Beauty That Gives Back...

In support of Breast Cancer Awareness a new version of the popular Sugar & Butter Lip Exfoliator and Plumper called "Phoenix" will be released this month by Jane Iredale - $2 from each sale of Phoenix will be donated to Living Beyond Breast Cancer (LBBC) in support of all women who have risen above breast cancer and those who love them.

Phoenix Sugar & Butter is named for resiliency and renewal just as are the cancer survivors we celebrate - This beautiful uplifting pink will make your heart sing. The soft scrumptious pink plumper is paired with an organic brown sugar exfoliator to evoke the joy and daily pleasures of femininity with ingredients that honor women’s health. The exfoliator and lip plumper duo restores moisture to dry chapped lips for a smooth and moist finish, is packaged in a dual ended tube and is easy to apply. Phoenix is formulated with peptides to hydrate the lips and stimulate collagen synthesis, contains brown sugar that leaves lips feeling soft and light as well as a combination of cool mint and ginger that soothes and revitalizes.

If you would like to place an order for Phoenix Sugar & Butter 

please call the spa at (310) 577-2211 or just stop by!

50-Something

After age-50 wrinkles and loss of elasticity become more apparent and occur sooner in women than men and skin also appears thinner due to a loss of fatty tissue. During the aging process the replacement rate of Collagen diminishes at a rate of 1% per year - This is the primary cause of wrinkling and loss of elasticity, however a variety of factors affect how our skin looks as we get older. These range from genetic predisposition and the general nature of our physiology including hormones, which designate our capacity for Wrinkles, Expression Lines and Skin Elasticity to controllable lifestyle factors that take place outside our bodies such as Sun Exposure, Alcohol Intake, Diet, Exercise, Smoking, etc. Poor health habits, lack of proper skin care, environmental and sun exposure and improper nutrition are responsible for about 85% of what we see as symptoms of aging skin, which means the majority of skin aging can actually be controlled.

The most important practices for Senior Skin are:  

1) Wearing adequate sunscreen at all times

2) Avoiding unnecessary sun exposure

3) Getting regular skin analysis & treatments 

4) Using a proper at home skin care regimen. 

Sunscreen and Sun exposure are a no brainer but designing the proper skin care regimen can be overwhelming on your own which is why re recommend coming in for regular skin analysis and treatments. During Skin Analysis your personal Skin Care Therapist will tell you the truth about what's going on beneath the surface of your skin - Have you been out in the sun too much without protection? Are you using products that are drying out your skin and causing unnecessary lines and wrinkles? Do you have spots that can be easily treated with a nightly layer of topical serum? This is the type of information our experts will gather with skin scope technology. And if you answered yes to one or more of these questions you may want to have a Microderm Abrasion treatment, use the Infrared Sauna or get a European Facial to rejuvenate your skin. 

These treatments combined with simple at home maintenance with user friendly products can take 20 years off your skin - No joke! Call today and let us know how we can help you look younger (310) 577-2211.

The Truth About Sugar

The truth simply put is that Sugar causes you to look older! 

Most people don't know this but one of the easiest ways to look healthier and younger instantly is to cut back on your sugar intake. Sugar (and High-Glycemic Carbohydrates) causes your skin to look dull and it can also lead to Wrinkles and other health problems like Obesity & Diabetes, Migraines, Gum Disease, Eczema and even Acne. 

Although Acne has various contributing factors such as overactive oil glands and hormone levels it can also occur from inflammation in your skin resulting from a rapid rise in blood sugar. Large quantities of sugar can compromise your immune function and result in a rapid increase in insulin production which also increases oil production and inflammation throughout the whole body.

