clear skin Archives - Sheevolves.world

What is clean skincare and does it actually work?

Phindile Le Bris Sithole-Spong — Tue, 05 Apr 2022 05:27:41 +0000

During the month of March, we delved a little deeper into green, conscious and sustainable living. So I thought I would try to incorporate that theme into one of my favourite topics here on She Evolves – Skincare. As a self-proclaimed skincare junkie, I can admit that I spend so much time and money on everything skincare related. I firmly believe that prevention is better than cure when it comes to good skin. I would much rather spend a considerable amount of money on what goes on my skin than on shoes or even clothes. Since I started working for She Evolves and thanks to our founder Christina, I started thinking and writing more frequently about green, conscious and sustainable living. This encouraged me to do more research about “clean skincare.”

While I must admit that in the beginning, “clean skincare” was always a bit of a mystery to me and sounded like a gimmick. It wasn’t until I was pregnant that I started to buy into the hype. Before I continue, I want to define “clean skincare”. Based on my understanding, “clean skincare” is skincare products made with very little or no chemicals in them. Of course, each clean beauty product is somewhat different, but the basic principles are the same. And that is creating products that are not known to be harmful to humans and the environment. This is why the move to clean beauty has gone up so much over the past few years. Especially as we have been thinking more and more about how much impact our lives have on the environment.

Over the years, as I have tried clean beauty brands myself, one thing has stood true time and time again. And that is that clean beauty brands definitely work. One way to measure this is to see how my skin has faired when using clean products versus non-clean products. While some brands will have us believe that for skincare to work, we need all these crazy chemicals in them. A few months of clean beauty and the results are the same, if not better. This is because most clean beauty brands use the natural derivative of something to get results. For instance, using detoxing natural clay for masks, algae for proper skin hydration, and vitamins to aid the skin’s healing process.

And while I would love to say that all clean beauty brands are the same, the reality is that they are not. So before you start, do some research on what brands actually work because some clean products are sadly are just all talk and no action. Also, give products time to actually work before dismissing them. For me, that means trying out a product for 2-3 months to see if there is any noticeable change.

Have you tried any clean, non-toxic skincare brands? And if so, what were your thoughts?

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Black don’t crack: How to get glowing skin no matter the season

Phindile Le Bris Sithole-Spong — Tue, 01 Feb 2022 10:41:56 +0000

We’ve all heard the saying “black don’t crack”. And whilst it is true that darker skin tones do age better. Taking care of your skin, no matter your skin colour, is essential, especially if you live in a big city with lots of pollution, germs and so much more. As someone who loves skincare, and has since about 16, I am always looking for ways to better take care of my skin, from the inside and out. I love to do this by masking at least twice a week. Not only is it relaxing, but it leaves my skin feeling young and supple.

To start, I like to cleanse my face as usual. I start with my go-to Bioderm Micellar water, which removes makeup and dirt. From there, I like to wash my skin with a hydrating gel cleanser in the winter and a balancing foam cleanser in the winter. Finally, when my skin is nice and clean, I like to follow up with a light scrub using whatever light scrub I have on hand, emphasising light. After all the cleaning and scrubbing, I like to steam my face with my facial steamer, which is easily one of my favourite beauty tools. From there, I chose one of several masks to help address whatever issues my skin is having.

If it’s a day like today where my skin feels good in general, I like to turn to my chemical peel from The Ordinary. It has a slight sting but leaves my face feeling fresh and tight. Afterwards, I wash my face and apply a hydrating oil like marula oil from Drunk Elephant or organic rosehip oil. One essential and, dare I say, crucial step to all this is also to make sure I wash my hands BEFORE I touch my face. I also have a rule about other people touching my face.

Finally, I like to end off my spa night with a cup of chamomile tea or, as a French like to call them, infusion, which is just a name for any non-caffeinated teas. This adds to the spa feeling and makes me feel like I am really taking care of myself.

When it comes to working from the inside out, I like to add collagen to my smoothies in the mornings to help with the elasticity of my skin. I also try to drink as much water as possible and stay as far away from many fruity juices. Keeping a balanced diet also helps me feel and look good. And finally, I love to sweat as much as possible. Whether it’s a run or jog outside or an online workout. I also love good steam and sauna to rid my body of toxins and use this particular ritual to connect with my girlfriends as we make a whole day of it by going to a hammam and scrubbing our skin from head to toe.

