It’s been a hot minute since I wrote a blog post and I have been meaning to write this one for a couple of weeks now. I know a fair amount of my followers on Instagram have become quite invested in my skin journey and I really felt there was more to share than what was shared in my Instagram post. You know the more detailed and personal version of the story 🙂
So here we are, a few days closer to the end of 2020, a year most of us would like to see the backside of in many ways. It’s been a challenging year, but one that has taught us many things. For me one of those things was to look after myself, invest in myself and to remember the importance of self-care. On every level. I think as women, many of us moms, it’s hard to always know what that means. For some, cosmetics and physical aesthetics are not on top of their lists, and that’s okay. Maybe you prefer investing in yourself at the gym or buying new clothes or make up. Or putting every last saving into your next destination holiday.
I for one, feel that all these factors play a part in helping me feel good and age gracefully. I have no desire to look fake or change my looks in any drastic way (my days of wishing I looked like a Victoria’s Secret model are behind me and I am a firm believer in self-acceptance being a real game changer in how we live our lives fully and authentically!), but as I approach my 40’s I am finding myself more open to explore more effective (yet subtle) forms of skin care and look into ways I am able to tackle the bigger problems areas that have become more visible over the years.
And my dear friends, I have found the perfect team of experts to do just that! And I say experts ladies because this is where many of us fall in the skincare trap of falling into fads and listening to too much information out there. We assume that what may be amazing for one woman’s face, will work the same on ours, when reality is this couldn’t be further from the truth. Don’t underestimate the value of finding a qualified aesthetician or skin doctor, because it’s there where the main difference lies.
I LOVE everything about what Alphen Aesthetics stand for and their whole ethos around skin care. They have such a holistic and personal approach to how they run their business.
“We believe that when you are the best version of yourself, you both thrive and add more value to the world around you. We offer subtle, artful ‘fine tuning’ in our Aesthetic Clinic to help maintain your confidence on this journey.”
Doctor Bianca
Dr Bianca Le Feuvre is a medical doctor who has focused exclusively on aesthetic medicine since 2009. She has extensive experience with botulinum injections, dermal fillers, and threads. Her range of botox applications include wrinkle prevention, pain management for migraines & jaw clenching, and excessive sweating. Beyond this, her flair for the “Liquid Facelift” treatment has earned her a sterling reputation in the anti-aging community.
And meeting Tamarah was just so rad! What a gentle and authentic soul who is so good at what she does. Her passion is so evident in the way she speaks and deals with her clients.
After obtaining her 3 year Diploma in Somatology, Tamarah worked for a well-known medical aesthetics group as a aesthetician and later moved on to the management side where she developed her skills in running of a business. In this time Tamarah and her husband started a family and in balancing home and work she decided to pursue a business of her own. This is when Tamarah took over as the owner of Skingen at the end of 2018 and collaborated with Dr Bianca Le Feuvre at Alphen Aesthetics in Constantia where she specialises in Dermapen, Mesotherapy, Dermaplaning, Plasma and Chemical Peels.
I began my journey with both Tamarah and Bianca 2 months ago and it’s opened my eyes to just how effective their treatments are, and how great skin can really make all the difference to how you feel about yourself. On my first visit to see Tamarah, my skin was badly dehydrated, angry and full of pigmentation and dark spots under my eyes and cheeks.
Here is the detailed report, initial treatment and plan she put forward for me:
After two weeks of having the dermapen treatment and using the right products on my skin, I began to notice how much fresher and more dewey my skin was. I started to see a fresh layer of skin appear and the dulness was fading. Because of the dermapen, my skin was now able to absorb products better and thus hydrating creams and serum were more effective. Yes within WEEKS!! Combined with the Dermastore cream and Lamelle deurmastore facewash, I was seeing incredible results as early on as that.
Fast-forward three weeks to my second visit, Tamarah was so happy with my skin’s progress she was happy to go with a more drastic treatment, now that my skin had calmed down. On my second appointment I has a Mesopeel which is quick and relatively pain free chemical peel. It burns for maybe 10-15 minutes tops, but with a hand fan, its really quite manageable. And then I went through the next 5-7 days of shedding like a snake. 🙂 Here are the stages incase you missed them. (keep scrolling if you’ve already seen these!)
The skin starts to harden properly on day two and by day three you have the start of the peeling, usually around the lip ares first. I could not believe the dark skin that was beginning to harden under my eyes and on my cheek bones. The areas most hit my pigmentation caused by sun damage no doubt. Waiting for it to peel off on its own is probably the hardest part of the whole process, as the temptation to peel off the old pigmented skin is real! But when it does finally shed, it exposes a whole new layer of fresh, smoother and lighter skin. The results are rather remarkable and I now wear lightweight tinted moisturiser without the need for heavier foundation.
On my very first visit I also had my first session of botox. I say “session”, but it was over in 30 seconds. 🙂 I was so excited to see the results which started to take effect on about day 3 – 4. Here’s something that may surprise you, Bianca used Dysport to treat my frown lines and used 30 units, which cost only R960. A lot less than I would have expected for such an effective treatment. Botox costs slightly more (R80 per unit) but she wold have only used 12 units. I think many of you might be surprised by this… to learn that these treatments are not as costly as you might think. Obviously this depends on how much you need, but my advice is this: If you’re keen to start somewhere and give it a try, why not set up an appointment with Bianca and let her know what your budget is. She will be able to assist you and help tackle the problem areas first and keep within your budget. I am so so happy with mine, it’s without a doubt something I will be investing in every 3 months or so from now on.
Here’s what you need to know about Botox
Dysport and Botox are brand names for botulinum toxin that are used in South Africa. Injections into overactive muscles cause them to relax thus reducing wrinkles that are created with movement. Dysport®/Botox® treatments are most commonly done on the following areas: forehead and frown lines, crows feet, bunny lines, gummy smiles, downward turning mouths and neck muscles. Botox injections can also be used to prevent a ‘cobblestone’ or upward turning chin. Less commonly it is used to slim jawlines and muscular calves.
Results from Dysport®/Botox® treatments take 5 – 14 days to take effect and generally last anything from 2-4 months depending on the number of units used.
Clients often ask whether it is safe. With a good safety profile proven over 30 years, they can be reassured that injected by the right practitioner in the right area with the right indications, they are good to go.
So you it’s really good to know you are in the best possible hands when it comes to your most precious organs, your SKIN! I cannot recommend this skin clinic enough.
Call: 0615262137
Email: hello@alphenaesthetics.co.za
Cape Town Practice: AlphenAesthetics, Alphen Estate, Constantia, Cape Town
You can also follow them on Instagram.
Disclaimer : I was hosted at Alphen Aesthetics, but all thoughts and opinions are honest and my own. I was told by both Tamarah and Bianca to feel no pressure whatsoever to post anything, should I not feel comfortable and authentic.
Hi I’m Leigh! Did you enjoy reading this post? I really hope so and would love you to stick around a little longer! Please feel free to browse my blog for other articles or to keep up with all the latest news and to be the first to hear about some great competitions, come and find me me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can also email me directly at leeloobaggins@hotmail.com or simply subscribe below and never worry about missing out!
