC. Fortunately, it doesn’t take a lot of effort to prevent winter damage, and there are several fantastic products to help repair your skin too!

Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize!

If you’re aiming to prevent the damage, the first good step is to moisturize, moisturize and moisturize! Ironically, washing your hands is one of the quickest ways to dry them out. Try finishing your hand washing routine with your favourite moisturizer.

We like Eminence Vanilla Mint Hand Cream (2oz).  For a fantastic all over body lotion, give Pangea Organics Body Lotion (8.5 fl oz) a try.  Chockfull of organic goodness, it leaves your skin feeling smooth and protected.

If your skin is extremely weather-damaged skin, our estheticians recommend GM Collin Bio Organique Treating Serum: Serum Traitant (30ml).  As the cold can cause all kinds of damage on the skin, they also recommend a visit to your local esthetician who can properly assess the damage.

Men, especially those working outside, experience winter damage and flaking on their hands.  Our team recommends Jack Black Intense Therapy Hand Cream with Vitamins A & E (88 ml). Jack Black tested this hand cream with golfers, carpenters, and chefs. It heals dry, chapped, cracked skin and works to repair tough, calloused skin and cuticles.

Don’t Stop Sunscreen-ing

Even on the greyest of days, sunscreen can make a HUGE difference to the health of your skin. UVA and UVB rays can still cause damage, especially if there’s light reflecting off clouds, snow, or buildings.

When choosing a sunscreen, even in winter, it needs to be at least 15 SPF in order to protect from UVB rays. It’s also important to make sure the product you choose protects from both UVB and UVA rays. If you have fairer skin, or tend to burn easily, choose a sunscreen with a higher SPF.

Try one of our favourite sunscreens:

Laboratoire Dr Renaud Moisturizing Anti-Wrinkle Suncare SPF 15 – Soin hydratant anti-rides FPS 15 (50 ml) Oil Free, this sunscreen is sweat resistant AND protects against sun damage, pre-mature aging, and other photo-induced aging issues.

Eminence Tropical Vanilla Body SPF 32 (5oz) Filled with organic ingredients, this sunscreen is safe for the entire family to use. A combination sunscreen, it protects against both UVA and UVB rays. Plus, the hydrating shea butter and lovely vanilla scent are utterly indulgent.

Obagi C System SunGuard SPF 30 (90 ml) This ultra sheer sunscreen is fantastic to layer with the rest of your routine. It protects against both UVA and UVB rays and has the added anti-oxidant benefits of Vitamin C.

Create Kissable Lips

Finally, it’s really important (Especially with Valentine’s Day right around the corner) to keep your lips kissable! Lips are particularity vulnerable to chapping. It’s important to exfoliate and protect your lips to minimize weather damage.  My lips have a tendency to chap and split after about 2 minutes outside.  I’ve grilled our estheticians for the best ways to repair and prevent winter lip damage.

Start with Jane Iredale Sugar & Butter Lip Scrub & Plumper (3 g). This scrub has an exfoliant on one end and a plumper on the other. It’s a great double duty product for a woman on the go. We love pairing it with Jane Iredale Lip Drink SPF 15 (5.2g). A fantastic colourless lip balm, its lemon scent is great for her or him (and perfect for your purse)!

Now, the gentleman in my life, (nameless for his own protection), is horrible at taking care of his lips. Preferring to be chapped over a lip balm as he finds too “Girly”. However, the guys on our staff have all been raving about Jack Black Intense Therapy Lip Balm with Natural Mint & Shea Butter (7 g).  So, I insisted he try it. Sure enough, it soothed and relieved his irritated lips in no time. With it’s masculine packaging, this is a balm he’ll actually use!

Don’t let the fierce elements damage your skin. Take the proper precautions, moisturize, keep using sunscreen, and make sure your lips are protected. Our esthetics team often gets asked how to heal and repair winter damage. As always, the answer is simple, it’s much easier to prevent damage than to repair it.

As always, just for being a follower of our blog, enter coupon code BLOG10 for 10% off your next purchase! Also, remember to follow us @spaboutique on Twitter, like our Facebook  page, and check out our boards on Pinterest! You could be the lucky winner of one of our many contests!

Vivescence – Swiss Ingenuity At Your Finger Tips

At Spa Boutique, we are please to announce the arrival of Vivescence. Canadian owned and Swiss manufactured, Vivescence believes the key to younger looking skin is to produce an extremely active product line.

