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Post by AF Beauty

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Hi APJ,

So we’ve had Christmas and New Year – if you’re reading this on the right day, you might still be swearing to never drink again, you might be cancelling your credit cards because you’ve lost them in a cab and you might be looking in the mirror at your face and wondering where the last year went!

But rather than look back, this week I’m going to challenge you to start anew and set some beauty resolutions! Here are my three:
I’ve had a few busy weeks through November and December and I’ve fallen into the bad habit of…. *hides with shame*…. going to bed without washing off my make up! GASP!!!

This is up there with the most heinous beauty crimes of all time. Of course, few things could be worse for your skin. You’ve had makeup on all day – or you might’ve exposed your face to the elements, including pollution, sun and a dozen other nasties. If you fail to wash it off, well, this way madness lies. You skin’s pores get clogged, your skin dries out and you wake up looking like you’ve partied all night, not worked all day!

New Year, New You? Beauty Resolutions

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So my first resolution will be to wash my face every night. My first choice will be nanna-cleansing and next choice will be Simple’s Micellar water wipes.

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Second, and this applies specifically to those of us who either like the sun, or find ourselves in the sun through location (*waves from Sydney*) The sun is an interesting beast, we can’t live without sunlight, but equally overexposure can lead to leathery dry skin. Type leathery skin into google and switch to images for the full horror.

My point is that sunshine is not good for the aging of your skin. Yes it’s good for Vitamin D, but you can get this through very little sun exposure but also, depending on the time of year and your location, maybe not at all. This article explains it simply.

So you have a few ways to avoid over exposure to sun. The first is the simplest, avoid it! Stay out of the sun during the hottest hours, you could use an umbrella shade or wear a hat. Your second option is to wear sunscreen. There is a LOT of debate about sunscreen and which is the most effective. For the purposes of skin protection, I’d be going for a zinc oxide base – the downside is it’s not very attractive, but then, neither are age spots.

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The last resolution is face masks! I’ve written about masks before – a few different sorts, yet as much as I’ve written about them, I use them inconsistently and probably don’t get all the benefits. There is, I think a balance here of not going over the top with masks, I won’t be wearing a different mask each day of the week! This year I am planning to evaluate my skin monthly and choose a monthly mask that I’ll wear once or twice a week, depending on what challenges I face.

What are your top three beauty resolutions? Did you make resolutions last year? Which did you keep?