A CLOSER LOOK AT: MICROBLADING

I suppose we have Cara Delevigne to thank/blame for the big eyebrow phenomenon, she obviously burst on to the scene years ago now and the trend for fuller eyebrows isn’t going anywhere any time soon.

This is great news for all the big-browed girls out there who don’t have the hassle of plucking anymore but for us girls who lived through the high-arched (or ‘over-plucked’) 90’s era, it’s a bit more of a problem.

I’ve been growing my eyebrows back in for around 5 years now (yes really!) and although I’m happy with my growth, they still need a fair bit of attention in the makeup department. Gaps need filling and the shape needs perfecting before I leave the house every day and it was becoming a bit of a drag.

I personally don’t like the tattooed look but I had been becoming more and more intrigued by microblading. Microblading is still a form of tattooing but it looks incredibly natural. Little strokes of colour are drawn on with a very fine blade to look like individual hairs to fill in gaps and create a better shape. It is so clever and so realistic; I knew I had to try it.

I arrived at Sian Dellar’s Harley Street clinic feeling very nervous- was I really about to tattoo my face??!! Sian instantly put me at ease, she is just as pedantic about eyebrows as I am! I told her what I thought was wrong with my shape and she pencilled in how she thought best to correct it. We then discussed colour. Colour is such a personal thing, some people want a darker more made up look, I wanted something more natural that would look good with or without the rest of my makeup on. Sian understood exactly.

Next she applied numbing cream to the area (thank goodness!) and got to work. The process took much longer than I expected, around an hour, and was only uncomfortable when the numbing cream wore off (Sian applied more cream when I told her I needed it) the only icky part for me was the sound of the blade- it sounds a bit ‘scrapey’! The whole treatment was so much more straight forward than I expected though.

Immediately after my brows looked very dark and very ‘done’, Sian assured me I would lose 50% of the colour in the first week, phew! I then had to keep my eyebrows away from water, makeup and cleanser for a week which was harder than it sounds. The blade strokes scab over as they heal which can be a bit itchy but like regular tattoos, it is essential that you don’t pick at them (this took all the willpower I have in my being! I am a terrible picker!).

As promised, 50% of the colour did fade after a week and after 4 weeks I had my follow up appointment. At the follow up, Sian filled in any last gaps and went over any strokes that had faded more than others, you also have the option at this appointment to go a bit darker if you were too conservative at your first appointment.

A week later my eyebrows are looking pretty perfect and won’t need redoing for at least 9 months! This is definitely my type of treatment; a low-maintenance-time-saver!

Not quite Cara but close enough!

Microblading treatment including follow up, £495

www.siandellar.com

THE PERFECT PRE-PARTY COMPLEXION PERFECTOR PEEL! (Try saying that after a few glasses of champagne!)

Yes, that’s right a PRE-party peel, as in; face peel. Face peels have a slight fear factor about them but that’s quite unjustified- peels can be amazing for the skin and of course there are many different intensities available nowadays too.

I was a skin care specialist for years and I loved the results chemical peels gave my clients, especially those suffering from blocked pores but concerned about the first signs of ageing. Peels have a cascade effect on the skin, gently seeping through the pores pushing dead skin cells and grime to the surface. Besides making the complexion smoother and clearer, peels can also make the pores look smaller and improve the appearance of pigmentation too- see, nothing to fear here! The majority of new generation peels do not require any downtime either (*time when you need to hide away from the world!) and none more so than the Obagi Blue Peel Radiance Treatment. The famous Obagi Blue Peel is now available in different strengths and the radiance treatment is specifically designed for an instant fix!

I had my treatment with Dr Mayoni Gooneratne, Aesthetics Doctor at The Clinic by Dr Mayoni the day before a big event I was attending and I wanted to look my absolute best. After a thorough consultation, the treatment began. I didn’t find it uncomfortable at all, and reassuringly the prickly feeling was more intense on my problem areas. The ‘prickliness’ comes from the salicylic acid in the peel which is an incredible pore cleaner and skin brightener. The only slight discomfort I had was in my nose! I have an incredible sense of smell so I felt the need to take shallow breaths through my mouth only (turns out I’m in the minority as nobody else I know that has had the treatment felt like this!).

After the treatment my face looked a bit red in places but not sore at all, I noticed my pores looked instantly more refined. The next day at my event, my skin looked incredible! The annoying breakouts on my chin that previously wouldn’t clear up were practically all gone and my face was so smooth and bright! It really is the perfect pre-party treatment!

