Lash Boost Review

I think I might be the last one on the block to try a lash growth serum, but my review is going to be a little different than most. Let's get a little personal. Here's the back story as to how I ended up using Lash Boost in a nontraditional way. 

In November I was washing my face one night and looked up and the way my hair happened to fall, I spotted a completely bald spot right in the center of my head about the size of a dime. I immediately inspected it and stood in shock wondering what I was looking at. Changes in your body externally can often be a sign of something going on internally and my mind went in 15 directions. I immediately Facetimed my sister, because what else are sisters for...haha and probably repeated 18 times, "ARE YOU SEEING WHAT I'M SEEING?! "

I'm lucky enough to have an uncle who is a PA and immediately called him to discuss. His instinct told him it was Alopecia Areata just based on the fact that I had recently quit a high stress job, but he wanted me to go to my doctor to rule out any thyroid or other health issues. Turns out he's the world's smartest PA (haha) and my doctor also thought it was Alopecia Areata and said not to worry about it. It's really hard not to worry about something that is caused by worrying, if that makes sense. The most frustrating thing about Alopecia Areata is that there is no guarantee the hair will grow back, so I was really bummed when I saw growth throughout the next month, and one morning in December, it all fell out again. 

This then prompted a conversation with one of the amazing mom's I nanny for who sells Rodan & Fields. I asked her if anyone had tried the lash boost on their scalp and if she thought it would work. She had never heard of anyone trying it and obviously couldn't recommend doing it since R&F had never tested it, but I was pleasantly surprised to receive it for Christmas from her! Let me repeat, R&F DOES NOT ENDORSE PUTTING LASH BOOST ON YOUR HEAD, but I was self conscious at this point and wanted to try a more natural route before going to my doctor for steroid shots to stimulate growth. If the bald spot had been anywhere other than the center of my head where I part my hair I probably wouldn't have cared as much, but it was something I was having to cover and hide on a regular basis which is annoying. 

As far as my routine goes for Lash Boost, I started off the first few weeks by applying it every night to my lashes and whatever was leftover I would apply to my scalp. I never got more product from the tube. After the first few weeks, I started using it every other night to stretch the product and I don't feel like my results were affected. With these types of growth serums, you will always need to keep applying them in an area like your lashes that naturally shed and regrow every 6-8 weeks. So if you stop using it, the results will go away. I had so many brow clients that would use it to regrow areas of their brows when reshaping so that's something to think of too!

Now for some pictures of what my scalp and lashes looked like when I started using Lash Boost on them right before Christmas and what they look like today, 10 weeks later. I stopped using the Lash Boost on my scalp about a month ago probably because I just wanted to get the hair growing, and I'm happy to say that a lot of the hair has grown back, so much so that I can't really see the bald spot anymore! (Sorry if close ups of my scalp are weird...haha) I learned through this process that I know quite a few women who have experienced this type of hair loss due to stress so I'm happy to share my story if you happen to be going through the same thing and it makes you feel more at ease with what you're going through!

As far as my lashes go, they have always been long and thick, they just won't curl and always stay super straight. I have since found that they hold a curl much better and are significantly longer and fuller. I never felt like you could see my lashes in any pictures but now I feel like you can. 

Top Image: Before, Bottom Image: After

Top Image: Before, Bottom Image: After

You can really tell in the lash pictures how much longer and fuller my lashes look. I didn't take any pictures with mascara on because you didn't come to the post for a mascara recommendation. haha I wanted to show you my actual lashes.

Overall I am extremely happy with my Lash Boost experience. If you are looking to purchase please reach out to Kristen HERE! She is so wonderful and deserving of your business! I know she has a Lash Boost special going on right now! I cannot thank her enough for gifting me this Lash Boost and helping me get rid of my bald spot!

Let me know in a comment below if you have tried a lash or brow serum before and if you liked it! I totally think it's worth the money, do you?

Have a great rest of your week,

Andrea Fontana

Healthy Skin

First off thank you so much for the love shown since I announced I would be blogging again! I love being able to share my advice and passions with you all and am so thankful that so many of you are looking forward to me starting this up again. I got many requests so we will start with those!

To kick things off we will be talking about healthy skin. I got a few requests regarding it and there are two directions this post could go, so we will be tackling both! First, I'm going to be talking about the products I use to maintain healthy skin. Then, I will be discussing the makeup products I like to use in order to make my skin appear healthier, even in the time of a major skin crisis. 

