Month: September 2020

Double cleaning: oil+soap

Hello everyone!!

In this post I am going to talk about a new method that I have been using to cleanse my face. This added to applying only pure aloe vera gel (extracted by me from the plant, as I mentioned in this post) is working very well for my skin.

First of all, I know that what I am going to explain is something similar to the Korean double cleansing ritual. But since I have adapted it in my own way, I have not called it that. Official Korean cleanse includes wiping off the oil with a hot towel and I don’t do that. As always, I seek maximum efficiency with minimum effort, the famous Pareto law. And since I am already using one side of a facial towel (small towel that is only for my face) every night, that’s one facial towel that waits for the washing machine every other night, so I don’t want to also use even more towels to remove the oil from my face.

What I do every night is, always after washing my hands, put 5-8 drops of argan oil on my hands and rub it all over my face, massaging well, insisting where my skin is more greasy (forehead, nose, chin). Oil cleansing is also great for removing makeup, but I don’t normally wear makeup. Then I rinse my face with warm water and apply a few drops of Dr. Bronner’s soap. It is not a soap that dries out the skin because it contains all natural ingredients, although I know that there are people who simply wash with their face with oil and that’s it. But I also like to put a little of this soap. Then I rinse, already with cold water, and gently dry my face with the facial towel. And then I put some cool aloe vera that I have in a glass in the fridge.

Regarding the oil to use, I use the argan oil because it is not comedogenic and it is the one which bottle I have now opened. When it is used up, I will use one of jojoba oil that I have unopened. Many also use olive oil, coconut oil…It all depends on whether you have oily or acne-prone skin, in that case you should look for non-comedogenic oil. If you don’t have this problem, any oil will work.. Anyway, as you rinse and wash your face with soap afterwards, it is difficult for oil to clog pores on the skin, it is not the same as using it as a moisturizer. Rather, what is sought with this method is: 1) a good cleaning, 2) avoid drying the skin when applying the soap or cleanser (since the oil creates a protective film on the skin). There are people who even apply oil to the body before showering so that their skin does not dry out with the lime from the water or due to  soap, and the same to the scalp before washing their hair (I also do this, with coconut oil, and my head no longer itches, which sometimes happened to me before). Having a limescale/chlorine filter in the shower also helps with skin and itchiness.

That’s it for today, until next time!

*To buy the products I speak about (I only recommend products that I’ve tested):

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

*From the United States:

*From Mexico:

*From Spain:

Period pain or dysmenorrhea: solved!!

Hello everyone!!

In this post I am going to tell you how I have managed to control my period pain (also called dysmenorrhea). In a previous post I talked about how it always comes to annoy me in the best moments and how I got rid of pain for a few years with contraceptives, but how when I left them the same pain and the problem of managing it returned.

Although ibuprofen (some people use other anti-inflammatories) is the best solution to menstrual pain, I also had to deal, for a while, with the fact that it was too strong for my stomach. Many times, the pains started in the morning, when I got up, and I couldn’t eat anything. Then I would take the ibuprofen with an empty stomach, and that’s not good, several times I even vomited. I solved this by always taking an omeprazole (stomach protector) before taking ibuprofen. I recently read that ibuprofen works faster on an empty stomach, but if you take it on an empty stomach it is very strong and can cause ulcers more likely than if you have eaten. So, in short, what I did was to start taking omeprazole always before taking ibuprofen, whether I had eaten before or not (although it is more necessary if you have not eaten before).

However, the big problem was still that the ibuprofen was taking too long to work. At least half an hour and even until 3 hours is the time that I have been lying in bed, writhing like a lizard with my contractions, until finally it took effect. And what if all this happens when you’re not at home. Aside from the comfort, one of the reasons I moved to live next my job, literally five minutes away, was in case I had to rush home at the slightest sign of pain (and I had to do it twice).

As always, I continued investigating but could not find a better solution than ibuprofen with omeprazole beforehand and the electric blanket while spending the moment in bed. Something that I did not do either, but I had my reasons, is to take a dose of, for example 600 mg every 6-8 hours since period stains began. And I did not do it because what I found is that when, for work reasons, I took ibuprofen as a preventive measure (without any pain yet), the period took much longer to come. Once I spent up to 5 days taking ibuprofen for nothing because I had stained a bit, and I tried that method until my period finally started. Normally, from the time I start to stain  until my period finally starts, it takes a day or a day and a half, not five. And taking into account the cardiovascular risk of ibuprofen, and that when I am on my period I reach the maximum recommended dose (1200 mg) or even exceed it, I did not want to unnecessarily add more. So I did not adopt that method, but may be for someone it works well. I am not sure what relationship may exist between taking ibuprofen in a preventive way and the delay in the period once the process has already started, but I suppose that since it is an anti-inflammatory, if you have some “obstruction” there, not having that kind of initial contractions due to ibuprofen causes the whole process to take longer.

Anyway, what I discovered this summer, by pure chance while watching YouTube, is that there is ibuprofen with arginine, a component that makes it act much faster than taken alone. Just what I needed! According to the advertising and the leaflet, ibuprofen alone takes half an hour to work (many times longer for me), while ibuprofen with arginine takes only a minute!! This month I almost wanted to have my period to check if this was true, hahaha

I bought ibuprofen + arginine in 400 mg sachets. And it has worked! Finally I have not squirmed like a lizard for at least half an hour in bed. I took a 400 mg sachet and waited 10 minutes, and as it kept bothering me I took another one, and in another 10 minutes it was over. The other times (I took the medicine 3 times, after 6-8 hours the effect wears off) I already took two sachets directly. I usually took between ibuprofen 800mg-1200mg at once, but this time I didn’t go over 800mg. Another important point is that the medicine in a powder format, diluted in water, also accelerates the effect, and is less harsh on the stomach than pills. Also, although it is not my case, there are people who cannot swallow the capsules. The disadvantage of sachets is that being around it is more difficult to take them, because you have to find a glass and a teaspoon. And they taste really bad! This month I did not take the omeprazole before the ibuprofen because I forgot it, but it did not hurt my stomach. Regardless, I will continue taking omeprazole before taking the medicine.

Ibuprofen with arginine is available in both sachets and capsules. Since the effect is faster in sachets, I recommend them more, although it can be good to have capsules on hand if one does not have access to a glass and a spoon. In Spain there are several brands that sell ibuprofen with arginine, and all have the same list of ingredients, among which is aspartame. I didn’t like this because aspartame is a sweetener that has been found to be a carcinogen. But since I could not find any brand that does not use it (they are supposed to put it to remove the bad taste of arginine, but even so it tastes really bad), I’ll use this medicine anyway. Hopefully with time this ingredient will be removed (I already wrote to the company to ask for it).

