Year: 2020

Spa At Home: The Ultimate Skin Survival Roundup

At this point in time, most of us are staying at home during the Circuit Breaker in Singapore. 3 weeks into isolation, although a far cry from what we really want to do everyday, we are probably slowly getting adjusted to this new way of life. Just like how many have learnt that ordering in can still be a feast, there are new ways to be resourceful with your stay-at-home skincare needs. SKIN DETOX You can’t go out to get your skin a pampering fix, but it doesn’t mean you can’t give your skin a luxurious treat while staying at home. At-home facials are great because not only are they good for anyone’s skin, you can do them more regularly too. The Circuit Breaker is probably a once-in-a-lifetime chance to be able “spa” on a frequent basis. Try SW1 Shop’s Stay At Home Skintoxifier Kit for a bi-weekly skin detox. For other skincare kits, shop here. BESPOKE PEEL The ultimate spa-at-home bespoke peel created by the team behind one of Continue Reading

What To Do If Your Surgical Mask Is Giving You Acne

So the latest health directive now is to wear a mask when you are out in the public, to curb the spread of COVID-19. Whether to wear the mask when you exercise is a topic for another time, some people have figured out by now that mask wearing can create havoc on the skin. In particular, a pattern of acne mapping in atypical areas such as the cheeks, nose, and chin areas suggest that your new, unusual breakout could well be caused by your face mask. According to Dr Low Chai Ling, founder of the SW1 Clinic, it’s not so hard to understand why mask wearing wouldn’t cause acne for some folks. “Afterall, it is uncomfortable, you breathe into it, it gets sweaty and with mask shortages worldwide, you probably re-use even your disposable masks as much as you can” says Dr Low. Should you then ditch your mask to save your skin? No, not unless you want to get a fined or worse, in Singapore. And no, you definitely Continue Reading

Self-Care Secrets – Brighten Your Skin With New Age Peels

Almost 20 years ago, In Sex In The City, Samantha gets the most unfortunate reaction to a chemical peel, looking like “beef carpaccio”. No one who has seen the episode will ever forget Samantha’s burnt face, but we’ve come a long way since then, and we should all know that chemical peels today are applied differently. THE NEW AGE PEELS ARE NON-PEELING If the mention of chemical peels brought a cringe to your face, you are not alone. Peels in the past were meant to intentionally hurt, and left people’s faces red and raw. Today’s new age peels have revised acid formulas and doctors today have changed their approach to using them. While the idea in the past was to cause visible peeling with results only visible after significant downtime, new age peels today go by the no-peel policy. Their goal is to infuse the skin with the right ingredients (in the appropriate strength), to reduce the appearance of lines, even out skin tone and increase cellular turnover, so that Continue Reading

Fat Transfer Or Filler Injections – Which One Is Better?

Let’s face it. At some point, we have all (or will) look into the mirror and wonder where all the years have gone. If you are not quite there yet, here’s what to expect. While an aged you will still look like more or less like you, it will still look a little different. A major cause of facial aging is loss of facial volume – fat. The skin loses its youthful elasticity and looks more saggy and deflated. Luckily, facial filling has been around for years in beauty and rejuvenation, and now, you even get choices for facial filling – fat or fillers. So which should you use? Is one better than another in some situations?   FAT GRAFTING One of the best things about using your own fat? It is the most natural material to your body! Fat grafting involves taking unwanted fat from a suitable place in your own body and using it as a facial filler to replace lost volume. Not only that, there is some Continue Reading

‘Quarantine Skin’ – What It Is And How To Deal With It

Many of us thought going makeup-free during quarantine would be good for our skin, but some of us might actually be wrestling with unpredictable skin issues during self-isolation. During this time when you can’t go to your favourite spa or doctor to air your skin grievances, here’s some help from Dr Low Chai Ling, founder of the SW1 Clinic and SW1 Spa. ACNE WOES Dr Low says that there are many reasons why your skin might be showing signs of stress normally. During self-isolation, a sudden change to your normal routine may be to blame. If you are experiencing new or more breakouts now, it could be a good time to look at your skincare regime. “Stress and changes in our diet during a pandemic can affect our skin. Our body increases production of cortisol, a stress hormone, which results in increased oil production. You could also be stress-eating your way through self-isolation, or eating more processed, junk food, or perhaps you have had to change from a non-dairy to Continue Reading