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Maskne: How to help!

Wearing a face mask has become as normal as putting your shoes on to go out, an essential to prevent the spread of harmful diseases. Unfortunately, it’s coming with a side effect,“maskne” the acne caused by a protective face mask. Whether it’s real acne or simple irritation, we are going to talk you through how to address. prevent and help your maskne.

For the past weeks, unless you are voluntarily confined to your home, it is impossible not to wear a mask for your daily activities where you are in the presence of fellow humans. Essential to curb the spread of the virus.

The phenomenon of maskne – the most common symptom being acne has been around for years and something which professional athletes can suffer with if their sport requires wearing a cap or visor that would rub the skin. 

How to avoid maskne?

  1. Treat the mask as underwear and wash it frequently
  2. Choose your mask and maintain it – no sharing!
  3. Using a 100% cotton mask will allow your skin to breathe better than in a synthetic material
  4. Wash it regularly!

Simplify your skincare routine 

Reduce your skincare routine down to the essentials: a mild soap-free cleanser and a mild fragrance-free moisturizer. The idea being that the least of the ingredients is preferable to the overflow. As for the moisturizing treatment, it has a double function: to moisturize the skin but also to protect it from the friction of the mask – we recommend EYN H2 ∞ – Endurance Moisturiser & NEOSTRATA | Daytime Protection Cream SPF23

In addition, it should be remembered that wearing the mask will intensify the diffusion of care on the skin. So with less, you get more. Knowing this, beware of the use of products containing acids or retinols. Because here, an intensification could be irritating. Doses and uses should be reduced, and under no circumstances should retinol treatment begin during this masked period.

At the end of the day when you remove your mask, treat your skin to another kind of mask, detox facial masks can provide skin with the vitamins it lacked being covered up – we recommend PEEL TO GLOW | Skin Bloom

Stop or break makeup (at least temporarily)

Avoid makeup, or use very light makeup. Prefer tinted moisturizing creams to foundation creams with a richer, oilier texture. We recommend a tinted SPF such as Heliocare or EYN, offering UV cover and a light tinted coverage

And remove make-up as soon as possible, using a more gentle micellar water. It won’t attack your skin. Then moisturize it.

CLICK HERE TO SHOP THE BLOG

We have developed an online shop for you to purchase your favourite skincare products delivered straight to your door, offering a wide range of award-winning, result driven products! 

 

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Understanding Your Skin Type

When it comes to skincare its hard to understand just what your skin needs. Met with millions of different creams, lotions and potions we are on the hunt to find the perfect products for us! The first step in finding your ideal skincare routine is understanding your skin type and we are here to help you do just that.

When we look at the anatomy of the skin, we notice that its surface is covered with a slight film, this is a mixture of sweat and sebum.

Sebum forms a protective film on the surface of the skin, which prevents water from evaporating and helps fight against germs.

Sweat eliminates heat in the first place, but it is also responsible for skin hydration and balance.

The quantity and quality of the skins film determine the skin type, varying on age and health, climate, pollution and personal hygiene. 

The Different Types of Skin

There are four main types of skin: normal, dry, oily, and combination when it comes to understanding your skin type. 

Normal skin: the ideal skin type

Neither too oily nor too dry, normal skin is comfortable, does not shine, does not tug, does not blush at sudden changes in temperature. It is often the result of a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Normal skin needs fewer products.

Dry skin

Dry skin can be confused with dehydrated skin but both are very different in what they need! Dry skin lacks sebum (that thing we spoke about at the beginning), which not having enough of will cause water to evaporate from the skin, thus causing dry skin. Therefore we need to nourish the skin before hydrating.

Oily skin

Oily skin is caused by an excess of sebum, the opposite of dry skin! You can tell oily skin by the skin glossing, enlarged pores, blackheads and dullness. You skin can be oily for a variety of reasons, including pollution and using the wrong products.

Combination Skin

Combination skin is a mixture of two skin types and is characterized by:

  • oily skin on the middle zone, or T zone
  • normal or dry skin on the cheeks.

With combination skin you will find you may need to try different types of products for each area. 

So, how do we determine our skin type? 

There are a number of ways we can determine our skin type from magnifying mirrors to purpose built machines, one which you can easily do at home would be the tissue test. 

