Your Essential Skincare Routine

It doesn't need to be elaborate but these 3 steps are essential? You can add additional layered steps such as applying a toner or an exfoliant as your skin demands but these 3 are the essential steps.

1. Cleanse: Wash your skin thoroughly on a daily basis to remove the dirt, debris, pollutants, and perspiration that accumulates on a daily basis. If you have dry or sensitive skin, use only warm water to wash your skin and use a mild natural cleanser every few days. If you have normal or oily skin, be sure to wash with a gentle cleanser on a daily basis.

2. Moisturize: Unless your skin is very oily, you will want to use a moisturizer everyday to keep your skin hydrated and healthy. Your skin needs moisturizer all year long as both the indoor winter heat, and summer sun can be equally damaging to your skin.

3. Protect: Use a sunscreen when possible, regardless of whether or not you plan on spending much time in the sun. The sun's rays are very damaging and if you get in the habit of applying sunscreen.

Be sure to invest in quality skincare products such as Aveda, Dermalogica or Skinceuticals. Less expensive products use inferior ingredients to save cost of production and make them more marketable. These ingredients often effect the Ph of the skin which can be harmful to your skin causing additional damage and making problems worse. A skincare expert at your local salon could help you learn which products are right for you.

Correct Way to Dry Your Hair

Always pat your hair dry with a towel and do not put a towel on top of your head and rub your hair dry -it can break your hair strands and cause excess hairloss. Tell your husband or boyfriend this if he is concerned about hair loss because men tend to dry their hair like this a lot.

Additional Tips:
Avoid leaving the blowdryer in one spot for more than a few seconds. Keep the dryer moving around and keep it 2-3 inches from your head.

Use a quality, well made hair dryer. Hair Dryers with ceramic and or tourmaline heating elements are best. These dryers maintain a more even level of heat and cause less stress on the hair as compared to steel or aluminium heating elements.

Use a salon quality thermal protectant on your hair. Salon grad products use lightweight silicones that won't weigh down your hair or build up over time.

Why Professional Hair Care?

When it comes to hair - especially for women - anything goes in an effort to make us feel beautiful. And often this effort means the pursuit of professional hair care - that service that will keep our hair healthy and looking great. Of course, such service comes at a price - some higher than others - but most find that it is more than worth the expense. Can you cut your hair at home? Yes. Can you color your hair with the use of a product you picked up at your local drugstore? Absolutely. But what you save in avoiding professional hair care you will almost certainly wind up spending down the road to fix damage you have caused.

Professional services are simply part of our lifestyle - a necessary factor in keeping our bodies healthy. Just as we visit doctors for check-ups, dentists for professional cleaning, and ophthalmologists to make sure our glasses or contacts are up-to-date, so must we allow ourselves professional hair care to ensure the health of our hair.

Professional hair care typically requires a trip to a salon where your hair will be washed, conditioned, cut, and styled. Your stylist can assess the health of your hair and determine if you need a deep conditioning treatment and what cut will work best with your particular hair. Developing a long term relationship with a stylist allows you to know what you're getting when you walk in; it also allows the stylist to get to know your hair and subsequently learn what to look for in determining the health of your hair. Trimming the hair allows the hair to grow and keeps it healthy. If you do not trim your hair, the ends become split and your hair becomes dry, broken, and brittle.

When it comes to styling, professional hair care treatment gives you insight into what looks best for your hair and around your face. It is important to seek out a stylist who has experience working with your type of hair; if, for instance, you have naturally curly hair, you want to find someone who is skilled in dealing with your type of hair. A haircut for curly hair is very different than a haircut for straight hair. A little bit of research will go a long way towards ultimately getting what you want.

For those who color their hair, professional hair care is even more important. If done incorrectly, color can damage your hair long term. A professional hair colorist can expertly treat your hair and help you decide what color looks best on your hair and against your face.

Professional hair care may cost you some money; but it will be well worth it in maintaining the health and beauty of your hair.



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Poison Oak Season...eeeewwwwwww

Logan got a nice little case of poison oak so I went and found this article to help clear up some things about how the nasty little plant works.


Is Poison Oak Contagious?