I hope this will help those who suffer from period pain every month, I am very happy with this product that I found by chance!

*To buy the products I speak about (I only recommend products that I’ve tested):

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

*From the United States:

·Electric blanket: https://amzn.to/32IwSox

*From Mexico:

·Manta eléctrica: https://amzn.to/3ceuF7n

*From Spain:

·Espididol (de venta en farmacias, sin receta): https://www.farmaciabarata.es/medicamentos-sin-receta/espididol-400-mg-18-comp.html

·Manta eléctrica: https://amzn.to/2ZQYru5

Belonephobia: solved!!

Hello everyone!!

In a previous post, I talked about the belonephobia that I have suffered since I was a child, a problem that has caused me to pass out after having blood tests, even going so far as to have convulsions. This problem is not “a child’s thing” as many think/scoff, since it is suffered by more than 20% of the ADULT population, leading to avoiding medical check-ups and generally lasting for life. Or not: I am not sure that I have completely “overcome” this problem (regretting it, I do not think I will ever become a blood donor) but I have found one, rather several, solutions, and recently I was able to verify that they work in rhinoplasty (that would be the subject of another post), for which, as is done in all operations, I had a blood test and an intraveous (which stayed there from before the operation until the next day). It should be noted that I had never had surgery with total anesthesia, nor had I been hospitalized or with an IV on my arm. All this added to my already known fear of blood tests, which were done on the same day of the surgery in the morning (the surgery was in the afternoon). The whole process, from the blood test to the surgery to the post-surgery, went well, at no time did I panic, nor did I get dizzy, nor did I pass out or anything. And that has been a SUPER ACHIEVEMENT for me, perhaps one of the greatest achievements of my life.

Once the context is explained, I will explain point by point the things I did to face the operation (the last thing I worried about was how my nose would look, hahaha). I cannot say for sure which of the things worked more or less, phobias have a great psychological component and, in the case of belonephobia, they have physical consequences (dizziness, fainting …), so it is difficult to know which factor can work for whom. I have been researching what could be done for a long time and I am sure that some things will be a novelty.

1. Psychological preparation: knowing what happens in belonephobia and how to avoid it. A characteristic feature of belonephobia compared to other phobias is fainting, the so-called vasovagal syncope. This occurs because the nervousness itself causes blood pressure to rise and then fall suddenly at the time of the blood draw, leading to what is fainting itself. In fact, the fear of needles is not so much a fear of needles or blood itself, but a fear of pain and especially of fainting. That is why I love and do electrolysis hair removal to myself, an activity that in some way involved the use of “needles”, and at the same time I have belonephobia. Belonephobia and fainting are usually a family issue, something that is inherited. The technique that is recommended to avoid vasovagal syncope is “applied tension”, a technique that consists of tightening the muscles of the legs, trunk and arms (not in the extraction arm) at the time the extraction is taking place, so that the maintenance of high blood pressure is artificially caused, avoiding fainting. The book where I learned it is called Overcoming Medical Phobias (available electronically). In this book they also talk about gradual exposure, a psychological technique that is used for other phobias as well. A phobia is an extreme fear. Fear has an evolutionary reason: to save us from danger, either by fleeing or fighting. In the case of belonephobia, the fear of fainting, or of the pain of extraction, causes blood pressure to rise and then fall rapidly. Gradual exposure tries to reduce or eliminate that fear. In my case, what I did was watching videos of blood draws and IV insertions. At first I got a little dizzy and had to lie down quickly on the bed, but after repeating it I improved. Also, watching the videos helped me to normalize the situation. The videos I watched were these:

Aprende extracción de sangre

Aprende extracción de sangre con palomita

Aprende a canalizar vía intravenosa

2. Having breakfast. The fact that most blood tests require fasting does not help, since many people have lower blood pressure in the morning and that , added fasting (possible hypoglycemia) and nervousness…I want to emphasize (and it is something that is seldom said) that NOT ALL BLOOD TESTS REQUIRE FASTING. In fact, I had my pre-surgery blood test after having a good breakfast, and that helped. Then I did the 6 hours of fasting(without drinking water) that must be done before surgery. In general, fasting before blood tests is required so that the resulting values are not altered, and especially to test glucose levels. But, for example, a hormonal analysis may not need to be done on an empty stomach. Neither pre-surgery blood tests, which I suppose will evaluate clotting. Glucose, I think, can be assessed with a fingertip test, which could avoid the fasting and requirement for common blood tests in people who have a hard time, by doing the glucose test with a fingertip stick.

3. Take a tranquilizer. On one of the occasions when I passed out with convulsions after a blood test, the nurse suggested that in the future I should take a tranquilizer before taking blood tests, since it would not affect the results. It worked a couple of times, then I forgot to do it or I didn’t have it (these pills require a prescription). On previous occasions, what I took was Diazepam (I don’t remember how many grams): one the night before to sleep well and another the same day before going to have my blood test. On this occasion, the surgeon himself had given me a tranquilizer (they generally do it with all patients, even if they do not have belonephobia, because being calm helps the surgery go better). It was called Lexatin and it was 3 mg. I could have taken it the night before, but I preferred to take it in the morning with breakfast, since I had surgery in the afternoon and I was afraid it would be too many hours for the effect to last if I took it the night before. When I took Diazepam, perhaps because I was taking two, the feeling was similar to being drunk, not euphoric but kind of groggy and happy, and a bit clumsy. But this time I didn’t feel any of those things, I was just calm, but more normal than with Diazepam. I recommend reading the instructions carefully to see how long the tranquilizer takes to have its maximum effect and for how many hours it lasts, and thus calculate when to take it.

4. The usual recommendations. I don’t want to miss common recommendations that are also very valid, such as asking to be laid down on a stretcher (specially to avoid hitting yourself in the event of fainting) and getting up slowly after the extraction. Also think about other things, be distracted, do not look… If you have to do the blood test on an empty stomach, have a chocolate to eat immediately after the extraction.

