Who needs to travel to expensive spas or pay tons of money for professional facials to achieve great skin when you can do it in the comfort of your own home? Now spas and skincare companies are offering all their special treatments for at-home use. This way you can use them whenever you want to maintain beautiful skin with a regular routine. Special ingredient style facials are done at some of the world’s most exclusive spas. They usually contain the region’s top-secret skin goodies to give you a glowing complexion. Skyn Iceland is one such company that produces facial products with properties found in the glacial rivers and thermal pools of Iceland. These ingredients are known for their incredible rejuvenating abilities. The Oxygen facial is another type of facial made world-famous by the Bliss Spa, and now their most requested treatment can be done in your own bathroom. Masks are another hot spa menu choice, and there are a lot to try at home. For those who like to go “green” try Naturopathica masks. This organic company, with a spa in East Hampton New York, offers several masks to choose from. Try the Pumpkin Enzyme Peels to remedy congested skin or the Environmental Defense mask that delivers a potent blend of anti-oxidants. Peels are my personal favorite and I love doing them at home. Of course the glycolic levels in at-home peels are much lower than the ones offered at a dermatologist’s office, so you can do them a few times a week to keep your skin glowing and eliminate dark age spots and fine lines. I also find these are great for minimizing the appearance of pores by keeping them clean. The coolest tools on the market now are the at-home microdermabrasion kits. This will save you a lot of money and they work really well. They usually come as battery-operated facial buffers and, when used with the special microdermabrasion cream, polish your skin to a radiant soft finish. See, so there is no need to make appointments or book flights to exotic locations to have gorgeous radiant skin. Just a trip to the bathroom.

1. Skyn Iceland Glacier Face Wash @ www.sephora.com
2. Bliss The Head-To-Toe Spa In A Box @ www.blissworld.com
3. Bliss Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask @ www.blissworld.com
4. Naturopathica Pumpkin Enzyme Peel @ www.naturopathica.com
5. Naturopathica Hydrating Antioxidant Mask @ www.naturopathica.com
6. Skyn Iceland Nordic Skin Peel @ www.sephora.com
7. Glyderm Light Lotion @ www.drugstore.com
8. Neutrogena Advanced Solutions At Home MicroDermabrasion System @ www.drugstore.com
9. Olay Regenerist Thermal Skin Polisher @ www.drugstore.com
10. DermaNew Facial Rejuvenation System @ www.dermanew.com

Have a question you want Carmindy to answer? Email her at newsletter@carmindy.com

Sheila Maxwell Writes:
I'm 42 years old and have used Elizabeth Arden's "One Great Soap" for years.  It has just been discontinued. My skin is normal to oily.  What do you use to clean your face morning and night?  What might you recommend to all us women who are scrambling to find a cleanser replacement?
(Love your newsletter!)

Carmindy:
I hate it when companies discontinue our favorite products, but it happens to everyone. The good news is there are a lot of great products to choose from to take their place. I recommend using Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser for Normal to Oily Skin. It cuts through makeup and is recommended by dermatologists nationwide. It is what I use every day.

Sandra Greenburg Writes:
What products do you use for that dewy cheek look? Do you recommend those primer based products that are applied before foundation?

Carmindy:
There are a couple of ways to achieve that dewy cheek look. My fast and favorite way is to sweep on a sheer shimmering highlight powder to the top of the cheekbones with a Japanese fan brush. I like the Bobbi Brown Shimmer Bricks @ www.sephora.com to achieve this look. You can also go with a cream formula like Fresh Satin Luster @ www.fresh.com. This 3 highlight shade kit is super sheer and blend-able. Simply choose one of the highlights and blend it onto the tops of the cheekbones with your ring finger. A trick for oily skin is to simply skip powder altogether on the top of the cheekbones for a real natural glow effect.

Kristine Writes:
Well, I just reached a milestone birthday...40!  I'm feeling pretty good about my appearance and have always embraced my full eyebrows.  I do have them shaped periodically and I feel that they frame my eyes nicely.  However, I don't love the color.  They are quite dark and they can give me a hard or harsh look.  What do you think of dying eyebrows?  I can remember my sister tried it once and they turned orange!  Also, how often does one maintain an eyebrow dye?
Thanks.

Carmindy:
Try Jolene’s Cream Bleach from the drugstore. This will lighten your brows very subtly so you won’t get that orangey look. Make sure to follow the directions and don’t leave the bleach on longer than the time is says in the instructions. I recommend dying them whenever they start looking dark again. Brows grow more slowly than hair on your head so the touch-up time won’t be as often.