By: Rachel Mork
Is poison oak contagious? If you or a friend has poison oak, you may worry that scratching or touching the rash will cause it to spread. The bottom line is this: poison oak is not contagious, but you can get poison oak in ways other than touching those three leaved plants. In order to understand how poison oak is spread, you need to understand what causes the rash and how that rash is passed along.
A poison oak rash, like a poison ivy rash, is actually a reaction to an oil present in and on the poison oak plant. This oil is called urushiol. Urushiol is found in all parts of the poison oak plant, including the leaves, stems, roots and berries. This oil is easily accessed; it is present on the surface of the entire plant. All you have to do is touch a part of a poison oak shrub and you will come in contact with urushiol.
How you respond to urushiol will depend on the sensitivity of your skin. Most people-about 80 percent-respond by developing itchy pustules everywhere they come in contact with urushiol. About 20 percent of people are unaffected by poison oak and do not develop a rash at all. Most animals are unaffected by urushiol.
You can come in contact with urushiol in other ways besides touching a poison oak plant or shrub. If your cat rubs its fur on poison oak and then comes a rubs up against you, you may get some urushiol on your body and contract a rash. Worse yet, if that sweet kitty of yours rolls in some poison oak and lies down on your pillowcase, you can get a nasty case of poison oak on your face and neck. Likewise, if you wear long pants and long sleeves while working in the yard and your clothing rubs up against poison oak and then you come in contact with the urushiol on your clothing, you can get a rash from that contact.
However, you can't make the rash spread by scratching poison ivy or by breaking open the pustules. Once you've washed off the urushiol, you can't make poison oak spread. Your rash does not contain urushiol; it is simply a reaction to the urushiol that came in contact with your skin. This means you cannot catch poison oak from another person who has a rash but has already washed, nor can you make your own case of poison oak spread by touching one area to another.

5 Tips for Staying Beautiful for Summer

The upside to humidity? It can help keep your skin moisturized. The downside? It sends your carefully-applied makeup running south faster than a former Alaskan governor in search of fame and fortune. The heat is on, and summer is not going to let us leave the house sweat-free for quite a few more weeks. So what are some easy, quick tips on how to keep your makeup from melting – and other best beauty bits for surviving the warmth?

Use a primer. Primers are considered the basis of your makeup and should be applied under it all. It will help your foundation wear all day, fill in lines and pores, and generally make for a smooth canvas. Some can also absorb oil. Expert call primers the “essential.” I call them “neat-o”. This product gives your skin a dry, tight feeling good for summer, though probably not best for dehydrated skin.

Skip the moisturizer for a hydrating toner. Sometimes, just sometimes, it is simply too hot and sticky to think about putting anything other than ice on your face. On those wettest of days, consider substituting your daily moisturizer with a hydrating toner. This can keep your skin feeling balanced, but it won’t necessarily add to the oil you’re already combating.

Use a mattifying sunscreen. Yes, your sunscreen can make your skin feel oilier. So be sure to pick one that’s going to keep things feeling dry. To quote ourselves, “Due to the matte finish, it offers up an almost powdery application that leaves your skin feeling like you just dusted with cover up, not slicked with sunscreen.” You have to love a sunscreen that makes your face feel drier upon application.

Wear a slip. Okay, I know Mad Men is days away from premiering its next season and a lot of us have our Joan Holloway hats ready. But a slip really can cut down on chafing when your skirts literally stick to you. Plus with the high noon rays of summer bearing down on us, it isn’t the worst thing not to be able to see through your skirts. Joan Holloway would agree on such lady-like modesty!

Keep a clean handkerchief. I know, we’re still in Mad Men territory. But when you’re pouring sweat, sometimes a tissue just ain’t gonna cut it. Consider stashing an organic cotton handkerchief in your purse for those moments when you need some extra absorption. They’re cute, utterly recyclable in the wash, and will make the act of dabbing your hairline seem much more vintage.

How Does The Brazilian Keratin Treatment Work?

The Brazilian Keratin Treatment is different from traditional relaxers and straightners in that is doesnt use harsh chemical that can over-process hair and leave it in poor condition. The Brazilian Keratin Treatment is a safe process that can be used on any type of hair- dry, frizzy, over-processed, colour treated, ethnic or even unprocessed virgin hair. The results are healthy, shiny, frizz-free, manageable hair that looks great.

Most chemical straightners and relaxers break down the hair and restructure it so that it appears straighter. These older processes can potentially be very damaging to the hair as they are designed to irreversibly modify and restructure keratin by using products with very high pH levels. The high pH levels cause the hair shaft to soften and then swell tremendously and this is when the damage occurs.