  1. Take off your makeup
  2. Clean the skin with soap and water
  3. Wait 30 minutes until the glands have worked hard enough
  4. Place a tissue on the face, like a mask, and press lightly for about ten seconds
  5. Remove the handkerchief and observe in the light

Result of the test:

  • There are traces of oil (transparencies in the light) all over the tissue: you probably have oily skin
  • There are traces of oil only in the middle zone (forehead, nose, chin): you probably have mixed skin
  • There is no trace on the tissue: you have normal skin or dry skin

Please note the above technique may give you an idea of your skin type but we would still recommend coming for a skin consultation at one of our clinics where our skin experts can talk through what your skin needs and build you a bespoke treatment and skincare plan.

Book yours by contacting the team on 01844 390110 / [email protected].

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Why is Vitamin C Good For Your Skin?

We consume it daily, whether on purpose or not, helping us to stay healthy and boost our immune systems but did you know the benefits Vitamin C has for the skin? 

As an active energizer, it’s a key player in skincare as it helps with cell renewal, leaving your skin glowing with brightening and antioxidant action.

Vitamin C will start to show its results within a few weeks of adding it into your skincare routine, it’s used to prevent aging, reduce wrinkles, fine lines, dark circles and spots. Promoting better healing of the epidermis and limits skin inflammations.  A great addition alongside your aesthetic treatments.

The best way to introduce it into your skincare routine is to use a facial cream enriched with moisturizing agents, such as oils. Serums have a higher dose and can contain upto 5 to 15% pure vitamin C. You can mix your serum with your day cream and apply it in the evening or morning! 

To brighten the eyes you can also use a Vitamin C eye cream to help address crow’s feet or dark circles.

We also recommend that you space your application to avoid harming the skin, applying your Vitamin C products 2-3 times a week will help with this.

Our top tip: store your vitamin C care in your fridge – when you apply it, the cool consistency will help to tighten your skin! 

Purchase your Vitamin C skincare: 

C20 Maximum Strength Vitamin C Serum by EYN (1)

Clinically proven L-ascorbic acid at its peak concentration of anti-oxidant activity which
is quickly absorbed to remove free radicals to prevent skin damage, helping to brighten skin and maintain a youthful appearance. The formulation is supported with ferulic acid to create this light effective day serum.

The benefits: 

  • Peak strength serum with maximum anti-oxidant benefits.
  • Helps prevent wrinkles, dark spots and promotes the production of collagen.
  • Helping to prevent and delay ageing from harmful environmental damage, toxins, pollutants and solar radiation.
  • A key product for those who want to prevent the future signs of ageing.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE!

 

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5 Reasons to Protect Your Skin During Summer!

As soon as the sun comes out we are all prone to try and spend any moment possible basking in it rays. It’s important to realise how harmful UV rays can be on our skin and why adding one extra simple step to your morning routine to protect your skin could reap in rewards your future self will thank you for.

Here are our 5 reasons why its important to use SPF and protect your skin daily:

1.Avoid sunburn

The first advantage to using sunscreen is to avoid sunburn! A painful reminder of intense heat exposure, not only preventing us from continued exposure but also harming our skin by damaging the outer layers which can result to skin peel.

2.Limit the risk of cancer

Skin cancer is one of the most popular types of cancer across the globe. This is caused by continued exposure to harmful rays and sun damage. Using a daily SPF can reduce this risk greatly.

3.Delaying skin aging

Prolonged sun exposure accelerates the aging of the skin, causing sun spots, pigmentation, fine lines and wrinkles. 

4.Moisturise your skin

As the name suggests, sunscreen is a cream! It helps moisturize your skin so that it is beautiful and soft. Of course, you also have to hydrate from the inside by drinking water too! 

5.Nourish your skin

Using sunscreen allows you to have youthful and luminous skin. On the beach or by the pool, by putting on sunscreen, you nourish your silhouette. With skin texture looks smoother and your body firmer.

Tan whilst still protecting yourself from the negative effects of the sun, with the Heliocare products!

The Heliocare Advanced Sunscreen Gel SPF50 is an oil-free gel that is easy-apply, light to the touch formulation, with an elegance that encourages daily use.

Find on our online shop the different Heliocare products to protect and keep your skin healthy during summer!

heliocare cosmetic courses

 

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Summer’s Here! Don’t Forget your SPF Sunscreen

Mornings are stressful enough, good intentions to wake up early and start the day calm and collected. Replaced by frantic hair brushing, coffee gulping and a room full of clothes left on your departure. When the summer season arrives in the UK another hurdle arrives into our morning routines, “what do I wear today?!”. British weather is famous for its constant change, one day boiling, the next freezing. Finding the right attire in our morning routine seems the impossible. Although there is one thing we can recommend you wear and we know it works… SPF sunscreen.