Over the days that followed I had a fair amount of peeling and dryness (I was warned this could happen) but again it was mostly on my problems areas so it made me feel like those areas had been thoroughly targeted by the peel, which is a good thing! By day 5, post-peel, the true results of the peel are visible; smooth, bright, clear skin! I imagine the results get better and better with regular treatments and the ‘peeling period’ would be less as there will be less of a build-up of dead skin.

With fans such as Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore and Alicia Keys (no wonder she goes make-up free these days!) and backing from the best in the business – aesthetician to the stars, Dr Rita Rakus says “these celebrities understand the power of using scientifically proven skincare which is why they choose to use Obagi Medical. Obagi products work at a cellular level to transform skin from the inside out.” – this is a little blue peel that really does put the glow back in your cheeks!

 

The Blue Peel Radiance Treatment at The Clinic by Dr Mayoni, 020 8699 9496 www.drmayoni.co.uk

To find your nearest clinic, visit https://www.healthxchange.com/clinic-finder

Want an Instagram body? Get yourself down to Best’s Bootcamp pronto!

The term Bootcamp seems to be quite loosely used these days, gone are the days where the name Bootcamp envisioned running around in mud getting shouted at by a khaki-clad army sergeant, rather it has become quite widely used for all manner of exercise classes with a particular goal in mind ‘summer bootcamp’ ‘bikini bootcamp’ I even saw a ‘booty bootcamp’ once!

Well Best’s Bootcamp in central London is back to basics with a side order of luxe glamour! Instead of the army sergeant, you have highly trained, enthusiastic trainers watching, encouraging and pushing your every move; in return you can easily watch the trainer via the Trainer Cam, visible to everyone in the studio, to ensure you are performing each move correctly. And instead of a muddy field, you have a state-of-the-art studio with resident DJ’s!

Each session offers a different balance of cardiovascular and strength training so you will boost your fitness level and improve muscle tone in each class, with your trainer mixing up the two disciplines throughout the session to keep your muscles on their toes and push you that bit harder.

All the exercise moves are straightforward in execution but with the addition of the Best Box; a soft step, exclusively designed in-house, allowing you to adjust the degree of difficulty and create versatility, and the UK’s only Freemotion Treadmills with a downhill setting as well as in-built fans (thank you!) and pre-set speeds, you get so much more out of each move and each class.

The best part about Best’s for me are the changing rooms! With gorgeous Khiels hair & beauty products, GHD straighteners and spare hairbands (!) you really don’t need a huge gym bag anymore! I usually end up taking half my bathroom cabinet to the gym so this is a very welcome change for me!

For 2 days after my first class I could barely walk- getting down stairs was absolute agony! It made me realise just how little I push myself, if at all, in the gym. I mean, what is the point in spending an hour the gym if you’re not getting all you can from it? I thought I was quite self-motivated in the gym but as it turns out, not so much! I think I’ll let Best’s do all the motivation from now on and I’ll just reap the rewards!

www.bestsbootcamp.com

Dark spots, sun damage and splotches? Pigmentation: Complexion Enemy No.1

My uneven pigmentation is the bane of my life! No matter how clear or bright my skin is, all I see when I look in the mirror are sun-induced splotches all over my face caused by sun abuse from years gone by. That’s the irony actually; I stopped sunbathing 8 years ago (with no real signs of sun damage) and have religiously worn a daily spf on my face ever since, but the deep damage caused in my teens and early 20s is working its way to the surface and becoming *very* noticeable to me.

Let’s be clear, I’m not a hater of freckles, in fact I think they can look incredibly beautiful but there is a huge difference between a spatter of neat freckles trailing across a nose and uneven splodges covering an entire face and eyelids- this is pigmentation damage, and ‘damage’ is not a word I want associated with my skin!

For mild pigmentation issues there are some amazing products on the market now; a targeted moisturiser and exfoliant will have you brightened up in no time. I like the Murad Intensive C Radiance Peel for exfoliating (don’t be put off by the word ‘peel’ it is simply an enzymatic exfoliant rather than a physical, i.e. scrub, exfoliant). Vitamin C is essential for pigmentation control as it is the only free-radical-fighting vitamin the body can use to protect against UV rays. Vitamin C also stimulates collagen and is anti-inflammatory, which is exactly what damaged skin needs. The Murad peel is fantastic at slothing off dead cells and noticeably brightening the skin but it is ESSENTIAL to use a high spf after any exfoliating product otherwise you are leaving your fresh new cells vulnerable to new damage, defeating the object! To moisturise, the SKN-RG Advanced Brightening Moisturiser is very, very clever, its unique Ultra Luminance Complex actually helps to inhibit melanin production (melanin is what determines the darkness in colour of the skin) making new pigmentation marks less visible. It also brightens the skin and targets fine lines and wrinkles! It has quite an unusual smell but I choose results over smell any day!