The Brazilian Keratin treatment doesnt use these sorts of high pH levels so there is no softening or swelling of the hair shafts. This means that the condition of the hair shaft is not compromised and the hair remains strong and structurally intact. With the Brazilian Keratin treatment there is virtually no risk of hair damage or breakage and the results are long-lasting, reversible and gentle. The treatment will wash out over time without leaving any lasting damage to the hair.

The treatment works by using keratin which is a protein already present in the hair shaft to smooth and straighten out curls and frizz. Keratin is high in the amino acid cystine which is what makes the hair strong and elastic. Keratin makes the hair durable and when used in the treatment it gently blends with your hair it helps to restore what has been lost through damage and environmental stresses. The use of keratin in this straightening treatment means that the condition of the hair is actually improved as opposed to damaged like in other traditional straightening methods. The keratin fills in the gaps between the cuticle and inner hair shaft and is sealed in by a hot iron to eliminate frizz and add strength and elasticity.

Other straightening or relaxer treatments may take a long to complete but the Brazilian Keratin treatment can be completed in 1 to 2 hours depending on the length and texture of the hair. Unlike other straightening treatments you do not need to worry about the condition of your hair as it can be used on dyed or highlighted or any type of hair. As the results are not designed to be permanent it will not require a neutraliser or immediate rinse. You should expect the treatment to last up to 4 months and after this time is up you can just have the process repeated to get smooth, silky hair all over again. The treatment blends perfectly with the natural growth of the hair and as it is designed to wash away gradually you will not get any tell-tale signs of re-growth like you might do with other straightening systems.

The Brazilian Keratin treatment promotes healthy, soft, shiny and straight hair so if you want a gentle, safe way of straightening out your curls and calming your frizz then this treatment is for you!

For more information on the Brazilian Keratin Treatment Call or Visit Beth & Company Salon and Day Spa.

114 N Center St
Statesville NC
28677
704-924-8260

Importance of Taking Care of Your Skin

In the midst of our busy lives, it’s easy to forget to take good care of our skin. The skin is, by nature, able to heal by itself. However, if it’s exposed to the harsh environment for prolonged periods of time without proper protection, the ph balance can be upset. This may lead to severe damage of the skin.

Perfectly healthy skin always look smooth, supple and young on the surface. You too can be the proud owner of such skin if you take the trouble to protect your skin. First, let’s understand the conditions that cause the most damage to our skin.

Immense heat – If you place yourself under direct sunlight for long periods of time, be sure to use a high quality sun block. If possible, try to avoid the mid afternoon sun. Avoid sun bathing or jogging when the sun is at its hottest. The immense heat can cause injury to your skin. Ever experience severe sun burn before? Your skin will become patches of red and dead skin will start peeling off. Not a very pleasant experience!

You don’t even have to be at the beach to get your skin scorched. Sometimes, when going out to run errands, you may be overly exposed to the sun. In your hurry to get things done, you probably forget that your skin is hurting. Only when you are retiring at night do you start feeling the pain.

Excessive oil, dirt and grime – Living in the city, it’s almost inevitable that our skin is exposed to oil, dirt and grime. Just take a walk on the traffic congested streets and you find your face with sweat, oil, and dirt. Bacteria may even accumulate on your dirty skin.

Fortunately, there are things you can do to protect your skin from the skin and from dirt and grime. If you anticipate that you are going into the sun for a long time, be sure to use a good quality sun block. Wear a cap to provide additional shade for the exposed skin on your face and neck.

As for dirt and grime, always carry face wipes with you to clean your face. If you can find the time, use a face wash to clean your skin. For example, you can always find a few minutes during lunch to wash your face in the restroom.

Those are measures you can take during the day. You can’t really spend too much time cleaning and protecting your skin when you are at work. When the day slows down during the evening, that is the best time to allow the skin to regenerate.

Start by giving your face a wash. If the surface is still a tad too dry, use a moisturizer. Toner can help to add strength to the skin and make it look younger and tighter. Finally, apply skin regeneration cream to the surface of your skin. When you wake up in the morning, you will find a fresh looking face staring back at you in the mirror.

Dermalogica is the leading skincare company in the world. Dermalogica's broad range of products are suited for every skin type and age.
Go to www.bethandcompany.com and access Dermalogica's website to discover a new level of healthy, young skin.