Yesterday, someone commented, “Grabe and kapal ng buhok mo. (Your hair is so thick.)” I said ‘commented’ because I’m not sure if the comment was meant to be good or bad.

Funny because I thought my hair is actually thinning. For the past months, I’ve been experiencing a lot of hair fall. And when I say “a lot,” I mean “so much hair covering the entire drain” a lot.

I first experienced hair fall after giving birth to my girls, which I read was supposed to be normal. But it seemed the hair fall problem didn’t entirely go away. The drain clogging quantity of hair strands is the same whether I use shampoo for hair loss or regular shampoo.

I’ve been under a little stress lately, so that maybe a factor too. But sometimes I get worried that I’m getting bald spots because whenever I run my hand through my hair, there’s almost always one strand that goes with it.

With that comment, I guess my hair may be alright after all.

I’ve also been thinking of going for organic shampoos. Maybe the natural ingredients would be kinder to my hair. But that would have to wait until my current shampoo runs out. Any tips about good organic hair fall shampoos?

I’ve been staying up late a lot and the area under my eyes are taking a beating.

I used to use eye cream but gave up on it when I wasn’t seeing any results. Well, I suppose I wasn’t getting any results then because I didn’t have eye bags in the first place. Not to mention, the really good eye creams are so expensive.

But now that I’m expecting to have more late nights, I thought I should take better care of my eye area. I read some reviews on www.undereyecream.org but I couldn’t recognize any of the brands they promoted.

Anyway, I thought using something is always better than nothing so I bought this:

It’s a steal at P199.

Let’s see if this one works.

What do you do /use to combat eye bags?

Whenever I feel in need of a good scrub, this tube is my go to product.

The old variants of St. Ive’s Apricot Scrub had bigger granules and were a little harsh on my skin. But when they came out with this one, it became my instant favorite.

I love how the small granules gently exfoliate my skin, leaving it feeling soft and smooth. And the scent is so refreshing too. I don’t know if it’s just me, but I love scrubbing my face every two days or so.

Of course, if you’ve got blemished skin, this may not be the best acne cleanser. You’d be better off with gentler facial washes with tea tree or salicylic acid.

But if you’ve hot oily or combination skin, this might be worth a try.

What’s your favorite facial scrub?

If there’s one thing I learned about beauty products, if you’re hiyang and it works, stick with it. No need to switch to new products being promoted that claim to be the “latest and greatest” in beauty technology. Unless, maybe if it’s the same brand.

I had to learn this lesson again a few weeks ago when I was buying a new moisturizer at Watson’s. Over the years since I started using anti aging creams, I’ve tried L’Oreal, then switched to The Face Shop’s Arsainte, then finally to Olay Regenerist. I’ve been doing okay with Olay for the past year and my skin felt great.

But as I was browsing through the racks supposedly to replenish my Olay supply, I just decided to switch back to L’Oreal and try their Revitalift line. No special reason, I just wanted to try something new. Not to mention, the ad on the rack said this moisturizer had some special ingredients which will do my skin a lot of good.

When I used Revitalift for the first time, it had a strange smell. I couldn’t figure out what exactly it is for awhile. But I figured later on that the closest comparison would be the smell of rubber. It was a bit unpleasant and certainly something I didn’t expect from a face cream. But I thought I’d try and tolerate it, it would be such a waste to throw it away just because of the smell.

And then it happened, after two days of using it, I had breakouts on my cheeks and my chin. Ack! At the back of my head, someone was shouting “I told you so!” I had no choice but to give it up and buy another moisturizer.

This time, when I returned to Watson’s, I headed straight to the Olay booth. I told the saleslady about my story and she said, “Ma’am, only Olay should touch your skin.” I know that line was part of their TV ad, but I’m taking this one seriously.

I bought Olay Total Effects with salicylic acid to combat my breakouts first before I use Regenerist again. My skin is happy now and the breakouts completely disappeared.

Lesson learned: Stick with your skin staples.

What’s your beauty lesson?

I’ve been going barefaced for the past couple of weeks.

Sometimes I just feel too lazy to put on make-up. Since I started running more frequently, I’ve been getting this natural blush on my cheeks. Somehow I’m learning to appreciate the natural look more.

Besides, not putting on make-up saves me a lot of time in the morning.

I also noticed that the more I went barefaced, the less blemishes I had. MMU is great and it doesn’t cause me pimples but when I forget to wash it off (which is all the time), small blemishes are sometimes inevitable. I always have my acne treatment gel on standby. But lately, I haven’t been using it all.

Thing is I bought a set of MMU and they’re all just in my kikay bag barely used. I still use them when I have events to attend to but I’m not using them everyday as I used to think I would.

Good thing MMU doesn’t expire so they’ll still be usable til next year.

I guess I’m just going through a phase. Or not.

What’s your take on daily make-up?

