Beauty Fix: How to avoid dry skin all season long, everything you need to know about exfoliation and get rid of yellow, stained nails once and for all
Ever feel like you’re caught in a beauty loop? It can be as simple as trying to cover up stained nails with more stain-causing nail polish (yikes!) or as long-term as knowing that the onset of fall also means the start of at least six months of dry skin. This week we’re all about helping you break out of these bad beauty cycles: our Beauty Fix answers include how to avoid messing up your foundation when applying a dark eye shadow, tips for addressing uneven skin tone and everything you need to know about proper exfoliation.
In need of a beauty fix? Email us at [email protected].
My nails sometimes get yellow from wearing too much nail polish. How do I fix this?
It’s always a bit of a rude surprise when you remove your polish and find your nails stained from the polish you were so in love with moments before. This tends to be an issue with darker shades (damn you, navy polish!) and any red-toned polish will also be a major culprit. In order to avoid this, never apply polish to bare nails—always use a base coat, such as CND Sticky base coat ($11, nailpolishcanada.com) beforehand. In order to address stains that already exist try this DIY remedy: Create a mixture of 1 tablespoon of 3 per cent hydrogen peroxide and 2 tablespoons of baking soda to create a paste. Using a cotton swab, apply the mixture to your nails, making sure to coat the underside of your nail tips as well. Leave the mixture on for 3-5 minutes and wash off with a nailbrush. Easy enough, right? Another surprising-yet-wildly-logical whitening treatment: try dissolving a denture whitening tablet as per the instructions on the box and soak your nails in the solution.
I’m so confused by exfoliation. I use a daily cleanser that has some grit in it, but every time I get a facial I’m told I should also be using an exfoliator a few times a week. That seems like an awful lot of exfoliation! Help!
Well that’s a mixed bag of advice, isn’t it? The deciding factor in how much you should exfoliate is related to the behaviour of your skin. If you have skin that is prone to breakouts, you probably treat said breakouts with products that dry the skin out. This will help kill acne-causing bacteria but can also cause skin flaking in certain areas. It’s important to remove the dry skin cells that have built up and started to flake off, because if you don’t, the dry skin cell build-up will keep trap oil in the skin and trigger new breakouts (same goes for clogged pores). Exfoliation is also essential to helping reduce post-breakout demarcation—the more you exfoliate, the more you will remove damaged surface skin cells, which will lead to quicker fading of red marks where breakouts occurred. Exfoliation is really vital to dry-skinned individuals, because exfoliants can remove dry skin cells and allow moisturizers to penetrate significantly better. One to try a few times a week as we move into the cooler temperatures: Nars Skin Double Refining Exfoliator ($40, narscosmetics.ca), which contains citrus fruit acids and spherical beads to provide a gentle but effective polishing of the skin.
I love doing a smoky eye, but really can’t stand the amount of eyeshadow fallout that ends up soiling my foundation application. Any tips on how to avoid turning my smoky look into raccoon eyes?
How frustrating is it when you’ve already perfected your skin, then start in with your eyeshadow and end up with dark shimmer all over your under-eye area? Awful! You have some options. Firstly, you can try doing your eyeshadow application first and then following up with your foundation application after you’ve had a chance to wipe the skin clean of any fallout. Secondly, you can try tapping off the excess eyeshadow from your brush before zeroing in to add definition to your crease. If neither of these options appeal to you, and I can understand how they may not (I’m so committed to my routine of applying foundation before doing my eyes, and tapping off shadow can feel like a waste when you do it between each time you add colour to your lids), reach for EyeBoutique Shadow Shields ($8, farleyco.ca). These genius little creations have an adhesive on one side, so simply remove the backing and stick the half-moon-shaped shield to your under-eye area and grin as you go wild with your sooty shadow and the rest of your face remains undisturbed.
I’ve noticed that as the seasons change, my skin seems to show more fine lines. Even if I’m drinking water all day, my skin seems dehydrated and my current foundation doesn’t seem to sit well. Can you suggest a different formula that can address this?
It’s not uncommon to notice fine lines that form due to dehydration, and often the change of moisture levels in the air can impact how our skin looks—regardless of how much water we chug. As the climate becomes cooler and drier, it is indeed time to switch up the products you use on a daily basis. Start incorporating a moisturizing serum, such as L’Occitane Fabulous Serum ($48, at L’Occitane boutiques) which boasts 5% Shea butter and hyaluronic acid, into your morning beauty routine. Hyaluronic acid is very effective at penetrating the skin and holding on to water—meaning you’ll have much better moisture retention. In terms of a different foundation for colder months, reach for Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup ($45, sephora.com). It boasts vitamin E, sodium hyaluronate, and lychee fruit extract, all of which will help maintain hydration while fighting off aging free-radicals.
After many a summer spent in the sun, I’m realizing I have mild skin discolouration and that my skin tone is uneven. What can I do to address this?
Sunbathers beware, as this is not an uncommon epiphany that strikes while staring in the mirror on a fall morning! It’s no secret that excessive sun exposure leads to skin damage in the form of uneven skin tone, discoloured patches of skin, wrinkles and loss of firmness. Make sure that you sport SPF every single day (I don’t care if it’s overcast outside, UVA and UVB damage is still imminent on the cloudiest of days!) in order to avoid increased darkening and discolouration. Stabilized Vitamin C applied topically is best for boosting collagen production, brightening skin and improving uneven skin texture and tone. Incorporate a Vitamin C product, such as Perricone MD Vitamin C Ester 15 ($150, sephora.com), into your routine on a weekly basis: its fusion of stable Vitamin C with fatty acid derived from Palm oil will bring a balanced glow back to your complexion.
 or as long-term as knowing that the onset of fall also means the start of at least six months of dry skin. This week we're all about helping you break out of these bad beauty cycles: our Beauty Fix answers include how to avoid messing up your foundation when applying a dark eye shadow, tips for addressing uneven skin tone and everything you need to know about proper exfoliation.
