Pores Problems

Problematic pores can be caused by a bunch of factors. It could be hereditary (thanks, mom!), or caused by hormonal fluctuations (hello, puberty). Often times, it's because of bad skincare habits, such as sleeping with your makeup on, or forgetting to wash your face after hitting the gym.

Whatever the cause, everybody gets them at one point in their life. Here, a rundown of the common pore problems women face, and how to treat them.

Blackheads.
They're those black spots on your face that you're just oh-so-tempted to pick, poke, or pop. These buggers are formed when pores (called comedo, or the sebaceous follicle) get clogged with excess oil, dirt, or bacteria. When exposed to air, this mixture of pure grossness oxidizes, which gives it that lovely black color. This formation of dirt and bacteria will continue to gather even more dirt and bacteria, making it harder, more solid, and more tempting to pick at.

Treatment:
Fight blackheads with a pore-refining cleanser and exfoliate once a week—this cleans out the pores and gets rid of dead skin cells and whatever grime you've collected. If your blackheads still insist on taking up residence on your face, consider consulting your dermatologist about other possible treatments.

Whiteheads.
With the co-existence of whiteheads and blackheads, we understand if you feel like your pores are playing a game of checkers on your face. Like blackheads, whiteheads are formed inside the comedo, except the opening is so small that air can't oxidize all the goo that got trapped inside. The result is basically the same dirt and grime trapped under your skin, except, well, it's white. We know it's tempting to squeeze your pores 'til your whiteheads emerge, but resist doing so. You've probably also seen extracting tools being sold in drugstores as "whitehead removers" (they look like a thin metal stick with a loop at the end)—resist buying those, too. Whitehead extractions should be done by a dermatologist, with the right sterile tools.

Treatment:
To keep whiteheads at bay, treat them the same way as blackheads: wash with a pore-refining cleanser (ordinary bath soap just won't cut it), and exfoliate once a week.

Acne.
Acne happens when your pores get clogged with excess oil, dirt, or pollution. Unlike blackheads and whiteheads, however, acne develops when the pores actually get infected because of all the dirt and grime—hence, the unflattering inflamed, red spot. Unfortunately, women get them more than men, thanks to hormonal shifts, which cause skin to produce more oil and sebum.

Treatment:
How to keep acne at bay? First off, use a facial wash suited for your skin type. Facial washes targeted for specific skin types are formulated to balance out how much oil the skin produces. If you're dealing with hardcore acne, it might be a good idea to seek the help of a dermatologist, who can prescribe an anti-microbial cream to disinfect your zit. Worst cases of acne require an oral antibiotic.

Enlarged Pores.
Nothing can betray a woman's age the way enlarged pores do. Your pores become bigger because of wear and tear—think makeup, pollution, and dirt that accumulate in your pores over time. Factor in the oil that your skin still has to produce, which exits through the pores! Imagine a plugged-up faucet: with no way for all that oil to exit, the skin "stretches" to make room for the excess oil. Unfortunately for you, that could mean clogged pores…which could lead to blackheads, whiteheads, and acne.

Treatment:
So what's a girl to do? First off, don't go out under the sun without any sun protection: UV damage kills the collagen in your skin, a protein that helps keep skin cells strong and tight. Go for skin-firming serums and creams, and slough off dead skin cells with a light facial scrub.

Papules, pustules, nodules.
Papules are small, solid bumps that appear in groups; pustules are bumps that contain white blood cells, dead skin cells, and bacteria—making them look like whiteheads, but really, that's pus in there; and nodules are those pesky red bumps that are hard and painful to the touch. This trio certainly isn't a delight to have hanging around your face, but unfortunately, you can't get rid of them by yourself.

Treatment:
Papules and pustules can be removed through light therapy, topical anti-microbials, or over-the-counter acne medications (ask your dermatologist what is best for you). Nodules, however, are deeply rooted in, and you might need a steroid shot to let them simmer down. Again, don't try to pop or prick them yourself—you will only worsen the condition by causing an infection!

Source : Yahoo

Review : My Beauty Diary Intensive Double Vitamin C Eye Mask

Product Description
Combats dark eye circles. Removes darkness around eyes.
Brightening and whitening.
Evens skin tone. Removes shadow.
Soothing and nourishing.

This looks interesting! I received 2 packs from a good friend of mine who just came back from her Taiwan trip. But when I was in Taiwan in May this year and needed to totalled up to a certain amount, I picked up this pack, even though I have yet to use those from my friend.

It is interesting to me, because it contains Vitamin C which would be good to brighten up the undereye area. Its been some time since I picked up eye masks from MBD as they are ususally more focused on face masks. This seems to be quite new in the market as I don't recall seeing it in most of the places.

My last eye mask from MBD was pretty useless, so I didn't really have any expectations from this. Still, being a beauty hoarder, I wanted to try it. It comes in 7 individually wrapped sheets, in a typically sweet girly pink packaging.

The shape is abit funny, as you can see from the illustations on the packaging. Abit silly, in my opinion because the slits are cut  too close for those with large eyes like mine. Thus, it becomes kind of a hassle as I need to re-adjust the eye patches every now and then.

Even though I had it layered for only 10 to 15minutes, I seemed to be re-adjusting it for like 3 times. Either my eyelid was irritated because its so close to my eyes, or that the top flap on the eyelids kept flapping down. The only way to use it, is to lie on bed. Everything would be secure.

It has a strong herbal scent, abit funny since it doesn't quite gelled with the girly packaging.
After each treatment before I slept, my undereye area becomes drier than before and the left undereye area become itchy which cause more rubbing to my eyes in order to relieve the itch. The stickiness which was apparent once the mask was removed, disappeared after a few minutes, leaving softer undereye area skin.

