ONE SKINCARE TREND YOU NEED TO START NOW

You probably brush your hair, and your teeth, but have you ever tried brushing your skin? Watch my short how-to video to find out why you should start!

xo Krista

REVEAL YOUR ROMANTIC SIDE THIS VALENTINE’S DAY

Chalk it up to another Hallmark holiday to give us yet another excuse to dress and look our very best. Is there a better time to break out that cute outfit than Valentine’s Day? I don’t think so! Whether you’re going out on a romantic date with your sweetheart or hitting the town with your besties, here are five tips to knock your look out of the ballpark.

Proper exfoliating is the key for smooth, soft, touchable skin. I use a gentle scrub like Enza Essential’s Shea Butter Body Polish – it makes me feel like I just stepped out of an extravagant spa. Your special guy will be singing his own version of “Reach out and touch, somebody’s hand.”

Moisturize for even softer skin. Immediately after showering, apply a heavy moisturizer to reenergize your dry and thirsty skin. I like my Enza Essential’s Shea Body Butter which keeps my skin feeling fresh all night long!

Go for a natural, romantic hair-do (aka channel your inner Victoria Secret Angel). The last thing you want is your guy being afraid to mess up your perfect do. If your hair is long, try using a one-inch curler to create those perfect and effortless loose curls. Hello touchable, sexy hair!

Perfect those kissable lips. Exfoliate your lips with a scrub like Jane Iredales Sugar and Butter Lip Scrub. Then, apply your favorite lip balm and top it off with a pink or plum lip gloss.

Make a statement with a favorite scent. How a girl smells can be just as powerful as how she looks. For Valentine’s Day, opt for a soft, luxurious scent then apply a drop to your wrists and neck. Don’t overdo it though!

Have a lovely Valentine’s Day, Beauties!

xo Krista

IS YOUR DAILY SKINCARE ROUTINE GIVING YOU WRINKLES?

It’s sort of like an unwritten rule – you ALWAYS need to wash your face before bed. You’ve been hearing beauty gurus and skin experts preach this for years – it’s nothing new. Makeup, dirt, and oil that has accumulated on your face throughout the day is seriously clogging your pores, which is why you need to wash it off. But, could this everyday beauty routine be the cause of your wrinkles?

Washing your face with a scrub too aggressively every morning and night could potentially lead to skin damage. And if you’re already taking every precaution under the sun to keep your skin looking great, why ruin it this way? That’s why it’s SO important to only exfoliate 2-3 times a week – you don’t want to overdo it with a scrub. And remember, think longer – not harder – when it comes to exfoliating.

The simple way to fix the problem? Use a gentle cleanser and softly massage it into your skin with your fingertips. Enza Essentials Extraction Cleanser is what I use daily to wash away impurities deep down in my pores while still keeping my skin soft and hydrated. This way, I can still have fresh, clean skin without hurting my delicate complexion. It’s a win-win!

-xo Kayla

5 REASONS TO EXFOLIATE TONIGHT

You hear me talk about exfoliating on the regular – and why it’s so important to do. Sure, you may get around to sloughing off dead skin cells maybe once or twice a month, am I right? Unfortunately, that’s not enough. Here’s 5 reasons you should go home and exfoliate tonight.

1. Your skin will be smoother. One of the greatest benefits of exfoliating is the fact that your skin literally gets softer and more smooth. When all those nasty dead skin cells are scrubbed away, the new and fresh cells will be on top and looking better than ever.

2. Your complexion will be brighter. If you go home and exfoliate your face tonight, I can guarantee that you will LOVE how much brighter your skin tone looks afterwards. Since you’re getting rid of the old and dead skin cells, as well as dirt and makeup clogged in pores, your complexion will definitely have a fresh glow.

3. It’ll keep fine lines and wrinkles away. As we age, our skin looses elasticity and those pesky, annoying, frustrating laugh lines and crow’s feet begin to show up – heartbreaking, I know. But, if you exfoliate tonight, you’ll help the process along by turning cells over faster – it’s a win win! Another way to keep fine lines and wrinkles away? Use Enza Essentials’ Glycolic Serum in your morning and evening skin care routines.

4. Your products will work better. Since that top layer of dead skin will be long gone after you’ve exfoliated, your cleanser, toner, serum, AND moisturizer will all absorb more thoroughly into your skin, resulting in them actually working better. Also, your skin will look more dewy – and let’s be real – who doesn’t want that?

5. Your foundation will be smoother.  If you aren’t exfoliating, you are basically putting makeup over dead skin, causing it to flake off and look uneven during the day.  When your skin is clean and exfoliated, you don’t need as much foundation to create the illusion of smooth skin. So, who’s going to exfoliate tonight? 🙂

*For best results, exfoliate skin 2-3 times per week. -xo Kayla 

 

CELEBRITY SKIN ENVY: SHAY MITCHELL

Shay Mitchell, otherwise known as Emily Fields on ABC Family’s hit show Pretty Little Liars, is quickly becoming a beauty icon for women everywhere. Her chic fashion sense, voluminous dark hair, and elegant makeup always turns heads, but I’m completely jealous of her flawless skin.

