Full Body Skin Care Routine

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These Full Body Skin Care Products Are Game Changers

If you live in the Midwest, you probably know how the cold, dry weather can take its toll on your skin. You may also know how easy it is to not shave your legs for a month because you’ve been wearing pants for that long anyway. So you’ve probably also experienced that occasion that calls for you to spend the entire day in the bathroom plucking, moisturizing, and shaving the month’s worth of hair that has accumulated on your body. Maybe it’s a date, or an event that requires a dress, or even getting ready for a poolside vacation…whatever the reason…your entire body needs a pick me up.

Today we’re here to get it done Apple Valley Natural Soap style. Featuring some of our products that will best help whip that skin into shape in no time!

Full Body Exfoliation

Exfoliating before you shave will loosen and remove dead skin that has accumulated or is stuck to the surface of your skin. This will not only help achieve a more even, glowing skin tone…but will also prep your skin for a nice close shave!

You can either use a soap with a built in exfoliant or bring in a third party exfoliating tool. What do I mean by this? I’ll tell you!

Exfoliating Soap

Our Grapefruit Peppermint Luffa Body Bar is known to get the circulation going. This rejuvenating, invigorating, scrubby loofah soap bar will exfoliate those dead skin cells while stimulating blood flow resulting in smoother, firmer skin. Filled with the dried fruit fiber of the tropical luffa vine, this exfoliating natural luffa soap bar feels fabulous while filling your senses with the tangy sweetness of grapefruit followed by a slight peppermint twist at the end. This loofah soap has a medium strength exfoliation.

Exfoliating Bag

This handy little Cotton Bag allows you to scrub up with your favorite Apple Valley Natural Soap while it’s tucked inside. One side of the bag is an open mesh, while the reverse side is soft like a washcloth. The bag is large enough to hold any of our soaps, whether a full bar or smaller. We recommend the open weave side for washing only short hair, and the washcloth side for face and body. It will also work great for collecting all the end pieces of your favorite soaps so nothing is wasted, and makes a fantastic gift!

Shaving Soap

Next you’ll want to lather up with a soap that will give you the optimal shave. You can either go with a shaving soap, or a Castile soap that will give you a fantastic lather for shaving. If you’ve used the Natural Cotton Bag to exfoliate you can simply use one of the shaving soaps as the soap in your bag, scrub up a lather, and go right into the shave!

Full Body Moisturizing Products

Finding the right lotion can be difficult especially if you have a variety of skin types. My skin is definitely more prone to breakouts on my face, chest, and upper back…so I use a variety of moisturizers depending on the area.

Legs and Arms

Sweet Rosehips Body Polish

I recommend finishing your shave with a final sugar scrub. You will get a final round of gentle exfoliation, and you’ll also moisturize your legs in the shower. Our sugar scrubs are full of nourishing oils that will leave you without the need for lotion afterwards (psst. Sweet Rosehips Body Polish is my fav).

Face

After using whichever AVNS facial bar you love most on your face, follow with a spritz of toner and a couple drops of our Organic Moroccan Argan Oil which won’t clog skin and will leave it soft and supple!

Everything Else

Using Jojoba oil on the areas of your body that may be prone to oiliness is the perfect solution because the composition of jojoba oil mimics the natural oil your body produces: sebum. This makes jojoba oil a light, gentle moisturizing option. I love using a custom scented jojoba oil for a scent boost! To explore the difference between argan vs. jojoba oil read our most popular blog post here!

Deep Target Skin Hydration

Sometimes dry scaly skin gets out of control and needs the extra mile to recover. Hands and feet deal with the most wear and tear and exposure and often become dry or calloused. For problem areas like this I recommend applying one of two products: our whipped baby butters, or shea butter skin therapy. Once you’ve applied these products on your hands or feet cover them with socks or gloves to lock in every ounce of moisture and let the magic soak in overnight.

TLC Tip for Toes!

Toenails and feet can be difficult to clean and maintain. Be eco-friendly! Clean and use an old toothbrush to scrub between toes and under toenails!