When Should you Wear Sunscreen?

All the time. A common misconception is that sunscreen should only be worn if you are purposely exposing your body to the sun. For example, many only wear sunscreen while they are on beach holidays. If the same weather was to hit the UK they wouldn’t really think of wearing sunscreen because they are not laying out in it and “it’s the UK”.

The sun can damage your skin anytime, anywhere. Even hidden behind the clouds, its harmful rays can still delve into our precious skin. So the advice is to always apply a minimum of SPF 30 every day when the sun has made its first appearance of the year to it’s last, no matter what continent you are on.

Top dermatologists recommend introducing sunscreen into your morning routine and even keeping the bottle near your toothpaste to give you that gentle reminder. The sun can penetrate through clothing, so although you are “covered up” there is no harm generously applying to all areas of the body.

What Happens if I don’t Wear Sunscreen?

The top concern for those exposing themselves to sun rays without protection, is skin cancer. This is developed from a build up of skin damage from the sun. Studies have recently shown that skin cancer kills more than 2000 Brits a year. Alongside this the Soleve Sunburn Relief carried out research which found that 3 in 5 of us had sunburn within the past 5 years.

Not only are you raising the risk of skin cancer when you don’t splash on the sunscreen. You are also helping your skin age faster. Numerous studies have confirmed that UV rays account for 80% of skin ageing. The results from heavy exposure are; pigmentation, reduced skin elasticity and degradation of skin texture (photoageing).

What are UV Rays?

The rays that come down from the sun are classified into three: UVC, UVA & UVB, collectively known as UV rays.Stratosphere

UVC – the most damaging type of UV radiation. However, it’s completely filtered by the atmosphere and doesn’t reach the earth’s surface, so we don’t have to worry about that one!

UVB – the ray that makes our skin change colour. This one will burn all superficial layers of your skin and play a big role in the risk of developing skin cancer.

UVA – this ray will go all the way to the dermis, the thickest layer of our skin. This breaks through the skin’s surface and damages from within.

Therefore it’s important we wear a suncream that protects UVA and UVB rays.

Our go-to SPF Sunscreen Products…

Heliocare Advanced Gel – SPF 50

This on the top of our favourites list. The oil-free, light beige cream-like gel is easy to apply with it’s light to the touch formula. Due to its ultra-lightweight gel formula it is ideal for oily and acne prone skin types and can be used all over the body.

It provides advanced anti-ageing UV protection combining high technology mineral & nonmineral filters with photobiological protectants, featuring Fernblock, a natural fern extract unique to Heliocare products. 

Fernblock has been proven to be a powerful antioxidant and skin protector, it enhances your skin’s ability to fight against UV damage that leads to skin ageing. It is proven to reduce UV skin reactions and also improves skin cell DNA protection and repair as it inhibits the DNA damage linked to development of skin cancers.

 

NeoStrata: Refine – Sheer Hydration SPF 35

We love NeoStrata products, not only do they provide for all skin types but each product shows fantastic results.

This product contains broad-spectrum sunscreen to protect against UVA and UVB fighting photo-aging. It also contains NeoGlucosamine. This is clinically proven to help reduce the appearance of dark spots from ageing and acne for more even tone, and to improve your skin’s texture and firmness. It is a light, oil-free fluid, formulated with Phytotal, a botanical blend that helps control oily skin without irritation.

Why do we love it?

  • A hydrating sun shield that improves the health of normal to oily complexions
  • Reduces the appearance of dark spots
  • Improves skin texture, firmness and tone
  • Broad spectrum UVA / UVB sunscreen
  • Suitable for Oily, Combination and Normal skin types

Purchase your sunscreen from Cosmetic Courses today

To enquire about the price of these suncreams or to purchase the products shown in today’s blog, please speak to a member of our friendly team today on 01844 390110 or email [email protected].

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Neostrata for your Aesthetic Practice

Neostrata is an award winning cosmeceutical brand of skincare products, designed specifically for use in medical aesthetic clinics. Neostrata incorporates active and patented ingredients  and are all glycolic acid based,  so therefore have an effect on both the surface of the skin as well as the deeper layers of the epidermis.

Why do we favour Neostrata as a cosmeceutical brand?

The beauty of the Neostrata products is the wide range of inidividual products available. These products have been seperated into 6 ranges; Skin Active, Resurface, Restore, Refine, Enlighten and Targeted Treatments each designed for specific skin concerns. They have effects on tone, texture and pigmentation, and as a result can be used for many different purposes; including anti-ageing, sun damage and pigmentation. Neostrata has historical, clinical and technological data to back up their claims and is also licensed to many big names including Allergan, depicting the quality of the ingredients and products.