I honestly don’t think it’s possible for Shay’s skin to be any more perfect. Her olive complexion gives her a natural glow, so she doesn’t need to wear much foundation. And did I mention how on-point her brow game is? Love it.

Her skin is so bright and radiant – She must use an SPF every single day to protect her face from sun spots. I also read that Shay uses an eye cream both morning and night. No wonder why she has absolutely no bags or fine lines under her eyes after countless hours in the studio!

It’s impossible to find even a single red spot or blemish anywhere on Shay’s skin. Exfoliating must be a part of her regular skin care routine. If you want glowing skin like Shay’s, try using Enza Essentials Sustaining System.

MAKE YOUR FOUNDATION LOOK BETTER BY EXFOLIATING

When it comes to my foundation, I’ve definitely had my good days and bad days.  In the past, I would spend AGES applying my makeup in the morning, only to look in a mirror 3 hours later to find creases and marks in my foundation.  Before I started here at Enza, I knew what exfoliating was but I had no idea how necessary it is for better-looking foundation.  So, if you want your foundation to look flawless, take my exfoliating advice!

Exfoliate several times a week.  Dead skin accumulates on your face, so it’s important to remove it regularly.  If you aren’t exfoliating, you are basically putting makeup over dead skin, causing it to flake off and look uneven during the day.  When your skin is clean and exfoliated, you don’t need as much foundation to create the illusion of smooth skin.

You can use a facial power cleanser to lightly brush the dead skin from your face—I recommend using Clarisonic’s Mia Sonic Skin Cleansing Brush.  Its massaging motion gives your pores the deep cleanse it needs to extract the impurities found in your skin.  This brush is gentle enough to use twice a day, so be my guest and do as much exfoliating as you wish.  Plus, you can get it in a cute turquoise color.

If you’re not a gadget person, you can still exfoliate like a pro.  I use Enza Essential’s Fine Facial Polish and it does a wonderful job exfoliating my skin.  I use this facial polish 2-3 times a week and have noticed how much smoother my foundation looks throughout the day.  I leave it on my skin for 3-5 minutes (perfect time to catch up on my social media) and let the exfoliation begin.  This facial polish smells amazing and contains rice bran, which absorbs oils on my face while the salicylic acid exfoliates my pores.  And I always remember to get my neck!

Are you exfoliating?

-xo Kayla

YOUR GUIDE TO EXFOLIATING.

What exactly is exfoliating?
Exfoliating is the removal of the dead skin on the outermost top layer of your epidermis. When done correctly, exfoliating delivers tighter, firmer, smoother look and feel of the skin.

There are two types of exfoliating: mechanical and chemical. Mechanical exfoliating is when the dead skin cells are physically rubbed off with an abrasive such as a brush (Clarisonic) or a scrub. A more aggressive and effective approach to mechanical exfoliation is microdermabrasion, which comes in two types – crystal and crystal-free, or diamond-tip. Microdermabrasion uses a tiny, rough grain to buff away the surface of the skin, revealing younger, healthier looking skin.

Chemical exfoliation uses enzymes, alphahydroxy acids (AHAs) or betahydroxy acids (BHAS) to loosen the glue-like substance that holds the cells together, allowing them to slough away. Facial peels are a form of chemical exfoliation. Chemical peels can either be very gentle or very aggressive, depending on how the strong the peel is.

Why is exfoliation important?
The skin is constantly generating new skin cells at the lower layer (the dermis) and sending them to the surface (the epidermis). As the cells rise to the surface they gradually die and become filled with keratin. These keratinized skin cells are essential because they give our skin its protective quality. But they are constantly sloughing off to make way for younger cells.

As we age the process of cell turnover slows down. Cells start to pile up unevenly on the skin’s surface, giving it a dry, rough, dull appearance. Exfoliation is beneficial because it removes those cells that are clinging on, revealing the fresher, younger skin cells below.

Is it possible to over exfoliate?
YES! Exfoliating the skin daily (for most skin types) is too much. Over-exfoliation triggers an inflammatory response of the skin that could lead to premature aging, a sensitized skin condition, dehydration, flakiness, redness, destruction of healthy cells, stimulation of melanin production which could lead to hyperpigmentation (brown spots and patches), and increased sensitivity to products causing them to irritate, string or burn.

Some tips for healthy exfoliation:
Any facial masks or scrubs use only 2-3 times a week. Saturation Aloe Scrub for drier skin, and Fine Facial Polish for normal and combination skin. We always suggest that people with oily skin stick to just a chemical exfoliant as not to stimulate more oil production. I would recommend the Glycolic Serum.

When starting on a serum that contains retinol, glycolic, or salicylic begin using only 2-3 times a week until you can tolerate it more and more. Always follow up with your moisturizer!

Bottom line: Exfoliation is great to reveal new, younger, more beautiful skin. But if it is not done properly it can do worse things in the long run – -too much of a good thing isn’t always good. Always start gentle and work your way gradually into a routine starting 2-3 times a week and you will be sure to reveal beautiful skin.