Hopefully this has been helpful in rejuvenating your skin, you’ll feel all over fresh afterwards!

Much Love,

Nora

What Is Collagen? & Why Do People Use It?

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Collagen is a protein located in the bones, muscles, skin, and tendons that provides structure in holding these parts of the body together.

There are two types of collagen. Endogenous collagen is the collagen produced by your body. Exogenous collagen is created by an outside source, like supplements. Today we will discuss collagen’s role in the body, as well as the uses of exogenous collagen as we seek to answer the question: does collagen in beauty products really revitalize the skin or reverse the skin’s aging process?

Your body needs to produce endogenous collagen to function. A lack of collagen can lead to health problems. Exogenous collagen is used for many different purposes which we will go over today. 

Here are some quick and interesting facts about collagen taken from a Medical News Today article:

  • Collagen occurs throughout the body, but especially in the skin, bones, and connective tissues.
  • Some types of collagen fibrils, gram-for-gram, are stronger than steel.
  • Collagen production declines with age and exposure to factors such as smoking and UV light.

What is collagen?

Collagen is a strong, fibrous protein that acts as a tough chain link between cells. I like to picture it as the supporting beams or chains of a bridge. There are at least 16 different types of collagen and it makes up one-third of the protein content in the body. Most of the collagen in your body is limited to three main types of collagen, each with its own structure and function.

As a skincare company, type one interests us most…”Type I collagen is the most abundant collagen in the dermis. It comprises about 80% of dermal collagen and plays a major role in providing tensile strength to skin. It is composed of two identical alpha chains and a third chain of different amino acid composition. The genes for these different chains are thought to be on chromosomes 17 and 7 respectively.” (Weedon’s Skin Pathology)

Roles: What does collagen do?

Collagen acts as a supporting structure for the epidermis. Collagen also plays a part in replacing and revitalizing dead skin cells. As you age, the body naturally produces less collagen and the quality of collagen produced decreases as well. So is there a way to produce more collagen?

Uses of Collagen: Medical and cosmetic

Skin fillers

Collagen injections can improve the contours of the skin and fill out depressions.

Wound dressing and healing

Collagen can help heal wounds by attracting new skin cells to the wound site. It promotes healing and provides a platform for new tissue growth.

Guided tissue regeneration

Collagen-based membranes have been used in periodontal and implant therapy to promote the growth of specific types of cell.

Vascular prosthetics

Collagen tissue grafts from donors have been used in peripheral nerve regeneration, in vascular prostheses, and in arterial reconstruction.

Treatment of osteoarthritis

Collagen supplements or formulations may help treat osteoarthritis.

Skin rejuvenation

Do products with collagen actually rebuild skin? Science sadly says no.

“Many products containing collagen, including creams and powders, claim to revitalize the skin by increasing collagen levels within the body. This is unlikely, however, as collagen molecules are too large to be absorbed through the skin. Any benefit is probably due to the moisturizing effects of these products. They do not directly increase collagen.”

– James McIntosh, Medical News Today

We do not add collagen to our products for this reason, but we do include ingredients that may improve, stimulate, and encourage collagen growth and production.

Our Buck Shampoo and Body Bar contains a super beneficial micro-algae called chlorella.

Our Bamboo Shampoo Bar contains silica due to it’s bamboo content. Natural Silica rebuilds collagen when it has been damaged by free radicals.

Our Antioxidant Beauty Facial Soap contains sea buckthorn. Sea buckthorn contains a collagen-creating Omega 7 fatty acid.

Preventing collagen loss naturally

Keeping skin moisturized and healthy is important. Using soap with ingredients that protect skin and encourage collagen production can’t replenish collagen, but they can aid in the process of keeping skin healthy

Maintaining a healthy diet with nutrients that may support collagen formation include:

  • Proline: In egg whites, meat, cheese, soy, and cabbage.
  • Anthocyanidins: In blackberries, blueberries, cherries, and raspberries.
  • Vitamin C: In oranges, strawberries, peppers, and broccoli.
  • Copper: In shellfish, nuts, red meat, and some drinking water.
  • Vitamin A: Occurring in animal-derived foods and in plant foods as beta-carotene.

