Part 2 – Oh the Skin You’re In: C.R.E.W.(S)2 Starts with CLEANSE!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All cleansing and replenishing products are marketed to three major skin types, oily, dry and normal. There are also specialty products that advertise cleansing and replenishing to combat and prevent wrinkles/other signs of aging, moderate to severe acne, rosacea and psoriasis. Black or African skin tends to be a bit oilier than others, my skin included. So, listed below are a few of my fav budget-conscience products ($) for oily skin, that can be found at your local pharmacy or health food store, with a few higher end products ($$) that I feel are worth the money.

Oily Skin – Be Gentle!

Though Black skin is more prone to excess oil, most everyone has oily skin in the area called the “T-Zone” – forehead, nose and chin.  When you think oily skin, you might think it needs extra scrubbing but nothing could be further from the truth. And while exfoliating is extremely important for oily skin to release trapped dirt and bacteria, cleanse or exfoliate oily skin too vigorously and guess what it produces….more oil! Your body does this as a defense to replace what’s been lost – its natural oil called “sebum”. The sebum, dead cells and sweat on your skin form an acid mantle that has a healthy PH of about 4.5-5.5. Being outside this PH range, for any skin type, could predispose your skin to acne, scales, dryness and wrinkles. So be gentle. The ridge pattern on your hand is often all the abrasive action your face needs. Think, your hands plus a dual action cleanser that will cleanse and exfoliate without the use of large pebbles.

Really, unless you are sitting in the patient chair of a professional aesthetician or dermatologist, I do not recommend using scrubs on your face where you can actually feel the exfoliant. They are just too harsh. If you do use one, the pebble consistency should be barely noticeable and it should not be performed on a daily basis.

For oily skin, you want to select a cleanser that doesn’t have too many oily fats like cocoa butter or lanolin as part of its ingredients. Instead, opt for cleansers with natural acids like Glycolic, Alpha-Hydroxy or Salicylic, that can perform gentle cleansing and exfoliation at the same time. Salicylic acid has an added benefit as it is also a medication that helps treat and prevent acne. The acids in general will melt away dead cells, oil and bacteria that could clog pores, leaving your face fresh without excessive drying. Finally, should you discover acne, blackheads or whiteheads, whatever you do, as tempted as you may be – DON’T PICK AT YOUR FACE. It will only create scarring and expose you to even more breakouts.

This is especially important to avoid on skin of color where damaged skin will likely leave hyperpigmentation. So, again, unless you are sitting in the patient chair of a professional aesthetician or dermatologist, no picking should be going on. Treat acne and its unfriendly cousins with chemicals such as Salicylic acid gel, Benzoyl Peroxide cream or acne Sulfur cream. Apply to the acne only, on the spot and not to your entire face.

******SIDE NOTE: Some of the tiny, tiny little white bumps see on your face may not be whiteheads (aka “comedones”) but may just be pockets of trapped keratin protein called “milia”. For more information on milia, please visit this blog: Five Reasons Little White Bumps Are On Your Face and How to Get Rid Of Them