5. Try other extraction sites. The inside of the elbow is the most common place for extraction, because there is a thick vein that looks good and in theory it hurts little because it is quite protruding. But this is not always the case for everyone. I already had my suspicions that my problem with blood draws could have to do with the collection site, and I have practically confirmed that it is true. Surely you are familiar with the story that if you squeeze a person in I do not know what points of the neck they will faint immediately. Well, I have the impression that something similar happens to me with the inside of the elbow. And I am quite convinced because once I fainted after having my blood pressure taken, since the doctor had squeezed the inside part of my elbow with the auscultation device. One of the readers of this blog told me that blood tests can also be done by extracting blood from other places, such as the back of the hand. Looking on the Internet, I saw that young children often have their blood drawn with a “butterfly”, which is like a butterfly with a finer needle that draws blood from finer veins (like those on the back of the hand). Then that blood goes through a tube into the sample tube. When I watched the extraction videos, I was much less impressed to see extractions from the back of the hand than from the inside of the elbow. On the surgery day I told the nurse that I had to lie down, that I tend to dizziness (you always have to tell them this) and that I wanted them to extract my blood with a butterflywinglet from the back of the hand. She was somewhat reluctant; I suppose because for them the usual practice is much easier and faster. But she agreed and proceeded to do so. It did not hurt at all more than the inside of the elbow (I had asked in many nursing places on the Internet and they always told me that the back of the hand hurts more). But unfortunately, something happened, the tube broke and she had to start again. In spite of all this, I was still calm (I had taken the tranquilizer), trying to stress my legs and trunk and not looking at what she was doing. Then she told me that it was better to do it on the inside of the elbow, but I insisted saying no. And what she did was to perform the extraction in the part of the forearm that is near the wrist, towards the inside side. This is the place where they later put the intravenous line, but on the other arm. And it is a place that doesn’t hurt at all. This second extraction attempt was also made with a butterfly and she asked me to open and close my hand, because as the veins are thinner and the extraction was performed with a fine needle and a small tube, it takes longer for the blood to come out and fill the tube. But since it wasn’t painful at all, I wasn’t looking and I was calm, I was able to do it. So, the inside part of the forearm has been quite a discovery as an extraction site. Also, always on the inside of the elbow, and this time on the back of my hand (unsuccessful attempt) I had a bruise, while on the inside of the forearm, both where they extracted my blood and where they put the intravenous line, there was not bruise. My theory with this is that it is better to puncture in a place that does not move, that is not a joint. Both the inside of the elbow and the back of the hand (where there is also the problem that there are many tendons) are places of great mobility, it is very difficult to stop moving the arm or hand. However, the forearm is like a stick, like a log, I mean that it does not move, it is not a joint. That is why it does not bruise or hurt or make it difficult to keep the intravenous line in place.

6. Use Emla anesthetic cream. Emla lidocaine cream is an old acquaintance to me. I started using it for laser hair removal and then for electrolysis hair removal. It would have been very difficult to epilate my mustache with electrolysis without it. It is also used for tattoos. This cream got a bad name because some people who went overboard with its use and had a bad adverse reaction. But for that to happen to you, you have to use a whole bottle (30 gr) or more. In fact, for injections there is an Emla in a tiny version to use only at the puncture site. I had already tried using Emla on a blood draw, but I did not work very well because I did not leave it long enough and did not put plastic on it. For it to work well and fully anesthetize the skin, it must be left between an hour and an hour and a half and be covered with a plastic wrap. Once it is removed, the full effect lasts about 10-20 minutes at most, in my experience. Then it goes away. That is why it is necessary to calculate very well when to apply the cream (although the instructions say that it can be left up to 5 hours, I do not think it is very effective that way), in order to achieve a good occlusive effect with the plastic and remove it just before the extraction. This time I had done it right, putting cream all over the back of the hand, wrist and lower forearm and covering it until I had my blood test done. And later, knowing at what time the surgery would take place, I did the same an hour and a half in advance, on the other hand and forearm. I have read that Emla can somewhat change the color of the skin and make it difficult for the veins to be seen, but it was not my case.

7. Buzzy: vibration against pain. More than a year ago (I had postponed this surgery several times) I bought a device that I saw on the Internet. It is designed for children so that injections, extractions and so on do not hurt. Basically, it is a vibrator in the shape of a bee that is placed 10 cm from the place of the puncture and it is assumed that with the vibrations it prevents the sending of the pain signal. It comes with some “wings” that should be put in the freezer, since cold plus the vibrations are supposed to produce the anesthetic effect. The problem with cold is that it can cause veins to hide and make extractions difficult. On this occasion, I took the device to the hospital, but I forgot to use it for the extraction, and I didn’t take it with me either when they put me the intravenous line before the surgery. I did use it when my intravenous line was removed the next day. I was very scared about it because I had heard that it hurts a lot to remove it, and it was not like that (at least in the forearm I think it is not like that). I tried to put the buzzy in the forearm but the nurse was so quick to get the intravenous line out that I didn’t have the time. This is the gadget page: https://buzzyhelps.com/

8. Promising innovations. What I have explained so far, in combination, helped me go through surgery in such a calm way that I still can’t believe it. But during the research I did, I found super interesting innovations, which unfortunately are not yet available (or not in Spain) but which hopefully will be soon. They seem wonderful, not only for people with belonephobia but also for children and in general for everyone.

The first big innovation are devices for drawing blood from capillaries in the upper arm. As I explained before, I think for some reason vein extraction hurts more than capillary extraction, but it is also faster. I found up to three companies (two American and one European) that are developing devices that draw blood from capillaries in the upper arm, with virtually no pain. I contacted all of them, and either the device was not available (in the case of the Swiss one) or only in the United States or it was only sold to healthcare personnel. Anyway, sooner or later there will be access to this device and the fear of blood tests will be a thing of the past. Here you have the links of the three companies:

Tasso.inc

Seventh Sense Biosystems

Loop Medical

I discovered the other innovation a couple of days before my surgery. It is a kind of syringe called Jtip that injects lidocaine without puncturing, expelling the lidocaine with pressure on the skin. When I saw it I was amazed because I did not imagine that such a technique existed, injecting without puncturing through a pressure device. The effect that is achieved is the same as that of the Emla: to sleep the area so that the extractions or the placements of intravenous lines do not hurt. The big difference is that the effect is immediate: the lidocaine expelled in this way takes just 1 minute to take effect and sleep the area for about 20 minutes, compared to the minimum of an hour that you have to wait with Emla. Therefore, it would be especially suitable in emergency situations, when it is necessary to puncture quickly. If it is something programmed like what I had, you can allow yourself to put the Emla on and wait for it to take effect. In addition, the possible problem that the veins are less visible after having the Emla cream on for a long time is eliminated. Like Emla, I think this gadget could have a very good application for electrolysis hair removal. I leave here the link of the company: J-Tip. Needle-Free Injection System

I am very grateful for having found a solution to this problem that I had been enduring since I was a child. Just like when I discovered electrolysis hair removal, it has been a great achievement for me and I want to share it with everyone. Therefore, even if you do not have this problem, I encourage you to share this information with those who do or who have small children. To those who have never had this problem, it may seem silly, just as it happens to me when someone is afraid of flying or spiders, but you have to know how to put yourself in the other’s place and above all not to make fun of these type of problems, because those who suffer them have a really bad time. 

Until next post!!

*To buy the products I speak about (I only recommend products that I’ve tested):

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

*From the United States:

·Lidocaine pain relief cream: https://amzn.to/2FPFelh

·Buzzy: https://amzn.to/2ZTLvDF

*From Mexico:

·Emla: https://amzn.to/2EfCUUc

·Buzzy: https://www.buzzy.com.mx/

*From Spain:

·Crema anestésica Emla (de venta en farmacias, sin receta): https://www.sin-receta.com/medicamentos/comprar-emla-crema-sin-receta/

·Buzzy: https://amzn.to/2RUnzMh

Retin-A: Use with Caution

Hello everyone!!

In this month’s post, I am going to talk about a product that, at least until a few months ago, was unknown to me: Retin-A (as they call it in Latin America) or Retirides (known by this name in Spain). If you read my post about acne and Roacután, you will know that I strongly defend its use to defeat acne for good, despite the urban legends and horror stories that some people tell about. I defend it because it went well for me and for all the people I know personally and who had this treatment well, and it’s been like that until today. That said and taking into account that I had this treatment 13 years ago, I have to say that occasionally I have a pimple mainly due to my period, but nothing worrisome. It helps that I am very careful with the products I put on my skin and very scrupulous with hygiene (I never touch my face, I use towels that are exclusive for my face, I change the pillowcase often, I use little and mineral makeup, aloe vera …) . I also take great care of my diet, this and the changes I have made over the years are something that I will talk about in another post.

But getting to the point, in November of last year, I suddenly got one of those horrible-big-painful-pimples with pus in the middle of my face. For me there are serious and non-serious places where you can get a pimple, and in the face, that is, the cheeks, is the worst place. It is the worst place because that is where the serious-cystic-the kind that leaves marks acne occurs. So obviously I panicked, because it hadn’t happened to me in over a decade. Yes, I had the typical pimples in the T zone (forehead-nose-chin) and impurities in my neckline, which is also oily, but not those type of pimples. What I did was wait for the pimple to fully develop, and it took almost 3 weeks!! I tried not to rub it when washing my face, to sleep on the opposite side of my face so as not to spread bacteria, obviously not to put on makeup there…When it had grown up, I put some iodine on it, because I heard that you shouldn’t put alcohol on it, but then I heard the opposite, that you shouldn’t put iodine on it… It ended up disappearing, but left a round red mark, and I didn’t exploit it or anything. To this day you can hardly see it, but that confirms my theory that there are harmless pimples and mass destruction pimples of mass destruction (like that one).

Apart from the food issues that I will address in another post, I began to investigate what could I do, because at the cosmetic-hygiene level I already considered that I did everything well. And that’s where I discovered Retin-A or Retirides. It is an ointment with the same active ingredient as Roacutan (tretinoin) that occurs in concentrations of 0.025%, 0.050% and 0.1%. I saw some videos and blogs that talked about it (the most scientific one: Cómo se aplica el Retirides), and I decided to try it.

The good thing about being an ointment is that it does not pass through the liver or have as much risk to health as Roacután, but obviously its effectiveness is lower and slower. It would be like a light version of Roacután. Doctors recommend starting with the lowest concentration and going up, because it is a strong ingredient and reactions on the skin may occur (redness, skin peeling… I bought it after the horrible pimple because another one came out right next to it, confirming my other theory that bacteria in pimples move… In analogy with what happens now with the virus of the moment, if a mass destruction pimple comes out, you have to take serious measures as soon as possible to prevent it from spreading. And since I only wanted the ointment for that, because I was not willing to buy a bottle of 0.025% or 0.050%, spend it (which could take me months or years, since the recommendation is to apply a very small quantity and only twice a week) and then buy another one with 0.1% concentration. Also, it seems to me that there is quite a difference between the concentration of the first two and the third one. So, I started buying the 0.1%, the maximum concentration. As happens when having Roacután, this ointment can cause the area where you put it to peel (but not your lips constantly or as heavy as it happens with Roacutan), and it causes your skin very sensitive to sun (I have no problem with this because I am very careful, although in my daily routine I do not use sunscreen (normally).

In my case, when I applied it, my skin itched a little, but nothing else. It should  always be applied at night and with dry skin. And well, the start of massive destruction on my cheek luckily stopped, applying the ointment to the area twice a week. On the rest of the face I did not dare to put it on, because it is supposed to have the same effect as Roacutan: multiply by 6 the rate at which the skin is renewed and “bring out” hidden comedones. I had no intention of seeing what would happen because the rest of my face is fine so I didn’t want to risk it. I say this because Retin-A is also used a lot to eliminate spots and as an anti-wrinkles ointment: many people use it, let’s say, as an anti-aging cream. What I have done lately is to put it on my nose, to see if it reduces the appearance of pores, and on my neckline, because it is very oily and impurities form. I’ve noticed a great improvement in my neckline, not that much on my nose.

In Mexico Retin-A is sold without a prescription, but in Spain, Retirides must be prescribed by a dermatologist. However, Retirides is sold in Andorra without a prescription, so one can go there or maybe buy it online. In the United States, you can find it as Retinoid.

So now you know, if you decide to try this pseudo-Roacutàn, use it with caution!

Until next post!!!

*To buy the products I speak about (I only recommend products that I’ve tested):

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases

*From the United States:

·Retinoid 0.1%: https://amzn.to/35PO2m8

*From Mexico:

·Retin-A 0.1%: https://amzn.to/33Iizzx

*From Spain:

·Retirides 0.1% (disponible sin receta en farmacias de Andorra): https://www.farmaciaenandorra.com/shop/retirides-01-30g

UPDATE!!: read my post Double cleaning: oil+soap

Don’t buy aloe vera, have an aloe vera plant!!

Hello!!