I seriously need a good eye cream. I’ve had little sleep lately — make that three years — and it’s showing.

Whenever I take photos, I notice that my undereye area has become puffy and I need some intervention before they turn into bags.

I have my staple face cream, Olay Regenerist, which is pretty good on my skin. But I haven’t tried any eye cream consistently enough to stick to it. For one, for such small jars, they cost just as much as facial moisturizers!

I tried Nivea Q10 before which is quite affordable but I didn’t really notice any difference. I read eye cream reviews like this six week eye cream expose on Total Beauty but none of them seemed to work great.

The brands included in the review that are available here are Strivectin SD, Olay and L’Oreal Revitalift. Strivectin seemed to work best but it costs $59. Revitalift came in second I think so I might check that out. Olay’s eye serum didn’t have great reviews but I haven’t tried it out to really say for sure.

I have to go to Watson’s soon and replenish my beauty supplies. I might spend a half hour again just reading through the labels and deciding which eye cream to buy.

Do you guys know of eye creams that do work?

I tried using mineral make – up a couple of years back but I gave it up after a few months because I got too lazy to do the tap-swirl-buff-sweep thing every time. Mornings go quite fast for me so I needed something that I can apply in 5 minutes tops.

I pared my kit down to three make up essentials: Revlon Beyond Natural foundation , Max Factor Miracle Touch blush and Covergirl Wetslicks gloss. This worked wonderfully for awhile but eventually I stopped wearing make up altogether.

Then one day I dug up my old Monave foundation and decided to use it on a whim. I suddenly remembered why I loved using mineral make up: it gives natural coverage for my skin and it keeps the oilies at bay.

So I went online and started looking for other MMU brands to try. I liked Monave but it’s pricey so I wanted to find a more practical alternative.

I found Ellana Minerals, a homegrown MMU brand by Coney Avellana. I liked how their site was professionally done and the navigation is user friendly. I especially liked the fact that they gave out free samples. I think this is a must if it’s your first time to try MMU or it’s your first time to try a new MMU brand.

Of course, I’ve done my homework and I read positive reviews about their products but I wanted to try them out myself before I splurge invest in full-size pots. Although I rarely have negative skin reactions to make – up, some people do experience some negative effects because of MMU. So it’s always better to check the product first then buy later.

There’s a tip sheet on the Ellana site which helps you determine your skin tone. This will be the basis for the free samples they will give to you which you can request through this form.

I placed a request on Tuesday and paid the P50 shipping fee via BDO. I got my samples by Saturday because of the Holy Week break.

I got:

• Foundation: Perfect Blend Caramel Latte | Perfect Blend Hazelnut Latte
• Concealer: Radiant
• Finishing Powder: Espresso Con Panna
• Blush: Patience

I purchased a Charm kabuki brush before but it got lost somewhere after Ondoy. The only brush I have left is my Charm flat top brush so this is the only one I used to apply my MMU. I also borrowed the cover of my cotton buds tin to use as swirling surface for the make up.

So I had to tap-swirl-buff-sweep once again but using this little plastic cover made the process much easier and less messy.

Here’s my before and after shot:

You’ll notice that I have some red spots on my right cheek and on my nose but they were barely noticeable after. My overall skin tone also looks more even and smooth. I love how natural it all looks and how light it feels on my face.

Can you even tell that I have layers of foundation, concealer and finishing powder on my face? And I think that’s the whole point of applying make up. It shouldn’t cover your face. Good make up should cover the blemishes and just enhance the natural beauty of your skin.

As for the blush, it was too light for my taste and I had to apply a little bit more to get a blushing look. So next time I’ll just have to order something in a brighter shade.

I have yet to do an oil test to find out how long it can control the oiliness of my Tzone. I wasn’t able to take photos the following hours but I did notice that I didn’t shine so much as I used to.

Another thing I observed was how the MMU affected my skin the day after.

Okay, I have to confess, I get lazy at night so I often forget to wash my face. So I had the MMU on my skin overnight. But when I woke up the next day, the red spots threatening to be pimples were gone. Now that’s a pretty nice bonus.

MMU does not have specific pimple fighting ingredients like most acne products but it does have “Allantoin for cell regeneration and moisturizing properties” plus Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide which are known to help reduce inflammation.

So I think I’ll give Ellana a try for a few more days. The good thing about MMU is a little powder goes a long way so the sampler bags I got can actually last a week or two.

Good thing they have an online shopping cart and they accept Paypal so buying MMU from them is a cinch.

Have you tried mineral make up?

I see this time and again.

Pretty girl or pretty boy goes in the jeep, gets some change from their pockets and hands them to the driver. Just after the money left their hands, they start stroking the side of their face. What worries me is these people often have acne troubles or blemished faces.