However, if I used it during the day, my undereye area did not feel any drier though there was still a slight itch.

Shop
MY BEAUTY DIARY Puffiness Intensive Care Eye Mask
MY BEAUTY DIARY 5 Piece Smoothness Intensive Care Eye Mask
MY BEAUTY DIARY Dark Circles Intensive Care Eye Mask

Belly Be Gone

Eat flat-belly foods.
Consuming more protein which you’ll find in meat, fish, dairy, and nuts, in exchange for carbs helps reduce overall belly fat. Some specific examples of flat-belly foods: almonds, beans, spinach, instant oatmeal, eggs, peanut butter, olive oil, whole grains, whey (protein powder). Want a specific diet plan? Check out The Abs Diet for Women (Fully Booked, P798) by David Zinczenko, editor-in-chief of Men’s Health US.

Be wary of sugar content.
It’s a no-brainer, but you won’t believe how sugar can lurk in the most innocuous of foods, from that extra plop of ketchup to the diet soda that’s lulled you into a false sense of “low-calorie” calm. Processed foods are major culprits. Take time to read nutrition labels. Use natural sweeteners like honey or cinnamon which won’t give you a sugar high and spike up the calories.

Be wary of salt content.
You’re on vacation; you want your belly to be as flat as possible, so you lie prone on the deck chair (that kinda flattens your tummy out)… and then promptly reach for the giant bag of chips. We know that salt retains water, so nutritionists suggest you keep your salt intake under 2,000 milligrams each day. Read the nutrition labels.

Relax.
You’ve heard of friends losing weight because of work or personal problems, but who the heck wants to lose weight being stressed out? Those friends are exceptions anyway. Yale University researchers say that your belly is four times as likely to store stress-induced fat compared to the rest of your body. Worry, and you produce extra cortisol, a hormone that prompts the body to store fat.

Get some exercise.
Three sessions a week will do. Do exercises that not only work out individual muscles but the entire core so that you’re getting the double-benefit of burning more fat while getting toned. The best workouts for the core and torching belly flab? Pilates, by far. Running comes next. Water sports can even be great core builders. Must-try: Stand-up paddleboarding; a sport that builds endurance and engages your core to keep your balance. There’s a group that explores various parts of the Philippines on their paddleboards.

Source : Femalenetwork

Review : Lemongrass House Mandarin Orange Salt Body Glow

Product Description
Our Salt Body Glow Scrub provides a rougher, more skin buffing exfoliation! Andaman Sea Salts and Vitamin C in emollient-rich Jojoba Oil removes all traces of roughness. While pure Cucumber and Aloe Vera leave your skin feeling soft and refreshed.

Unaware that this scrub is more abrasive than the previous one I used, I purchased this together with the shampoo and conditioner during my birthday month when there was a 20% storewide discount for members.

This 200g is so tightly packed with sea salts that I found it tough to scoop out the contents without spillage, making a mess on my bathroom top.
Unlike other scrubs which I have used before, this tub does not comes with much essential oil, to make it a more emollient scrub for the body. The salts were not tiny to begin with, and made a rough body scrub on my delicate skin.

Even though I don't fancy oiliness or having a moisturising veil after a scrub, this scrub was just disappointing for its lack of moisture factor and gentleness initially. Without the pure mandarin essential oil, the exfoliating factor becomes a tad too abrasive for my liking, even though it does make a good clean scrub.

I had tried to scoop up any pure mandarin essential oil from the bottom, together with the sea salts, but it just made the whole process bothersome and messy, with all the sea salt bits flying all over the place.
However, after using up 65% and leaving 35% left in the tub, I can finally see, smell and feel the aroma of the pure mandarin essential oil. Mixing in with the sea salts, it left a light layer of moisturising veil on the skin after a good body scrub. It was a better experience than the initial scare though I still found it to be more abrasive than other scrubs I owned.

That said, the scent is pleasant, with a light hint of Mandarin Orange fragrance. The naivety in me, thought it would be a scrub with orange coloured bits, but it turned out to be white with a hint of yellow.
I also like the full ingredient list, good stuff for the body.

Source : Lemongrass House

Review : Lemongrass House Lavender Shampoo and Conditioner

Shampoo Description
Formulated with Botanicals and Essential Oils, our gentle Shampoos give you healthy, vibrant hair without using harsh preservatives or hair-stripping cleansers.

Conditioner Description
Our Conditioners are infused with Green Tea extract and Wheat Protien which leaves hair shiny and healthly. Pure plant extracts provides moisture while Coconut Oil improves detangling.

Sulphate-free, paraben free and no animal testing, these products come from Lemongrass House, which I purchased some time back. I don't fancy other scents, except for this Lavender. If I remembered correctly, this Lavender range is for those with normal hair, not exactly for mine. I was looking for something that is meant for damaged hair, but that scent kinda put me off, so I got these instead.

Both the shampoo and conditioner has a nice soothing Lavender scent that are packaged in a twist and open metal cap (may raise some facial hairs on the arms with the metal cap screeching sound). With a light yellow colour, the shampoo has a light to medium glooey texture which can be difficult to lather on the hair if its not wet enough. It does not have an effective cleansing power as I found my hair to be itchy and greasy at the end of a long day. It works fine, if I am not out of the house the whole day.
The conditioner with a white thicker texture is not emollient enough for my dry hair. It feels like straw when I tried to apply on my damaged hair ends.
I can't really blame it on the products since its not meant for my type of hair condition anyway. But I am just disappointed with the conditioner texture. Not something I really like, even though its not for my hair type.

Shampoo Ingredients

Conditioner Ingredients