The SPF Low-Down

It's common sense that SPF is one of the most important things that you can apply to your skin. Baking in the sun day-in-day-out is so dangerous for your skin and SPF is your best friend, especially in the Summer. I think we've all been sunburnt at one time - it's uncomfortable, not really the best looking and most of all, extremely unhealthy. 

When we're young, our skin is prone to long-term sun damage. By applying a dollop of suncream all over your body, you're protected against so many horrible skin diseases. It's not just your skin that needs protecting - lip SPF is also important. These days, most lip balms contain SPF, as well as moisturisers. SPF in moisturisers is probably the most common - it saves two steps in one. By applying an SPF moisturiser all over your body and face, you get hydrated skin that is protected from sun damage.

We all know the possibilities of sun damage but if you want to know more, I'd definitely recommend watching Gabby's video with Cancer Research. It really can be scary.

Face-Mapping

Face-mapping has always been the most interesting thing in the whole skincare topic for me - I love reading different theories behind what your spots mean and how you can prevent them from happening in a certain areas. Of course, there's many different face-mapping theories and opinions but this is the one that seems most true-to-life and helpful to me.

1 - Forehead

Spots on the forehead are well-known to be evidence of stress or sleep deprivation. Spots along the hairline can also be from a build up of products (particularly hair products and foundation) so the best way to deal with spots in this area is to ensure that you're getting enough sleep, head space and you're really removing makeup from that area.

2 - Above the brow

Spots above the brow are supposed to be a representation of your immune system. If you're experiencing a cold or the flu, this tends to be the area that you get the most breakouts. Unfortunately you can't avoid getting ill so you need to let these ones run their course!

3 - Between the brows

Getting spots between your brows is traditionally a sign of over-indulgence (yet I am the biggest chocolate eater EVER and never get spots here!) so this is one that I'm not too sure on. This area is related to the liver and is often blemish-filled when you've drank too much alcohol.

4 - Cheeks

The cheeks are related to the quality your lungs and the air that you're breathing in. Smokers or people with allergies tend to get spots here, as well as people who frequently breathe in polluted air.

5 - Chin

Ahh, the dreaded time of the month. This area is hormone-related and is why you often get breakouts around this area around the time of your period. It's also been suggested that the side on which you get the most blemishes depends on which ovary is ovulation the most but I'm not too sure on that.

For more face-mapping techniques and secrets, you can check out the Dermalogica Face Mapping page where it gives you more problematic areas and explains the reasoning behind it - I only included five as these tend to be the most common. If you'd like to see more in this little Skincare Secrets series, you can catch-up by clicking here and stay tuned for tomorrow's post all about the importance of SPF!

Ingredient Importance

The ingredients of what we apply to our face and skin is extremely important. You don't really want to be applying dozens of chemicals to your face because although it may give you a short-term amazing result, it can be damaging in the long-term. Natural skincare products are the best to use but let's face it, we can't all afford £50 miracle-curing all-natural skincare products, so we need to turn to the next best thing. Over the past six months I've been experimenting and researching what products are most harmful to our skin. Here are the results:

Phthalates

These ingredients are plasticizers, typically found in some skincare, nail, hair and makeup products and their job is to make things less brittle (nail polish, hair, etc). This is part of the reason why pregnant women are advised not to wear nail polish as although they're not harmful in small doses, they're constantly on the US' FDA Watch List. On the label of cosmetics you should look for DBP, DMP, DEP or Phthalates itself. They can damage the hormones and sex organ complications (read more about that here). 

Formaldehyde

This chemical is used in makeup, hair and beauty products because of it's antibacterial properties. These can cause irritation to the skin and has even been linked to cancer in some cases. This product is mainly found in glue, nail polish, body wash and hair products. You can read the in-depth article about Formaldehyde here.

Coal Tar

These have been proven to be a carcinogen (by the National Toxicology Program) and many are banned. They can be found in hair dyes, soaps and lotions and is taken as a product from burning coal. Having too much of this can be dangerous to your emotional hormones and sleep cycle. General guidelines include not applying anything labelled "Ext D&C" near your eyes or lips. Read more about the effects of Coal Tar here.

Many more include parabens, aluminium and Dietathanolamine but that's enough for today's Chemistry lesson! The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics Organisation is definitely a page to bookmark if you're unsure on how safe your beauty items are to use.

The Routine

This week on the blog is an important one. From today until Friday I'll be posting everyday about my Skincare Secrets - from face-mapping and ingredient importance right the way through to how eating affects our skin. I've been really getting into my skincare over the past six months and I feel like I've finally knuckled down on my routine and my skin is really seeing the benefits. Today's post is on the importance of routine.

Cleansing

It's so important to cleanse your face morning and night - it gets all of the gunk and makeup off our face and out of our pores. For this, I use either the Bioderma Micellaire Water or the L'Oreal Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Solution in the morning and then the Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm in the evening. I prefer a thicker cleanser before I go to bed because it really makes sure that the rubbish my pores have collected (makeup, oil, dirt) are out and my skin is really clean. If you forget to cleanse in the evening (we all do it sometimes!) make sure you change your pillowcases frequently so you aren't sleeping on a dirty, makeup-filled sheet.

Exfoliating

Exfoliating should be done sparingly - I'd recommend once or twice a week. Exfoliating removes the top layer of skin and gets rid of roughness, but too much can damage the skin. I like to use the St. Ives Apricot Scrub twice a week as my skin is sort-of sensitive and this makes my skin feel so fresh and plump. If you have acne, I'd recommend using an exfoliator with a small amount of salicylic acid in, for example the Avene Cleanance Gel Creme Exfoliator or even the Origins Zero Oil Deep Pore Cleanser.

Spot Treatment

Blemishes, they can be the devil in disguise sometimes! We've all had those times where we're attending a big event and we get a huge zit in the middle of our head the night before... Not fun. I've found the best spot treatment is the La Roche Posay Effeclar Duo, which I use whenever I get a spot or redness and this treats it within a matter of days.

Moisturising

To me, moisturising is the most important step in my routine. I love the feeling of fresh, plump skin and am a firm believer in that everyone should moisturise their face twice a day - you can never have too much! Even if you have oily skin, moisturising is a step you shouldn't miss. The skin is the largest organ in our bodies and we need to make sure that every inch of it is moisturised to be as healthy, plump and fresh as possible. They don't have to cost a bomb - the Simple Light Moisturiser is one of my favourites and it's under £5 but for a deep moisturise, I'd recommend the Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream.