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This one's for the girlies (and anyone else who's into skincare) - as an elder, I wish I had committed to using retin-a (tretinoin) sooner. some things I like about tret are:
1 - not having to pay attention to the million new products out there, I have become immune to marketing (I still get to try new moisturizers, HAs, and Vit C serums)
2 - it makes you remember to wear your sunscreen daily, I'd be terrible about that otherwise
3 - no more fine lines (if you don't have any, using will delay you getting them)
4 - you can now order it online from most places without having to spend money on a derm
5 - a tube will last longer than most products from sephora and costs as much/less - more bang for your buck
6 - supposed to be good for acne, I cannot report on that, but others swear by it
i've generally had good skin and get the "you're how old? noooo" but I wish I had committed in my early 30s to build the habit and do more preventative maintenance.
yes the purge/peeling sucks, but once you get on the other side supple babyface glass skin awaits you.
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You have to haul your face around for your entire life, and thereās just no getting around it. As someone who is lurching perilously toward what us old people refer to as āthe wrong side of 40,ā I am here from your future to tell you not to be afraid, because you can retain your hotness with a little planning! Ever since my very best stage mother and personal BFF Lena Dunham publicly called me out for my elaborate skin care regimen, Iāve been getting questions, so letās start at the basics and move into the baroqueā¦ I donāt think expensive products really make a difference, but if you love them and they make you feel good, by all means waste the money you should be saving for treatments (more on that in a minute) on a 50 step routineāitās your life! I prefer to streamline because I am old and tired, so while I have definitely tried all of those ritzy oil cleansers and I DO LIKE THEM, in general I think Cetaphil and a microfiber cloth is fine. I usually only wash my face at night and follow it up with some Retin A mixed with a nice heavy moisturizer or oil, and I seal the whole shit in with Aquaphor before going to sleep on a special pillow that doesnāt deform my face. The morning is when things get complicated, because I am a firm believer in all of those gadgets that dermatologists tell you donāt work: I like a red light mask followed by either microcurrent, a muscle stimulation device, or radio frequency, and I follow that up with a CE ferulic serum, hyaluronic acid, moisturizer, and sunscreen. Take your collagen and a vitamin D-K supplement every day, and stay the fuck out of the sun!
Feb 28, 2023
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Okay, so I fell into the tik tok trap of trying to look like a teenager for as long as possible, and I told my dermatologist to prescribe me retinol. I used it, like three nights a week, and then got so obsessed with the false belief I had in my head that it was making me like a doll, I was using it almost night...yikes. But THEN, I went to a facialist and the second I walked in she was like ā¦.āyouāre using retinol, arenāt you?ā and she told me it was irritating my skin and that I should stop immediately. She told me to stop with all the serums, the at home peels, the 200$ lotion, and instead wash my face with Kloraneās micellar blue cornflower waterā¦random lol. And to use Aveneās Cicalfate+ cream by pressing it, not rubbing it, into my face over and over again. Iāve never had a more minimal skincare regime in my life, of course I still use SPF every morning, but stripping back on all the glamorous goops has seriously improved my skin texture and my overall vibe. Also, Iām saving so much money because Iām literally addicted to buying skincare, and now I feel like Iām not allowed to, and I have a weird religious school instilled thing where I donāt really do things iām ānot allowedā to do lol. More on that in my next album.
Dec 20, 2022
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Taking care of my skin has boosted my confidence more than anything ever has. Right now my nighttime routine is wash my face with Bobbi Brown soothing cleansing oil, curolgy, retinal, hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, the ole henrikson undereye cream, and triple antibiotic ointment. My morning routine is washing my face with Sonya Dakar gentle facial milk cleanser, spray my face with Osea sea mineral mist, Osea hyaluronic sea serum, Sonya Dakar nano hydrator moisturizer and Sonya Dakar SPF 30. If I go outside a lot I use 50 spf. I had cystic acne when I was younger and Curology really changed my skin. It completely cleared it up. Iām so grateful for it. When I was younger I tried absolutely everything. Salt water, mouth wash, that nuetrogena face wash with the micro plastics in it. Nothing really worked until Curology. I also take Tri-Sprintec birth control because it is the most effective at clearing your skin. If I have a break out I take Doxycycline which is an antibiotic that stops acne from forming. Itās been a lot of work and not easy but Iām so happy I did it. I love face masks too. My favorite is Blue Tansy from Herbivore. Itās a nice exfoliator that really changes your skin. I notice a big difference with it. I also love sheet masks. Innis Free has my favorites. They just feel so effective to me. A nice evening to me is staying in and taking care of my skin. I love to steam my face, do an exfoliating face mask, then a pore cleaning one and then a moisturizing one. Then I do an eye mask and all of my skincare steps. It feels so good and I look amazing when I wake up.
May 26, 2022
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apparel-ish?
I started an apparel brand called Blood is the new Black when I was 23 (in 2004, iām 42 now) the brand acted as an arts collective, iād select several artists every season to add to the brand and would curate their submitted works into collections. distro ranged from beams (jp) colette (fr) selfridges (uk) all the way to pac sun, urban outfitters, zumiez in the states. during the 9 years I had the brand I also published zines, produced artist directed films, curated gallery shows etc. it was part of the indie sleaze era and youād see folks like tegan and sara, michael pitt, britney spears, allison mosshart wearing the brand.
somehow I pivoted to country music along the way and started a brand called midnight rider in 2013. i made licensed repop and vintage feeling tees for musicians and folks like willie nelson, townes van zandt, nudies rodeo tailors, john wayne, the judds, waylon jennings, zz top and so many others. I sold that brand last year!
now I do licensing and merchandise for waylon jennings (so if you see waylon merch or collabs iām the one behind it). I also spend my free time taking photos and iām currently working on a book about grand national owners.
id love to mentor folks who have or are starting their own businesses because iāve learned a lot in the process both good and bad.
Feb 9, 2024
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want to learn a new thing for $150? community college
need access to a ceramics studio or darkroom? community college
want to sound mysterious/intellectual and say things like āiām back in schoolā as a grown adult? community college
donāt want 200k worth of liberal arts college debt? community college
want to be in a rag tag group of misfits of all ages and form an unlikely friendship and still have a group chat going after the semester ends? community college
looking for a socioeconomically diverse group of cohorts? community college
iām about to start my third semester of photography classes and im so obsessed, its been the most wonderful experience
Jan 29, 2024
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Cocteau Twins in 1993 or 1994 (with Luna opening) - I was in the 8th grade and my sister who was 14 years older than me took me. We saw Mazzy Star/JaMC and Depeche Mode the next year.
Feb 16, 2024