Skin Emergency: Fast Fixes for Common Skin Problems

Sometimes no matter how good you are your skin just has a freak-out and you need a fast fix for a common skincare problem. These are most common causes for a last minute panic call to your esthetician and some suggestions for how you can help make it better.

Pimples

If you know you are prone to breakouts, start gently washing with cleansers containing 3% Benzoyl Peroxide or Hexamidine a week before your event.  Just be sure not to skip your moisturizer as BP can be dehydrating.

If you already have a pimple make sure not to scrub or pick. Remind yourself that Benzoyl Peroxide kills the bacteria in about 48 hours, so your most important task is to bring down the inflammation. Instead, ice the area for 30 seconds to 1 minute to bring down the inflammation (be sure to keep the ice moving at all times so that you don’t create other problems). When the skin is still chilled topical products can get around the plug and more effectively start cleaning up the spot.  I recommend dabbing a bit of GM Collin’s Essential Oil Complex on the area several times a day until your pimple has gone away, it’s incredibly effective and doesn’t dry out the skin.

Red and Inflamed

Too much sun? Hydrate and soothe skin to bring it back to life and calm down any inflammation.  Gel sheet masks can be great for this as they work by depriving the skin of oxygen while you wear them so that products penetrate deeper.  Look for masks containing aloe, glycerin, and hyaluronic acid.  Hydrating FlashMasque from Patchology will quickly soothe and hydrate your skin in just 5 minutes.

Red and Inflamed with Flakes

Overdo the pimple treatments? The first inclination would be to exfoliate or rub the skin to get the flakes off, but this can lead to hyperpigmentation or causing the wound to ‘weep’ and that just makes for a makeup disaster. If you must remove the flakes, you can gently brush them off with a clean powder dome and then follow with a hydrating treatment such as the sheet masks that are listed above.

Puffy Eyes

If your eyes get puffy it’s likely fluid retention and a light massage with a cool compress should do the trick. Cold chamomile tea bags or cucumber slices work wonderfully to bring down the puffiness above your lashes, Puffy, baggy eyes below the lash line clean up quickly with Eye Revive FlashPatch Eye Gels from Patchology, the masking time is only 5 minutes and it leaves skin beautifully hydrated to apply makeup.

If you get puffy all the time, try sleeping with your head slightly elevated and make sure you don’t have a slight allergy to your bedding as down pillows are often a culprit.  Also, cut down your salt intake a few days prior to a big event.

Stress Blotches

Unfortunately, this is largely genetic, but I’ve found that applying primer on the areas that you have problems really calm it down. I love GM Collin’s BB Cream for just this as it does triple duty as a primer, SPF and gives a bit of color to help even out skin tone.

Keratosis Pilaris or Chicken Skin

Red inflamed bumps on your upper arms or thighs occur in ¾ of Americans and although it cannot be cured, it can very easily be managed. It happens as dead skin cells pile up in the pore of dry skin.  Use a moisturizer with Lactic Acid and Urea to help clean it up slowly (I like AmLactin).  If you need it cleaned up in a hurry or you have a particularly stubborn case try using Skin TX’s Medicated Wash to dissolve the plug within the pore and follow by GM Collin’s Hydrating Body Cream to deeply hydrate and soothe the skin.