December 30, 2009

My acne and braces bring all the boys to the yard!

Four years ago, I decided to take the plunge and get braces.  Here is a snippet of the conversation my orthodontist and I had at my initial appointment...

Orthodontist:  "You're going to need to have your wisdom teeth, one bottom molar, and a front tooth
removed before we can begin orthodontic treatment."

Me:  "Ha ha ha!  I'm sorry...  I thought I just heard you say that I need to have a front tooth removed.  I'll look like a hillbilly!  Quick!  Someone grab me a banjo and find me a close relative to marry!"

Unfortunately, my orthodontist was serious.  Two months after my consultation, I was toothless, sporting braces, and speaking with a slight lisp.  And then, ath if I didn't already look ridiculouth, I developed a cathe of adult acne.  Why couldn't all of this have happened to me circa 1992, when everyone else my age was getting their awkward on?


Kate Gene a.k.a. Neil Goldman in 2006

Nowadays (thanks in part to Proactiv and chugging absurd amounts of water), I rarely break out.  But when I do, I make myself an aspirin mask.  I love how it exfoliates my skin.  So much, in fact, that I may retire my beloved St. Ives Apricot Scrub.  This mask really works wonders!



There are different ways to do it, but I do it the Michelle Phan way.  I add a tad more honey and a little less water than she does, but otherwise our "recipes" are the same.  Her video is very informative; it's definitely worth checking out.



My only complaint?  The mask smells gross.  The good news is, I may not have to use the mask as often anymore because I got a Clairsonic for Christmas from my awesome in-laws!  Whoo hoo!  Review to come soon...

Have a great day, everyone!

Photobucket

21 comments:

Dominique said...

Lovely ! I will sure try it on ! Thank you for sharing !

Stephanie said...

I've heard so many good reviews on the clairsonic! They make them down the street from where I live! haha it's where the corporate office is too ~ near Bellevue, Washington. I found it random one day exploring the city!

Beautygirl24 said...

I will definitely try the aspirin mask out! Maybe tonight too!

Kate Gene said...

Dominique - Let me know how it works out for you! Michelle Phan also has a video on a kitty litter mask, but I think I'll stick to this one. LOL!

Steph - I haven't had mine for long, but I am loving it! I didn't know the corporate office was near Bellevue! When my husband and I lived in Sammamish/Issaquah, we always went to Bellevue to shop and eat. I used to work out there, too! I'm surprised we never saw it!

Have you gone to the new stores at Lincoln Square?

Kate Gene said...

Beautygirl24 - Let me know how you like it! I was hesitant to try it at first, but am glad I did. I had a couple of milia spots on my right cheek (blech), and after using the mask four times, they were gone!

April said...

Kate I love your blog soo very much! :) I love that aspirin mask! I bought a giant aspirin bottle from the dollar store to use it for the mask. Hehehe! :)

Louzee said...

Post a picture of your face without makeup.

Unknown said...

I love my St. Ives Apricot Scrub ... this looks like a must try!!
Your blog is so cute ... I found you through J-Ezzy and wanted to say hi!! :o)

Unknown said...

Hahahha i love your response "i'm going to look like a hillbilly.. find me a close relative i can marry!" haha! but hey, at least those days of acne & missing tooth are over! :) happy new year!

Kate Gene said...

April - You always say the nicest things! :) I wish there was a Dollar Store close to our house... I spent more than a dollar on that tiny bottle of generic pills!

Louzee - Oh, gosh... Me sans make-up might make your eyes bleed! LOL! Actually, I plan on posting more pictures of my mug soon, so get ready! LOL!

April - The St. Ives Scrub is awesome, isn't it? I probably won't really give it up, but I definitely don't feel the need to use it as often.

Thanks for your kind words! :) I like that J-ezzy girl. She's a-okay in my book. :)

Kym - LOL! Yeah, I was actually horrified when my orthodontist broke the news. He was awesome to work with, so I can't really complain. Yahoo for straight teeth and (less) acne! :D

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE!

XOXO

Stephanie said...

YES! There is a CCO at the Seattle Premium Outlet :) They actually have a lot of good stuff. Like the MAC Nordstrom exclusive collections :) Definitely stop by there! They have a lot of great other stores too!

Kate Gene said...

Steph - I'm an idiot. My husband reminded me that we actually have gone to the outlet mall - twice! LOL! I didn't see the CCO though... I think we're going to have to take a trip up north! I want some exclusive collection products! :D

Kasia said...

Haha I've had all of my 4 wisdom teeth removed.
I love aspirin mask, although I mix aspirin with plain yogurt or sweet cream, not with honey. :)

Thank you for stopping by on my blog dear! Feel free to come back any time, and I'll surly response.
Take care!

Kate Gene said...

Kasia_B - I think I might try using yogurt, just to see if I get a different/better result than I do with the honey. :)

And you're welcome! Thanks for stopping by my blog as well! :)

Unknown said...

omgosh! you loe and ruv engrish too?!?!?!?! i'm sooo heppy!!! hahaha! ;P

Karen Law said...

I was just about to use my St. Ives apricot scrub too! It must be a good mask if you're not using the St. Ives anymore ;) Thanks for letting us know.

Kate Gene said...

Kym - HA HA HA! Heck yes, I do! Engrish.com is actually one of my favorite sites! :D I seriously can't wait to order one of your shirts!

Karen - How funny that you were just about to use your apricot scrub! :) I think I might use the scrub once a week and do the mask twice a week. I don't know if I can fully give up my St. Ives! LOL!

J-ezzy said...

I swore I posted a whole novel to this post!!!!! ughhh, I really need a vacation, lol.

I will need to try the aspirin mask, asap!

Also, I wanted to say I'm glad you made the decision to get the braces!!!!

I was gonna say...I've had all 4 wisdom teeth surgically extracted and the surgery went well and had a close call, my tooth was so far up it almost damaged a nerve that would cut of my smell or something like that, I was drugged when it was explained to me...I was black and purple in my whole squirrel swollen lookin face and it was 3 days before thanksgiving and I went back to work the next day. There, there's my novel of the day. :D

BTW - I love CCO's!

Kate Gene said...

J-ezzy - I LOVE it when you leave "novel" comments! You always have interesting things to say.

Your wisdom teeth story made me cringe. You poor thing! I can't believe you ended up with bruising! Thank goodness they didn't sever your nerve. You wouldn't be able to taste your food if you lost your sense of smell! And how awful is it that you had the surgery so close to Thanksgiving? Were you in a lot of pain? You're hardcore for going to work! I'm gonna call you J-Gangsta from now on. LOL!

xoxo

Nadia said...

I've been reading a lot about the aspirin mask and really want to give it a shot. I'm not sure whether it's suitable for dry skin though since I've barely had any acne. But I guess it must work well as a deep exfoliant. That was very useful btw, thanks for posting! xoxo

Kate Gene said...

I really like using it mostly for the exfoliating properties. It feels so good! When I do get the occasional breakout, the mask helps clear things right up!

I heard that using yogurt instead of honey is a nice way to soften up your skin. I haven't tried that yet, but let me know if you do! :)
xoxo

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