The Science of Beauty
HA! How many times have you heard that one before?
Photography is a science of light. How light wraps, how it reflects color, how it shadows and fills.
My favorite type of photography is portrait. I love people, I love to photograph people. And I want the people in my photographs to look their best.
When it comes to headshots, other than wardrobe and lighting, my clients will look their best with radiant skin and hair.
As a woman seeking beauty most of my life, finding the right combination of products can be difficult especially with the changing stages of life. Between big promises and high price tags – and as you may have suspected – a lot of photoshop in the ads, the truth in beauty is hard to find.
Lotions and creams are emulsifications of oils and water. Some contain sunscreen which is important to protect the skin from aging UVA rays. Some protect skin merely by sealing in moisture temporarily, but they really don’t beautify as advertised. Shampoos can contain some harsh surfactants with all those lauryl sulfates.
At the risk of sounding like a commercial, I’ve created a few things that I find work SO MUCH BETTER.
Commercial brand lotions contain a lot of water and some beneficial oils. But my older skin needs something more, it’s a little less elastic. I use commercial brand sunscreens under the lotions that I make myself but I wanted the magic promises of a good serum. I found a commercial brand serum that I really wanted to like (the big promises and the before and afters, right?). But the serum was just another version of the lotion except with peptides. I didn’t see any benefits of the peptides applied to my skin.
unrefined rosehip seed oil, rose extract, geranium ess. oil in a roller applicator $8
A few months back I had experimented with using hyaluronic acid in my lotions and it made a good bit of difference even though it was still an oil and distilled water emulsion. Then I replaced the distilled water with aloe juice. That was even better.
Then I learned something new, rose water, which is actually something old. Do you know about the incredible skin toning properties of rose water? So I tried this idea, I left out distilled water, used rose water and aloe juice. I left out the oil and used a smidge of liquid glycerin, some d-pantenol (vit B5) and increased by half the hyaluronic acid and created something I call “Hydro Bomb” Serum. The serum is fantastic! I saw an improved difference in my skin within minutes.
You might be thinking, “but you said hair, too.” – well, the serum is definitely only for your face, neck, chest (and gentle enough to use around your eye area if you want). When it comes to shampoo, I got a bug up my bum to create a shampoo bar. I researched it a little bit and created a shampoo bar that contains a good amount of castor oil. I also added tea tree oil and activated charcoal to the recipe.
My husband has for years had issues of dry, flaky scalp. Now at age 60, his hair is thinning. This worries us, right? I mean, hair is very important to a person’s confidence. Detoxifying the scalp is key to opening up hair follicles in order to re-grow hair. Sometimes it’s that simple. And don’t let the abundance of castor oil fool you into thinking you’ll be left with greasy hair. This bar provides squeaky clean tresses because castor oil is actually astringent. Because of the astringency, I wouldn’t recommend shampooing with this bar every day for long periods of time, but to use it once or twice a week for a good cleanse!
“because when you’re ready you don’t have to worry much about getting ready!”
When it comes to photography and good looking skin, I have to say, there’s a lot of truth to the saying, “The Science of Beauty.” Beauty afterall is one of the transcendentals. And I find science to be a very satisfying form of art for all of the senses.
To purchase any of my skin or hair care products, please contact me directly. Thank you.
