Hey guys.
It’s Lay.
So for this week’s blog I wanted to do something a little different but keep the same theme of last weeks blog. Just to recap I chose to focus on fitness and appearances over the summer because appearances are a huge part of self care. When you feel confident about how you look, the way you take on the world and all life has to throw at you becomes easier.
This is not meant to sound shallow. Appearances play a huge role with how you’re feeling which is why you should do anything possible to feel comfortable in your own skin. Overall when you look your best , you feel your best. For me personally, I feel my best when my stomach is flat, when I have smooth curves, my thighs are thick, my hair smooth and my skin being clear. I’ve been trying to get comfortable with my appearances in its natural state especially my hair and skin. Before I get into what products I use day by day and give mini reviews on them, I wanted to give 2 little back stories about my skin and hair.
Skin Backstory
When I was little kid, I had the chubbiest cheeks. It was so chubby as a baby, my eyes were always shut and they thought I would need surgery (it turned out I grew out of it a bit but I still had chubby cheeks and a lazy eye which was one of my top insecurities growing up). My skin was always so bad for 3 reasons. The first reason is my eating habits. I had candy everyday, had chips or fruit roll ups as a snack, constantly ate processed food because I really picky eater etc. The second reason is because I hit puberty at a young age. Most girls get it at age 12-13 but I got it 2 months after I turned 10 so I grew up having breakouts. The third reason is everyone LOVED touching my face. My cheeks were still chubby and I had a complete babyface so everyone pinched my cheeks; family, friends and even classmates I didn't know that well.
Hair backstory
In section we will go through the genetics of my hair, things I’ve done to my hair and the reason behind it.
I’m going to start with genetics because it’s the root of my story (yes , I couldn’t resist that pun). I come from a family with naturally thin hair so my hair naturally looked unhealthy but in reality my mom and god mother tried to make it grow by using thing like castor oil, other oils, hair softeners and detanglers.
Also growing up my hair been through a lot of phases. When I was 4, I apparently cut my hair because I wanted bangs. At a young age , my hair was permed to be straight. I don’t remember but it’s just something I thought I would add. I know it’s not good for you and my mom did too but it was for a special occasion and it was gentle so it didn’t burn my scalp or caused any of my hair to fall out. After the one time , I never permed my hair and mostly wore braids until 7th grade. by the end of 7th, I mostly wore weave and then occasionally braids too. When I was in 7th grade before I started wearing weave , I damaged my hair by using a lot of heat. I used to do dominican blowouts.That was the point I was trying to wear natural hair but I hated the length of my hair and how the texture was naturally. I ended up having to cut my hair because of the heat damage
I think the main reason I never tried to properly take care of my hair was the fact I was insecure about it. I was already told by many people how ugly I am, I went to a school that the majority was caucasian but I also didn't fit in with the people with the same ethnicity as me and some people made fun of my hair even in braids.
So since I got out of highschool, I had more time to take better care of myself. So I am going to list down products I use but also add steps I do.
Skin care products
I have a lot of them but these are the ones I use often. Most of these are from the dermatologist but the ones that aren't I'll try to give a mini review for the ones that are easily accessible but I'll do a routine for all.
So some of the products I use are:
Benzoyl peroxide topical wash 5%
Dapsone gel 5%
Adapalene Gel 0.3%
Clarity MD Deep Pore Cleanser
Clarity MD Serum
There is something else but I rarely use it because it is very strong and I tend to forget about it. I grouped these together because these are the ones I use that are prescribed to me.
The rest are masks which I use every other day.
The first mask is one I use more often because I got it a while ago. It is the Cocowhip mask that I got from Pink. It is a big jar, it was inexpensive compared to other masks I got and on top of that I loved how my skin looked the next day after using. To me, it made my skin glow because of it's key ingredient (coconut oil). I'm not sure if they still sell it but if you happen to find a mask similar , I hope it does wonders the way this one did. The only thing I didn't like is the coconut shredding in the mask because I find it to get messy. Also if your skin is extremely sensitive I wouldn't recommend. My friend with sensitive skin tried it and she felt a small burning but not to a point where it was extremely bad.
Row one is before using the product, row 2 is using the mask, row 3 is how my face looked after cleaning it off and row 4 is the morning after.
As for the other mask, I got it in June right before prom. It was a Honey Charcoal mask from Origins (I got it from Sephora). The reason I purchased it is because it had high ratings from a large group of people. The price was pretty average because I've seen how expensive masks could get and this one was $34. When you apply the mask it has this green- gold type shimmer (most likely from the honey) but when you're washing it off it's a gray color from the charcoal. It has a unique scent, I don't mind it but my unofficial boyfriend thinks it smells funny. After using it one night after prom ( where I had so much greasy and sweet food and wore makeup for 12+ hours), my skin looked so much better. I actually have pictures of this one because it's so current.
My skin routine
My skin routine is pretty simple. In the morning I was my face with the Benzoyl peroxide topical wash 5%. After I dry my face I use, Adapalene Gel 0.3% on pimples and Dapsone gel 5% all over my face. Since it is summer, I also apply moisturizer with sunscreen so my face doesn't get too dark. Most times in the summer, I rarely wear makeup but when I do I use makeup wipes and then do my night routine for my skin. I use ClarityMD Deep Pore Cleanser and then dry my face. After I put on the Adapalene Gel 0.3% on the pimples or clogged areas the same way I do in the morning and then I use ClarityMD Serum all over.
My hair care
I don't use much on my hair because I mostly wear wigs now so I don't need any thing for heat damage or dry shampoos or anything.
I use the Head and shoulder shampoo and conditioner for dandruff because my hair can get very dry so I use that to keep the dry flakes out. Then I use different oils to help strengthen my hair. I use both castor oil and hair foods which has a mixtures of oils to help it grow. I have 4C hair which means when my hair is dry it's easy to break off and my coils are tight and don't have a defy pattern. However I am trying to defy my pattern with the Coil Custard. I recently got it and it was about 14-16 dollars. I haven't seen much change because I only been using it 3-4 days but it makes my hair soft.
2 Photos (left and center) shows my hair a few months ago (June) when I wasn't taking care of it and the photo to the right shows my hair a month after treating it.
I'm sorry this blog is posted so late. I'm trying to get back on schedule this week but lately I feel so sluggish and unmotivated. Either way I hope you enjoy this blog and be sure to share with friends and family. Also if you have some beauty tips of your own especially for hair growth, feel free to send me an email or leave a comment down below. Don't forget to read previous blogs and subscribe to never miss a post.
Until next time,
xoxo Lay 💋