Sigourney road tests a Dermalogica Face Mapping facial and discovers some surprising truths about her skin.
My skin has been seriously blah lately. I’ve had some major life changes – leaving my posting at Vogue to start Beauticate full time, which is all very exciting but I haven’t had much time for skin maintenance. And it’s showing. Eager to get my glow back, I decide to go and get my skin analysed by an expert. Dermalogica offers a service called Face Mapping. The ten-minute service is free and you can get it done at the counter when you’re buying product or you can add it to your Dermalogica facial so that you get the most tailor-maid solution for your skin. I’m in need of some pampering so I go for the latter.
Once I’m happily ensconced in my cotton cocoon of a treatment bed, my therapist, Carly, puts on a headpiece with a magnifying glass and torch on it. She looks a bit like a miner, albeit a very pretty one with nice, glowy skin – think a female version of Zoolander. She tells me that she’s dividing my face into 14 zones and begins examining and touching each zone, telling me what she’s seeing and feeling in each area.
“Sometimes clients think they know what’s happening on their skin, but they don’t really know,” she explains. “Face Mapping allows us to really analyse carefully and make sure you’re purchasing the correct products and continuing your routine properly at home.”
As Carly continues her goldmining across my face, using a combination of traditional beauty therapy and Chinese facial diagnosis, she unearths some interesting little nuggets of information. Here’s what I learnt:
1) You can see dehydration on your skin.
Push your skin together gently with your fingers, dehydration shows up as uniform lines running along your skin – usually vertically, sometimes horizontally. Carly tells me that she’s going to do a good exfoliation to help the cell turnover and help my moisturisers sink in.
2) Don’t forget your ears
People often get shampoo and conditioner stuck in their ears, which can lead to irriration or congestion, so you should make sure you cleanse your ears well – at least once a week. And don’t forget to put sunscreen on them, too. “They’re part of the face so we need to look after them,” she adds.
3) Red cheeks can indicate illness
When she gets to my cheeks, Carly asks if I’ve been sick. I have – I’m recovering from a nasty cold. In Chinese medicine, the cheekbones are linked to respiration and lungs. If you suffer from hayfever or sinusitis it can also show on your cheeks. She tells me she will put a calming colloidal oatmeal mask on to hydrate and nourish the area.
4) You really need to cleanse twice
Carly says the biggest mistake women make is not cleansing twice. She says it’s imperative to use an oil cleanser first like Dermalogica Precleanse because oil attracts oil and acts like a magnet, dissolving makeup, dirt and grease. The second cleanse purifies the skin and leaves it ready to absorb treatment products. Who knew!?
At the end of the treatment Carly gives me my Face Mapping Prescription Sheet and prescribes some products to help with my dehydration and lack of lustre. She prescribes Precleanse to encourage me to cleanse twice, Antioxidant HydraMist to help with my dehydration and protect me from free radical damage (perfect to leave on my desk and mist on throughout the day), MultiVitamin Power Serum.
Carly tells me that Dermalogica want to educate more Australians about their skin so are hosting a series of events across the country as part of a nationwide #FaceMapNation campaign. For a complimentary Face Mapping with a Dermalogica Expert, visit dermalogica.com.au.
Sally
Great piece, I now want to go and get the face mapping done!
katie
I always forget my neck!! Great advice, thank you!
Manea
eeek didn’t realise how off-course I was in the cleansing department.
Camille
Didn’t think to cleanse my skin twice – thanks for the hot tip Beauticate!
Camille
Didn’t think to cleanse my skin twice – thanks for the hot tip!
Camille
Didn’t think to cleanse my skin twice – thanks for the hot tip Beauticate!