In this month’s post I’m going to talk about my new discovery for (facial) skin care. Well it’s not really a discovery because I have been using aloe vera on my face for many years, but now I have switched to real pure aloe vera, straight from the plant. A few years ago, my mother bought an aloe vera plant and we had it on the windowsill in the bathroom. I tried to cut a stalk (leaf) and put the gel on, what was left over we kept in a glass in the fridge. The problem with this method is that there is a lot of gel left over and the gel spoils in a couple of days, even if it is in the fridge. That is why commercial gels, no matter how organic and pure they may be, carry some preservatives (like all cosmetics). Not that this is wrong, but of course I think that if aloe is only aloe, then much better.

That plant died and I did not try the natural method again. Also of course it is much more practical to have the aloe in a container that you take anywhere, put it on and that’s it. For years I used one from the Canary Islands that had very few ingredients, it was called Aloveria. I liked it a lot but they stopped selling it in El Corte Inglés and I didn’t want to spend more to buy it directly from the company, because of the shipping costs. With that and with the proliferation of eco stores and online commerce, I began to buy other brands of aloe on the Internet. I didn’t like them as much as Aloveria but they were organic brands, with pure aloe as the first ingredient, and they were cheap. My skin always felt somehow tight when I put aloe on, I thought it was normal because I had read that aloe, although it hydrates a lot, creates an effect like when you put a facial mask on the skin and it dries. What started to bother me is when I noticed that my skin was peeling a little. This happened with an Italian brand of aloe that I bought online and … surprise! Looking carefully at the ingredients list, I saw that it contained alcohol. I could not believe that I, who supposedly already knew all the tricks of the cosmetic industry, had fallen into that error. All for believing that since it was sold in an organic store it would be very pure and such. So I switched to another (made sure it didn’t have alcohol or too many ingredients). But I was wrong again. It turns out that one day reading a blog I found that now there are pages so that one can see what are the ingredients in cosmetics, for all the controversy that has been going on about lead on lipsticks, carcinogenic ingredients and endocrine disruptors etc. The page that I used is called cosdna.com. I put the ingredients in my new aloe vera gel and it turned out that it contained polymers (a petroleum derivative) and sodium hydroxide. I already talked about sodium hydroxide in another post. It is an irritating and very drying ingredient. Although it is widely used in natural cosmetics, especially to make soaps and shampoos, I think a soap that you rinse is not the same as a gel you put on your skin to absorb it. After investigating I saw that it is precisely something that irritates the skin of many people. So that encouraged me to try the natural method again.

I bought an aloe vera plant for 4 euros in a greenhouse, with its pot included. The aloe vera plant is very easy to care for, you only need to water it once a week and keep it at a warm temperature, tending to hot (between 15-25 degrees). In winter it can simply be kept indoors in an illuminated place, and in summer on a window ledge. It is not recommended to leave aloe in direct sunlight (at least not all day), so that the leaves do not get “burn”.

To use aloe vera, what you do is to cut a stalk that is on the outside. That stalk will then grow on its own. You clean any mud and put in a glass with some water on the part where the aloe gel is visible. This is to release the aloin, a kind of iodine that the plant has and that can be irritating. I left the leaf 24 hours and this was the water’s appearance:

The next step is to peel the leaf, making two cuts on the sides and opening it. The gel is removed and, at this time, what can be done is to put it directly in an ice bucket or to liquefy it with a hand rod mixer (and then you distribute the liquid aloe in the ice bucket)(don’t use any water!). If you choose the liquefy method, aloe vera lasts more, since you’re using all the aloe. If you don’t liquefy it you’re just using the liquid on the surface of the aloe pulp. Besides, if you don’t liquefy it, take into account that the aloe vera pulp is a bit messy to handle, it feels like snail drool.

Once the aloe pulp or liquid has been distributed in the ice bucket, it is put in the freezer and in a few hours the aloe cubes can be removed into a Ziploc bag. What I do is to take an ice cube out and put it in a small glass (one of those for shots) and I leave the small glass in the fridge. There the ice cube thaws, and I already have a dose of cold aloe vera, which lasts for about two or three days in pulp, and more if it was previously liquefied. I apply it twice a day, morning and night).

What I have noticed with this new method is that my skin is no longer dry, tight or peeling. You only notice some tightness in the first seconds of putting it on. It seems wonderful to me and it does not involve so much work, in addition to being cheaper than buying commercial aloe gel. The only difficulty I see is when it comes to traveling, for trips of more than 3 days and without access to a refrigerator. If not, just pop a cube or two in an empty cream container and you’re done.

I hope you like this information !! Until the next post!

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Shampoos, hairbrushes and showers

Hello everyone!!

In this month’s post I will continue along the same lines as the previous one, talking about hair discoveries. Given my intention to reduce industrial cosmetics to the maximum or eliminate them completely (news about toxic ingredients in lipstick are nothing new) and my success in covering gray hair with henna, is no wonder I’m not satisfied with just using any supermarket shampoo/conditioner/mask products. Also, since I like to be as minimalist as possible, I have been searching for the simplest formula for months.

Well, I had heard about solid shampoos and about how convenient they are when travelling, but I had not tried them. For a long time I used the traditional yellow Johnson & Johnson (baby shampoo), because shampoos for babies’ ingredients contain less “shit” (although there have also been alarms for toxic ingredients in this type of shampoo). So, I started to look at solid shampoos and I think I have found the one that suits me very well, lasts a long time (another advantage of solid shampoos is that, since they are not diluted in water, they yield more) and it is decently priced for its duration. The shampoo I like is this one:

I also bought the container to put the donut-shape shampoo, and in the shower I simply leave it resting on the soap holder, because the hook that came with the shampoo doesn’t work. The ingredients of this shampoo are:

This shampoo also has versions for greasy, colored, children hair… but its composition does not vary much. I had tried another one that contained the typical caustic soda/sodium hydroxide that grandmothers’ shampoos/soaps used to have and that is still used a lot for homemade cosmetics today, but with that ingredient my hair looked too dull. As I dye my hair with henna, it is normal for my hair to get a little dull in the first wash after dyeing because there is still some mud residue, but by the second wash it is already perfect. And what I do after washing my hair and having it with a towel for 5 minutes is to spray it with white vinegar. Vinegar works as a conditioner for your hair (and for clothes in the washing machine, as well as cleaning the whole house along with baking soda). I use regular white vinegar because it is much cheaper than apple vinegar, and the effect is the same. Don’t worry about the smell because it goes away when your hair dries. And that is all, my friends! Henna, solid shampoo bar and vinegar, the 3 products I use for hair. Very cheap, ecological and non-toxic.

