Uh oh, spotted friends, we have a problem. With full faith in my request, Staci agreed to give up her Pro-Active regime and try the DHC Salicylic Acne Set which runs $49 for the whole she-bang. And I totally appreciate her giving it a go, and I also apologize for the break out. Here’s what went down:

Staci gave it a good 2 weeks with DHC’s acne regime.

• In application, the product did feel good, AND smell good.
• After 2 weeks of diligent application, the redness and break outs came back.
• She decided to stop the trial and return back to her works-for-sure Proactive treatment.

Let’s give two thumbs up for Staci and her willing to put breakouts on the line for a good ol honest review. The bottom line? DHC’s Salicylic Acne Set didn’t measure up for Staci’s adult acne prone sensitive skin needs. Bummer!

There is still a good portion of the kit left, so I am going to ask my 17 year old son to give a couple of weeks a try. I’ll be back with a follow up post soon on his progress.

This is my second time at PediSpa Northridge. Typically I go to Nail Forum in Porter Ranch, but I wanted something quick and easy with no waiting, plus I’ve been there for a pedicure before, so a manicure should be a shoe in too, que no?

So off to PediSpa. I selected the Milk and Honey manicure because they had a $5 off special. All together it was around $25 (including tip, the total ticket price came to $20). I’m not sure I will go back though. And here is why: My nails were not soaked. She quickly ran a scrub on my hands, not really massaging at all, just kind of slathering. After that, a rinse with a ceramic milk jug and pan was used to rinse off the scrub, which was a nice visual, but still, no nail soaking. Hot towels were put on my hands, and BOY were they HOT!

While my hands were wrapped in the burning towels, she cleaned up my cuticles by putting on some cuticle remover and nipping around. A quick buffing out was done to shape, and then she shoved a timer in my face saying ‘you get 5 minute massage starting now”. Hmm…ok. So she starts to mindlessless massage my hands with super cold lotion, and then wipe my nails off with rubbing alcohol, remove the towel, move to the other side (all while my timer is on) and put alcohol on my nails, do a quick mindless rub on my hands and then remove the towel and clean up. By this time, the timer goes off, and she grabs the towels and heads for the back. A quick polish later, and I am done – but the very next day, my polish is all chipped off! Major bummer. I guess next time, I will go back to my usual haunt, the Nail Forum.

And I’m still wondering where the whole ‘Milk and Honey’ description came in…at all? Or did I just pay for the copy on the brochure? THIS I would like an answer to…unless maybe it was simply a ‘Milk and Honey’ scented scrub that wasn’t really scrubbed on, or maybe the lotion was scented Milk and Honey? If you know, please, do tell!

On a positive note, the technician was very sweet and nice.

PediSpa Northridge
8980 Tampa Ave, Northridge, CA 91324
(818) 998-7826

Hey everyone – I do hope you are all having a lovely holiday!! I am able to post this during dinner time because our turkey is still raw and it’s pretty chaotic here with everyone arguing over who’s fault it is that the turkey is, infact, still raw. So essetially, it’s a typical thanksgiving here at home!

Have a blessed and cheerful one, and stay glam!

xoxo
sylviaG

Clinique Holiday Gift With Purchase

Ohhh I love this time of year – specialty spicy drinks at Starbucks, and a whole bunch of Gift With Purchases at the cosmetic counters! I will probably be copping this, since I am somewhat a re-newed obsessor of the clinique gloss!

Don’t forget that Clinique has great skincare and fragrance for men too, so if you buy your dude a gift, you can get a gift too LOL – that’s what’s up!

Get a FREE Festive Tote with your clinique.com purchase of $50 or more! Hurry, offer expires 11.20 or while supplies last!

Benefit Cosmetics is giving away a free full size “Gild” liner/highlighter with a $30 purchase. It’s good for today only: Add gilded to your shopping bag and enter promo code GILDEDGO at checkout. Not valid with other offers. Offer expires 11:59pm PST 11/25/08.

For Holiday gift giving Ideas be sure to check out Benefit Cosmetics Holiday Gift Guide

So I posted my blog about botox with Dr. D, but I wanted to do a separate entry for the actual facility itself : Nu Vela Esthetica. Seriously, when you walk in, it is just as chic as it can be, with gorgeous woodworking and serene furnishings, but what I loved about the whole experience was that the proceedures are actually CHEAPER than if you go to a ghetto strip-mall cosmetic shop. Botox runs for $10 per unit, compared to Dr. Mark’s $13 per unit.