For more serious pigmentation problems, the only way you will get rid of it completely is with a laser I’m afraid. Chemicals peels can help, dermaroller has a good result, as does mesotherapy (injecting vitamin cocktails directly into effected areas) but the only thing I have ever seen to actually clear the skin, is a laser. The big problem with lasers though, is the ‘downtime’ needed after a treatment. Downtime is simply time where you might want to hide away! It is when the skin looks and feels very red and sore, and can possibly peel or flake off. Hence why I have not gone down that road before!

So when I heard about the Picoway Resolve Laser Treatment that rejuvenates the skin, clears pigmentation damage and has no downtime, I didn’t hesitate to try it! Originally designed for tattoo removal, the Picoway has been getting amazing results with pigmentation issues too. Without getting too techy; the Picoway uses the shortest picosecond pulse duration laser, which basically means it doesn’t penetrate too deeply, enabling it to clear up surface imperfections (including minor scarring) as well as penetrating the epidermis for skin rejuvenation. It doesn’t create nearly as much heat as other lasers (it is the heat that creates the post treatment redness/soreness) which is why there is no downtime. That’s not to say you won’t be a bit red for a few days, you may even have some little blood spots and your pigmentation will probably look darker initially but all this can easily be covered with makeup if needed. I have had 2 treatments so far and the results are incredible, my skin looks so much fresher! Dark patches are looking paler yet my skin overall is looking brighter, I still have a lot of ‘freckles’ but they look neater somehow and less dominant to my complexion. A course of 3-6 is recommended for the best results.

The most important thing to take into consideration when choosing to have any kind of ‘intense’ treatment is your pre and post skin prep. To head off to your local medispa without preparing your skin first and without planning your aftercare is asking for trouble, in fact you will probably end up in a worse condition than before you started. When I was working as a skincare therapist, I would never book anyone in for a chemical peel unless they were using an antioxidant on their skin for at least 2 weeks before treatment (I’ve even asked people to quit smoking before a peel as cigarettes deplete all the body’s vitamin C reserves! I was very strict!) and I would make sure they were using spf 50 every day. My antioxidant of choice was always Skinceuticals Phloretin CF or the Skinceuticals Serum 10 for more sensitive skins. Antioxidants fight free-radicals (environmental skin agers) to protect the skin and help prevent further damage. The most effective of the intense treatments are the ones that cause a superficial wound to the skin, thus tricking it into repairing itself and therefore rejuvenating. So it is paramount that your skin is in good health beforehand as the healthier it is the easier and better it will respond to repairing the ‘wound’.

The skin is at its most vulnerable to further damage immediately post laser so protecting it and reducing inflammation is the priority. Swisscode Bionic Stem Cell Recovering Complex is a miracle in a bottle! It contains Summer Lilac which is one of the most potent anti-inflammatory ingredients there are and stem cells to repair damage, I have a feeling it contains a bit of magic too because I have never used anything with such rapid results before! Another winner from Swisscode is the Swisscode Pure Kiribirth, this serum will further reduce the pigmentation damage using amino acids, algae and a range of antioxidants to supress excess melanin- it’s a fantastic product and a range really worth looking out for (Dr Nigma Talib is an ambassador of the brand, need I say more?!).

The products and treatments available these days are so incredible and can make ‘filtered’ complexions a real life possibility but pleeease take precautions, invest in the extra products needed and protect, protect, protect!

Murad Intensive C Radiance Peel £49.50 www.murad.co.uk

SKN-RG Advanced Brightening Moisturiser £49.50 www.skn-rg.com

Picoway Resolve Laser Treatment from £200 per treatment www.pulselightclinic.co.uk

Skinceuticals Phloretin CF £150, Skinceuticals Serum 10 £75 www.skinceuticals.co.uk

Swisscode Bionic Stem Cell Recovering Complex £150, Swisscode Pure Kiribirth £140 see www.swisscode-uk.co.uk for stockists or buy online at www.facethefuture.co.uk

P.S Don’t let your hands be a giveaway! Treat sun-damaged hands with Elemental Herbology Hand Nutrition £16 www.elementalherbology.com