I am not going to dwell too much on the dangers of industrial shampoos, as there are already thousands of articles and blog entries that explain the harmfulness of parabens (endocrine disruptors), silicones (they damage hair) and sulfates (they cause dye to last less and they spoil hair). In addition to that, with industrial shampoos hair lasts clean much less time. The transition from industrial shampoos to natural shampoos can be a bit difficult (we seem to be doing better with industrial shampoos), but it takes a few washes. I do not usually use hair masks, but if I want to use it, I would simply put coconut oil before washing my hair and that’s it. And aloe vera gel works very well as hair gel, although I don’t use it either.

My hair is thick and strong, and although it may seem like an advantage, it is also complicated to deal with. Except when I straighten it, I do not brush my hair every day, only when I’m going to brush it (that is, every 4 or 5 days). And  I need a good detangling hairbrush, especially after applying henna. I have looked for hairbrushes that would help me detangle my hair easily, and the two best I have found are these:

The Tangle Teezer hairbrush detangles very well and is made of plastic, so it is easy to clean in the dishwasher. It detangles very well, you can use it also in the shower with your conditioner (or vinegar). I also bought the Mason Pearson hairbrush because I saw a Victoria’s Secret model recommending it 😊. It has surprised me because it is indeed very good. Since I already had the Tangle Teezer, I bought it in the bag version to carry in my bag (it’s cheaper that way) and I love it. I have it in blue and with nylon bristles (white ones, for thick hair). If your hair is medium (neither very thick nor very fine) there is a version with nylon and boar bristles, and if your hair is very fine with only boar bristles (the dark ones). I already had a boar bristle wood hairbrush, so I bought the nylon one.

For frizz (it happens in humid places and after drying my hair) I sometimes use a wooden comb. It is also good to roll your hair with a microfiber towel or a cotton shirt Anyway, the best thing for frizz is to iron your hair a little.

Finally, speaking of showering, I wanted to take the opportunity to point out that it is not necessary to lather the whole body every time we shower, and less with industrial soaps, because it causes too much dryness. I use the same soap for my body as for the face (Dr.Bronner’s) or a baby one (Mustela). I only use soap daily for my private parts armpits and feet. For the rest of the body, soaping it once a week is more than enough. This way the skin does not dry out so much and you do not need moisturizer after the shower. By the way, the best body creams, in my opinion, are coconut oil and shea butter.

Until next month!!

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I dye my hair with henna

In a previous post I already talked about my interest in henna. Since I started to have some gray hair (around 28-30 years old) I tried to use a natural dye, that would not complicate my life too much and in my own color. As I had heard ugly stories (from people I know closely) about serious allergies, damaged hair, sick people who are forbidden to dye their hair… I decided I would use only vegetable dyes. I tried the Apivita and Herbalife ones in dark brown, and they worked quite well. But the truth is that they are expensive (even if I only use half a box per month) and although they are softer than the usual supermarket dye, they as well contain an equivalent to hydrogen peroxide and chemicals that I do not like at all. I didn’t want to spend too much money in dyes at the hairdresser (stop thefts!). Also, several people had already told me about henna and I wanted to try it. The problem is that in all the research I did on the internet it appeared that it is not effective in covering gray hair, and that it stained everything, so that discouraged me a lot. But I decided to try after talking to someone who assured me that it does cover gray hair.

Since I wanted a color similar color to mine (dark brown), I bought Radhe Shyam’s Indigo Henna Mix (specifically the deep brown color). Actually, the mix has more indigo than henna (the order of ingredients in the products goes from most to least, this also works for food ingredients). Indigo is the blue dye used to dye jeans, and just like jeans, it fades with washes. Mixing indigo with henna brings out the dark color. In fact, there are people who only use indigo to dye their hair black. The world of henna includes mixtures with plants to achieve different colors, shine… But what really covers gray hair is henna, which gives a reddish color to gray hair and blends with the natural hair color.

My experience with the indigo + henna mixture was not good. And I gave it several opportunities (about 4 or 5 applications) testing the application in different ways. To begin with, the indigo left black stains on my towel, collar, nails, hairbrush … a disaster. And I did not feel that the gray was covered well (indeed, the component that dyes gray hair is henna, and it comes in less quantity than indigo in the deep brown color). In addition, as I investigated later, the two plants have different ways of working: for henna you have to mix with water at a higher temperature and the indigo with less, the acid (for example from vinegar) that makes henna work better inhibits the indigo color… a mess, too complicated. In fact, they recommend that you dye first with henna alone to cover the gray hair and then with indigo to achieve the dark color. Just the complications that I don’t want.

So I decided to try henna alone. I was worried that the result would be weird as I have dark hair and gray hairs would be red. But hey, I don’t have that many either so it couldn’t be so horrible. I found a book called Henna for Hair. How-To Henna, by Catherine Cartwright-Jones, year 2006. Apparently it is the result of a doctoral thesis on henna. You can find it for free on the hennaforhair.com page. On this page they explain many things about henna, and the book is very interesting, it contains historical and practical information. In the book they explain how, experimenting with dyes in sheep’s wool, they saw that the color was much better mixing the henna with acid, and not with water (doesn’t matter temperature) as they usually recommend in the manufacturers’ instructions (in fact, another very famous and more expensive brand than Radhe Shyam, even though their dyes contain the same ingredients, is Khadi, who even sells you a thermometer to check that you have the perfect temperature for henna, purely to create unnecessary purchases). So, I started using the henna alone, preparing it the night before with white vinegar, and heating the mixture in double-boiler the next morning. And boy did it work. The gray hair was covered perfectly, and it does not look strange with my color, it looks like highlights. In the rest of the hair, you hardly notice anything, maybe some red highlights in the sun. This is perhaps because my hair is very thick and does not hold the color as much, but I repeat that gray hair is perfectly covered and it does not go away. In fact, I see perfectly when I need to dye again because my hair has grown, but the gray that is already dyed keeps red.

