Getting My Skin Ready for the Holidays with " the Skinbarre "

Disclosure: This post is brought to you by and in partnership with THE SKINBARRE. Pronounced as The Skin Bar, I had my first experience of a med spa at "THE SKINBARRE." Andrea Natasha, my skin esthetician was beyond amazing. We chatted all things skincare and how we all need to switch up our skincare game after 25. Yes, you hear it right 25. I might be a little late in the game, but it is not that late to be irreparable.  The minute you walk in, you will be a bit surprised, at least I was. It it is not like your regular spa with soft music buzzing and the smell of aromatic candles lingering in the air. It is a MedSpa where some serious skin-reparative treatment happens. At a med spa you can get corrective medical skin care products and procedures for treating fine lines, wrinkles, hyper pigmentation, skin laxity, loss of facial volume and all of the other unwanted consequences of aging skin. I was greeted by the microbalding expert Tuull Enkhbayar ( another service detail coming up ), at the reception, where she made me fill out a brief questionnaire, just the regular medication, allergies, skin care routine related stuff. Thereafter, my esthetician Andrea escorted to me to one of the rooms. The minute you enter the room, you are transported to an episode of Dr. 90210, where there is a doctor, the gear and the  big surgical light. 
ANDREA & SAUMYA 







Andrea and I chatted a little more about my skin concerns and the problem areas. There were so many beauty myths I had and Andrea was kind enough to address them all. For instance I always thought that my skin was super dry, but as per Andrea: being a woman of color, we are blessed with more oil glands versus a person with fair skin. So it all came down to me using the wrong products. I was using products that apparently had a high ph and were constantly stripping off my skin of the natural oils.
Based on my current skin-situation, mainly dullness, open pores and black heads, we decided to go for a facial with a no-downtime peel. A normal peel is usually done over three sittings, but a no-downtime peel did not need any wait time. It works instantly. Andrea started with a double facial cleanse, followed with a deep scrub and a massage. Then came the not so fun part of the facial-extraction. I've always struggled with black heads and when Andrea mentioned a painful extraction, she really meant painful. It was the hardest ten minutes. She then gave me a warm sponge which alleviated some of the pain. Then came the peel, which she left on for about ten minutes. In between the peel and the last step of the treatment which was putting me under LED for addressing any skin inflammation, we talked about trying microblading.
I was a bit skeptical about microblading, it was mostly the scare of being poked with needles, but then I decided to go for it. Microblading is an artistic technique done with a manual tool. The semi-permanent pigment is applied in small hair-like strokes, which mimics the natural hair growth of eyebrows. Call it an eye brow tattoo or semi-permanent brow filler, this technique was undeniably painful. I guess it's just me, the topical numbing cream didn't seem to help much.  Going from dark to darker to darkest, the session lasted for about an hour and a half. Three days later I was a little sore and looked like a character from the Addams Family, but that is the normal course of healing. A week later the pain is gone and the swelling has subsided.The color has faded to seventy percent making my eyebrows look fuller and arched. My visit to THE SKINBARRE was quiet an informative one. I learn't about basic skincare and some interesting facts, that I thought would be worth sharing with you all: 

• Always double cleanse your face- both in am/pm. Finish off with a warm towel sponge. 
• When it comes to serums, three to four drops is all you need. If you are using the right product, best suited to your skin, a little would go a long way. 
• After 30, get a facial once every month. 
• Collagen is a protein made up of amino-acids: glycine, proline, hydroxyproline, and arginine, all of  which help our body's connective tissue, skin, hair, nails, as well as gut health stay as healthy as possible.Our body looses 40% of its collagen by 30, hence a collagen drink/supplement is highly recommended. 
• Consider a facial peel every six months, or at least when the season changes. This helps get rid of the dull, damaged skin, catalyzing new skin to resurface.
• Use honey as your instant mask. Leave on for 20 minutes and wash off with a warm towel, it will give you an instant glow. 
• Mantra for good skin: eat healthy, exercise regularly and always stay hydrated.  

Hope you enjoyed this post in partnership with The Skinbarre. 
Location : THE SKINBARRE 
Photography : TUULL PHOTOGRAPHY