How to prevent skincare pilling

For many of us, doing our skincare routine is a happy place. A Zen moment to ourselves. A chance to take a breath and pamper our skin. Or it should be until you experience something called skincare pilling. Plenty of us have experienced it at least once. We do our skincare r..

How to know if you are overwashing your face

Cleansers give us joy! Simple as. Oils, balms, gels, the difference in textures, the scent, the ritual of washing off daily dirt and grime - cleansing your face can be awesome. Cleansing is the first and crucial step in keeping our skin healthy, bouncy, and plump. But someti..

How to Treat Post-Holiday Skin

Holidays can be a mixed bag. For some people, it can be a stressful period with the travel and fraught family reunions that would test the patience of a saint. For others, it is a magical time of the year what with Christmas decorations everywhere, parties, and never-ending ..

How to Treat Your Skin in Menopause

Hormonal changes affect our skin. It is blatantly apparent when we are teenagers. But menopause is no picnic either. It can bring about increased dryness, sensitivity, and, in some cases, even acne. Give your skin some comfort and tackle the changes head-on with some simple ..

How to use retinol in the summer?

The skincare community will hotly debate any number of topics. Do you need a moisturiser? Are eye creams effective? How many times per week should you exfoliate? But one ingredient we can all agree on is retinol. It is a powerful ingredient with numerous studies that prove i..

How to beat winter skin

Any season is better than summer. But the fact remains, wintertime can exceptionally harsh on the skin. How should you treat winter skin? What are some of the common mistakes we make, and how to fix them? Skincare routine Cold air, wind, central heating that dries the beje..

How to switch your skincare routine for autumn

The days are getting shorter and colder (thank heavens!), it is time to get cosy. It is also time to switch up your skincare routine to adjust to the change of season. What are some of the most common skin concerns during this transitional period? The change in temperature a..

C60 Fullerene - The new super star ingredient for your skincare routine

The beauty industry is constantly evolving, and new skincare products are hitting the market every day. One of the latest buzzwords in the world of skincare is C60 fullerene. This molecule has been dubbed as the "superstar of your skincare routine," with many people swearing..

Ingredient Highlight - Emollients

Come wintertime, one category of ingredients that gets talked about a lot in the skincare community is emollients. It is easy to understand why. Due to cold weather and change in temperature, the majority of us deal with dry or dehydrated skin. It is not a life-threatening c..

Cosmetic Ingredients A-Z and Their Properties

We're passionate about the ingredients that make up your favorite skincare products. From A-Z, each ingredient has been carefully chosen for its unique benefits to the skin, ranging from hydrating and soothing properties to anti-aging and brightening effects. Whether it?s th..

Ingredient Highlight - Bisabolol

Bisabolol is an ingredient you might have heard of, or even come across on the inci list, but never really paid much attention to. The fact of the matter is, we might not talk about it to the same extent as we do about retinol or Alpha-Hydroxy acids. But it does have plenty ..

Ingredient highlight - amino acids

Amino acids might not be on your skincare radar. However, due to their nature, they are critical for our skin health. What are amino acids, and how do they benefit the skin? Should you include them in your routine? What are amino acids? Considered the building blocks in ou..

Ingredient Highlight - Azelaic Acid

Ask any skincare nerd about their favourite ingredient and be prepared to listen about the virtues of retinol/vitamin C/AHAs and what a difference it made to their skin (we are guilty of that, too). But if you have blemish-prone sensitive skin or suffer from rosacea, it can ..

Ingredient Highlight - Squalane

Want smooth, soft, well-hydrated skin? Give Squalane a try! Chances are a few of the products in your skincare stash contain Squalane. It is a popular ingredient, and for a good reason. It is super hydrating, but what is even more important, it is well tolerated by ALL skin ..

Ingredient Highligh - Humectants

Healthy skin needs to be hydrated properly. Yes, regardless of the skin type. Humectants are ingredients that work well for all skin types. Oily skin gets the hydration it needs, without any of the oiliness. Dry and dehydrated benefits too, for obvious reasons. What are hume..

Ingredient Highlight - Lipo-hydroxy acid

What is Lipo-hydroxy acid? Lipo-hydroxy acid is an ester of Salicylic acid. Where it differentiates from Salicylic acid is it has a higher molecular weight. Because of this, it slower to penetrate the skin and better tolerated. It is a lipophilic acid meaning it dissolves i..

