beautyidealist asked: What is your skincare regimen when you travel? I follow you on Twitter and love your skincare tweets and your philosophy on products so would love to know what you use.
When it comes to my skin, I’m very selective about what I use. I don’t make decisions based on any marketing because unlike fashion, no one will see the product when you go out, all you are showing is your face – so I’m VERY result oriented. I prefer to go for scientifically advanced, clean, formulations. I don’t think most mass high-end brands are good for skin, I also don’t like most mass natural brands from both a marketing and a results perspective. I just like my products to be really intelligently created. I stay away from parabens, silicones, sulfates, mineral oil, phthalates, and non food-grade alcohol. I also stay away from botanicals that can cause irritation, so I guess I just don’t follow any particular movement, instead I read ingredient labels and learn about the science behind the products. My skin is normal-combination with the odd breakout here and there.
My travel regimen is extremely edited and I only bring what I need. Most of the time when I travel, my concerns are fighting fatigue, balancing my skin hydration, and preventing breakouts. On my recent trip to Vegas, I used the Intelligent Nutrients Anti-Aging Cleanser (Not pictured). I hate the soapy-mushroom scent, but love the organic formulation. It does not lather (so no go with Clarisonic, which I think is overrated anyway), but encourages gentle, natural exfoliation via Apple Juice while natural elements fight inflammation, restore moisture, and dissolve grime. I feel like my skin absorbs a lot of the nutrients in there, and it seems if I leave it on my skin, it will be completely absorbed. My skin generally feels smooth and clean, but not stripped/dry when using this. I follow that up with YULI Panacea Elixir. Some people don’t use this, but my friend who develops beauty products at Dior swears that this stuff really conditions and sets the skin. It is now one of my staples that I take everywhere. The positive changes it has done for my skin are amazing: smaller pores, clearer, firmer skin. These aren’t changes you see overnight but over a week, you can tell your skin is better. It also doesn’t have any alcohol which a lot of mists/toners/elixirs have that can dry out skin, so it is really hydrating and refreshing. This is a hourly ritual on flights and keeps me looking hydrated and rested.
For the AM, after my cleansing/toning – I apply YULI Liquid Courage, an Antioxidant serum which was given to me last fashion season to use as it is formulated for people who travel a lot or keep hectic schedules. A lot of my investment banker friends now use this stuff before meetings too. Antioxidants basically repair, fight aging, and prevent damage – so this is very important when you’re tired, stressed, or not eating right. This really helps my skin look like I had 10 hours of sleep when the reality is that I took a red-eye. It is a really pure antioxidant serum that is made almost completely of seeds which contain the most dense levels of nutrients. They also use some type of biofermentation technology to make certain actives even more potent without causing irritation. I put this on before my SPF to add increased solar/environmental protection and my skin stays looking like I am refreshed from a good sleep all day. The SPF I layer over it is Osmosis Shelter SPF 30: A chirally-correct, mostly clean SPF that doesn’t go on white or heavy. Most sunscreens are chemical-laden and can actually increase skin damage over time. This formula is pretty clean, the chemicals are chirally-correct, there are lots of naturals that don’t cause photosensitivity, and it leaves a pleasant scent which coupled with Liquid Courage smells like orange sorbet. It is so difficult to find a clean SPF that isn’t super granola (chalky, white streaks all over) – so I bought this in both the travel and regular size from my dermatologist.
For eye, I’m not really at that age when I’m worried about crowsfeet, under eye bags, etc, but I need to start taking preventative measures. I like REN’s Active 7 Radiant Eye Gel because it is light, doesn’t clog my pores, and makes my under eye area brighter. It also kind of wakes me up if I’m feeling tired. All of REN’s gel products sort of smell the same but they all at least kind of do what they say and use relatively good ingredients that don’t irritate the skin.
I will use the Dior Homme Sport Deodorant Stick:an alcohol & aluminum free deodorant that I get from work. I have 2 in each office across the Atlantic and keep 2 at home because I never know when I might need it.They last a long time and smell great: crisp, light, refreshing. I don’t like douse myself in a lot of fragrance so the subtle scent of a good deodorant works pretty well for me.
For night, I use the cleanser/elixir. The treatment/moisturizer, I use YULI ME Skin Fuel, which is a nutrient cocktail for the skin crafted for normal-combination skin types. A good friend of mine turned me onto facial oils a while back at a shoot in Patagonia. I’ve played with my share of facial dry oils like Rodin, Sunday Riley, and Kahina but this blend is hands down the best-smelling and fastest absorbing serum on the market. It has complex notes that develop as the greaseless serum quickly absorbs into skin. I use this at night time as it balances skin, and works over night to deliver nutrients deep into skin cells to replenish and correct while helping the skin’s own system decongest. Unlike a lot of facial dry oils that can be a bit much for my skin type, this product actually helps balance my skin so I don’t really get breakouts and speeds up my skins recovery time from blemishes or other damage. I use a lot of things from this line because unlike a lot of lines where you might see positives changes, this is the only one I used where my skin completely just transformed into its best possible state.
2-3 nights a week, I will do a mask. When I travel, I bring the Arcona Gentle Solution: My mask/exfoliator in a tube. This is a natural acid peel (I am picky about physical exfoliators) that gets rid of dull skin. I had a facial in LA a year ago and the facialist knew how nit-picky I was about ingredients so instead of the normal acid peel, she used this product. It repairs and resurfaces the skin as you sleep. The antioxidants and amino acids help to nourish skin so when you wake up, your skin feels more ‘alive’.
For body, I use Aesop Mandarin Facial Hydrating Cream. I rub this on my neck/hands post shower and I will also use this on my face if I’m somewhere extremely dry such as Las Vegas. It is a simple moisturizer which doesn’t have a lot of frills to it but I like the mandarin scent and it doesn’t irritate my skin.
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Obviously I enjoy a good skincare conversation, so feel free to tweet me on twitter if you’d like to know more!