Gosh! Do I hate acne! Even now, I do get acne breakouts when I get stressed!

Part of the reason is oily skin.Greasy skin that traps dirt and skin debris clogging up pores, makes your skin pores an excellent  breeding place for bacteria. The bacteria multiplies and voila you have acne!

All is not lost though, if you have oily skin that is prone to acne, here are 7 beauty tips to help keep the pimples away.

1. Keep Your Hands Off Your Face

Your hands, after touching so many things, picking up the bag, answering the telephone, opening the door,things we do everyday are covered with bacteria.The last thing you want to do is to put those bacterias onto your face. Touching your face often with your face,  or worse and still, picking those pimples with your fingers and you will see those pimples multiply. 

2. Keep Your Hair Off Your Face

If you have oily skin, you probably have oily hair. Oily hair brushing against your face adds to the oil on the face. Oil sweat and skin debris are a great way to clog the pores of your skin, leading to more breakouts! If you notice pimples appearing on your chin, forehead or your cheeks typically where your hair might brush against, your hair could be the culprit! Wear a hair band, use hair clips to keep your hair off your face, tie it into a ponytail or get a hair cut.

3. Wash Your Face 3 Times A Day With A Good Cleanser

I wash my face when I wake up, at lunch time and at bedtime. I also use an acne ointment  at night which I have obtained from a Consultant in Philippines. My skin clears when I stick to this routine. At night I would give ice compression. When I stray from this routine, I will be reminded with the burst of flare-ups!

4. Relax

Do you notice how pimples tend to appear more before a stressful event, exams, a big date or or a presentation? Stress wreaks havoc on our skin. Remember, acne/pimples can also pop up due to hormonal imbalances , like just before your period.

5. Sleep

Your skin heals itself when you sleep. Your entire body heals itself in your sleep. A night without sleep may lead to more pimples. Make it a habit to leave your worries behind and get a good night's sleep. Work out early in the day and get some exercise in the evenings. It helps.

6. Drink Water

Increase your fluid intake. Drink a minimum of 2 - 3 liters of water per day to flush out those toxins! What I mean by increasing your fluid intake, is by drinking plain water, the good H2O! Well if you find drinking water difficult than flavor it with slices of lemon, basil leaves or mint leaves.

7. Stay Away From Pressed Powder Compact

Yup, you heard me right. Some use the compact powder to hide the acne. Just think - By mid day your skin gets oily. You take out the compact powder and powder puff your face. Now your face would already have dirt, bacteria and oil on it. You pat your face with that powder puff and the powder puff picks up the dirt, bacteria and oil. You place it back in the compact. The bacterium happily breeds in there. Then you take out the compact powder again and pat more powder mixed with oil, dirt and bacteria onto your face. Thus you are putting more gunk and keeping more gunk into your compact. This vicious cycle continues and no wonder the breakouts never heal or end. A better way would be to use a blotting paper to blot off the excess oil instead and throw it away. Blotting paper is easily available at the pharmacy.

If you need to use your compact powder, than make it a point to wash your powder puff or change it weekly. Remember to wash your entire make-up brushes regularly with soap and water. Then dry them completely before you keep them.

It would be good to get an Anti Acne Facial done monthly.(Read more about the Anti Acne Facial under the FACIAL Page). Oily, acne prone skin requires a lot of care. The bright side is that oily skin is slower to show signs of aging than dry skin. Take care of your skin and you will probably look younger than your peers as the decades go by.

Bleaching Facial/Body Hair

Bleaching body and facial hair helps to lighten the color of hair to a light shade of blonde/golden colour. Results may last from 2 – 6 weeks.

How does it Work?

The bleach is applied over hair and left on about 10 minutes. It is wiped off with a clean wet towel. The bleach takes out the pigment (color) of the hair.

There are two types of bleaches used here at FTWS. The two bleaches used in our saloon are Olivia (Herbal Bleach), Fem and Gold Bleach. (Please read under the page of Bleaching/Whitening for further info about these two bleaches)

The Pros

1. It's fast, easy, and without a lot of risks. Large areas of hair can be bleached at the same time, with the entire process only taking minutes from start to finish. You don't risk a lot pain or getting ingrown hairs, since you aren't removing the hair follicle.

2. It can temporarily lighten dark skin tones. The lighter skin tone can last for up to 3 days.

The Cons 

1. Bleaching facial and body hair doesn't give you a smooth and hairless surface. These are the main reasons people want to rid hair. Even though hair is lighter, it still may be noticeable, especially if you are standing in the sun or a bright room.

2. Not all hair or skin types can benefit. Don't count on bleaching disguising long or thick hair- only finer ones, like on the face or arms. Bleached hair on dark or tan skin, can still stand out because of the color contrast (light hair against dark skin).

3. The results aren't very long-lived. The hair above the surface is the only part of the hair follicle that has been lightened. As the hair grows, you will see the darker, natural color.

Ouch Factor

A tingling sensation while the cream is working is normal, but shouldn't be painful. A strong, burning feeling is a good indicator it's too strong for your skin, or you're allergic to a bleaching ingredient. For sensitive skin it would be best to do a patch test.

POINTS TO NOTE

• At FTWS we only bleach areas outside of your body.  It is not advisable to bleach near eyes, inside nose, ears, on nipples, scar tissue, warts, moles or near genitals. Bleach also shouldn’t be used over sunburned, irritated, inflamed or chapped skin, or an area that is freshly tweezed or shaved. It’s simply not safe.

• Bleaching must not be done on extremely exfoliated skin. Bleaching isn’t safe to use on areas where you are using Retin A, Alpha Hydroxy, or Glycolic Acid.

Keeping Eyebrows Groomed Via Threading

Threading is an ancient form of hair removal from India and the Middle East. The western world has actively adapted to threading themselves. During threading,  the threader loops a cotton thread around the hair to be removed, twists it, then pulls the hair from the follicle. The procedure is commonly used on facial hair. The amount of pain experienced is similar to that of tweezing.

Shaping your eyebrows correctly is important because it can change your facial expression. Though the shape is up to you, it's best to stay as natural as possible. In general, the beginning of the brow should be aligned with the center of the nostril below it and should extend a bit past the outer corner of the eye. The arch should fall over the outer third of the eye. Removing hair too far in from the inner edge of the eyebrow will make your eyes look smaller; removing too much from the bottom will make you look perpetually surprised. If you have doubts, do not remove the hair.

Always discuss the shape and look you are going for with your threader prior threading. Remember, once the hair is removed it will take time for the hair to grow back

Promotion for May and June 2011