Vivescence is a brand built on perfection. They control every aspect of their product. In fact, they even own the Award Winning State-Of-The-Art Laboratory in Switzerland where all of their products are synthesized and manufactured.  Working with experts in all aspects of cosmetology, researchers, engineers, biologists, pharmacists, and more, they strive to produce products that will provide real, visible results for their clients.

Truly “Cosmeceutical”, combining cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, Vivescence uses the latest scientific developments to slow down aging. An extensive line, there are several products geared towards a specific need or skin type. They were one of the first companies to isolate the stem cells from Swiss Apples that help make their anti-aging products some of the most active on the market.

“My skin feels great for this time of the year!” Nancy Mudford, owner of Spa Boutique, raved, “I can really feel it working as soon as I put it on.”

Nancy has been trying Vivescence for the past 4 weeks. She is completely in love with the SkinLess Refining Smoothing Treatment. Great under make up, this serum reduces the appearance of pores, tightens skin, and minimizes shine. Like most of us, she worries about winter dryness. So, she combined the SkinLess Refining Smoothing Treatment with the HydraTotal Gel Cream. Leaving her face feeling smooth and soft, even in January!

Each line offers a concentrated serum to complement their lotions, gels and masks. If you can only invest in one product, grab the serum for your skin type. They have the highest concentration of active ingredients without a prescription and deliver optimum nutrition and care. Designed to mix and match depending on age and skin type, the products can be combined to meet your exact needs.

Need more moisture? Add a HydraTotal product to your routine. Looking to brighten dull, stressed out skin? Try the Nutri-energy Re-energizing Vitamin Concentrate.

Oily skin? Acne? The Matifying Skincare Treatments, Hydra Mat, Hydra Mat Lift, and Pure Mat Water, are designed to regulate sebum and leave your skin feeling clean.  This line, especially the Pure Mat Water, works to matify, cool and leave your complexion clear. It’s a fantastic cleanser that targets acne. Finally, an oily skin treatment that hydrates and won’t leave you feeling dried out. Perfect for oily or acne prone skin.

As we age, our skin’s needs change. Vivescence focuses on generating products that offer visible results and long-term change for any skin type.

Looking to add a little Vivescence? Here are our top 5 Must Try Products:

1.     Vivescence Crystal Patch Regenerating Eye Contour Treatment – great for travelling (no more jet-lagged eyes!), relaxing before a big event, or pumping you up Friday night after a long week at work (A Spa Girl Personal Fav!)
2.     Pure Mat Water – a cleanser that works to fight acne, matify, and hydrate
3.     Cell Perfect Concentrate – worried about aging? This serum promotes the development of collagen and works to rebuild the dermis. It’s a fantastic product for achieving lift and tightness.
4.     Nutri-energy Re-energizing Vitamin Concentrate – A fantastic night cream, it feeds your skin. Phenomenal for high stress times and revitalizes dullness.
5.     HydraTotal Gel Cream – anti-aging, pure hydration, heaven on the skin. Available in several different weights depending on your preference.

 

 

  Plus! Purchase $250 in Vivescence products from www.spaboutique.ca and receive a Hydra-Replumping Kit (7pc) Plus a Metal Cuff Bracelet FREE! An $80 Value! *One Gift per order, not valid with any other promotions, available while quantities last. Substitutions may occur. Limited time offer.

 

 

 

As always, just for being a follower of our blog, enter coupon code BLOG10 for 10% off your next purchase! Also, remember to follow us @spaboutique on Twitter, like our Facebook  page, and check out our boards on Pinterest! You could be the lucky winner of one of our many contests!

 

Discover… Pangea Organics

Spa Boutique is excited to announce the newest addition to our growing organic family, Pangea Organics!  A natural line that believes beauty should be organic, cruelty-free and nutrient dense. Concentrated formulas eliminate filler so  your skin feels only the best botanicals, oils, and nutrients nature has to offer.

With so many award-wining products, it’s hard to know where to start! We recommend checking out the Italian Red Mandarin with Rose Lip Balm. The light rose and citrus scent is a perfect way to gear up for Valentine’s Day! This 2008 Natural Solutions Beauty With A Conscience winner, and Real Simple Magazine Pick is packed with essential oils. This Lip Balm protects and soothes while providing a deep level of hydration. Also available in Pyrenees Lavender with Cardamom and Egyptian Fennel with Grapefruit & Sweet Orange!