CLEANSERS – BEST BUYS FOR NORMAL TO OILY SKIN

1.   CETAPHIL^® Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser for Normal to Oily Skin ($-$$) – Cetaphil is one of my absolute favorite products for normal to oily skin types. It is on the pricier end of your drug store cosmetic buys running about $8-9 but ooh the sweet benefits of treating your skin like a baby will astound you. Non-comedogenic (meaning it won’t leave residue that could trap oils in your pores) and rinses clean without overdrying. It is a great Fall and Winter product when my skin doesn’t sweat as much.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2.   AVEENO^® Clear Complexion Cream Cleanser ($) – This Aveeno product packs a lot of cleansing power in one nickel size drop. It’s gentle and won’t dry out your skin and Aveeno promises “the soy extracts gently exfoliates to help improve skin’s tone and texture while salicylic acid, a proven blemish-fighting ingredient, works to clear up break-outs without over-drying, leaving skin soft, smooth and even-looking.” This is a great year-round product that is affordable and effective.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.  AVEENO^® Clear Complexion Foaming Cleanser ($)– just as good as it’s cream cousin but without the cream. This Aveeno foam’s consistency also helps the product last longer as one pump is usually enough to cleanse your face and neck.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.  MD FORTE^® Glycolic Acid Cleansers I, II and III ($$-$$$)- MD Forte is my Grand Poohbah of facial cleansers. It is OM-Jesus-fabulous! Perfect for my skin as a woman of color and my go-to product in every season. Even more perfect because my skin falls into the “extra” oily range. I don’t have to scrub or rub too hard and really don’t want to because the glycolic compound in this product makes it a highly potent gentle exfoliant. It comes in 3 grades of acidity, I, II and III, going from 12% glycolic compound to 30%. Most people cannot immediately tolerate 30%. Grade II, 15% is what works for me. Should I stop using the product for a few months, I have to start back at grade one and work my way up. I advise the same for anyone else; start with grade I and work your way up. With all acidic cleansers, you may feel slight tingling with first use. If it gets to burning sensations, discontinue use and take a step back to something with no acid like Cetaphil to calm your skin. The only down side to MD Forte is it can be a bit pricey, running about $25-$30 a pop! But don’t fret; one of my fav cosmetic sites, SkinStore.com often does 20% off promotions on MD Forte products or storewide sales, so check them out. This product is not available at your local drug store.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5.  GLYTONE^® Mild Cream Wash ($$-$$$) – Glytone is another quality albeit it pricey pick. This cream face wash cost $30 for 6 ounces. But the product works! And might I suggest sizing your nickel sized dispensed amount back to a dime. It’s usually still adequate for face and neck. Their biggest bonus is that they also have a full body care product line complete with glycolic acid body wash, body lotion and a heel and elbow cream. How’s that for keeping dry, “ashy” knees and elbows at bay? This product may be available at Sephora or your local dermatologist’s office.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, that just about covers it for cleansing normal to oily skin. Stay tuned next time for more on what to do to cleanse dry and acne-prone skin. If you have any questions about the products above or more recommendations, look me up at HealthiBeauti@gmail.com

Oh the Skin You’re In: A Five Part Series by Guest Blogger Chinyere Ibegwam

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So I live in Los Angeles. This means I get to experience on a daily basis what some people pay good money to be around for just a few days on their annual vacations. But the sun, the fumes, the sweat, the night life, a hectic schedule and the smog can wreak complete havoc on my skin. Should I ever make the mistake of not caring for it after exposing it to all these elements, means I will pay the price in some form of blotch, pimple, blemish, burn (yes, Black people burn), dark spots, bags or dryness. Now, I’m sure many of you out there suffer from the same fate in one way or another. Grimy NY city; the dusty state of Arizona, the muggy East Coast layering you with a day’s worth of sweat in one hour…the list goes on and on. That’s why it’s important to have a good daily skincare regimen so you can C.R.E.W.(S)^2™ into your best looking skin. You have to CLEANSE it daily, REPLINISH what’s been lost, EXERCISE for blood circulation, hydrate by drinking ample amounts of WATER, apply SUNSCREEN & get an adequate amount of SLEEP every night. Don’t do this and you run the risk of looking like a London Tube Commuter…they never see the sun.

And while the cosmetic trade is a BILLION dollar industry, I don’t want to go broke buying my fountain of youth elixirs, (the cosmetic aisle to me = kid in a candy store). So instead, I will educate you in a 5-part series, on the basic science behind your skin and how to care for it while giving you a few of my favorite web resources and budget-conscience products and hope that you can form an inexpensive regimen to CREW(S)²  into your own fabulous ethereal glow!

THE SCIENCE BEHIND YOUR SKIN

What Are You Made Of?

To start, our skin is actually made up of 3 major layers from top to bottom: the epidermis, dermis, and hypodermis (Figure 1.1); and each of these are made up of multiple sub-layers of skin cells. The very top layers of the epidermis, called the “stratum corneum” are made up of several layers of flat, hollow cells called “keratinocytes” that are completely dead! (Figure 1.2) These cells contain no nucleus but have two important properties: 1) They are hollow and itching to soak up whatever we feed it and 2) keratinocytes are home to an important protein called keratin. Keratin acts as a waterproof barrier for our bodies, trapping moisture in and keeping harmful things out. It also helps toughen the cells, increasing the skins elasticity and making our skin an ace at buffering our constant wear and tear.

