Skin Myth: The use of all oils should be avoided if you have oily or blemish prone skin.

While it is true, there are some oils that should be avoided if you have oily or blemish prone skin, adding skin-loving essential and carrier oils to your daily skin care regimen can be a very good thing. Here is why.

How oils work? Because oil is an emollient, it fills in the gaps between the cells of the skin. Oil-based products replace essential lipids in the outer dermal layer replacing moisture and creating younger, healthier looking skin. The chemical composition of the skin absorbs oils more easily than water-based moisturizers. Even if your skin is oily or blemish prone, additional hydration facilitates healing and will boost your skin’s glow and vitality.

Oils to Avoid.  Avoid using these oils on your face because they may congest the skin: Lanolin, Cocoa Butter, Mineral Oil, and Petroleum.

So oil can benefit oily skin? Yes, the right oils used on oily skin can be. Natural health advocate and creator of her own all-natural herbal skin care line, Annmarie Gianni uses Grapeseed Oil as the base oil in her Facial Oil for oily, blemish-prone skin. She explains that Grapeseed Oil is actually slightly astringent and a very fine oil, which absorbs quickly and delivers your skin’s own natural oils deeper, allowing them to penetrate better into your skin.

My favorite oil-based skin care product?

Annmarie’s Herbal Facial Oil for Oily and Acne Prone Skin

This oil blend has some slightly astringent, pore refining qualities and can also be used as a light moisturizer. With acne clearing and anti-inflammatory herbs like Neem, White Willow, Milk Thistle, Licorice Root, I adore the feel and the smell of this bona fide all-botanical blend.

Benefits:
•Helps Control Acne Breakouts
•Prevents Pores From Clogging
•Opens Clogged Pores
•Balances Natural Skin Oils

They suggest to apply to clean skin. Dab a bit on nose, chin, cheeks and forehead and blend well. If you are interested in this product or any other from Annmarie’s skin care line, for this week only (June 6-11th) you can receive 10% off using the coupon code: mythbuster10. Just go to: http://www.annmariegianni.com/.

For the treatment of acne and aging, retinols are often recommended and considered a highly valued skin repair treatment.  A cousin of Vitamin A, the main benefits of retinoids are that they stimulate collagen production and increase the cell turnover rate which decreases with age, combating both wrinkles and congested skin. Retinoids have also been scientifically proven to help to repair sun damage by normalizing damaged keratinocytes (skin cells). With such claims you might think that everyone would be slathering it on without abandon, however as we all well know, every good thing has a few drawbacks, particularly if you have sensitive skin.

Side Effects of Prescription Strength (Rx) Retin-A:

• Increased skin cell turnover can be irritating and cause flaking and redness. The key is, easy does it! A little goes a long way, and you want to build up using it gradually, even every other day at first.  If you are experiencing flaking or severe irritation, take a few days off, or consult with your Dermatologist.  Another option is to try a lower concentration or a OTC retinol cream that can offer you a similar result – my personal favorite is the Tri-Retinol Complex from SkinMedica. You will also want to use a good moisturizer while using Retin A.
• Increased sun sensitivity. While using retinoids, your skin will become more sensitive to sunlight, so you will want to use a very effective sunscreen, wear a hat, and keep out of the sun to protect your skin.
• Do not use if pregnant, the use of topical retinoids can cause birth defects.
• There is some controversy of the long term side effects Retin-A.

To help clear up some of the confusion and avoid as many negative side effects as possible, Dr. Brandith Irwin, a renowned Dermatologist and contributor for SkinTour wrote up an excellent reference article about the various retinol prescription and non-prescription options, and what will work best for your specific age and skin type.

Vitamin-A creams have been and are still the gold standard for repair of sun-damaged and aging skin. They also help to prevent precancerous lesions and skin cancer. There’s nothing better available in a cream form. Everyone who can tolerate them should be using one!

Still needing more information?  There is a lot more to say on this topic, and here is another post to learn more about Retinoids:  All About Retinoids: Considering Retin-A.

It’s been a while since I’ve written real content here on Mythbuster Beauty, and there has been a really DARN good reason why.

In short, my life took a detour. Nobody died, just things got rearranged – a divorce, starting back at full-time work, and a move. And, I am still here and still passionate about the beauty industry. Along with these changes, my anxiety and stress levels have soared, and my skin has definitely taken a hit. I started breaking out more and more, and the anxiety triggered some of my prior, picking habits. I have been getting super discouraged about it, having not just one or two, but continual breakouts around my jaw and chin and cheeks. This type of breakout is generally termed “hormonal” or “adult acne,” and although I have read a TON about the treatments of acne, wasn’t finding relief. (more…)

One of the distinct benefits of working at the airport is that it’s like free market research. I get to see what people carry in their cosmetics cases and what products everybody loves. When a woman has to pick and choose what she’s going to shove in that little one quart bag and what she’s going to toss in the trash, you can tell which items she loves the most because they’re the first ones to get saved. One of the things I started seeing more and more of was the Dermalogica AGE Smart Multivitamin Thermafoliant (say that 3 times fast!), and everyone I asked about it just loved it, so of course it moved to the top of my “must try” list.