Another hotly debated issue is the issue of application. On the page and book that I have recommended they say that henna must be applied with clean hair, not so much because it cannot be applied with dirty hair but because they tell you that after the application (in my case I leave it 4 hours but a lot people have results in less time, although less than 2 hours would not be recommended) henna should only be rinsed with water, without shampoo. Then you should allow two or three days for the henna to release all the pigment in your hair when oxidizing, and then wash the hair. I did it like this the first few times, but it was very difficult for me to spend 3 days with traces of mud in my hair, which although they were not noticeable, left my hair very dull. In addition, this procedure involved washing my hair, then applying the henna (I tried both dry and wet) and then rinsing it in the shower. I wash my hair every 4-5 days, I have a lot of hair and it takes time to dry even with a hairdryer, so this process was too cumbersome and time-consuming. So, I tried applying it like regular dyes (on dirty hair and shampooing after application) and voilà, it worked just as well. So one less complication. In short, now the only different thing that henna implies compared to a normal dye is the time that I leave it on. Yes, it is more messy to apply, but a friend from work comes over and puts it on me in no time. Update: Iater I also learn to apply it myself. 😊

So I am very happy with the results of the henna. First, it’s very cheap: less than 3 euros for a box of Radhe Shyam that currently serves me for two applications, I buy the color “natural copper”, which is the one that contains only henna. Do not get confused with other brands that come from India, if you are in Spain, this brand is cheap, has been around for many years and has the eco certification. I cannot opine about the efficacy and ingredients of other colors, but for pure henna I would choose Radhe Shyam. Second, after about eight attempts, I finally discovered the most efficient/least cumbersome/least time-consuming way to apply it: mix with vinegar the night before, apply on dirty hair the next morning, leave it 4 hours and wash afterwards. I don’t know why people get so complicated, or maybe it’s a matter of what works for some and for others. On the mentioned page and on forums they recommend not using sulfate shampoos because it would damage the color, although I don’t think it’s that bad either. I will talk about sulfate-free, solid shampoos and other hair discoveries in the next post. Well, from the photos I have seen, it seems that brown/fine hairs get very caught by the red/copper tone, it is very beautiful. Not for me, as I said I just have some red highlights. The gray hairs are orange/reddish but with the days they blend more with the hair color.

Henna does not stain anywhere near as the mixture I used of indigo + henna, but in my case it does leave some smears on the hairbrush. Not so on clothes, sheets or pillow. In any case, some mud that may take a few washes to completely go away (but you can’t see anything in the hair, it looks completely clean) can help those with oily hair to space out washes. I don’t have greasy hair, but I don’t feel that henna has dried it out. In fact, henna in addition to dyeing is supposed to nourish and make hair thicker (I didn’t need more of this, but anyway).

I will continue with hair news 😊

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A small summary

Hello everyone!!

This month’s post is going to be a compilation of everything I’ve been writing about on the blog, since I started with three posts in 2015, until I decided to take it more seriously and write a monthly post as part of my goals for the year in 2017.

When I started the blog I wanted to share things that I had discovered by myself, especially through the Internet and from my own experience and that of others, over the years. They were doubts, questions that do not appear so much in beauty magazines and on blogs and YouTube channels, or that in the case of appearing I considered they had wrong or incomplete answers (such as taking the pill if you have acne or resorting to laser if you have hair on your face…). I really wanted to address problems and solutions that I thought were not being publicized enough.

In 2015 I explained how the irrigator (in its eco-friendly and cheap version, the Italian So-Wash) is the secret weapon that dentists do not want you to discover, along with the coconut oil + bicarbonate toothpaste. A toothpaste that also works as a deodorant. I also published the most visited and consulted entry of the entire blog, the one that talks about electrolysis hair removal. A post that I updated later showing the progress of my “do it yourself” results in this regard.

In 2017, I started talking about my experience with hirsutism and acne, I defended Roacutan and Ovusitol against the contraceptive pill and I talked about some simple and cheap measures like aloe vera, castile soap (Dr. Bronners), the importance of changing face towels and the pillowcase (better if it is made of silk) often. I have also talked about the importance of nutrition (the now fashionable smoothies) for the skin and the little-known mineral makeup.

Also in 2017 I dared to confess the existence of tonsil stones and anal blackheads, in the most eschatological blog post. I spoke again about hair, but this time about hair on the head: I was interested in henna as an alternative to dyes and allergies, but I was worried that it would not cover gray hair well.

I also talked about health issues, such as period pain, and how I try to control them by always keeping omeprazole and ibuprofen close at hand, in my emergency bag. Or the problem of belonephobia, so poorly treated by most health professionals and which causes serious trauma to many people. I still hadn’t found a definitive solution to this issue, but reading the book Overcoming Medical Phobias gave me some hope. Trying psychological treatments (hypnosis, neurolinguistic programming) gradual exposure (with images, videos…) and using the applied tension of the muscles could be the key. In my case, I also think that choosing a different site from which to draw the blood (perhaps the hand and not the inside of the elbow) could have an influence. I’ve been working on this for the past few months, and I’ve gone from feeling a bit dizzy just reading or watching videos about it, to being able to tolerate it (at least from a distance). I also think that the time of day influences, since for example I have the lowest blood pressure and I am weaker in the morning, which is precisely when the blood extraction procedure is done (and on an empty stomach). A reader advised me to use Buzzy and I have it ready to try in the future. What I’d really like to try though is the Seventh Sense Biosystems TAP. I keep writing them to see how to acquire it but it seems that at the moment only certain laboratories have it (I have also written to them and they do not respond). I hope it is only a matter of time, because it gives me the impression that there may be the solution. Other alternatives are the use of Vacutainer or butterfly needles for extractions. I had considered these alternatives, so I would also like to try. Anyway, hopefully in the future I can write a post explaining how I finally solved the issue. It would be my personal big hit on these issues, along with the discovery of electrolysis :))

In the blog I have also shared my personal manias, such as my rejection to long nails (which does not mean that I do not take care of my hands), my rejection of feet, of absurd fashion stupidities like ripped pants, my horror of intestinal parasites and of noise. And I have defended the use of the forgotten bidet, protection from the sun but not with creams, internal and external hydration and attention to the lymphatic system.

Some posts include novel therapies, such as the natural solution to myopia (including much cheaper glasses), a problem that I had previously discussed. In this regard, I recently read a piece of news about some drops to solve myopia developed by a university in Israel … I’ll be watching too. Hopefully ending myopia without surgery will my third hit :))

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·Buzzy: https://amzn.to/2ZTLvDF

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·Buzzy: https://www.buzzy.com.mx/

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·Buzzy: https://amzn.to/2RUnzMh

Silk pillowcases

Hello!!

In this month’s post I am going to talk about something that I think many people don’t know. At least I did not know it and when I found out about it it seemed very logical. This is a beauty hack that comes pays off over time. Let’s get to the point: rather, to the wrinkle.

