Pucker Up

I love fall.  I really do.  Its my favorite season.  EXCEPT that my chronic chapped lips come back with a vengeance, made worse by even the slightest hint of dehydration.  For some mysterious reason, I spent virtually my entire childhood dehydrated, and my lips were frequently so chapped that they would crack and bleed.  It was so bad that my father bought me a grape flavored Bonnie Bell Lip Smacker and made me wear it around my neck on a string so that I would remember to reapply it constantly.  It helped, a bit, until my little sister ate it.

Anyway, things have changed quite a bit since then, but also not really all that much.  For one thing, who the heck uses grape anything?  But we still use beeswax based products on our lips (and hands, and feet....) all the time.  If you're like me, and are prone to monumentally chapped lips, you've probably tried everything.  And you probably think that pretty much nothing works.  I was you not so long ago.....layering Aesop Tuberose Lip Heal under something waxy kept desperation at bay, but nothing got rid of flakes and peeling.  Ugh.  Forget my beloved red lipstick, it just wasn't happening in season.

But then, then....I found.....salvation.  Salvation in the form of an outrageously priced pot of lip love.  Sarah Happ The Lip Slip.  I was in the Denver airport (yes, the Denver airport) suffering from a Defcon 5 chapped lips situation.  I could have been sold pretty much any snake oil at that point, but fortunately, the little beauty boutique carried Sarah Happ.  With much complaining (about the price, about the super-wasteful packaging) I bought it and greedily gooped it on, only to find that.....it worked.  It really worked.  No more cracks.  No more flakes.  No more peeling.  If I'm really in a bad way, I still layer my Aesop oil underneath, but then I'm guaranteed to be in good shape the next day, not just sub-optimal but almost manageable.  Sarah Happ, I love you.  Smooch!!!

Take It Off

One would think that we all know to wash our faces before we go to bed at this point.  And, if pressed, we all do, 100% of the time, plus floss twice daily.  Except when we drink an entire bottle of wine and do a faceplant on the sofa instead.  (Not that I ever do such things.)  I had a roommate in my 20's who NEVER washed her face, and a friend who is quite a few years older than that who still doesn't wash her face.  They both looked, and look, sort of fine.  So what's the big deal?

The big deal is that pollution in the air gets stuck to your face all day.  And if you wear makeup, triple the amount.  Makeup itself can oxidize during the day, compounding the trouble.  Prone to acne?  You don't need me to answer this question for you.  Plus, you're wasting expensive anti-aging products if you pile them on top of a layer of old makeup and dirt.  They just won't work as well.

So what's the best way to wash your face?  The way that gets your makeup off and doesn't leave a residue or a film on your skin.  You can wash in one step, or two steps.  Doesn't really matter as long as it works.  If you're a dedicated one-stepper, Neutrogena Foaming Cleanser is pretty awesome:  dissolves all makeup, even eye makeup, (without stinging!) and leaves skin clean but not dry.  If you're a two-stepper, (I am), IMO you can't beat an oil for dissolving makeup.  Shu Uemera makes the all time classic, but L'Oreal, killer of all cult brands, has pulled it from the US, and its now online only.  A number of other brands have stepped up with their own offerings.  Cetaphil, the warhorse of dermatologists' offices and drugstores, does a more than fine job of removing makeup in addition to being one of the best uber-gentle cleansers on the market.  Love wipes?  IMO, unless you're a two stepper, they're for washing your face only in the aforementioned faceplant situation.

The actual washing part (or, if you don't wear makeup, the only part) offers so many options that its almost dizzying.  That should probably tell you how important it is to wash your face (J and C, are you reading this??)  Use something with salicylic acid a few times a week if you're acne prone, but don't get crazy with it. Dry, red and peeling isn't a good sign.  I have been using Shiseido Foaming Cleanser since I was 20, and haven't found a reason to switch yet, since one tube lasts about six months (!) and its thorough but still gentle.  I also love Mario Badescu's Enzyme Cleansing Gel, which comes in a giant bottle, is priced right, and works for virtually every skin type.  I know more devotees of the Clairsonic cleansing brush than I can keep track of, and I agree with the philosophy, but don't own one.  I use a manual brush.  The Clairsonic obviates the need for a manual exfoliating product (for another post), but does cost over $100.  And for whatever reasons, users tend to abuse them, and are back to the lovely red, peeling skin issue.  If you're not price sensitive, and can control yourself, by all means, knock yourself out!

Airplane Face

Can it be avoided?  Does jetlag make it worse?  Can anything be done?  Sort of, yes, and yes. 

Unless you've never taken an airplane, you're familiar with this syndrome.  A face that feels too small, but somehow seems sort of....greasy.  Burning eyes.  Ashen pallor.  The wonders of stress and seriously low humidity at work.  We all know to guzzle water, avoid salty snacks and alcohol while flying (as if that's going to happen) and to wear noise-cancelling headphones.  So let's say that you actually followed these edicts, including the ban on booze, and still look and feel like crap when you land.  Why?

"Guzzle water" may mean much more than you think it does.  Airplanes are even drier than the driest desert, and your lungs need to humidify the air you breathe.  If it isn't in the air they take in, the necessary water will be pulled from your system.  Thus the "my face is too small" phenomenon.  Drinking a LOT of fluids, which don't include coffee or soda, helps to maintain a somewhat adequate hydration level, which allows your skin to hang onto at least some of the water normally allotted to it in a moister environment.  During the flight, periodically mist your face with something like Eau Avene Thermale, which not only helps you to feel a bit more hydrated, but has an oddly soothing effect, and if you apply additional moisturizer, helps it to cling better.  Speaking of additional moisturizer, definitely do so.  SkinCeuticals B5 Hydrating Gel is an absolute must (don't bring the whole bottle of course, get a tiny apothecary bottle from the drugstore with a dropper and just bring that.  A little bit of this stuff goes a long way.)  Then add more sunscreen; you're way, way up there, where the air is super thin, and airplane windows don't offer all that much protection from UV rays.  Controversy aside, I use a sunscreen powder to combat the inexplicable grease that appears despite the dry skin factor. [What's the controversy you ask?  For one thing, its easy to inhale powders as you apply them.  Be very, very careful about this:  titanium dioxide can accumulate in your lungs.  I don't breathe while I'm applying, and I forcefully exhale through my nose when finished.  For another thing, the powder can float off around your skin rather than settling onto it, giving you far, far less than the advertised SPF, AND increasing your risk of inhaling it.  Don't wave and flick the brush around your face and neck like a silent movie star; instead, press the bristles gently against your skin.]

Keep lubricating eye drops and a pair of giant sunglasses handy and just pray you're not seated behind a screaming two year old. 

If you have to go directly to a meeting from the plane, I'm sorry.  That sucks.  "Bronzer" is your best friend, right up there with your life partner, "undereye concealer".  But if you have a chance to get to your hotel, give yourself a quick rescue mask.  Going skiing?  Pack a hydrating mask.  To Mexico City, Beijing or LA?  An anti-oxidant mask or detox mask.  SKII's all travel like champs since they're single use linen sheets, but may require a loan on your 401(k) if you develop a habit.  If you've checked your luggage, my top picks are Peter Thomas Roth's Oxygenating Mask, Malin + Goetz's Detox Mask, Dermalogica's Antioxidant Mask, and Juara's Turmeric Antioxidant Radiance Mask, and the B5 hydrating masks from SkinCeuticals or DermaQuest.