Figure 1.1

                       

Figure 1.2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As we age, these layers naturally decrease, old surface cells flake off and our skin regenerates, pushing new keratinocytes to the surface that are just waiting to be fed and plumped up with whatever we feed it.

Color Me BEAUTIFUL

Another key protein that plays a role in healthy looking skin is Melanin.  Melanin is a protein that acts as an umbrella from the sun’s harmful UV rays, protecting our skin cells from damage that would cause premature aging in addition to being responsible for giving us our skin color. Everyone has melanin but it is the activity level of the melanin-producing cells called “melanocytes” that determines our natural hue. (Figure 1.3)

Figure 1.3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Those with pale skin have less active melanocytes and they produce less melanin and those with darker skin have more active melanocytes and they produce more melanin. This activity level is stimulated by exposure to UV rays from the sun or from other sources like tanning beds. Thus, over exposure on melanin-active skin can cause too much melanin to be produced and could cause dark spots to get darker, known as “hyperpigmentation” or it could cause “sunburn” on skin that has already reached its melanin-producing peak.

Sun Worshiping

****Sunburn is highly dangerous because it means genetic damage is being done to your skins melanocyte cells, increasing their chance of mutation and thus increasing the skin’s risk of developing the most dangerous and malignant form of cancer called Melanoma; and though you may hear a person of color declare Black people don’t get skin cancer because we are naturally immune, it is completely false. EVERYONE and ANYONE can get sunburned and EVERYONE and ANYONE can develop melanoma. ****

According to the CDC’s statistics on cancer, some races have a higher risk for developing melanoma, with Whites having the greatest risk and Blacks the least. Yes, despite our high melanin-activity levels, we can get and die from melanoma. In fact, the Journal of American Medical Associations Archives of Dermatology noted in 2010, that Black women in Florida displayed a higher rate of mortality after being diagnosed with melanoma than did Whites. So while we may not develop it as much, we die from it more. This means it is just as important for us to wear an SPF appropriate sunscreen and protect ourselves from the sun as it is for other races.

You Passed!

Now, that you’ve been armed with the basic science behind your skin, I’m sure you realize just how futile it is to believe any product in the cosmetic aisle can keep your face looking like your 25 when your 55. No, the only thing that can do that is something called PHOTOSHOP. Not even the best plastic surgeon could accomplish such a feat. But the science behind your skin means there are things you can do and not do to ensure you age gracefully.

Stay tuned next time for more on cleansing your skin. If you have any questions about the science above or more recommendations, look me up at HealthiBeauti@gmail.com.

Chinyere Ibegwam - Author of "Oh the Skin You're In"

Négretude Announces Debut of Designer T-shirts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Négretude means being – unapologetic from where you come, outspoken in telling your stories, and having pride in land that bore you.  Négretude was founded June 2011 in Los Angeles CA, and has debuted its first designer t-shirt in its product line.  The company’s fashionable t-shirts make positive statements through the use of cultural symbols and unique designs.  Négretude encourages pride, unity, and outspokenly and unapologetically embracing your culture.

Négretude is a web based company geared towards men and women, and provides high quality t-shirts that showcase the company’s vision through artwork designed by its professional artist.  The company pays close attention to details and the overall customer experience, and openly shares its experiences with customers through its blog site as it grows.

Négretude seeks to inspire individuals to have love for themselves, their culture, and for others.

Website: www.negretude.com

Email: Negretudetees@gmail.com

Blog: negretudetees.wordpress.com

Twitter: @Négretude

Facebook: Négretude

Thinking of Going Natural? MTV’s “True Life” Reality Show is Seeking Candidates

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The popular MTV series “True Life” that follows individuals as they journey through a pinnacle time in their lives; is looking to follow a young woman who has thought about taking the big chop and embracing her natural hair.

MTV Wants to Know:

Is your hair your obsession? How are you struggling with your hair? Do you feel natural hair would let you embrace your true self, and you want to go for the “big chop?” Why now? What has held you back up to this moment? We would like to follow someone who is ready to do the “big chop” and follow them on their journey as they transition into their natural hair.