The spa offers all the current cutting edge treatments from mesotherapy/lipo injections to all the fillers, leg vein removal, photofacials and anything/everything else any top of the line medi-spa has. One proceedure that has piqued my interest in a MAJOR way is the dermafilling of the hollows under the eyes. I am super looking forward to having rejuvenated eyes. LIKE YOU HAVE NO IDEA.

Here are some quick info links on the site that I found interesting & useful:
Before & After gallery
Service Listing & Proceedure Listings
Dr. D discusses what a chemical peel is

Located in Porter Ranch, you can save your trip to Beverly Hills and keep it local, while staying fabulous PLUS save on gas!

Dr. Raffi Dishakjian
Nu Vela Esthetica • 11200 Corbin Ave., Ste. 104 • Porter Ranch, CA 91326 • 818-832-4500

I decided it was time to move onto a more specialized botox centre, and I had a nice experience with Dr. D. at Nu Vela Esthetica a couple of weeks ago, but here is a timeline of what is happening thusfar.

1. The front receptionist is super helpful. I scheduled a consultation and went in for a first appointment for my botox. Dr. D was informative and nice, so I went ahead and scheduled my appointment. He told me more info than Dr. Marks had, he did tell me that I should plan to not work out, because sweat might move around the injection, to not use anything on my face, sit upright for at least 6 hours (no lounging on the couch) and to not wash my face. The face washing part I already knew, and I assumed that meant no makeup either, but I didn’t know about the no couch-lounging or sweating.

2. A week later, I woke up with a brand new face. I mean, dude I was smooth as before I hit puberty; you can check out my facebook profile pic, since it’s my favorite smooth forehead pic in over a decade. I was smitten with Dr. D.! He used 50 ml in my upper face, usually Dr. Marks used around 300. It didn’t hurt any less, and it was about $500 for the total job.

3. It’s been 10 days, and today I am having a teeny tiny issue. I feel like my forehead is sliding down a bit – like my eyelids are lower than they usually are. I’ve been obsessing over this, and if it doesn’t perk back up by tuesday, I’m going to go see Dr. D. and see what’s up. I’ve been taking hourly photos on my new blackberry storm to see if the low-lid issue is getting worse/better/no-movement and I’m also wondering if maybe I’m freaking out too early and should just give it a few more days? I remember having 2 week botox issues last time too, so maybe I just need to chill out and let it ‘sit’.

I’ll update again tomorrow, it’s getting late.

Bodyworks is hosting a shoe drive through our belly dance class at LA Fitness this month, but if you feel inspired to host your own shoe drive, it’s a great way to give back, give forward and just give. Here is a list of how to run a successful shoe drive in your community:

1. Contact “Shoes for Africa” at 404-438-1991. A “Shoes for Africa” representative will communicate with you via phone or email at info@yesshoesinc.org to cover shoe drive details.
2. Secure a date to begin. Most shoe drives last around four weeks.
3. Secure your drop-off locations at your place of worship, school, office or other facility. Secure a location to process the shoes (warehouse, gym, community building, etc.).
   “Shoes for Africa” can provide sample promotional materials such as posters, flyers for you to help promote your shoe drive.
4. Suggest a $1 or $2.00 donation per pair to offset shipping cost.
5. Feel free to use your local TV, radio, and newspaper to publicize the shoe drive.
6. Process the collected shoes by placing a rubber band around each pair and place in boxes for shipping.
7. Ship your shoes to our warehouse in Atlanta, 1351 Harbin Road, SW, Atlanta, GA  30311. Contact a “Shoes for Africa” representative with any shipping questions.
8. We will process the shoes and ship domestically/internationally.
9. Publicize your results and express appreciation for everyone’s participation.

Now you can get a wrap at Jamba Juice for lunch instead of a giant smoothie – especially since in the winter months I’m thinking a cold smoothie isn’t quite right. But that’s just me. Anyway – check out their new lunch menu & get $2 bucks off your choice of sammies.

Also-if you buy a $25 giftcard from Jamba Juice you can get a coupon for a free smoothie – check out the main site for info on that. Does anyone even do giftcards anymore?? Just wondering…

Sylvia G Masked Up

I used to swear by AVEDA’s tourmaline charged mask, until I tried DHC’s. Iam now an avid fan of this quick mask because it makes my face feel fabulous in under 10 minutes,  it’s totally easy to remove and I can do a  quick mask in the morning before I do

my makeup on mondays – a fresh start so to speak. While most DCH stuff is pretty reasonably priced, this mask will run you around $37 USD while Aveda’s is in a similar price range. I’ve got to say though, DHC makes my skin feel way smoother. Word up.

