Hello Summer. You sexy thing you. I’m still a bit drunk from all of the beach and sea love from Vietnam. Seriously the people and the beaches were so lovely it makes me want to pack a bag and wander Southeast Asia for a few weeks. That said, when I got back to Tokyo, I did a full beauty inventory and realized that even slathered in sunscreen and limiting my exposure I got quite a bit of sun. Yikes!
In Japan, tan skin is a big no-no, especially for modeling and commercial work (read: my agent is gonna kill me). No one wants to shoots dry hair or peeling skin. So right now I’m in full-on replenish mode to keep my skin glowing and hair shiny. Here’s the plan for the next week or so:
1) Take it off. This means getting my ends trimmed and exfoliating EVERYTHING. My hair is ombre and my afternoons at the beach have turned the tips of my hair white blond. Kind of cool looking, but also a bit fried. I’m getting a half inch chopped off across the board for a fresh edge.
I’m also using Shiseido’s Tsubaki Treatment Mask on the lower half of my head every other night for a next few days. I alternate with a purple conditioner so my blonde doesn’t turn brassy. Tsubaki gets mixed reviews on some of the JP beauty blogs but I have to say for my texture (fine hair, color-treated, and and lots of it) it totally works. And at less than 1000 yen, it’s a steal.
I’m also using my home-grown coffee and brown sugar scrub every day in the shower to slough off dead skin, and moisturizing heavily with coconut oil both in the morning and at night.
Here’s my recipe for the scrub- it’s super easy and always in my shower:
- Day old coffee grounds (about a cup)
- Brown sugar (about half a cup)
- Lemon juice: it’s a natural toner and skin brightener (about 2 TBSP)
- Almond Oil: Enough to bind the mixture
2) Shed a layer. As far as my complexion– I’m going hard core. Sun is a major ager, and while I didn’t burn, I could tell right away it was a bit too much sun love. I’ve been dermaplaning (the Japanese technique of facial fuzz and skin removal– LOVE– and wrote about it and the coffee scrub here.) and will microderm tomorrow night. I’m also breaking out the big guns and slathering Cle De Peau’s Le Creme all over my face at night. It make a major difference and as cleared up the dry weirdness around my nose. This stuff is insanely expensive (525.00 USD an ounce!!), but after using my sample size from Shiseido the Ginza, it’s no question the best moisturizer I’ve ever used– and that’s saying something. Another luxe cream I adore is La Prairie’s Anti-Stress Cream. At 142.00USD for 1.7 ounces, it’s still super expensive, but at least attainably so. And it’s a major transformer as well.
So help is on the way. And even though tan isn’t popular in Tokyo, I personally love having a little glow. I feel like it looks healthier and I’m a bit more body confident.
You can take the girl out of California…
