The Pond’s and True Love magazine Day of Beauty event left me feeling inspired, confident and ready to face any challenge in life.

Pond’s believes that being truly beautiful is not just about fixing your flaws and imperfections. True radiant beauty is unlocked from within. The way we live our lives has a direct impact on our skin. Which is why Pond’s is committed to caring for your skin, both from the inside and out.

Various speakers, who are specialists in their fields, shared with us the importance of looking after our skin, eating healthily, keeping fit, strengthening relationships, destressing, and introspection.

Your skin

Did you know your skin is your biggest organ? Yip, it’s an organ and it is exposed to some pretty harsh elements daily which damage it and lead to premature ageing. You need to look after your skin at all times. One of the biggest misconceptions I’ve heard is that only white people need to wear sunscreen. This is not true! In fact, one morning this week I heard a radio presenter say that sunburn was only a white person’s problem. I cringed when I heard that! No matter what the colour of your skin, you MUST wear sunscreen! The sun doesn’t choose who it wants to burn, it burns everyone. Wear sunscreen at all times during the day during summer and winter. You may not feel like you are burning in winter but believe me you are. So lather up. If you are swimming or being active outdoors you should reapply sunscreen every hour. Try wear sunscreen that is SPF 30. For those of you who are unsure, SPF stands for sun protection factor.

The first step in your skincare routine should be cleansing. You should cleanse your skin daily, in the morning and evening, to remove dirt and make-up. A big beauty no-no is using a soap bar that you would use for your laundry, to wash your face. That bar of soap may do a brilliant job at removing oil from your clothing, but it was not designed for washing your face. Just because your skin is oily doesn’t mean you should use laundry soap or bath soap to wash it. It may leave your skin feeling squeaky clean afterwards but this is actually bad for your skin because you’ve stripped it of all the necessary oils. Use a facewash that is suited for your skin and when your wash your face make sure you use circular movements to help increase blood circulation that will bring nutrients to the surface. Never ever sleep with your make-up on. You will wake up with clogged pores, breakouts and puffy eyes.

So what is my skin type? You would be amazed at how many women don’t know their skin type. They then end up buying incorrect products which can either react badly to their skin, cause it to break out or leave it feeling burnt or even more oily.

• Dry skin is rough and flaky, it feels sensitive and products can irritate it.
• Oily skin is prone to acne, make-up usually won’t stick and it is generally prone to producing oil.
• Combination skin typically means that some parts of your skin are dry and flaky while your T-zone is oily.

Toners are important and should be used after cleansing. They shouldn’t have a high percentage of alcohol which will end up in your skin feeling irritated. They should be mild. Toner removes residue that is left behind after cleansing and help shrink pores. The Flawless Radiance toner is blended with a high percentage of moisturising ingredients and helps replace the moisture that you may have removed from your skin.

After you’ve wiped your skin with toner, then apply serum. The Flawless Radiance Anti Spot Even Ton Serum is concentrated with GenActiv and provides targeted delivery to your skin that will leave it looking more radiant. As I’ve previously mentioned, I don’t like wearing too many layers of product on my face but serums really are important for your skin. With repeated use you will start seeing results after 6 weeks.

During the day you should wear a moisturiser with an SPF. To make sure you are even more protected, ideally your make-up should also contain an SPF. The Pond’s Flawless Radiance BB Cream does contain an SPF so if you feel like wearing it with out using a day moisturiser, it will keep you fairly protected. If you find that the day cream is not rich enough to soothe your dry skin in winter, you can use the night cream during the day. If you do this then make sure that your make-up does contain an SPF.

I usually wear BB cream just about every day. I don’t like wearing heavy foundation and am happy with the coverage I get from BB cream. It’s pretty much a tinted moisturiser and if you want you can wear it as a primer under your foundation. Unfortunately the Flawless Radiance BB Cream in Beige is too dark for my skin. I really hope they bring out a lighter shade.

If your skin is oily, don’t skip using moisturiser because you think your skin has enough oil as is. Your skin needs moisturiser in the morning and evening. If you skip that part of your skin routine your skin could end up producing more oil than you started with. Oily skin needs to be moisturised. If you use the correct moisturiser for your skin won’t end up feeling overly oily.

The best advice that I have is to start looking after your skin from a young age. Don’t think that you only need to start worrying about wrinkles when you’re in your 30s or 40s. You may not see the damage yet in your 20s, but believe me it is there and it will show up later in life. So rather be proactive and protect your skin from a young age.

Again I will repeat the beauty no-nos:

– Never wearing sunscreen

– Using laundry soap to wash your face

– Sleeping with make-up on

Health

Exercise is a tool that can treat so many things. It improves circulation, leaves skin looking vibrant and with a glow, and improves your mood. What types of exercise can you explore? Try yoga, running and cycling, brisk walking, tennis and squash and strength training. Not everyone is built to run marathons or play tennis tournaments. Find the exercise that you enjoy and be active. You don’t need to work out every day. 45 to 60 minutes of exercise , a few days a week is all you need.

It may be tough at first when you start exercising and you may feel tired and have low self-esteem. Just keep going! Take one day at a time. As my mom always says, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” Listen to your body but also don’t be afraid to push yourself a little bit. I promise you it gets easier and soon you will love the adrenaline rush and endorphins you get while working out.

Sugar is bad for you. Yes it may leave you feeling great for an hour, but once it wears off you will low and sulky again. Believe me I know this all too well. I love Coca Cola and am trying to cut down on this as much as I can (I say this while sipping on a glass of Coke). So far I have been much better at cutting it out of my diet and making an effort to drink more water. I didn’t initially enjoy the taste of water but have grown to like it. If you really battle to drink water try adding lemon slices, mint leaves, pieces of cucumber or strawberries to it. Chop  them up and put them in your bottle of water and leave in the fridge overnight. When you drink your water the next day it will taste like the ingredients and will be easier for you to drink. In winter it may not be easy to drink cold water so try drink herbal teas. I drink a lot of green tea, jasmine tea, pomegranate tea and ginger tea during the day. I don’t add milk or sugar to them which is better for you. If you are really craving something sweet, add half a teaspoon of honey to them. If I feel grumpy in the afternoon, the first check I do is whether I drank enough water that day. Usually I haven’t had enough so as soon as I feel grumpy I start drinking some.

One thing my spinning instructor has taught me is that what you put in your body is generally what you get out. Try be more aware of what you are eating, eat raw foods that are not high in sugar. Eat clean and you will feel better.

Still not sure which healthy foods you should be eating? Click here.

Be the best that you can be

The final part of the day was my favourite. The introspection helped me learn a lot about myself, the decisions I’ve made, the bonds I’ve formed or broken and how I’ve dealt with change, grief and loss.

I had such a wonderful day and can’t wait to reveal my radiant skin after using the Pond’s Flawless Radiance range. I especially love my tea pot and cup! Thank you to Pond’s, True Love and the speakers who shared their wisdom on the day.