For some time it has been circulating on the Internet that using silk pillowcases reduces the formation of wrinkles. Even at 33 years old wrinkles are not something that worries me too much, perhaps because of how long it took me to get out of the acne trauma. But I think it is time to pay a little attention to this issue. As I said in the post about the sun, for me the most important thing in terms of wrinkles is that the sun does not shine on your face. Like a geisha face. Not to mention the formation of spots, moles, etc. that one prevents. Another very important aspect is to drink water, not to smoke or drink alcohol, not to apply too much foundation because the skin does not breathe (sorry for those who cannot do without this, however, a good option is mineral makeup). I am not a fan of anti-wrinkle-anti-aging creams nor do I use them, I also said in another post that it seems more useful, when the time comes, to invest that money in going to a doctor and getting filled with vitamins-hyaluronic acid-collagen and so on, than go around testing unnatural creams.

But back to silk pillowcases. According to Dr. Google, it is an Asian (I think Chinese) beauty hack that has been used for centuries. The idea is that cotton is a moisture-wicking fabric: that’s why towels are made of cotton. So, if one spends 8 hours a day sleeping, all her life, with her face resting on a cotton pillowcase, what happens is that her skin loses water, becomes dehydrated, and that favors the appearance of wrinkles. In addition, having your face resting on the pillow causes it to “squeeze”, waking up with pillow marks on the face, and wrinkles form as well. And not only on the face but also, to those who have big breasts, in the neckline. Ideally, you should sleep on your back and not rest your face on either side. I’m trying to sleep on my back, but it seems a bit impossible. Does anyone sleep on their back? So, buying some silk covers (which because of the material are soft and do not “rub” against the skin or take away moisture) seemed much more feasible.

I started searching and it turns out that real silk pillowcase are quite expensive. Although they do seem like a good investment, because they can last you many years. But what I did was to buy some that, although they are called “Spasilk”,  are not made of silk. They are made of polyester. This fabric comes from oil and resists moisture, so is not recommended for shirts. Well, that’s supposed to be what we want for the face, that the pillowcase doesn’t absorb the moisture from our skin.

According to the Internet, silk pillowcases also help prevent hair from frizz and prevent acne. Regarding the latter, I have already explained that I use each pillowcase 4 times (one for each side, then I reverse it and use it other two times). I do this because my face and hair rest there each night, and they’re not always that clean.

Finally I bought a real silk pillowcase. Y already had the White Lotus silk sleeping mask. I only use it for naps, because where I live now they don’t know what blinds are and I like sleeping in darkness. This brand also has silk pillowcases.

Silk pillowcases, an Asian luxury

Until next post!!

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Mineral makeup

Hello everyone!!

In this month’s post I am going to talk about mineral makeup. I have already spoken about issues related to the skin, such as acne, how to prevent it with hygiene and nutrition measures, how I clean and hydrate my skin … But I realized that I had not talked about makeup, so let’s go.

I don’t use makeup every day, I just use a bit of blush and Burt’s Bees lipbalm or a very soft lipstick from Ere Pérez. I don’t like having paint on my face every day, and since my skin looks good, I don’t think I need it either. I do not paint my eyes because I wear glasses or contact lenses and I do not think it is good for the eye to wear mascara or eyeliner daily. As I have quite long and black eyelashes, I think I can do without it. That said, I understand that some people, because of their profession, out of habit, out of insecurity or to avoid comparative injury, put on makeup every day. I am not going to enter into evaluations of whether it is part of the slavery-of-beauty-if-you-are-not-pretty-you’re-not-valuable to which women and not men are subjected (although I think so). But I want to emphasize that, especially fo those who have acne, putting on makeup to cover it only makes it worse. Also, a fact: the makeup and cosmetics industry is one of the most profitable industries in the world. That’s curious considering that makeup and cosmetics are not basic/unavoidable necessities (as are having a house, eating or dressing).

Well, getting to the point, especially if you are someone who puts on makeup on a daily basis, you should look at the quality of what you put on your face. As in the case of creams or industrialized food, do you understand the list of ingredients of the product? Surely not. And makeup also passes into the bloodstream, in addition to the fact that if it is not hypoallergenic or non-comedogenic it can cause, respectively, allergies or blackheads. And even if it is, the fact is that makeup (especially foundation) clogs the pores and does not let the skin breathe. Eye makeup can cause irritation and conjunctivitis. And about lipstick (aside from charges of containing lead), it turns out we “swallow” a large part of it.

When I was a teenager and I had acne, I was recommended to use the Avène brand as a foundation and bronzing powder. I have done very well with it, but recently I discovered mineral makeup and I think it is an even better option, because it only has mineral pigments as ingredients. This type of makeup does not have any strange ingredients (in fact the list of ingredients is very short), allows the skin to breathe and usually comes with some sun protection (I already talked about the sun in this post). As with many of the products that interest me, they are not readily available in department stores or perfumeries, but rather in herbalists and organic stores. BUT: the good news is that they can be purchased online. The bad news it is better to try on makeup first buying it, to see if the tone suits us. For this, some brands (like the one I bought, which is called Lyly & Lolo) have mini-containers at a low price so that you can try a sample of different colors before deciding which one to buy. For lipstick and mascara, I use Ere Pérez or Belcils, and these brands also have their offers. The good brands I’ve found are: Bare Minerals (United States), Lyly&Lolo (United Kingdom) and Mineralíssima (The Netherlands). I use the foundation and bronzer from Lyly Lolo (foundation “In the Buff”, with 15 SPF, and bronzer “South Beach”).

The only thing I don’t like about mineral makeup is that foundation is in a powder format (there are some fluids, but their ingredient list is not so “pure” anymore). A powder format means applying it with a brush, and although the result looks good, I prefer that the foundation blends with the skin. With this, the result looks slightly powderier. But the truth is that it spreads well, with very little amount you cover your whole face. In addition, the container is very practical because it has a closure that only opens partially, with a few holes, to apply a very small amount. I do it directly on the lid of the container and from there I pass it to the brush.

I hope it helps you and that you try it! :))

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*From the United States:

·Ere Pérez lipstick: https://amzn.to/32I2v1B

·Bare Minerals, mineral make up: https://amzn.to/2RH2ncm

*From Mexico:

·Pintalabios Ere Pérez: https://amzn.to/32KmGMk

·Rimmel Ere Pérez: https://amzn.to/3iMW6aO

·Avène polvos bronceadores: https://amzn.to/35MNf5v

·Bare Minerals, maquillaje mineral: https://amzn.to/3ccFNla

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·Pintalabios Ere Pérez: https://amzn.to/2FCz8Fk

·Rimmel Belcils: https://amzn.to/2RKvgnO

·Avène polvos bronceadores: https://amzn.to/2FzDIEj

·Lily&Lolo, maquillaje mineral: https://amzn.to/2FBk5vD

·Bare Minerals, maquillaje mineral: https://amzn.to/2ZNCgow