The Beauty Lowdown: My Latest Obsessesion, Dermaplaning

When it comes to my beauty/skincare routines… I am all about keeping it simple. Don’t get me wrong, I am totally victim to buying whatever wrinkle removing/exfoliating product that Jessica Alba is swearing by on the commercial playing between episodes of Law & Order SVU, but they always lead me right back to my basics: Cetaphil cleanser, coconut oil moisturizer, my beloved Frownies, & now… dermaplaning.

Derma-what??? Yea yea yea, lemme explain. A couple years ago my beauty & fashion savvy cousin told me she shaved her face per the instruction of her facialist. I almost fainted. Why the eff would a woman shave her face? She broke it down for me saying that she doesn’t use the same razor for her legs, but actually an eyebrow razor (ever used one of these? Love!). She said it’s a really great way to slough off nasty dead skin & give your face a good exfoliant. Naturally, I ran to the store & bought my own clean pack of the lil’ razors. I tried it, liked it, but over the past few months I totally forgot all about it.

Then, when getting my brows done last week, Claudia (she’s amaze!!) started to tell me about dermaplaning. Basically, it’s the same idea as the above… but profesh style. I told her to give it a go. When she was all done putting a straight razor to my face, I looked in the mirror & almost fainted… again. My skin looked bright, smooth, glowy, & felt like a babies super soft booty. The result was wayyyy better than my cousins at-home version.

I was/am so intrigued by the whole process that I had the dermaplaning expert share with you all how it works/why it works/ what to expect/ etc. etc. Read on my future face shavers….

♥ Hi Claudia!!! I’m so happy to have all your beauty expertise on the blog today. Introduce yourself::
Claudia Varga: I’m the Lead Esthetician and Makeup Artist at Alexis K. I’ve been an Esthetician for the last 7 years and Makeup Artist for 14. I love what I do because great makeup, skin and brows never go out of style.

♥ Not a ton of people have heard about dermaplaning, can you tell us what it is exactly?
CV: It’s a treatment that uses a sterile medical grade blade to exfoliate your skin and remove fine vellus hair.

♥ When I was in the salon, you told me a bit about how dermaplaning was “created”. Can you share that story with the readers? 
CV: The thought behind it was that men who shave/exfoliate regularly have really youthful skin. Being that regular exfoliation is the number one way to keep skin looking fresh, a doctor created a procedure for women with the same benefit.

♥ What are some of the skin benefits of dermaplaning?
CV: There are so many benefits, but mainly it’s a very effective way to deeply exfoliate your skin with no downtime. Dermaplaning reveals a dewy glowing skin. It’s one of those “instant gratification” treatments. Women are always amazed at how great their skin looks and feels after the treatment. (<<—- ahem, ME!)

♥ Any negative side-effects of dermaplaning?
CV: No…there is no negative side effect or downtime which is why it is one of our most sought after treatments.

♥ Once people hear the words “face shaving”, the first thought is always, “nope, it will grow back thicker/a different texture”. What’s the lowdown on this one? Is that true?
CV: This is definitely not true. The hair will grow back exactly as it did before. Actually a lot of our clients tend to see a decrease in growth after continuous treatments.

♥ Any people that should avoid dermaplaning?
CV: People who have severe acne, lesions on the skin or who are allergic to nickel should not get dermaplaned.

♥ How should you prepare for a dermaplaning session? How about after care?
CV: We prep your skin with a solution specifically created for dermaplaning. Your skin is left loaded with hydration, calming and soothing products and of course- sunscreen. Being that your skin is exfoliated we don’t recommend any exercise for 24hrs or other exfoliation for seven days.

♥ In your opinion– what’s better, microdermabrasion or dermaplaning? How are they different?
CV: I personally prefer dermaplaning and I find most of my clients do as well, simply because they want the hair from their face removed.  I think Microderm is a great treatment for the skin.  The main difference between the two is the hair removal and depending on the type of Microderm machine the skin could would get a deeper exfoliation.

Are your perfect brows perked yet??? They certainly should be– Dermaplaning is my new JAM x 100. If you live in the San Diego area, head over to see Claudia at Alexis K. for your derma-sesh. Mention “FASHIONLUSH” & you will get 20% off your next treatment.

Happy skin, Happy me! xx –E

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