Let's all try facial gua sha.

About a decade ago I only thought of facial massage as a method for relaxation; I soon began to learn through esthetics training and research that facial massage could detoxify, lift, contour, and bring new life into our skin. I’ve been obsessed with various kinds of facial massage for years but it wasn’t until about two years ago that I became aware of gua sha. The more I read about facial gua sha and looked at these amazing before and after photos of people that have received treatments I knew I had to learn more about it.

New things for scrub me™ skin care studio!

My skincare studio has moved from the Halsted location in River West to a studio space in Wicker Park. I was so sentimental about the Halsted location because it was scrub me™ skin care studio’s first home, I took some time to say my proper goodbyes before I moved on. What makes me so excited about the new space is that I’m sure you’re all going to absolutely love it! scrub me™ skin care studio is moving into a space with newly constructed salon suites; construction wrapped up in late May so the studio is going to be totally brand new. It will be the same relaxing, clean, & comfortable vibe with some added bonuses! In the same building as scrub me™ skin care studio, there will be other beauty businesses for you to check out like hair & lash services. This could end up being your one-stop shop for beauty.

Celebrating 10 years as an esthetician with skincare words of wisdom.

Spring 2020 marks ten years of working as an esthetician for me! In January 2010 I graduated from the Aveda Institute in Chicago, took my Illinois state board test shortly after, and scored an “esthetician in training” gig at a local spa. I have to admit, after graduating from esthetics school and passing my big test I thought I was a skincare pro. While I had the knowledge, I would learn over the years that experience with a wide variety of people, skin types, conditions, products, and treatments is what gives the most valuable skincare wisdom.

Relaxation & meditation tools.

Commit fully to your relaxation/meditation exercise and see it through from start to finish. The process may feel challenging or frustrating at times but I’ve always found that just that act of committing to & completing something from start to finish gives me a boost of good energy.

Esthetician recommended facial tools!

Now that you’ve used my previous blog post to optimize your at-home skincare I think you’re ready to amp up your routine even more. I’ve made a list of facial treatment tools you can use at home to increase the results you desire from your home care and make you feel like you’ve really brought the esthetics room into your own house! These items are listed in the order I would use them as an esthetician in the treatment room. For example, I started with the steamer for pore cleansing and ended the list with cooling globes that would finish off the treatment. This should give you a better idea of how to add these tools to your skincare routine at home.

Tips for optimizing your at-home skincare routine.

Current global situations have us all spending a lot more time at home for the month of March. Doing things that are both relaxing and productive seems like the best way to stay sane and contribute to our overall wellness. I think a great way to do that is to dedicate some extra time to make your at-home skincare routine the best it can be! I’m breaking this blog post up into sections depending on skin type so I can really get specific on what types of products are best for you specifically. Let’s get started!

Help your hands: Tips to healing and preventing dry, chapped skin from frequent washing.

Today, with the new COVID-19 pandemic I thought it would be a great time to republish this blog all about how to best take care of the skin on your hands. I focused on why our hands can get off-balance from a lot of washing and my best tips to keep the skin soft and healthy.

Why I'm into buccal facial massage.

I am obsessed with lifting massages so after talking about this different type of facial massage I went straight to investigating more. Buccal massage is the formal name for this type of technique where the inner and outer parts of the face are worked with. Buccal Facial treatments help lift and smooth facial muscles and tissue, I’m all in!

What's Rolfing? Can it make you look & feel younger?

A few months ago this awesome woman named Katy visited my studio for a facial. As we chatted I learned she had recently moved here from Colorado where she received her certification in Rolfing. I was a little familiar with this form of tissue & fascia manipulation but was interested to learn more from a trained professional. The extent of what I knew about this wellness practice is that it’s similar to, but not the same as physical therapy or clinical massage. Of course, I had to inquire about the ways rolfing could benefit our neck & face and if it could help lift and smooth that tissue. Katy had great information for me and invited me to her workspace to experience some head, neck, and face structural integration for myself!

Quiz: Test you toner knowledge!

Katherine M StribakosJanuary 23, 2020skin care blog, quiz, skincare quiz, natural skin care, knowledge, natural, toner, tanning, skin care, skin care knowledge, skin care tips, healthy, chapped lips, wellness, body wellnessComment

Talking All About Toner!

I’m really excited to write this blog post on toners! As an esthetician, I often have clients come to my skincare studio who are bypassing the toning step in their at-home skincare routine. A few reasons I’ve found why people are skipping a toner at home is that they think it is an unnecessary step, they are not sure when or what kind to use, or they’ve had a bad experience with a toner product. When used correctly, using a daily toner is really beneficial to your skin’s health and also your skincare routine.

Skincare Q&A with an Esthetician.

I thought a blog answering some of the questions I get asked most as an esthetician would be a perfect way to wrap up 2019. Getting to answer your skin and product questions is probably one of the favorite parts of my job. You can truly never ask me too many skincare related questions, and if I don’t know the answer I will go do my research and find it for you. Knowing how your skin functions and what treatments & products are best to treat it is a really important part of maintaining healthy, radiant skin.

A Soothing & Moisturizing Facial - At Home Treatment!

Your Newest Beauty Balm Obsession!

Multipurpose beauty balms are luxurious, nourishing salves that treat skin, hair, and nails in several different ways. We wanted a beauty balm that had ALL the perks. Not only did we want something that softened and protected dry patches but also a balm that helped repair and grow brows and lashes. Speaking of brows and lashes, we also wanted a product that could tame stray hairs making everything lay nice and uniform. So we decided to formulate our very own multipurpose balm!

Our Ways of Fighting Aging Skin.

While the main goal of skin care is to make sure our skin is in its healthiest state it’s also important to a lot of us to keep our skin looking youthful. Sagging and lines tend to make our skin a bit dull or tired-looking; we want our faces to look fresh, firm, and bright! Today we are teaching you our philosophy on anti-aging. For our anti-aging methods, we avoid injectables like botox/fillers and focus more on maintaining the health of the lymphatic system, skin tissues, collagen, & elastin. We also have some product tips on what we’ve found best to preserve your youthful-looking skin.