As your devoted bh editor, I believe in trialling as many products and treatments as possible. It’s a dirty job but someone has to do it. After all, you want to know what’s effective, not to mention exciting and new, before you decide how spend your hard-earned beauty dollars. And I want you to have fun rather than worrying if something is going to make you breakout or look like a circus clown.
It sounds wonderful and it is. But there’s another side to this shiny coin. It’s called Beauty Editor Skin-drome (uh huh, I did make that up). And it affects most beauty journalists at some stage during their career. It’s year 11 for me and mine is currently in full flight: as my new facialist was quick to point out.
Just yesterday I had an incredible La Prairie Cellular Skin Treatment that reminded me why it’s best to find a skincare routine that works for you and stick to it. Mostly anyway. There’s always room for a little experimentation but slathering your face with different potions every week in an attempt to find the very best on the market is not, I repeat not, a recipe for happy skin.
And so back to the facial, which began with a self-diagnosis that my expert beauty therapist agreed with on the spot: my poor skin was over-stimulated, over-exfoliated and over-nourished. In turn, I was over it.
Between congestion surfacing angrily on my chin, the vertical lines appearing between my brows and a little tiny quilted pattern sewing itself across my cheeks, I hardly recognised myself. The best skin is balanced skin apparently and mine was totally out of whack. I say was because it took just 90 minutes and a pair of very gifted hands, plus the correct skincare products, to restore balance. Ah, sweet relief.
More on the actual facial next week in our special Time edition that promises tips on making the most of every minute of your beauty routine, but in the meantime, I’m enjoying plump, hydrated skin that continues to heal as I type.
Now if only I can stick to my new routine.
How’s your skin today?
