First newsletter: chemical peels
Yes, this is a different type of email than you normally receive. I’ve decided to further educate my clients and include a monthly newsletter on a specific topic. Ideally, I would want my Social Media posts to align with this newsletter, but we’ll see how long that lasts. If you know me, you know I am a full fledged procrastinator and to be honest, I have thought about doing a project like this for months. Yet, here we are. I have no idea what to expect or how these will continue to go, but for now I’m enjoying the education and the clicking sound my keyboard makes. Before, I bore you all with my heavy explanation of how things are supposed to go, let’s stop procrastinating and get to the actual FIRST newsletter (ahh!):
Chemical Peels
Let’s start with a little history.. chemical peels originated from ancient Egyptians, in the 1500’s, specifically when Queen Cleopatra would bathe herself in sour milk. Sour milk had a specific ingredient in it, known today as Lactic Acid. Lactic Acid is an AHA (alpha-hydroxy acid) which naturally hydrates the skin. It also provides a gentle exfoliation, that improves tone and texture. Other ancient cultures like the Greeks and Romans would use ingredients like poultices from pumice stone, frankincense, tree resins, and sulfur to create their own exfoliation and chemical peel concoctions.
Since then, the experiment of chemicals in skincare exceeded every scientist expectations. They started to mix certain ingredients, like sweet birch, wintergreen and willow bark. Willow Bark originally comes from white, black and purple willow trees, which is a natural source of salicin. An ingredient to be known as Salicylic Acid. Salicylic Acid is a BHA (beta-hydroxy acid). BHA’s have exfoliating and antiseptic properties. It also improves pore size and fine lines.
Fun Fact: Salicin was used to develop the drug we know today as Aspirin. So if you have an allergy to Aspirin, stay clear from Salicylic.
Chemical Peels that most Estheticians and Dermatologist use today, were developed and discovered by Dermatologist, Ferdinand von Hebra in the 1800’s. Hebra used peeling techniques to treat pigmentation. Specially with iodine and lead, he noticed an increase of the lightning of freckles. A German Dermatologist, Paul G Unna discovered the mixture of ingredients salicylic, resorcinol, trichloroacetic acid (TCA), and phenol on the skin.
Now, that we know a little about the origin of Chemical Peels, lets move to modern day peels and the compilation of ingredients. To put it lightly, there are so many chemical peel formulations out there. How are you able to choose and select the correct ones for YOUR skin? To make it simple, speak to a Dermatologist or Esthetician, because of our knowledge of ingredients and skin types, we can help select the best treatment for you and your skin.
In my experience, there are multiple factors that go into selecting a specific chemical peel like genetics, skin type, daily use of products, lifestyle, diet and so much more. Usually, its recommended to start low and slow. You do NOT want to damage your skin, especially because the purpose of a chemical peel is to cause trauma to your skin so it heals faster. The skin underneath the peel is new and fresh, thus creating a new barrier.
What do I mean by low and slow? If you have ever done a chemical peel or not, the general idea is to keep your skin barrier protected. Starting off with a mild to moderate peel, versus a severe protocol. This also pertains to the amount of passes that we as professionals apply to the skin, starting off with one to two is the most common beginning of your chemical peel journey.
So you know all you need to know, are you ready to start? Below are a list of my favorite peels, in no particular order:
The Perfect Derma Peel its a 7-10 day downtime, and it is probably the most aggressive peel I have at the Studio. It is made with Glutathione, a very powerful antioxidant that aids in brightening the complexion, dark spots and aging. This is a great peel for advanced peelers and you should expect to peel excessively. Peel price is: $200
Circadia Gel Peel is a very low, mild gel peel with little to no downtime. It can be added into your facial, at the end and helps hydrate, reduces breakouts and assits with aging. This is a great introductory peel. Peel price is: $99 as a stand alone treatment, and to add it to any facial its: $50
Circadia Chemical Peel is an alcohol based peel made with Mandelic, Lactic, Salicylic and Resorcinol. These ingredients help with scarring and brightening. Pair this with Vitamin A accelerator and this treatment requires a specific protocol before and after your peel. Your downtime is about 5 days and you will experience minor flaking. Peel Price is: $110
Please reach out to me with any questions, and I would be more than happy to help answer questions. Thank you so much for reading my very first Newsletter, I am beyond grateful for each and every one of you.