Glycation is a natural process that occurs in the body when sugar enters the bloodstream and attaches itself to proteins to form new molecules. These sugar coated protein molecules are called AGEs for short (Advanced Glycation End-products) and they increase with the amount of sugar you eat, which is damaging to the Collagen and Elastin fibers needed to keep your skin firm, wrinkle free and youthful. As the Collagen in your skin weakens and becomes less resilient the AGE molecules are actually deactivating your body's natural antioxidants - Which means your skin is more prone to Sun Damage, Stress, Bacteria and other harmful free-radicals which in the worst-case-scenario can actually cause Cancer too as we have seen in so many cases with smokers.

Below are a few easy to follow tips to help you get started with healthier looking young skin 

Tip #1  Cut back on the sweet things in your diet - Increase your fruits and vegetables which will provide you with natural carbs your body can use. They are more gradually absorbed and result in much less sugar coating of your body's essential proteins needed for healthy skin. Sugar can be tough to kick so don't be surprised if you find this difficult at first but don't be discouraged - Remember that it's about making progress not achieving perfection, and cutting back your sugar intake is better than doing nothing at all.

Tip #2  Eat more protein - This will help curb your cravings and control your blood sugar and insulin. As your blood sugar stabilizes and the cravings start to go away you should notice your skin becoming firmer as well.

Tip #3  Drink plenty of water - This is an essential step in any detox. You all know the drill, so drink 8 glasses a day because that's what they say ☺

Tip #4  Watch out for Hidden Sugars - Fast food and pre-packaged foods like Coca-Cola, crackers, cans of soup, bags of chips, etc often contain a lot of sugar disguised with clever names like Corn Syrup, Dextrose, Juice Concentrate or Malt and they even lurk in Salad Dressings! These sweeteners can be hard to identify so be aware and read the labels whenever you're buying packaged foods. Fructose Corn Syrup is the worst of all - It's a sweetener made with altered cornstarch and it produces more AGE molecules than any other type of sugar.

The good news is it's never too late - Let beauty be your inspiration and put these simple tricks to use to protect your health from sugar and get gorgeous looking skin all the time. Blue Diamond Spa loves you so don't forget to love yourself too! XOXO

Aging Vaccine

Do you ever feel like your skin looks older than it should? - Well let's strengthen your skin and encourage it to look firmer and more radiant by stimulating its production of Collagen and Elastin!!

Aggressors of aging such as Poor Nutrition, Prolonged Stress, UV Exposure, Pathogens, Toxic Substances and various factors of an unhealthy lifestyle can cause damage to the skin that results in Fine Lines, Wrinkles, Discoloration, Dryness and Sagging. When strong, healthy young skin is assaulted by these factors cells are triggered to defend and repair skin damage - The skin is flooded with Messenger Molecules that stimulate cellular proliferation and restore normal skin function. During the aging process however immune function declines dramatically which adversely affects the skin's ability to repair and defend itself.

Dr. Howard Murad, Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA and "One of the country's best dermatologists" according to Vogue Magazine has created the Immuno-Skin Complex™ just for you. It contains a powerful peptide sequence that communicates with your skin to make it behave younger and send a vigorous immune response against the harmful aggressors that age your skin.  

These five Professional Products by Dr. Murad are easy-to-use and work together to boost your skin's defense against the factors of aging . . .

Immuno-Skin Age Inhibitor™helps improve your skin's firmness and elasticity and fights against aging with a high potency peptide based formula.

Activating Cleansing Emulsion is activated by oxygen and gently lifts dirt and other impurities to clean and refine your skin.

Daily Moisture Charge™ SPF 30 immerses your skin with intensive moisture and protection against UVA & UVB rays for daytime use.

Nightly Hydro-Lock™ helps smooth away existing signs of aging by nourishing surface cells with binding moisture during your skin's nightly repair cycle.

Daily Eye Lift Helps to firm and tighten the eye area over time and immediately relaxes fine lines around the vulnerable eye area.

These five basic Immuno-Skin Complex™products may be used altogether for maximum benefit as an "Aging Vaccine" or separately to target your specific skin care needs. And through the month of September ALL Murad products including the Immuno-Skin Complex™will be discounted at 20% for Blue Diamond Spa customers.