Luna Love

Man oh man has my skin been feeling good lately. I have a nifty little gadget to thank for that. I also have my boyfriend, JP, to thank for this because this was a birthday gift last month. He knows how hard I work at my skin, and he just wanted to help give me that extra kick in the butt to break outs, more reasons why he’s totally the best. I also may have pointed this product out several times on the Sephora website… woops. I really wanted to put this tool to the test and make sure that I love it before I decided to talk about what a difference I have seen in my skin. I really have seen such an improvement that I had to talk about it now.

FOREO Luna for Ultra Sensitive Skin – $229 CAD

Yup, love this thing. When I first got it my mom was like ‘ummmm what is this? why does it vibrate???’ and things got weird. But when I explained to her that I use this to wash my face she was intrigued. The Luna is amazing. Basically you wet your face, apply your cleanser, and use the Luna in place of your hands. The Luna vibrates at an adjustable frequency to accommodate for any and all preferences. I use mine on the highest setting because the face is uber gentle. The little ridges at the top really help the cleanser penetrate the skin and break up any clogged pores. My skin has never felt so soft and become so clear.

The Luna has two settings, cleansing and anti-aging. Being 22 I don’t concern myself with the anti-aging side (on the back side of the Luna, looks very similar to the front of the Ultra Sensitive Luna). The Luna stops vibrating for a beat every 15 seconds or so to let you know to switch to the next part of your face so you don’t irritate the skin. After 3 minutes the Luna turns itself off, which is nifty. The battery life is also very impressive. It claims to last up to 450 uses. I use mine twice daily, so that means I’ll only have to charge my Luna less that twice a year. After about a months use I haven’t even had to think about charging it. The Luna is also waterproof, I use mine in the shower every morning.

I’ve been using the Luna in conjunction with the Carbolic Soap by The Soap Works to really deep clean my skin. My skin never feels too dry or stripped of any moisture. The only draw backs to the Luna that I can think of are it’s price (soooo expensive) but think about it this way: unlike the Clarisonic, you don’t have to keep buying brush heads, yes it’s expensive but it’s a one time cost, and there’s a 2 year complete warranty, and a 10 year limited warranty (they’ll give you a new one at 50% of the original price). The other draw back is you have to be careful what cleansers you use with it, as clay based, silicone based or grainy cleansers can damage the surface of the Luna, which you don’t want because it’s soooo soft.

I’ve seen reviews of people using the Luna with serums and oils to really sink them into the skin with great success. I don’t really use oils on my face anymore, but if I decide to start up again, I’ll definitely use the Luna.

If you don’t have super sensitive skin like me, there’s two other types: one for combination/oily skin, and one for sensitive skin. They also recently started making the Luna Mini which is about half the price, so definitely worth checking out!

I’m so happy with where my skin is at right now, and I have the Luna to thank for that.

Talk soon,

Xx Brianna

Face Mask Heaven

In my ongoing fight with my skin, I was starting to feel as though my skin was winning the battle. In the middle of April my skin broke out in a way I had never experienced before. I had a lot of small, under the skin zits that wouldn’t come to the surface, but would be red and raised. I’ve never experienced this type of acne before, usually I just get a zit that comes to a head in a day or so and I can extract it easily. After a month and a half of being incredibly frustrated with my skin, I turned to a brand I had heard great things about: REN Skincare.

REN Clarimatte Invisible Pores Detox Mask – $41.00 CAD

I picked out this mask because of the detoxifying aspect. I’m so happy with this purchase, as it’s from the combination skin range. I was previously using the Origins Clear Improvement Mask that I had since before my days of being cruelty free (Origins is not a cruelty free brand). I found that the Origins mask was really starting to irritate my skin, it would burn after I applied to my skin: no bueno. The REN mask is so refreshing! It has a great, spa-like scent, that’s herbally with a hint of fruit. The mask is a kind of light green colour that’s a great thick consistency. How you use this mask is you apply a generous amount to your clean skin, wait for it to dry(15 minutes or so), and then you rub it off. Yes… you rub it off your skin… sooo bizarre.

I recommend using this product at night, because after rubbing the mask off your face, your skin is quite red for some time after. Rubbing the mask off provides a physical exfoliation. I’ve used this mask twice a week for the past two weeks, and I really can see improvements in my skin. The little red under the skin blemishes surfaced, which was a bit alarming at first because I had a lot of active acne, but once those spots healed, my skin has been much more clear. I love that the first ingredient in this product is lavender flower water. This mask also has clay, which is the purifying agent.

You get 1.7 oz of product, which is a really nice step up from the usual 1 oz, and also helps me justify the price. The packaging is great, the pump makes application a breeze. I definitely prefer a pump to the squeeze tubes on other masks. Just like all other REN products, there’s no parabens oh phthalates, the ingredients check out alright on the Think Dirty app, it has a yellow rating.

Here you can see the mask in action. The light colour allows you to see the areas that it has drawn oil out of your pores. I suspect this mask will do nicely with blackheads. The mask dries fairly quickly, and leaves your skin feeling really soft and clean. I notice a light drying effect, which I actually like, because I have oily skin. I follow up this mask with either a hydrating toner for day time, or rosehip oil if I’m off to sleep shortly.

I have to say, I’m starting to see real results with this mask after two weeks, I feel as though my skin has less junk underneath the surface, and I think with continued use, I’m going to be on my way to clear skin.

Talk soon,

Xx Brianna