Let's face it.  The increasing humidity, glare and burn of the inevitable dry season are threats to having a flawless summer in Cebu.  You are crazy if you do not arm yourself with sun protection while going about your day here in bright and sunny Cebu City.  If you are someone like me who is starting to fight or counter the effects of the dreaded clock a.k.a. "aging," it's best to start with the knowledge that all of us need sun protection. 

If you want to keep the sunspots and freckles from ever appearing include the letters SPF in your daily personal habits.  Here below is my sun protection step by step regimen for a flawless summer.

Cleanse

Summer temperatures bring extra humidity and this means I am also especially oily during this season.  I wash my face at least twice a day with my reliable Flawless SAS soap to prevent oil build up that causes my breakouts.

Exfoliate

I use a facial scrub once a week to get rid of invisible dead skin that causes an uneven skin tone.  Exfoliation will make you burn under the sun easily.  It is best to refrain from getting a chemical peel if you plan to stay under the direct heat of the sun for extended periods.   Sad to say there aren't that many tree shades in Cebu City to hide under.  Better yet, no peel of any kind while it is still glaringly hot.

Tone

Show your pores your care by keeping them calm and relax.  A refreshing toner will do the trick of minimizing these very tiny punctures on your skin.  Choose the one that suits your skin type.  I am currently finishing my bottle of Nivea's Mattifying Toner.

Moisturize

After stripping your skin of its natural protective film by cleansing, exfoliating and toning, you need to allow it to recuperate by re-nourishing it with a moisturizer.  Since it's summer pick a light weight moisturizer that guarantees to not clog your pores.  I find that gel formula moisturizers does the job very well on my oily skin.

Sun Protection

A Flawless SPF 70 sun protection without the heavy drama of a lotion. Loving this new @myflawless product. I spray it on my hands, lightly pat it on my face, let it set for a minute and apply my working girl makeup. Im protected ready for work or play! #sprayprotectplay for a #flawlesssummer #cebubloggingcommunity #cebufashionbloggers

A photo posted by Sahbu Gomez (@damnvixen) on Mar 4, 2015 at 7:52pm PST

Never skip sun protection. You will never achieve flawless summer or flawless anything if you do not apply sunscreen.  Our young fair complexion will not look as good as it is now in the next years if we continue to frolic under the harsh sun irresponsibly.  I know choosing the right sun protection product can be very confusing.  I recently got hold of Flawless' Skin Protect Mist and this baby just does it for me.  It's safe to spray at any angle and I get the SPF 70 protection I need to work or play under the sun and it's PARABEN FREE! 

REMEMBER: 

Cleanse, Exfoliate, Tone, Moisturize 

& 

Spray Protect Play 

for a 

Flawless Summer!

Watch out for My Light Summer Makeup Routine!

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Forever Flawless is my savior when my face could no longer take the stress when I was on my first semester of law school.  I had the scariest breakout I have ever had.  I tried a lot of remedies but only Forever Flawless' Advance Anti-Acne Facial turned my hideous blemishes around.  I used to patronize their skin care set too until I no longer had to use it.

I love how Forever Flawless suits one of my #kumbati2015 goals - which is saving - because I just could not cut my maintenance regimens and risk breaking out again.  Thank goodness for the Flawless Pink Revolution. A salute is well deserved indeed!

PS.  Yes I'm back to blogging!

Purederm's Skin Recovery Red Ginseng Mask

I was browsing through Watson's and got curious on the Purederm masks.  I have very sensitive skin that's why Im wary of trying skin products.  There's quite a buzz about these masks that I decided to give it a go.  I chose the variant that has the least intimidating name.  Skin Recovery Red Ginseng Mask was the winner by elimination. The "re-energizing" tag seems safe to me and ginseng doesnt sound scary at all.  

Boooo!

Verdict:

• It didnt break me out
• My skin got refreshed and supple immediately after the application.
• No funky smell, in fact I love the citrus pomegranate scent.
• Barely Php70.00 a pack and it's good for 3 applications!
• Will definitely buy again!

Beautynomics Turns 5!