I can only imagine the countless germs that transferred from those coins to their poor skin that will in turn cause even more blemishes. Sometimes I want to flash the sign: “Hands off your face!”

It may be an unconscious reflex. I used to do that too, I would be too conscious about my pimples so I would either cover up my face with my hands or absentmindedly touch them. Ack! I didn’t realize then I was making them worse because of that habit.

I think the same goes through with using a handkerchief. No matter how many times you turn your hanky over, the dirt, perspiration or whatever you wiped it with is still there. That’s why I’m a big facial tissue user. One wipe and the tissue goes straight to the bin. If it’s difficult for you to keep your hands off your face then keep a hand sanitizer or alcohol handy.

In the same way, remember to keep your hair off your face too. For example, I see some people try to cover the pimples on their forehead with bangs. That may work as a temporary cover up but it may also be a pimple trigger.

When you have skin problems, it’s great to consult a derma or invest in the best acne products. But sometimes, it’s changing little habits like this that can spell  the difference between breakouts and blemish free skin.

Got clear skin tips? Share them below.

I’ve always been told that Vitamin C is good for the body. I know that it strengthens your immune system and keeps sniffles and coughs away. My mom would always remind me to take Vitamin C supplements but somehow I never felt eager to take them.

Now here’s something I learned that just changed my mind. I was researching about foods that are good for the skin and I just found out vitamin C is key to the production of collagen — the protein responsible for keeping your skin firm and smooth. (I’m not sure if that’s common knowledge but this is something new I learned today.)

Of course, as your grow older, the collagen in your skin diminishes. That explains why I’m now seeing a few lines at the side of and under my eyes. I was googling reviews for eye wrinkle creams but I think I’ll try this natural route first before spending money for skin products.

Having a daily dose of Vitamin C can help boost the collagen production and delay skin’s aging. The recommended daily intake for women is 75 mg. It’s slightly higher for men at 90 mg. But interestingly the Vitamin C Foundation recommended a daily allowance of 3,000 mg per day to be taken three times at 1,000 mg increments.

Still, other research indicates that the maximum should be 2,000 mg and the minimum at 500 mg. This requirement can typically be met by taking vitamin C supplements, preferably the non-acidic kind to prevent stomach irritation. But the best way still is to take in as much fruits and vegetables as possible so you could get vitamin C as well as the other vitamins and minerals present in them.

I think I’m sticking with the 2,000 mg dosage. That’s way cheaper than buying an eye cream and if the research is right, perhaps more effective too.

Since Iya lost my Clearasil tube weeks ago, I headed to Watson’s on a mission to buy a new one or to find an alternative pimple treatment.

Going to Watson’s is always a fun but wallet – threatening trip because it’s so tempting to pick up items “I think I need” or want. Sometimes I go in just to buy tissues and then I go out with a whole plastic bag containing conditioner, hair serum, a new lipgloss, facial scrub…. the list could go on depending on how shopaholic I am that day.

I wanted to try Clean and Clear’s Fast Clearing Spot Treatment but it wasn’t available as an individual product. You had to buy the whole set which I don’t really need. (Self – control in motion… haha…)

Then I spotted Proactiv Solution on the adjacent shelf. I was so tempted to buy this when I first saw it advertised on Home TV shopping. I mean having Jessica Simpson and now Mandy Moore as endorsers must mean you’ve got a really good product, right? But then almost 4,000 bucks for a set is way too expensive for me.

So I finally decided on getting this….

Garnier’s Pure SOS Blemish Clear Pen. The product description said it could diminish the blemish in as little as five hours and leave no mark.

So does it work?

It works for small blemishes. Days ago I woke up with small red spots on my cheeks. I used the Garnier SOS pen on them and they were barely visible after less than five hours.

I like how the gel is lightweight and the packaging is shaped like a lipgloss tube so it’s more economical. Clearasil came in a soft big tube which meant I often oversquirted more gel than what I needed.

The Garnier Pure SOS Pens also works for blemishes that are just about to pop up, you know those red bumps that are a bit painful when you touch them and usually develops into a pimple when left untreated.

One day I felt that kind of bump threatening to pop up on the tip of my nose (ack! of all places), so I applied a generous amount of gel on my nose before I slept. The next day, the bump is still a bit visible but it was no longer as painful. I did the same thing that night and the next morning, the bump was completely gone and the skin on my nose was as clear as if the bump never appeared.

As for treating pimples, it took a couple of days for the pimple at the side of my face to completely subside. I still had to use my pimple extractor to clean the zit up then I applied the gel after. It left a slight mark because the pimple was a bit big but the mark is already fading away.

So over all, I’m satisified with Garnier Pure SOS pen and will continue using it. I rarely get blemishes especially the big zits but it’s good to have this handy for sudden attacks. I will probably switch only if I find another one that can heal and dry out pimples in five hours or less.

So what’s your pimple fighter?