It is already a few years ago that I met Marianne van der Gaag and Freek Koster of Touché Models. We started talking about our work as well as other things and we just clicked. It happens sometimes with people! Although, at the time, we didn’t have any concrete ideas, we did agree that, at some point, we would like to do something together. We kept in contact and now, at long last, it has happened. Yesterday was the launch of Freek and Mariannes Modelhouse, and I am thrilled, in my expert capacity, to be able to make a blog or vlog there each week.
If you walk into a pharmacy you’ll find pH-neutral products on the shelves. If you would like to know whether special pH-neutral products are really necessary or that it is just another marketing trick then read on…
What is more important than knowing what to apply, is knowing what not to apply! I receive e-mails daily from people who make skincare mistakes. And belief me, this can lead to big problems. To be honest with you, I have made errors myself… So, in order to save you from any more problems, I have made a list of the biggest skincare mistakes below.
After my medical training, when I became absorbed in skincare and cosmetic products, I had just come out of my acne stage. I was so pleased with that even, smooth skin! A few years later I become pregnant and the enjoyment was over. The changing hormone levels didn’t help my skin at all and I had problems with Rosacea and pigmentation spots. So, I clearly didn’t belong to the group of women whose skin glows during pregnancy. My youngest son is now seven, my oldest will be going to the Secondary school this year and when I look in the mirror I see once again, a fine calm skin. I hope that I am able to enjoy it before the menopause throws a spanner in the works. Because the menopause will definitely leave its mark on your skin…
I cannot help but write again about the cleansing of your face. Good cleansing is an essential step in your skincare regime and, sadly, I see countless problems in people who either cleanse too often or use the wrong products. A properly cleansed skin glows, is well hydrated with minimal risk of blocked pores and spots. Skin which isn’t well cleansed (or over cleansed) will look dull, dry or just very greasy and irritated. Over- zealous cleansing not only disrupts the skin’s barrier function, but it also wipes out all sorts of bacteria which maintain your skins healthy condition. The balance between too much and too little cleansing is very fine and, to complicate things further, differs from person to person.
You see it in more and more cosmetic products: tea tree oil. It sounds lovely and green and natural, but is tea tree oil really such a fine ingredient? Today some information about this essential oil…
The question I mostly get asked in interviews is to solve the secret of which products I use on my skin. Maybe not so surprising but… I use my own products daily, morning and night. In the first place I developed them for myself; with ingredients I could tolerate, which had proven effectiveness and in the correct concentration. Having said that, I do also have a number of other products on my bathroom shelf as well as my own creams. And most of them cost very little! So I am a fan of the old fashioned tube of Vaseline, but another one in my collection, which I am very fond of, is 100% vegetable oil. A good quality vegetable oil is a must in your beauty regime, and I am going to tell you why…
I can imagine only too well that it can make you break out in a sweat when trying to quickly scan through hundreds of ingredients lists whilst a sales assistant, full of well intended but not always useful advice, is distracting you. I am going to give you a few tips which will ensure that, in no time (well, before closing time, at least), you have come away from the shop with a fine product, or better still a tester. For convenience we are going to begin with the face cream; the Cleanser, Toner, Exfoliant and sun protection cream will follow soon…..
Do you suffer during the summer months from varying dark or light patches on your neck, chest and/or back? And do they resemble pigmentation spots which disappear in the winter? Then you might have the condition Pityriasis Versicolor…
After an around the world trip with husband and kids (lucky me), I find myself sitting behind the computer once again. I couldn’t forget my work altogether on holiday though. Whether it was somewhere in the Jungle of Indonesia, the Australian Outback or a forgotten island in the South Pacific; there was nothing nicer than to quiz the locals about which ointments and plants they used to look after their skin. Just like Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I came home with piles of information but unfortunately, unlike Willy Wonka, I still haven’t found that “miracle remedy”! My children felt that they had. As after one of the locals had shown our children how to use the sap from the leaf of an Aloe Vera on a wound, no plant in the area was safe! If the Aloe Vera suddenly becomes an endangered plant I know nothing about it okay…