I just got an email from Benefit.com for a free gloss with ANY order this week only. Use code GIFTGLOS at checkout to get your fabulous freebee!

Also, get free shipping with any $115 order with code WORLD115 at checkout. I got the Holiday Gift Guide, and the packaging and names of the new products are super fun & extra girlie…perfect for girlie gifts in the under 25 age bracket this holiday season! Happy Benefiting!

Now that XM radio and Sirius have merged, some of the channel names have changed. I spied a new channel on 72 called “Spa”. I haven’t listened yet, but just wanted to give you all a heads up. I’m imagining that it could be a useful favorite channel during rush hour or hectic unwinding commutes.

Bodyworks Studio is hosting their 4th annual Dance Marathon & Shoe Drive Benefit! It all goes down Saturday November 22 from 1pm to 4pm at the Granada Hills Recreational Center 16730 Chatsworth St. in Granada Hills, CA 91344.

There’s a group of die hard dancers who are going to be dancing for 3 hours straight. Feature bellydance performance by my fellow classmates in full costume, guest instructors who are going to be teaching 30 minute class sessions in Zumba, Bellydance, World Beat, Wayback Workout, Pilates, Yoga, Hip Hop, and Hi/Lo Latin Fusion. Prizes awarded to top participants, refreshments and lots of fun for a good cause!

Advance tickets are $15 with a pair of shoes at the door, $20 with no shoes. Shoes should be either new or in good used condition & will be donated to the Shoes for Africa campaign drive hosted by BodyWorksStudioinfo.com

For more information on ticket information or sponsorship opportunities contact Trina 818.830.1612 or email youcanshine@aol.com

I first heard about the science of Ayuraveda through Deepak Chopra. I don’t remember how, or why, but I do associate the word, the concept and the name. Recently, I have been incorporating some of the oil practices into my home-spa regime to battle this dry skin thing that isn’t quite a problem yet, but noticeable enough for me to want to get it under control before it DOES become a problem…you know what I mean?

Anyway, here is the base knowledge of Ayurveda. It translates in Sanskrit as “the science of life”. Or as Deepak Chopra has expounded as ‘the mother of all healing systems’. It’s principles are made up of 3 areas of practice: Healing disease or ailments, preventing disease or ailments, and promotion of healthy lifestyle and longevity. Each person has an individual ‘Dosha’. You can find out what type of Dosha you are by taking any quiz online, or researching and answering some of the questions within the 3 different types. They are Vata, Pitta and Kapha. We each have all three in our body and mind systems, but each one of us has one dosha that is dominant. Once you know your dosha, you can incorporate various types of spa treatments to accomodate and promote wellness for that particular dosha. I know it gets kind of complicated, but it does help me out alot, so I thought I’d just provide some useful insight.

I have begun incorporating some oil cleansing and daily massage rituals on my feet for dry heels and winter skin. I get the blended oil from Whole Foods, and I mix it with whatever lotion I happen to be using to get that extra moisture to seep into the skin. So far, so good. I’ll post more as I continue on my path of healing dry skin during winter months.

I’m almost thinking that maybe I like Clinique’s lip gloss formula better than MAC’s lipglass! And here are my reasons why:

Clinique’s lip gloss formulas aren’t as gooey and sticky as MAC’s. Basically, when I’m driving with my window down in my car, when I’m wearing MAC Lipglass, my hair blows around and ends up getting stuck to my lipgloss. Don’t pretend like it doesn’t happen to you! When I wear Clinique’s (I have to double check on the actual formula name because I got it as a swap extra during a fabulous swap on MakeUpAlley.com) my hair doesn’t stick. And that is nice.

Clinique’s formula stays on longer, dries out my lips less. Meaning I only have to re-apply once after lunch. That’s pretty good. With MAC, I’m having to reapply once around 11 ish and after lunch, as once in the mid-afternoon. That’s 2 extra applications more.

Clinique’s formula is more dimensional. Meaning that my lips look much more full and appealing with the way the different color pigments are kind of bouncing off each other. MAC colors seem to be much more basic and one dimensional. Don’t get me wrong – the colors from MAC are super cute, but I think I might have found something to make me stray away and explore for a minute…Clinique, here I come!!