If you appear to be between the ages of 15 -28 and would like us to document your transition to natural hair, email us at casting@lintonmedia.com and tell us about your story. Please include your name, location, phone number and recent photos of yourself.

The topic of “going natural” brings with it many different views and opinions, and it will be interesting to see what direction the show takes with this subject.  Honestly, my feelings are some what mixed.  Part of me wonders why this “transformation” has to be depicted as such an event, and hope that natural hair is shown as something beautiful and not the opposite.  On the other hand, I also think it is a good thing that the audience this is geared towards starts to think, question, debate, and form opinions of their own  on the subject.

For more information go to http://www.mtv.com/shows/truelife/series.jhtml

Dark Girls Documentary to be Released Winter 2011

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In a previous post I took a look at a documentary by Bradinn French entitled Dark Girls – A Documentary Exploring the Biases and Attitudes about Skin Color  that dives into the deep-rooted issues regarding skin color and its perception among women of color .  I have been anxiously awaiting the release of the documentary because it will discuss an issue that some people feel does not exist.  This is not just an issue among African-Americans, the issue of skin color crosses over many cultures, but I think its intriguing to attempt to understand why and how negative connotations spread and imprint themselves on future generations.

The film makers D. Channsin Berry and Bill Duke seek to discover if life is truly different for darker skinned women and how.

Négretude: Pride, Unity, and Culture

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have you heard of Négretude?  If you haven’t you may want to keep your attention on this designer t-shirt line.  I know what you may be thinking, “just another t-shirt”, but Négretude is not just another t-shirt line.

The company’s goal is to deliver messages of pride and unity through artistic designs, and unique interpretations of african symbols.   Their first design called “unity” expresses the importance of embracing our cultural differences to achieve a common goal.  The colors are vibrant and the symbol is unique in design.  Négretude is in the process of building its brand, and has invited followers on their journey.  They are taking their followers through the process step by step from beginning to end, which makes their customers feel connected.   I actually follow their updates and enjoy sharing in the experience.  I look forward to the release of thier first t-shirt and the many more to come.

For more on Négretude go to: www.negretudetees.wordpress.com

Guys Have No Fear… Trunk Club is Here

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For those men who hate shopping at clothing stores I stumbled upon a company that takes the stingy away from that. Guys have an allergic reaction to shopping for clothes. There is a reason sections of department stores that cater to men are much smaller if comparing to women (come to think of it toddlers have more space),just don’t find it enjoyable.

You should take a look at Trunk Club. Trunck Club is one of a number of clothing-focused venture-backed ecommerce start-ups that makes the process of shopping for something (espically articles of clothing) simple, easier and frankly more relaxing in the comfort of your own four walls.

 The demographic that Trunk Club is focusing on are men who like clothes but they just don’t like the whole process that goes into shopping for outfits. They see no entertainent value in going to malls, waiting for fitting rooms, searching and ultimaetly not finding clothing items that they really want.

 Trunk Club, which is based in Chicago, Illionois, functions just ilike your own personal shopper. A gentleman starts off by signing up via the website. Durning the sign up process, you can pick some preselected looks and answer a few questions that help build a profile. A personal stylist is assigned to you and they contact you by your preselected form of communication, email or over the phone. If you are in the Chicago area you can also show up in person at corporate office and have a face to face with your personal stylist.

From your profile a gentlemans’ style is formed and a “trunk” of 8 – 10 items, selected by your stylist, are shipped out to you. The items usually take a week to arrive on your doorsteps. Items are shipped via FedEx so no PO Boxes accepted.

 Once in the comfort of your own home try them out, keep what you like return what your don’t. What gentlemen get charged for are items they keep and no chrages for shipping either way.Try them out keep what you want and send rest back, shipping is free both ways.

 Seems the three main selling points of Trunk Club are convience, personalization and comfort. As I can attest there are a few men I know who for various reasons can’t or won’t shop for great stlyistic clothing and wouldn’t mind having a “trunk” full of items waiting for them to check out on their own time. Trunk Club does fit within “upscale” department store mentality. Their style of clothing are name brands and with pricing to match. So far they do not offer discounts for their products.

 Might be worth the roll of the dice. I wonder if women would gladly get the service for the men in their lives. Thoughts?

 www.trunckclub.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Article Contributed by

Nikolas Alexander