Im happy to share to you Beautynomic's big anniversary celebration!

Win prizes from Avon, Pond’s, L’Oreal Paris, The Body Shop, PureDerm, Obagi, Beauty & Minerals, Goodskin Labs and Golla! Visit Beautynomics’ 5th Year Anniversary Contest entry to know how!

Prizes up for grabs?

1. 5 Pond’s Gift Packs ( full range of either Pond’s Gold Radiance, Flawless White, or Age Miracle )

2. 1 The Body Shop Shiso White Skin Care range

3. 5 L’Oreal Paris Gift Packs + Charm Luxe Kabuki Brush

4. 5 Avon Gift Packs mixed with Purederm Goodies

5. 5 Golla Bags with Pond’s Dual Action UV Therapy Eye Cream inside each bag!

( 3-12-11 update :  here are the descriptions – 1 Golla Ipod Touch/Iphone Pouch, 1 Golla Ipad Messenger Bag, 2 Golla Laptop Sleeves, and 1 very cute Golla Laptop bag! )

6. 1 Obagi C-Rx Set ( Cleanser, Toner, Moisturizer )

7. 1 Kerastase Hair Care Set ( Basic Nutritive Set )

8. 1 Special Gift Pack from Goodskin Labs ( latest added : March 4, 2011 )

A total of 24 awesome prizes!

The contest will run from Feb. 28 until end of March. Winners will be announced by the first week of April. Winners within Metro Manila need to claim their prizes in a designated office;  outside Metro Manila winners will get the prizes through shipping.

Shen's Addiction: Contest Time: Shen's Addiction 3rd Anniversary Giveaway!: 

"Finally! The day has come!! It's Shen's Addiction's Third Anniversary!! :)

I love giveaways!  I have a tab especially dedicated to awesome ones I come across online.  Shen was one of the first few beauty blogs I followed when I started my own thing in the blogosphere.  Now she's doing this covetous beauty giveaways that you beauty junkies out there simply cant ignore! ^^ Shen's addiction has also become mine!

Without further ado! Here it is!

For a chance to win some fabulous prizes from brands like ....

Pond's, Bobbi Brown, Avon, Kiehl's, Ellana, The Body Shop, Kerastase, Neautrogena, House of Obagi, Revlon, Sakura Bella, One Naturales, Clinelle, Maybelline, L'oreal Paris, L'oreal Professionel, Myra and more!!!...

all you have to do is do follow the Mechanics. (read the rest of Shen's post for a surprise!)"

Having suffered from dry flaky skin and uneven skin tone as a result of my active adolescent stage, I was frequently trying out lots of beauty soaps that can atleast help me get a good fair skin.  I say I have tried them all from moisture bars to whitening soaps with papaya extracts, shea butter, goats milk etc.  You name it I most probably have tried it.  

My search then focused on soaps with the same consistency as Dove.  I tried Olay but didnt like it because it darkens my skin.  Then I came across Caress Nature's Silk soap.  I feel like I have found the fountain of youth!  Ive been using it since I was 17 years old.  It's been 7 years of not looking back since then.  

I was not aiming for a whiter skin I just wanted to feel clean, moisturized and not red all over when I get out of the shower.  Right now I am in the most radiant skin I have ever been.  People say that when I go out under the sun, my skin reflects so much light.  A smooth and fair skin can really make you sparkle and stand out.

I use the soap generously by lathering it directly on my body and in some days I also use bath gloves to aid in scrubbing off dead skin.  Then after bathing I finish off with an age defying lotion.  It's the perfect beauty routine.

Caress Evenly Gorgeous Exfoliating BW, Exotic Oil Infusion in Moroccan and the original soap bar

Just recently I got to purchase 2 variants from their new body wash line. The first one I use for days Im too lazy to exfoliate.  The oil-infused variant is used when I need a quick shower.  They make me wanna take a bath everynight!  I smell so good I could be eaten ahhaha! No pun intended.

before and after

So there you go, my secret is finally out.  I didnt bleach, nor did I burn cash on glutathione injections because that stuff scares me!  

Disclaimer: I was not at all asked nor paid to write this post ^^