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Bite Size: Skincare lessons we learnt in 2020 that we are taking with us into the new year

Admin_SheEvo — Wed, 06 Jan 2021 04:00:40 +0000

Whilst the new year can be a good time to refresh old habits and find better ways of doing things. It also a great time to take the lessons learnt from the previous year into the new year. With the skincare world changing daily, it can be hard to decide what routines and rituals are worth keeping, and which need a refresh. Here are some skincare lessons we learnt in 2020 that we are taking with us into the new year.

Using sunscreen everyday
The importance of a healthy well balanced diet for goof skin
Drinking at least two liters of water a day
Avoiding touching our faces with dirty hands
Steaming our faces as often as possible
The importance of hyaluronic acid and vitamin C
Removing makeup every night
Moisturizing skin every day

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Skin Deep: Manchadi Kekana shares her no nonsense skincare routine for clear glowing skin

Manchadi Kekana — Mon, 12 Oct 2020 06:53:31 +0000

I wish there was a real viable formula to getting good skin but over the years, I realized that skin is much like a relationship you want to work; it requires time and patience.

I would be amiss to not mention that I have always moisturized my skin and used sunscreen – something I was taught by my grandmothers and mother.

With that being said, I experienced the worst adult acne at 23. I knew it was a possibility because my mother had adult acne but having managed to come out unscathed as a teenager, with beautiful glowing skin, I was certain it would be that way forever – this couldn’t be further from the truth.

When you have acne, you are willing to take and try anything to help with the breakouts, I was sourcing advise from everywhere but a doctor or dermatologist. I figured there was no need and luckily, in my case the need never arose save for going on Yaz for a number of reasons which included my skin. It helped with reducing the breakouts but my skin was dry and sensitive.

After trying a number of products with very little success, I decided to stop using them all – yes you read that right, I decided that I would quit it all and give my skin some reprieve.

Repairing skin

I kept it simple, I washed my skin with dove soap, toned with cold water, moisturized with fragrance free aqueous cream and used sunscreen. In the evening I would repeat steps one and two then moisturize with raw Shea butter.

I would exfoliate twice a week in the evenings using the Cuticura exfoliator and moisturize with raw Shea butter (straight from the market in Ghana)

The above yielded the desired results.

Versatile Skincare

It is important to be cognizant of your skin at all times and changing your routine is important. After my skin was free from pimples and scarring (which was surprisingly dealt with by the Shea butter), the goal become healthy skin.

My skin vacillates from combination to dry depending on the seasons.

I am experimental with products but I have staple products in my bathroom, which are:

1. Olay complete care face wash
2. Cuticura exfoliator (with the blue lid)
3. The Garnier Pure Active Charcoal Face Mask (use once or twice a week)
4. Sunscreen (NB)
5. Olay complete care daily moisturizer

Hydration and glowing skin

The only way to hydrate your skin, is to hydrate your body, you have to drink water. All day, everyday – no easy way around this.

Sleep!!!! Nothing else to add – your skin needs sleep to replenish and repair.

I also decided that it is important to know the ingredients in my skincare and the Body Shop is a plug. They have the beat vegan products with no harmful chemicals or harsh ingredients .

I am currently using the Body Shop Vitamin E range.

I love, love the Hydrating Face Mist, I spray this product through the day because one is required to actually moisturize their skin two to three times during the day.

My skin is soft, hydrated and nourished.

In my Body Shop bag I have:

1. Vitamin E Hydrating Face Mist:
2. Vitamin E Moisture Product Emulson with SPF
3. Vitamin E Moisture Cream for all skin types (in winter I used the one for dry skin)
4. Vitamin E serum
5. Vitamin C Glow Revealing Liquid Peel (use this only when you feel like your skin has some dead skin cells)

I am hooked on the vitamin E range and will be using these products for the foreseeable future. I still wash my face with Olay, exfoliate with my Cuticura and use my Garnier charcoal mask.

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