I shall not bore you once again by waxing poetic on my love for exfoliants, but let me say that I was so excited to try this that even the $49 price tag didn’t dissuade me. (more…)

This week my 15 year old daughter Amanda came running to her momma for skin care advice.  She had developed a deep, painful zit on her mid-forehead and was feeling beyond frustrated.  Before coming to me, she tried to extract it, which resulted in more inflammation, redness, damage to the skin around the blemish, and morphed it into a monster zit that closely resembled a “third eye.”  Although it was Halloween, she did not want this new and enhanced feature to be a part of her costume.

After delivering my “do what I say, not what I do” lecture on not squeezing at a deep pimple, I sent her to my bathroom closet for a few of my favorite acne spot treatment remedies. (more…)

If you have oily or blemish prone skin then you know it can be tough to find a good cleanser. Many cleansers  on the market strip your skin of its natural oils, leaving it dry or flaky while still producing plenty of oil. So now you have flaky skin that’s itchy AND oily. The excess oil helps keep the flaking skin in place and your pores get all clogged up and then you have new blemishes, so you go back to the super strong cleanser and the vicious cycle continues.  And then you start getting older and realize that that dry skin definitely doesn’t help with the appearance of fine lines. Suddenly the search for a gentle cleanser that can tame your problematic skin moves up the priority list.

In my quest for the perfect skin care regimen for my skin I have tried a TON of cleansers. I’ve tried pretty much every formulation out there too, creams, gels, foams, bars. Some I’ve downright hated, some have been okay, and some I’ve really liked, though I never found one that I have the desire to use and purchase faithfully…until now.

I received a gift certificate to SkinCareRx a while back and decided that it might be worth my time to buy something I needed instead of splurging on makeup like I usually do. After all, if it’s not my money  then  who cares if I’m not nuts about it, right? Two simple clicks took me to the cleansers for oily skin and I waited for something to catch my eye. To be honest, the first thing I noticed about PCA Skin’s Facial Wash for Oily/Problem Skin was the price. It’s the least expensive oily skin cleanser on the list($21.50) and I really wanted to get as much as I could out of my gift certificate.  Yes, I’m cheap, that’s how I roll. And I couldn’t be happier. (more…)

I’ll be dog-goned!  Almost two weeks without a flare up, and then guess who comes to visit?  A lovely, deep blemish on my chin.  With so many spot treatments available, each claiming to clear up blemishes overnight, containing ingredients like Benzoyl Peroxide, Salicylic Acid, Tea Tree Oil, Sulfur, and onto “kitchen cupboard” tips like applying ice, heat, or a tiny dab of minty toothpaste.  Do any of these emergency spot treatments really do the trick?

In my four decades on the planet, I have tried MANY spot treatments, and realistically know that zits cannot go away instantly (especially the deep ones), and it will take patience (and keeping my picking-fingers away from it), to assist in its disappearance.   I want to share with you two spot treatments that I have found that really make a difference. (more…)

First off, my apologies all around for being MIA last week. My husband came home after a little bit of time in the desert and I took some time with my family for a vacation. And while it may have left you feeling unloved my dears, it was certainly worth it when I heard my 2 year old wake in the middle of the night and call for her daddy to comfort her.

So now onto the stuff you really care about, this weeks product review!
Chella Professional Skin Care is one of those companies that has somehow managed to fly under my radar for way too long. Focusing solely on their dedication to charities it’s a company I can support, but there are plenty of other reasons to try these products as well. Lots of research and plenty of proven botanical ingredients certainly don’t hurt.

With oily, blemish prone skin I have occasion to use clay masks on a regular basis. They’re great for drawing out impurities and helping to clear my skin during the most troublesome of breakouts. However, they also have a tendency to be very drying and can be too harsh for sensitive or delicate skin types, and sometimes even oily skin. Chella’s Balancing Clay Mask (more…)

For the past 7 months, I have been using prescription strength Retin-A.

Retin-A , Renova and/or Generic Tretinoin Cream is an emollient and is much less harsh than what I tried as a teenager. I have read that every person over 30 can benefit from using Retin-A. That is unless you are pregnant.

After mentioning using Retin-A in a recent post, Marilyn made the comment:

“I used Retinoids in my 40’s – they are great – but insurance companies are extremely hesitant to cover the prescription products (Retin A comes to mind), which from my experience, give the best results. Stupid insurance companies.” (more…)

You would think after hitting my 40-year mark I would no longer be tormented by breakouts.  Wrong-o!

I would say that hormones, stress, and probably my tendency to touch my face are the cause of most of my adult-acne.  So many of us face constant stressful issues and no doubt they make an impact on our complexions!

A few weeks ago I was feeling particularly wiped-out and my skin was acting up, so I decided to take some “me-time” and schedule a facial at my favorite local spa in SLC, “The Kura Door.”  Katie-Mae is such a gifted esthetician and she gave me the most AMAZING oxygen facial using skin care products from Arcona. Needless to say, when I arrived home, without delay I visited the Arcona website to learn more about their line and test out some of their products.

Arcona Raspberry Clarifying Pads – So many ways to love these pads! (more…)