Finally found my HG skin regimen

Took forever, but I got it!! *does happy dance*

AM
Clinique Liquid Soap Mild
Alba Botanica Sea Kelp Toner
Murad T-zone Pore Refining Gel
4% HQ (on dark spots only)
Pond's Age DefEye (what am I gonna do when I run out?!)
Olay Complete SPF 15 (sensitive skin)

PM
Clinique Rinse-off Foaming Cleanser (removes makeup/ss)
Clinique Liquid Soap Mild
Alba Botanica Sea Kelp Toner
Murad T-zone Pore Refining Gel
4% HQ (on dark spots only)
Pond's Age DefEye
Clinique Continuous Rescue Antioxidant Moisturizer

Plus:
*Also if needed, I apply Neutrogena On the Spot (2.5% BP) to my cheeks to prevent period breakouts
*MAC Microfine Refinisher: 1x/wk
*Freeman Avocado Oatmeal mask: 1x/wk

It may seem like a lot to some people but this has been a miracle for my face. I am now only wearing a mineral foundation by Prescriptives--no concealer--everyday. That's also helping my skin.

The Murad gel took a while to work, but it is basically a multi-tasker due to its ingredients, so all the other products are just for preserving the natural moisture barriers in my skin. Doing this decreased the oiliness in my t-zone dramatically.

Two things I learned from doing more research that saved my skin and made the biggest difference:
1) Use less product
2) Apply moisturizer to damp skin.

Even though skin care is very personal and varies often for everyone, those two tips are universal :-)

Relaxed Hair Care Part 1: Getting started and Stabilization

Ok, so in my free time (rare nowadays) I like to Google info on relaxed hair care, just to see what's out there. I normally see the same points hammered home: Relaxed hair is dry, you need to moisturize constantly, keep your hair wrapped, stay up on your touch-ups, etc.

It has been my experience that while a lot of the hair care tips are good for certain situations and to generally address the relaxed hair community, there's not much more than that, which annoys me because with my fine hair, I've had to re-work my entire regimen as a result of listening to other people, and not paying attention to my hair.

So this post is going to get to the common sense basics of hair care--the rest will be up to you and your hair.

1) Assess your hair situation.
First of all you need to look at your hair and determine its present status. The best way to do this is to get a gentle, yet effective clarifying shampoo (yes, they exist, but IME they're not sold in drugstores). Apply the shampoo, in a small amount to your hands first, then rub in your hands and apply to the scalp. I find for my shoulder length hair, it is best to part my hair with my fingers and pull small sections of the hair up away from the scalp so that I can apply the shampoo directly, preventing tangles. (I do this method for all my shampooing, not just for clarifiers). The clarifying shampoo I use is L'anza Daily Clarifying, but Kenra and Fantasia IC also sell gentle formulas.

So anyway, once your hair is properly shampooed and rinsed, towel-blot the hair and allow it to air dry, either completely or at least 80-90%. Then you'll be able to assess a few things:
1) Elasticity
2) Porosity
3) Level of strand damage
4) Level of scalp damage

If you are into proper hair care at all, you'll know that you can Google for the first two concepts, so I'm not going into them here, but the next two, I will write about here.

Strand damage
If you are like me or any of the hair chicks I know, you've probably switched relaxers before--at least once. This is more of a big deal than most people realize because hair that is inconsistently relaxed creates more likelihood of "sites of vulnerability", or areas along the hair shaft that are weaker than others. Other types of strand damage you can see or feel are changes in diet, hair care, and the lack thereof.

Scalp damage
You know, everyone wants healthy hair, but how many people focus on their scalps? I personally am aware of how much scalp damage I've experienced due to years of no-lye relaxer abuse by my parents as a young girl. Ladies, if you had an abrasion, cut, or burn on your arm or leg (or even your face!), would you scratch it every day as it healed? Of course not! And yet so many of us do this to our scalps. See a dermatologist if you have to, but if your scalp isn't healthy, get it there before trying to focus on hair goals. Seriously. It affects your hair, believe me.


Stop that foolishness!
Okie-dokey, now that we know what what we are starting out with, what we need to do is stop whatever damage we have in its tracks. No matter if its your scalp or your hair that is in need of a 911 call or a room in the ICU, you need to check your shampoos first!!

Yes I know that relaxed hair can be dry, and using a moisturizing shampoo makes sense, but not all of them are good for this purpose. Some moisturizing shampoos contain pore clogging and hair-coating ingredients that prevent moisture from getting in over time. I'm not going to play "Hair Police" with this; instead I'm going to give you some options. If you like your moisturizing/conditioning shampoo and what it does for your hair, but your scalp is suffering, I propose you
1) try using the clarifying shampoo prior to each shampooing with that product; and
2) use less shampoo in general--rich lathers indicates too many detergents, so just pour less in your hand. Good for your scalp and your wallet.

This could also help you if your hair is not properly benefitting from the shampoo. Another option could be switching to sulfate-free shampoos, but there are pros and cons about that, so just do your research.

Oh!! And before I forget. Shampoo AS NEEDED. Every 2-7 days. No more, no less. Just do it. You wash your butt (I hope) and brush your teeth, so wash your hair. Trust me, your hair won't dry out if you choose the right shampoo (and use less at each washing--sometimes only lathering once).

If you need to stablize breaking hair or it's just really dry, then frequent/regular cleansing will help you, but your main focus will be on your conditioner. Your deep conditioners need to be done every time you wash at this point. Leave it on no more than 20 minutes a pop. Don't sleep in deep conditioner, it does more harm than good. Keep your styling very conservative, ie, protective styles or curly styles. I normally love a good flat iron, but if your hair is damaged, stay away. Once you get back on your feet, you can use them. For now, just take a break. You may want to wait an extra week or two between relaxers (esp if your scalp is in trouble) to get the situation resolved.

Stay tuned for Part 2...

Skin care update

Ok, so the 3-step line is a no-go! It's been 3 weeks and I now have a rash on either side of my cheeks. I think specifically due to the clarifying lotion and the DDML. I say this because I have been using the cleanser for a long while already and enjoy it. I think with the drying weather and the fact that the ddml doesn't have any beneficial ingredients in it (meaning its only purpose is to maintain natural moisture, not really add or create moisture) my skin just freaked out (my cheeks are naturally dry). So I'm back to my Alba Botanica toner (green bottle) and using Olay moisturizer AM & PM. I've also added Murad's T-zone gel, so will update after a few weeks on that (I can already tell that things will be much better). I just have to use those high-tech (read: expensive) products. My skin (and hair) can't take anything less than that *deep sigh*