10 Things the Most Successful People Do to Stay Calm

"90% of top performers are skilled at managing their emotions in times of stress in order to remain calm and in control." - Travis Bradberry, TalentSmart TalentSmart surveyed over 1 million people to find out what the most successful people.....

Korean Skincare 101 and 5 Game-Changing Products

Over the last couple of years beauty outlets have been obsessed with Korean skincare. 10-step routine, glass skin, cloudless skin, unusual ingredients, anti-polluaging - it is easy to get distracted. But (in our opinion) at its core the Korean approach to skincare is far si..

Vintage Beauty Tips That Still Work

Times may have moved on and technology may have advanced, but sometimes grandma simply knows best. We have researched vintage beauty advice from the early 20th century and collected together tips that remain both true and thrifty. [caption id="attachment_2451" align="..

When is Exfoliation Too Much?

It is the age of the skintellectual. We make informed purchasing decisions; we know our ingredients, we are less likely to fall for false marketing claims. And that's great! But that doesn't mean that in our pursuit of healthy skin, sometimes we don't go a bit overboard. Pr..

Hyperpigmentation - What Causes It and How to Treat It

As we get on in years, our skin starts to go through changes. Fine lines and wrinkles, dullness, dehydration, uneven skin tone. Another thing we have to look forward to? Dark spots, which are also known as hyperpigmentation. What is hyperpigmentation and what are the most..

Exercise and Your Skincare Routine - Simple Steps to Follow Before and After a Workout

We know exercise is good for us. It's good for the body, it's good for the brain, it's good for our mental and emotional health. And let us not forget, it's good for the skin too. It boosts circulation and improves the immune system, brings more oxygenated blood to the skin,..

The Truth About Collagen And Your Skin

Stories about collagen usage in cosmetic products and cosmetic procedures are all over the news today. Whether you hear about someone getting collagen injections, or you read a list of product ingredients in a skin cream that includes it, collagen is pretty much everywhere. ..

Ishtar's Facial Oils at a Glance

Facial oil is a product that can make a world of difference to our skin and turn it from dull and lacklustre to healthy and glowing. Yes, that applies even for people with oily, breakout-prone complexion. It is just a matter of finding the right oil for your skin type. With ..

Why Exercise is Good for your Skin

Why exercise is good for your skin. So we all know that we should be exercising on a regular basis. It's good for your heart, your cardio and your muscles, but did you also know that it's great for your skin? I love working out, mainly because.....

The Benefits of a Facial Massage

Who doesn't like a good facial, we ask you? That said, some things we could do without (extractions are never fun.) But we love a good facial massage. It's our favourite part of a facial. How can we perform a good facial massage at home? The science behind a facial massag..

The Skin Benefits of Algae Extract

In our pursuit of healthy skin, every so often, we have to decide what we are willing (and not willing) to put on our faces. Some ingredients might sound odd at first, but that doesn't mean they don't work. Case in point? Algae. Not our favourite thing to encounter when goin..

What is Keratosis Pilaris

It's that time of the year when most of us start to resemble lizard people. On a side-note, if you are not one of the lizard people, we envy you. Dry, itchy, bumpy, flaky skin can be super annoying, not to mention uncomfortable. Chances are if you suffer from any type of ski..

How Exfoliation Benefits the Skin

The skin is composed of several layers and regenerates new skin cells in the bottom layer. By the time they reach the top layer of the skin, these plump healthy skin cells have become flat, pigmented and full of hardened protein. These dead cells are continually being shed, ..

How to Prepare Your Skin for Warmer Weather

The warmer weather is here and you know what that means - it's time to switch up your routine! Skincare routine needs to be tweaked slightly - a lighter moisturizer and plenty of sunscreen. But today we would like to focus on the body. Warmer weather also means lighter lay..

What Does Mandelic Acid Treat?

Mandelic acid might not be as popular as its cousins Glycolic and Lactic Acid. But that does not mean it is not potent. It targets a number of skin issues. If you tried chemical exfoliation and it left your skin feeling dry, irritated or flaky, Mandelic Acid just might do..

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