• Taking a bath
  When I’ve had a stressful day, nothing makes me feel more relaxed than a good old fashioned bubble bath with a bath bomb. I personally like to light some candles and scatter them around the bathroom, pour myself a glass of rosé and put some classical music on. My favourite bath bombs are Marshmallow world and the Monsters’ ball from LUSH.

• Put a sheet mask on and sit back and relax
  Another thing I like to do while I’m having a bath or when I’m sitting on the couch watch a movie. Normally I do this when I’m giving myself a little mini “at home facial”. 

• Watch your favourite movie
  I LOVE watching movies, this is my favourite pastime. If I could, I would spend all day watching movies and Netflix tv shows. Recently I’ve been feeling quite nostalgic, so I’ve been watching some of my favourite movies from my childhood such as Harry Potter, Clueless, The Princess Diaries, Charlie's Angels etc. Watching movies is a great way for me to unwind after a busy day from studying.
  
  
  
  

• Give yourself a mini facial

• Read a book
  I’ve always been a bookworm, so for me reading is another way for me to relax and unwind. Obviously I love reading about everything skin and skin care related, but I do love a good fictional book and some motivational ones as well. I normally read a motivational book like Risk and Resilience by Lisa Messenger or a skin book during the day and a fictional book at nighttime to help my brain “switch off”.
  
   

• Move your body
  I love going to the gym and working out, however I’d be lying if I said it’s been easy to keep myself motivated. To help keep me accountable, I’ve been doing some online pilates classes with Studio Pilates in Richmond and I’ve also been using a fitness app called centr, which also contains some awesome plant based recipes. I normally try to smash out a good workout in the morning so I feel a bit more relaxed during the day.

We’re sure you’ve witnessed a serious spamming of the 2020 beauty buzzwords “iso skin” and “maskne” on your socials. We’ve spoken about these issues before (check out our previous blog, What is iso skin and how you can fix it) so today we’d like to speak about another form of “iso skin,” that quite frankly is getting out of hand! (pun intended!) 

Yesssss, we are talking about the HANDS! Never in our lives have we been so pragmatic about washing and sanitising. However, there may be one critical, small step you’re missing in your hand care routine - a nourishing layer of cream! 

It’s close to 6 months since we’ve upped our hand washing game due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Ironically, this excess washing causes dry, cracked, irritated hands, which in turn gives bacteria easy access into our bodies. If you suffer from skin conditions such as eczema and contact dermatitis you’ve probably noticed a flare up. You see, soap suds and hand sanitisers do not discriminate against good and bad bacteria - they wipe out EVERYTHING! And we need our natural oils to protect our skin, act as a shield against the outside world and maintain our moisture levels within. 

Have the upper hand when it comes to the fight against cracked skin with these 3 tips:

1. Avoid using products that contain fragrance as these can be irritating to cracked, sensitive skin.  We LOVE Pure Fiji Hand Cream because there’s no nasty ingredients or fragrances. The delicious scent that screams TROPICAL HOLIDAY comes from a combination of fresh coconut milk and nourishing organic oils. Packed with antioxidants, vitamins and essential fatty acids, this cream locks in moisture for silky smooth hands and hydrated nails. Get yours here!
2. Be extra mindful wearing gloves around the home when cleaning. You may have gotten away with a sneaky gloveless dishwash session in the past but with this extra washing/sanitising your hands will not be impressed. 
3. Always have your hand cream within arm’s reach! Just like the problem of not drinking enough water, the key to hydration is to keep your hand cream on you at all times. It should be making appearances in your car, handbag, work desk and bed-side table. Picture below: A typical day working from home with my iso BFFL, Pure Fiji Hand Cream. 

Iso skin is a real thing. You might have noticed since being in iso that your skin has been doing some funky things, just know that you're not alone.

Here are the main culprits that might be causing your skin to freak out:

1. Stress - Most of us are under some sort of stress during this unusual time and this comes out in your skin. Stress increases the cortisol levels in your body which leads to inflammation in your skin. Hello redness.  

2. Diet - We don't know about you, but we have definitely been snacking way more than we normally would. Sugars and bad fats unfortunately also lead to inflammation in our skin, which causes small bumps to appear under the surface of the skin.

3. Maskne - Masks are the newest fashion accessory, however they are not the most beneficially for our skin. Heat gets trapped under the mask and it causes friction. Because this is such a humid moist environment with very little oxygen entering, it is the perfect condition for acne. It can also cause your skin to get dry and itchy.

The best things to help with maskne is:
- To use an exfoliant that has salicylic acid in it as it is anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and helps to unclog pores. We love Image Clear Cell Medicated Acne Masque

- Make sure you're using a serum that has niacinamide in it, as it helps to increase your cells production of hyaluronic acid. This helps to attract and bind moisture to your skin, as well as preventing trans epidermal water loss (TEWL). We love Synergie Skin Vitamin B Serum