Read on for the full fix! »
In need of a beauty fix? Email us at beautyfix@fashionmagazine.com.
My nails sometimes get yellow from wearing too much nail polish. How do I fix this?
It’s always a bit of a rude surprise when you remove your polish and find your nails stained from the polish you were so in love with moments before. This tends to be an issue with darker shades (damn you, navy polish!) and any red-toned polish will also be a major culprit. In order to avoid this, never apply polish to bare nails—always use a base coat, such as CND Sticky base coat ($11, nailpolishcanada.com) beforehand. In order to address stains that already exist try this DIY remedy: Create a mixture of 1 tablespoon of 3 per cent hydrogen peroxide and 2 tablespoons of baking soda to create a paste. Using a cotton swab, apply the mixture to your nails, making sure to coat the underside of your nail tips as well. Leave the mixture on for 3-5 minutes and wash off with a nailbrush. Easy enough, right? Another surprising-yet-wildly-logical whitening treatment: try dissolving a denture whitening tablet as per the instructions on the box and soak your nails in the solution.
I'm so confused by exfoliation. I use a daily cleanser that has some grit in it, but every time I get a facial I'm told I should also be using an exfoliator a few times a week. That seems like an awful lot of exfoliation! Help!
Well that’s a mixed bag of advice, isn’t it? The deciding factor in how much you should exfoliate is related to the behaviour of your skin. If you have skin that is prone to breakouts, you probably treat said breakouts with products that dry the skin out. This will help kill acne-causing bacteria but can also cause skin flaking in certain areas. It’s important to remove the dry skin cells that have built up and started to flake off, because if you don’t, the dry skin cell build-up will keep trap oil in the skin and trigger new breakouts (same goes for clogged pores). Exfoliation is also essential to helping reduce post-breakout demarcation—the more you exfoliate, the more you will remove damaged surface skin cells, which will lead to quicker fading of red marks where breakouts occurred. Exfoliation is really vital to dry-skinned individuals, because exfoliants can remove dry skin cells and allow moisturizers to penetrate significantly better. One to try a few times a week as we move into the cooler temperatures: Nars Skin Double Refining Exfoliator ($40, narscosmetics.ca), which contains citrus fruit acids and spherical beads to provide a gentle but effective polishing of the skin.
I love doing a smoky eye, but really can’t stand the amount of eyeshadow fallout that ends up soiling my foundation application. Any tips on how to avoid turning my smoky look into raccoon eyes?
How frustrating is it when you’ve already perfected your skin, then start in with your eyeshadow and end up with dark shimmer all over your under-eye area? Awful! You have some options. Firstly, you can try doing your eyeshadow application first and then following up with your foundation application after you’ve had a chance to wipe the skin clean of any fallout. Secondly, you can try tapping off the excess eyeshadow from your brush before zeroing in to add definition to your crease. If neither of these options appeal to you, and I can understand how they may not (I’m so committed to my routine of applying foundation before doing my eyes, and tapping off shadow can feel like a waste when you do it between each time you add colour to your lids), reach for EyeBoutique Shadow Shields ($8, farleyco.ca). These genius little creations have an adhesive on one side, so simply remove the backing and stick the half-moon-shaped shield to your under-eye area and grin as you go wild with your sooty shadow and the rest of your face remains undisturbed.
I’ve noticed that as the seasons change, my skin seems to show more fine lines. Even if I’m drinking water all day, my skin seems dehydrated and my current foundation doesn’t seem to sit well. Can you suggest a different formula that can address this?
It’s not uncommon to notice fine lines that form due to dehydration, and often the change of moisture levels in the air can impact how our skin looks—regardless of how much water we chug. As the climate becomes cooler and drier, it is indeed time to switch up the products you use on a daily basis. Start incorporating a moisturizing serum, such as L’Occitane Fabulous Serum ($48, at L’Occitane boutiques) which boasts 5% Shea butter and hyaluronic acid, into your morning beauty routine. Hyaluronic acid is very effective at penetrating the skin and holding on to water—meaning you'll have much better moisture retention. In terms of a different foundation for colder months, reach for Urban Decay Naked Skin Weightless Ultra Definition Liquid Makeup ($45, sephora.com). It boasts vitamin E, sodium hyaluronate, and lychee fruit extract, all of which will help maintain hydration while fighting off aging free-radicals.
After many a summer spent in the sun, I’m realizing I have mild skin discolouration and that my skin tone is uneven. What can I do to address this?
Sunbathers beware, as this is not an uncommon epiphany that strikes while staring in the mirror on a fall morning! It’s no secret that excessive sun exposure leads to skin damage in the form of uneven skin tone, discoloured patches of skin, wrinkles and loss of firmness. Make sure that you sport SPF every single day (I don’t care if it’s overcast outside, UVA and UVB damage is still imminent on the cloudiest of days!) in order to avoid increased darkening and discolouration. Stabilized Vitamin C applied topically is best for boosting collagen production, brightening skin and improving uneven skin texture and tone. Incorporate a Vitamin C product, such as Perricone MD Vitamin C Ester 15 ($150, sephora.com), into your routine on a weekly basis: its fusion of stable Vitamin C with fatty acid derived from Palm oil will bring a balanced glow back to your complexion.
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