Skin Care (1): know your skin

Hi Guys!
So I thought i'd start my beauty blogging with a lil skin care tips.

It's normal for your skin to change through out the year (heck mine does), so if u find your skin care routine changing from time to time, its perfectly NORMAL!
The skin is extremely susceptible to outside factors - the season, whether you live in an arid, humid or highly polluted climate, your diet, whether or not you smoke nd so on.... It can also change with your period or when your stressed. So ladies, dont fret - you'll just need to tweak your regimen a little from time to time.

So on to skin types:

Oily skin
ways to tell if you have it:

- Are you prone to pimples and blackheads?
- Do you have large pores?
- Does your face  look shiny when you wake up, especially your T-zone (area across your fore head down to your nose and chin)
- Does your foundation wear off after a couple of hours?

if your answer is yes to all the above, In a nutshell:
  Your skin tends to overproduce sebum, making it feel and appear oily.
This is a good thing actually, because it mean your skin is always well moisturised. and you'll have fewer wrinkles as you age. BUT on the other hand, you're more prone to breakouts, since sebum has the tendency to mix with dead skin cells in your pores; this clogs them and produce pimple. [sorry guys :( ]


Dry skin
ways to tell if you have it:

- Does your skin feel itchy or tight?
- Do you have rough, flaky, or red patches?
- Did you make it through adolescence with no acne?
- Are you sensitive to the sun, wind and cold?
- Does your complexion look dull?

if your answer is yes to all the above, In a nutshell:
Dryness occurs when your skin doesn't produce enough moisture and sebum.
This can happen if you live in an arid climate, because the dry air saps the skin of its moisture. you can also experience dryness because of the artificial heaters, sun overexposure or chlorine from the swimming pools.
Dryness can make your skin look great - with fine pores and a clear surface - but it can also be uncomfortable and make your skin rough to touch. [ not good if u've got a touchy guy ]

Combination Skin  (my very own department)
ways to tell if you have it:

- Are your cheeks dry, but your T-zone oily or pimple-prone?
- Are you oily or pimple-prone along the perimeter of your face, but dry every place else?
- Do products that help one part of your face hurt another?

if your answer is yes to all of the above, In a nutshell:
Many of us have combination or unbalanced skin, since the T-zone naturally contains more oil glands than the rest of the face. Also, using the wrong products can result in skin that's drier in some places and oilier in other places. Maybe you should stop using toner - harsh astringents can be very dehydrating. Or switch to a light, oil-free moisturizer to prevent breakouts. its all about experimentation [ what a temperamental skin type]


Sensitive skin
ways to tell if you have it:

-Does your skin irritate easily?
- Is your skin often red or blotchy?
-Do you have allergic reactions ( stinging, itching, burning ) to certain beauty products?
- Do you sunburn easily?

In a nutshell:
Any skin type can be diagnosed as sensitive, since it's nothing more than a negative reaction to outside factors, like wind, sun overexposure, allergies to certain products, and overzealous scrubbing. The thing to do is notice how your skin responds to things, and use the gentle products possible.


Hyper-pigmented Skin [another department of mine :( ]
ways to know if you have it:

- Do you have dark spots from bug bites, pimples, or rashes that won't go away?
- Do you freckle easily in the sun?
- Do you have dark moles?

in a nutshell:
This is common among most black, Latina and middle eastern women. Truth be told, it's the bane of our existence. it is the darkening of the skin in patches or all over, and is most often caused when skin has undergone some trauma that causes inflammation (acne, burns, chemical peels, laser treatments, sun overexposure and so on). When the inflammation subsides, the skin is left with a dark mark, sometimes the marks go away on their own, but more often the fading process can take months or even years [just our prerogative]


Normal skin 
ways to tell if you have it:

- Does your skin always feel and look supple, with or without moisturizer?
- Do you have few or no breakouts?
-Can you use almost any product with out irritation?
- is your skin tone even, without and darker or lighter areas?

in a nutshell:  
LUCKY YOU!!!!!