Beauty Blog

Don’t get me wrong: I adore my skincare routine (stay tuned to future blogs and social media for Dr. Jessie’s Gilded Glow skincare routine). But, if you have to pare it down to only two, very essential, workhorse products, here are the two no adult who cares about their skin should ever live without: retinol and SPF. Did you expect it was going to be that easy?? And just wait, it gets even easier: retinol at night, SPF in the morning. Why use retinol only at night? 1. It is inactivated by the sun. 2. It makes your skin more sensitive to the sun. A lot of people stop using retinol because it irritates their skin (but that is kind of the idea). There are a couple easy fixes for that irritation: 1. Try a lesser strength retinol (at Gilded Palm we carry three different strengths) 2. Gradually build up usage until your skin becomes accustomed to it. A good rule of thumb when starting out is to use retinol every third night for two weeks, then every other night for two weeks and then nightly. I like to think of retinol as a mini, daily peel. When you begin to use it for the first time, your skin will likely peel and flake a bit. This is because all the old, yucky (that’s medical terminology) cells are sloughing off, allowing the new, baby-fresh cells to surface. As such, when used consistently, retinol helps decrease fine lines and blemishes while also improving skin tone and texture. Talk about a workhorse! Now on to the sunscreen… Other than protecting your sensitive retinol-skin, why is SPF so important? Well, want to know the quickest way to age and damage your skin? You guessed it: expose it to sun on a regular basis. So, to recap: SPF every morning, retinol every night and you will require less of my services ;)