Skin Cleanse: Hello Gorgeous Skin

If you stopped by yesterday, you may have read my review of S.W. Basics of Brooklyn and their simple, yet effective products. Today I’m going a little deeper and reviewing the book Skin Cleanse by Adina Grigore, who also happens to be the founder of S.W. Basics. I loved the line before reading this book, but after hearing the back story and science behind their line, I appreciate their products even more. In fact, I loved it all so much that I have a something special for my Instagram friends today. So how did all of this come about? The author found herself in the ruthless cycle of treating one skin problem after another with conventional products and medications, only to have more pop up. After falling into an impossible routine that no sane person could keep up with, she said enough was enough and ditched it all. All the prescription creams and crazy products got tossed and she went back to the most basic, simple routine she could. You can probably guess by the success of her product line how well that did for her skin. Kind of amazing that less ended up being so much more.

 Skin Cleanse is hands down the most helpful book I’ve read about natural beauty and I’ve read a lot of them. While they all cover topics like what’s in conventional products and how fast toxins can be absorbed by your skin, this book is a little different. She didn’t even get into beauty products until halfway into the book. While she did go into great depth about the products we’re using and their effects, she keeps emphasizing throughout the book that what you’re putting in your body is just as important as what you’re putting on your body. Real glowing, clear skin has a lot more to do with how we’re taking care of ourselves overall. But some of you may have already known that.. So you drink your green smoothie everyday and pretend you’re not eating your weight in organic cheddar bunnies while your children are napping, and go about your business. But then your have weird pesky rashes pop up and clogged pores and under eye bags. Ok, maybe you don’t (that may have been all me *ahem*), but perhaps you have something going on and I can guarantee your mouth would drop to the floor if you really saw what you were ingesting and doing to your body.

I consider myself to be a pretty healthy eater, but following Adina Grigore’s orders I set about making a food journal (one that I quickly burned after reading). Pesky things like sugar kept popping up in the most unexpected places. I was snacking on crap more often than I thought- mostly organic, non-GMO snack foods that are still kind of crap at the end of the day. I was drinking more coffee than I thought, more wine than I thought, and getting less sleep than I thought. When you see it all written down on paper, especially for a whole week, it really hits home. Kind of scary at first, but the author holds your hand and walks you through it all. She goes into great detail about what these things actually do to our bodies and the little things they cause like inflammation, which all builds up. She puts the power back in your hands so you can really take responsibly for the state of your overall health and how that’s being reflected on the outside. I realized I have been eating a ton of eggs and I’m now pretty sure it’s been the culprit for this on again off again itchy, eczema rash I’ve had for the last 9 months. I haven’t completely eliminated them from my diet, but when I reduce the amount I eat, I see a significant change. 

After you spend some time examining your habits and diet, save your journal (or buy another if you’re forced to burn it like I did), because you’re about to be journalling again. Adina breaks down the beauty industry and how much junk is in products these days. After sharing what ingredients to watch out for and why there’s basically no regulations, she gets to the scariest funnest part. The skin cleanse. Here is where you keep a product journal of almost everything that touches your body. It sounds daunting, but she points out what kinds of things to look for. If you thought you were eating a lot of cheddar bunnies, just wait until you see how much stuff your skin comes into contact with each day. I complain that my skin can be reactive and touchy.. but geez, after seeing all the stuff I throw at it each day, no wonder! The next step is pairing down your routine- and before you get too scared, she does give varying degrees of how can do this. The book includes detailed information on what you can swap your products out for and even gives tons of recipes so you can whip up your own all-natural products. If you’re an Avid DIY-er when it comes to products, this book would be worth it simply for all the amazing recipes it includes. But even if you’re not, the book makes it very simple and doable. 

Speaking of DIY, did you see that S.W. Basics of Brooklyn just came out with a new DIY Skincare Essentials line? It’s everything you need to create your own skincare line tailored to your own skin. You can either use these products on their own or use them to whip up something entirely new. Each bottle even has a quick recipe on it, in case you’re looking for ideas. Such a great concept right? Well, because I loved this book so much and I love you guys, I’ve teamed up with S.W. Basics to giveaway a copy of Skin Cleanse and 3 items from their new DIY Skincare Essentials line to one lucky follower on Instagram. Be sure to follow along and keep your eyes open for how to enter! 

Purchase Skin Cleanse here on Amazon or at major book retailers. Or purchase a signed copy here.