By Dr. Renata Ruiz
Dermatology Partners
Trick or treat your exposed skin by giving yourself healthy good-looking skin. A spooky night of costumes, makeup and candy, Halloween is almost here. This Halloween, it’s time to trick or treat yourself to good skin care tips and beware of products to ensure that you will keep your skin healthy before, during and after the spooky night of Halloween. Costumes, face paints and thick costume makeup can cause breakouts or allergic reactions that are not so great for your skin if you are not careful. From “goblin” up moisture to “masquerading” with a clarifying mask, we at Dermatology Partners want to share a few tricks and treats to keep your skin and hair feeling their best this Halloween. So don’t stop planning that costume just yet.
Keeping your Skin from Looking like the Devil
Before putting anything on your skin or hair, it is always a good idea to read the label on the item, as some products may cause irritation to your skin or hair. Halloween costumes can contribute to skin issues, especially for those who are latex allergic or latex sensitive. Be weary of face masks as they may contain materials that may trigger rashes or other sensitive reactions to your skin. Try as best as you can to bundle up to protect your skin from the season of change. This can help reduce how harsh elements including windburn and the sunlight can harm your skin when you are outdoors depending how the weather is on Halloween.
Don’t want to look like a Clown this Halloween? Here are a few Tips & Tricks
Choosing Halloween makeup may seem as simple as finding the colors you need, but there is a lot more to consider when selecting your face paint for your costume. If you are planning on going all out with layers of makeup, paint, sprays, glitters or fake blood you should know what you are putting on your body before you may have an allergic reaction or have negative side-effects after the spooky night is over. Even if you read the ingredients, we recommend trying to apply the product in a less conscious location for a few days in a row to observe the area to make sure that your skin does not have any sensitivities to the product. This will help you see if you’re going to react to wearing the product for a longer period of time before the day of Halloween. If a rash or breakout develops, try finding other products that you will not react to. Costume makeup also often has harsh ingredients that provide full coverage, but can also irritate the skin. These ingredients may be fragrances, preservatives or heavier oils than everyday makeup. For best results when selecting a costume that requires face paint, using everyday makeup can result in the best choice when going for your Halloween look this Halloween. If you want to go for a look that requires something a little more heavy duty, there are some things you need to know first.
Tricks to help Treat your Skin
If you are opting for the Halloween makeup found in your local drugstore, or party supply store, make sure to prep your skin. Prepping your skin before applying thick costume makeup or face paint is one of the most important things you can do to prevent makeup breakouts. Excessive makeup or cheap Halloween face paint will also not be able to soak into your pores if there is a layer of heavy moisturizing cream to protect your face from the chemicals in the product.
Before applying your makeup, first cleanse and exfoliate your skin thoroughly. Exfoliating not only provides a smooth canvas for applying makeup, it eliminates dead skin cells and opens clogged pores. After cleaning and exfoliating, moisturize your skin with a layer of moisturizer. Using moisturizer helps with dry and sensitive skin. The thicker the moisturizer is applied to your skin, the better it works. Creams generally work better than lotions. Then apply a primer before applying makeup. The primer will act as a barrier between the makeup and your skin. This is an important barrier that will help shield your skin against any damage the costume makeup may cause.
Step by Step Guide of the do’s and don’ts:
• If using the product for the first time, it is best to test it on a small area of your skin to make sure you are not allergic or have a bad skin reaction to the product.
• Check expiration dates on all products you intend on purchasing.
• If a product is not intended for skin do not use it, especially on your face as this is particularly important if using prosthetics. Use glues and adhesives specifically created for the use on skin.
• Avoid using products in and around your eyes. Your eyes are the most delicate area on your face, adding harsh and heavy glues in that area can cause side effects.
• It might be best to spend a few extra dollars to guarantee that you are getting the best quality of products to limit skin reaction and breakouts.
• Never use last year’s Halloween makeup or face paint. Makeup that has sat unopened in a dark place for a year or so causes bacteria to build and causes your skin to break out.
• When wearing makeup or face paint, try to limit the length of time you wear it as much as possible by washing it off as soon as you can.
• The preferred brands that we recommend to our patients include CeraVe, Cetaphil and Vanicream.
Don’t live a Halloween Nightmare
After a fun night full of candy and creepy clowns, the last thing you want to do is leave on all the costume makeup. Removing your Halloween makeup is very important. Be sure to completely wash your face and hair before going to bed. Use a gentle facial cleanser to remove all the layers of makeup. Most Halloween makeup will most likely contain heavy oils and therefore may need an oil-based cleanser for removal. While cleansing may remove the majority of makeup from the surface of your skin, exfoliation will clear out any product that has made its way deeper into your pores. This will help your skin guard against breakouts, unclogs your pores and calms inflammation. Then moisturize again.
If you’ve applied any false eyelashes or any type of stick-ons to your face it is best to invest in adhesive remover. Never pull anything off your skin without using an appropriate cleansing aid or adhesive remover to help with the process of removing the stick-ons from your face.
Have a Happy Halloween
Start your Halloween planning now, so you have time to do your research and have all your products and cleansers ready. These tips will keep your skin in healthy conditions through Halloween if you follow the given steps to ensure healthy-looking skin before, during and after Halloween. We hope you find this information helpful and for you to enjoy your Halloween. Stay on top of your changing skin needs to help stay away from spooky skin problems.
Halloween falls in the time when the seasons change from summer to fall, and with the change in the seasons our skin can change, too. Most notably, the humidity levels drop, which tends to dry out our skin. This is caused by the change in temperature in the air. When the air becomes colder, we turn our furnaces on to heat our house. Our furnaces tend to be dryer and it can dry out our skin overnight. Mixing together the warmth of turning our furnaces on, and the colder air of being outdoors can dry our skin out even more. When you and your family are out walking around trick-or-treating on Halloween night, this can further expose our skin to these elements of drying our skin out even more. Here are some tricks and tips to reassure your hair and skin that it will stay healthy this Halloween:
Beware of Haunted Hair Products, too
Just like your skin, beware of the products you are choosing to wear on your head. Halloween can be equally as hard on your hair as it is on your skin. Instead of using paint, glue, glitter and other hair products, try wearing a wig. A wig can give the look you want while keeping your hair out of harm’s way. Before placing the wig, use dry shampoo on your hair and scalp to absorb any of the oils the wig may produce.
If your costume calls for a specific style that you cannot achieve with a wig, just like costume makeup, look for quality hair products and spot test them before fully using them to limit reactions. If using a decorative product for your hair, prepare your hair the night before with an olive or coconut oil hair mask. To keep your hair healthy after using decorative hair products, use a sulfate-free shampoo and follow up with using a conditioner. ••
Dermatology Partners is located at 8001 Roosevelt Blvd., Suite 307. Call 267-731-1333 or visit www.dermpartners.com to schedule online.