First off however, I want you to know my philosophy with skin care. I teach all of my clients about the importance of being able to really understand your skin. Everything is about BALANCE. You will see me use this word a lot, because I am a big believer in trying to help your skin achieve balance. Just like your body craves homeostasis internally, your skin craves balance. The more you can learn about and treat your skin depending on how it is any given day, the more likely your skin is to be balanced and not as likely to freak out. 

If you don't know about your skin's acid mantle yet, listen up. It is a vital layer of your skin that protects you from various bacterium, viruses, and contaminants that could come in contact with it. We want it to be balanced so it can properly protect you. One of the most important ways to balance it is with a toner. Toners adjust the pH after cleansing, which can be very stripping in order to cleanse properly. There are various toners for all different skin types; from exfoliating to gentle and hydrating. The trick is finding the right one for you. Always feel free to reach out to me if you need help finding the right product. I personally use the Dermadoctor Ain't Misbehavin' Glycolic and Lactic Acid Toner. I love how it gently exfoliates my skin every day which speeds up my cell turnover and helps my pores not feel so congested and clogged with excess oil. 

The next holy grail product that I love for achieving healthy skin is Organic Rose Oil. Rosehip oil is a dry oil that I give a lot of credit to for fading my hyperpigmentation left from acne scars. If you're oily and acne prone you need to try this oil to bring your skin balance and even tone. Rosehip oil is filled with essential fatty acids and Vitamin E so it helps to hydrate you, while the low pH helps keep that acid mantle balanced. I buy mine at my local health food store and use it every night before my moisturizer, as my serum. 

A magical mask for all skin types is Bentonite Clay. I can't speak highly enough of this stuff. I recommend it to everyone because of it's strong cleansing and detoxifying properties. I bought a tub of this at my local health food store and it lasts forever! Simply mix a little clay powder with water until you get a paste consistency, then apply it to your face and leave it on for 20-30 min. I try to leave it as long as I can bear it because it will dry and start to pulse your face. When you take it off, your face will often be blotchy but that is completely normal. So what exactly is happening here? Bentonite clay is great at pulling toxins and such out of the body and rapidly increases the circulation. The clay is also able to bind to any excess hydrogen molecules in your skin to lower the pH and make room for your skin to bind more oxygen. You thought I was done talking about that acid mantle didn't you? Haha

The last product I want to share with you is a sleeping mask. Now I'm so obsessed with sleeping masks, so I plan on devoting a whole post to them, but I will share my favorite one now because it helps my skin maintain it's hydration on a weekly basis. Whenever I've been drinking or in the sun, I make sure I sleep that night with the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask in place of my moisturizer. I also use it whenever my skin feels extra dry and dehydrated, usually in the winter. You will wake up the next morning with happy skin that is no longer dehydrated and feels baby soft. 

Ok. You should have learned two things by now. I respect my acid mantle and you should respect yours too. But more importantly BALANCE! Ok now let's talk about makeup.

While a balancing skincare routine is most crucial to the health of your skin, a few makeup products can take your skin to the next level. 9 times out of 10 if I get a compliment on my face at the spa it's usually something about 'my skin being so healthy'. 10 times out of 10 it's probably my highlighter that made them notice. A good highlighter will give you the healthiest and most beautiful glow. If you haven't been drawn yet to the shimmer and shine of highlighters like a moth to a flame, don't say I didn't warn you when you want to buy them all! While I love both powder and liquid highlighters, I use them for different reasons. 

My favorite powder highlighter would hands down be the Makeup geek highlighters because they are so smooth and STUNNING. I have Moonlight Sun (a warm light gold) and Luster (a beautiful cool pink) that I am obsessed with. They even have duochrome highlighters that are beautiful too. I use these highlighters every day on the high points of my face. If I want my skin to be dewy I reach for my either my Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Liquid Highlighter in Opal or the Sephora Collection Radiant Luminizing drops. Both work great when mixing with foundation for an all over glow, but the Becca ones work best to also use on your cheekbones. The Sephora drops are a much more affordable option however.

So there are my favorite products for healthy skin. If you have further questions always feel free to reach out to me at andreafontanabeauty@gmail.com.

Keep the requests coming and have a beautiful and healthy week!

-Andrea

Disclosure: Amazon links are Amazon Affiliate links which means that I receive a small commission from your purchase. The price of the product does not change if you use my links. Your support allows me to continue to create new content for you and I will forever be thankful for your support if you choose to use my links.