List of nutrients obtained from Medical News Today

What damages collagen?

A poor diet that is high in sugar, smoking, and sun exposure are leading factors in damaged collagen.

Avoiding tobacco and excess sun exposure and following a healthful dietary and exercise regime can help reduce visible aging and protect collagen, keeping the skin, bones, muscles, and joints healthy for longer.

So let’s all make some smoothies with kale and take a jog, huh?

Much Love,

Nora

New Year’s Rediscoveries

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The New Year season is especially sentimental for me because it’s around the time I composed and released my first blog for Apple Valley Natural Soap. I had just returned home to Minnesota from my three month study abroad trip in Europe, and having suffered recent loss, felt lost myself. Starting my work with Apple Valley Natural Soap brought me the joy and focus to work through that time, and my first blog helped me process the grief and change that life brings with it. 

Last year we faced grief and uncertainty together, as the pandemic stretched out before us with no clear definition for the type of world we would be left living in. Yet, we chose to look forward. To push forward into the next year believing that good was in store for us and to turn to those around us for support and camaraderie. To me, this includes the beautiful AVNS community.

So once more, I’d like to take pause. To turn around from my spot on the mountain, see what I’ve come from, and take a breath before turning back to the path. I hope you’ll take the time to join me on this journey. Lay down the burdens, challenges, joys, and accomplishments you’ve accumulated over the past year and think about where you’ve come from and where you’re going. 

I won’t lie, this was a difficult year for me. It seems the older I get the more grief I’m given to deal with. I am thankful that my ability to comprehend and grow through this grief continues to expand as well. I know I’m not the only one facing hardships in the AVNS community, as both I and the Buck family have had to say goodbye to our favorite furry friends this past season. I imagine many of you have faced grief to, and I can only offer my most sincere condolences.

I usually start thinking about how I want to approach the coming year before it’s even arrived. Whether it’s focusing on the small things, or trusting God with the bigger picture…there is always something clear on my mind and this year was no exception. 

We think about New Year’s resolutions as new starts, new habits, a brand new us. But this year has me thinking, what was so wrong with the old me? Does growth ever include backtracking? What about the pieces of myself I loved that got lost somewhere along the way? For the first time, I’m contemplating the idea that the process of growing yourself is not solely the accumulation of new growth, but the continued nurturing or intentional revival of the best parts of yourself throughout your lifetime.

This year, I’ve picked my resolutions from a pool of things I’ve loved about my past self and life. Things that have brought me great joy, things about me that have made the world a better place even if just on a microscopic level, things that have grown me and stretched me and got me to where I am today. Things I want to reclaim for the life ahead of me.

I invite you to grab a paper and pen and sit down with me as I list the three things I want to rediscover in my life. Let’s not only write them out, but let’s brainstorm ways in which we can make these resolutions realities too, sound like a plan?

  1. Get back into improv comedy
    • Why: connects me with others, teaching it brings joy to others, brings joy to me.
      • Offer to lead a beginners workshop at my workplace.
      • Teach a workshop for my old college improv troupe.
      • Branch out and see if there is a school or theatre program that would want to start an improv troupe.
  2. Freshen up my Spanish skills
    • Why: connects me with others, expands my world of communication, brings joy to me
      • Try downloading an app like Babble or Duolingo.
      • Read children’s chapter books in Spanish at my own pace.
      • Find a Spanish club in the local area.
  3. Dance more
    • Why: dancing makes me happy, keeps my body happy and healthy.
      • Make more time to dance for fun in the living room.
      • Take a Zumba class.
      • Take lessons to learn a new style of dance.

What I love about the theme of this year’s resolutions is the do-ability and stress-free nature of the goals I’ve set for myself. I’m not focused on scrambling up the ladder of success, I’m building that ladder stronger so that when the time comes to climb I feel safe and supported in my endeavors. I’d love it if those who have read this blog would take the time to leave a comment with one New Year’s Rediscovery they’d like to focus on this year.

Much, much love,

Nora