The Canadian Pine with White Sage Hand Soap is a fantastic way to begin introducing Pangea Organics into your home. Winner of The Healing Life Styles and Spas Earth Day Award, talk about a soap that is not only antiseptic but hydrating and refreshing too! Available as a Bar Soap or Body Wash, the pine scent leaves your sink or shower naturally fresh. 

Discover Pangea Discovery Kits! With a wide range of skin options, from combination, dry or blemish prone, there’s a start set for everyone.  Each 6 piece Pangea Organics Discovery Kit includes a Facial Cleanser, Facial Toner, Facial Cream, Facial Scrub, Facial Mask and Eye cream in a convenient sample size.  Each product comes in a different scent- a great way to get to know their entire line!

Oily skin? Try the Oily to Blemish-Prone Discovery Kit; hydrating without adding surface oil. The weightless hydration and sebum-control calms surface inflammation. As part of your morning, this kit provides a fantastic foundation for make-up!

Looking to renew dry, damaged skin?  The Normal to Dry Discovery Kit uses nutrients and botanicals to provide superior hydration as well as work some anti-aging magic!

Combination Skin? We’ve got you covered! The Normal to Combination Discovery Kit offers the best of both worlds. With nature’s best anti-aging, purifying and soothing ingredients, this kit replenishes dull, dehydrated or sun damaged skin.

Great news! Pangea Organics are considered safe for pregnancy (even the scented ones!) due to the concentration levels of their essential oils.  Pangea Organics produces their products with as many Vegan ingredients as possible. The products selected for Spa Boutique are Gluten-Free. All Pangea Organics products are cruelty free and have a shelf-life of up to 12 months once opened.

As always, just for being a follower of our blog, enter coupon code BLOG10 for 10% off your next purchase! Also, remember to follow us @spaboutique on Twitter, like our Facebook  page, and check out our boards on Pinterest! You could be the lucky winner of one of our many contests!

 

Fall Skin Care Tips: How to get Soft, Supple, Hydrated skin

Ok, so it’s not officially winter until December 21st, but it sure feels like it in some parts of the country!  I think we are all feeling a bit of cold weather dehydration in our skin in the form of flakes and dullness.  And, have you noticed your makeup just doesn’t go on very nice anymore?  Makeup only looks good if you have a clean, fresh canvas to begin with.  The good news is that it is actually quite easy to get your skin back to normal – even better than normal!

Tip #1 – Exfoliate to smooth the skin’s surface and remove dry, dead skin cells

Physical exfoliators (scrubs) are good for polishing the surface of the skin leaving it feeling soft and smooth.

Enzyme exfoliators (peels, alpha/beta hydroxy acid, etc.) are good for gently dissolving the glue that holds your dead skin cells together.  They are usually more gentle, but penetrate deeper than scrubs.  Enzyme exfoliators containing beta hydroxy acid also dissolve hardened oils (blackheads, clogged pores) resulting in a clearer, less congested, smoother complexion.

*Get the best of both worlds by alternating a physical and an enzyme exfoliator or go 2 in 1 and choose a scrub that contains enzymes or acid!

  

 

Tip #2 – Use a hydrating serum

Think of your serum like your doctor’s prescription.  Whenever you have a skin issue, choose a serum for that issue and use it until your skin improves.  Since serums have the highest concentration of active ingredients and they have a light consistency, they penetrate deep and work quickly to alleviate your skin.

*If your skin is combination, oily, or acneic, choose a serum made for dehydrated skin, not dry skin.  Hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid will not clog your skin or cause breakout.

Tip #3 – Mask as often as your skin needs

Choose the right hydrating mask for your skin type and use it as often as necessary.  If you need to mask everyday for a whole week, go right ahead.  As long as you are using the correct mask, your skin will drink up the hydration and thank you for it!

*If your skin is combination, oily, or acneic, be sure to choose a gel-based hydration mask and avoid heavy cream masks.

Tip #4 – Use a hydration spray regularly on top of your mineral makeup

It’s perfectly fine, actually it’s recommended, to spray a hydrating mist to set your mineral makeup.  Don’t be afraid to get it wet – your skin will look more dewy & supple and your makeup will stay put longer.

*Use a hydration spray with added antioxidants to protect your skin from free radical damage.  Keep a bottle in your handbag and re-spritz yourself throughout the day.

 

As always, just for being a follower of our blog, enter coupon code BLOG10 for 10% off your next purchase! Also, remember to follow us @spaboutique on Twitter, like our Facebook  page, and check out our boards on Pinterest! You could be the lucky winner of one of our many contests!