Neostrata Facial Skin Peels

A chemical peel is a technique used to improve the condition and the texture of the skin by removing the outer epidermal layers in order to rejuvenate and refresh the complexion. Peels can vary in strength; from 20%, 35%, 50% and 70% are all available. Neostrata consists of three targeted boosters – brightening for pigmentation, clarifying for ageing and acne; and rejuvenating for ageing and skin texture. Neostrata skin peels will only stay on the skin for a maximum of seven minutes but can reach the deeper layers of the stratum corneum. It is a fast and safe effective procedure that will reach deeper than any home skincare products.

The Neostrata skin peel can:

  • Coagulate proteins in the skin
  • Exfoliate
  • Decrease Pore size
  • Black head removal
  • Treat dry, flaky skin
  • Brigten dull, dehydrated skin
  • Increase luminosity
  • Increase cell turnover
  • Even out pigment
  • Increase collagen fibre
  • Enhance clarity
  • Improve elastic fibres
  • Increase dermal thickness
  • Help to plump and firm as well as reducing wrinkles

The Neostrata skin peel can also be used in conjunction with microdermabrasion and dermaroller and in fact our Neostrata skin peel training course covers the use of microdermabrasion as well as the chemical peels for skin rejuvenation. Chemical peels are a non-invasive non-surgical treatment that are becoming increasingly popular and with good reason. Facial peels are a popular procedure for clients who have not had non-surgical procedures before, and so a good way to entice potential clients to your practice and an ideal way of introducing them to other non-surgical procedures that may benefit them. This quick and easy procedure is highly effective for all Fitzpatrick skin types including even the most sensitive skin.

Neostrata Skincare Training Day

For optimum results your clients will need a course of skin peels along with a high quality home skincare regimen. The skin care market is ever growing and a brilliant way to expand revenue as well as improve the services you offer to your clients. At Cosmetic Courses, we offer a Neostrata Skincare Training day for only £50 + VAT. This will educate you on the different ranges of products available. From this day you will gain an insight and overview of the products, ingredients and the conditions they can treat.  We will also advise you on how to integrate these products into your clinic in order to improve revenue and client satisfaction.

If you are interested in our Neostrata Skincare Training or our Chemical Peel Course or if you have any further questions, feel free to contact us on 01844 390 110 or e-mail us at [email protected].

 

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Control your shine this Summer with NeoStrata Sheer Hydration

In the United Kingdom we long for the Summer sun all year round. But we certainly don’t long for the oily faces many of us inevitably suffer with when the sun shows it’s face. We want to feel beautiful, not greasy when the sun shines!

This is when NeoStrata Sheer Hydration daily moisturiser becomes your new best friend. It not only protects your skin from sun damage with it’s SPF 35 protection, but it controls oiliness, evens out skin tone and unlike many other sun creams and moisturisers doesn’t have that sticky, greasy feeling on your skin.

83% of users reported skin feels hydrated without feeling greasy*

NeoStrata Sheer Hydration SPF 30

This oil-free daily moisturiser helps to control and minimise skin oiliness whilst it’s SPF 30 provides broad spectrum UVA/UVB protection which pharmacist Shailesh Patel explained the importance of in this recent blog on sun protection. It is clinically proven to reduce the appearance of dark sun spots as it contains patented NeoGlucosamine® which evens skin tone. 83% of previous users reported smoother skin texture, better clarity and younger-looking skin*. Now who doesn’t want that?

It’s oil-free, fragrance-free, non-comedogenic and non-acnegenic.

Skincare Results

Results after 4 weeks of using NeoStrata Sheer Hydration SPF 35 show:

  • 100% of users reported this product is gentle, absorbs easily, is compatible with makeup, and is not irritating*
  • 93% of users reported improved overall appearance of skin*
  • 86% of users observed brighter/more luminous skin*

*Data on file, NeoStrata Company, Inc.Neostrata sheer hydration

 

September Skincare Offer

For the month of September we are offering the NeoStrata Sheer Hydration Daily Moisturiser at 10% off its recommended retail price.

WAS £38.62

NOW £34.78

As you can imagine, this is one of our most popular moisturisers at this time of year so if you would like to take advantage of this offer please contact the team to place your order as this offer is only valid whilst stocks last.

Offer expires on 30th September 2016.

 

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