A French Touch Salon

The finest in Parisian skin care on the central coast.

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Get to the Core of your Pores

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As your time spent in the sun this summer increases, the chances of your pore sizes getting larger increases as well.  Since pores tend to be most prominent in oily areas on the skin, they tend to be most visible in the T-zone (the sides of the nose, the forehead, and the chin).  The good news is there are ways to get to the core of your pores and minimize their appearance.  By understanding the typical causes of large, visible pores and how to treat the problem, you can get the flawless look you desire, even with large pores.    

Causes of Enlarged Pores

1. Genetics – If you are born with oily or combination skin, your pores will appear larger due to excessive oil production. 

2. Aging – No matter what skin type you have, unfortunately your skin will begin losing its suppleness as you age.  A loss of elasticity in the skin due to aging causes collapsed pores and as a result causes them to appear enlarged.

3. Sun Damage – Similar to the effects of aging, prolonged sun exposure weakens the skin’s collagen, causing the walls of pores to sag as they lose their elasticity and appear larger. 

Two of our Favorite Pore-Minimizing Products

1. SOTHYS Pore Refiner Products – The SOTHYS Complexion Perfector, Smoothing OR Mattifying Refiner Solution, and Pore Refiner Peel-Off Mask all help remove impurities to reduce enlarged pores, refine skin texture, and create long-lasting results for more perfect skin. 

2. Colorescience Pro Minerals Line Tamer – Line Tamer is a skin brightening treatment with SPF.  Not only does the product prevent and repair skin from sun damage, it helps to create a more uniform skin texture to camouflage and prevent the visible appearance of enlarged pores.

Summer Vacation Skincare Solutions

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With summer vacations and warm days ahead, it can be challenging to follow a normal skincare routine; however, to keep your skin looking consistently healthy, vibrant, and young throughout the summer, it’s essential to stay consistent with your skincare regimen while vacationing.  For this reason, we wanted to share a few tips to ensure your skin will remain radiant and beautiful in the midst of your summer vacations.

1.) Drink extra water to reduce puffiness.

The majority of people tend to slack on their water intake .  But, did you know puffy eyes, as well as puffiness or bloating of the body, can be a result of water retention?  When the body senses that it is not getting enough water, it will begin storing it, which results in visible puffiness around the eyes and other parts of the body.  Drinking plenty of water helps to keep your kidneys working properly, allowing your skin to detoxify itself naturally.

2.) Use a scrub to combat dryness and flakiness.

While away on your travels it is important to take a scrub with you to gently exfoliate buildup that can be caused from varying temperature (indoor air conditioning, outdoor heat, etc.), outdoor activities, and pollutants. Applying a scrub twice weekly in the evening will exfoliate your skin and restore moisture lost during the day.

If you need a scrub to suite your skin type, here are two that we often recommend:

  • Skin Zyme from Jan Marini.  Skin Zyme is great for flaky or peeling skin because it selectively breaks down dead and damaged skin cells, while resurfacing without irritating sensitive skin.
  • Organic Apricot Scrub from SOTHYS.  This organic scrub gently exfoliates while eliminating impurities and dead skin cells trapped in the follicles (pores) that can lead to comedogenic (pore-clogging) activity.

3.) Take your products in travel size so you don’t miss any steps. 

When traveling, we’ve known women to leave behind some of their skincare products to make room in their suitcase.  Rather than sacrificing your skin’s health, opt for travel size containers that you can purchase at most pharmacies.

If you want a travel size skincare routine already packaged for you, we suggest SOTHYS skincare products in travel size (only $17.00) so you won’t miss any necessary steps required to keep your skin cleansed and soothed.

No vacation plans this summer?  You can still pamper yourself with our Summer Staycation Special that includes a half day spa experience for only $149 (normally $200).

Tips For Beautiful Eyes

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Your eyes “are the windows to your soul” and one of the first things people will notice when talking with you. Unfortunately, they also are one of the first things that will show that you’re tired or stressed! Here’s how to avoid tired and stressed eyes:

Reduce Puffiness and Dark Circles
Start the day off by placing two ice cubes in a Kleenex and smooth them around the eye contour area of both eyes for one minute. Then, take a pea size amount of Sothys Active Contour Age Defying Eye Cream or Secrets de Sothys Eye Contour Serum and pat the cream under and around both eyes and on the brow bone area. Smooth with the ring finger from the inner corners towards the temple area. You’ll notice the eye contour area will be decongested, appearing more smooth and fresh – a perfect canvas for make-up application.

Keep it Cool
Active Contour De-stressing Mask is the perfect ‘pick me up’ and instant refresher for tired, strained puffy eyes. Keep it in the refrigerator to enhance the cooling, invigorating sensation and decongesting actions. Apply it as a mask in the morning or at night to soothe and refresh the eyes and help diminish or prevent puffiness. You can also carry the De-stressing Mask with you in your purse and apply as needed! Take a small amount and pat onto the eye contour area and eyelids to immediately ‘wake-up’ the eye, refreshing and alleviating the appearance of tiredness and heavy lids.

This Week’s Specials:

Come into the salon to receive your complimentary trial size of the Active Countour De-stressing Mask and your choice of eye serum.

When you schedule a brow wax, receive 50% off an Active Eye Contour treatment (normally $25)!

Call to schedule your appointment 805.785.0340

One size doesn’t fit all: Anti-aging for younger skin

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The sign of a great skincare company is one that offers products for all age ranges. It’s never too early for young women in their 20s and 30s to prevent their skin from aging, but this doesn’t mean that you should buy all the anti-aging skincare products you can find. Many young women are also turning to botox, which is costly and provides short-term results. Instead, choose the right products and use them consistently for youthful, natural, long-term results.

The Problem with Anti-Aging Products
The contraction of facial muscles (when you smile or frown) create micro-tensions, transforming your feelings into temporary expression wrinkles that eventually turn permanent. However, anti-aging skincare products are rich and much too strong for younger skin. So while you may feel that you are deeply moisturizing, you are actually clogging your pores and creating breakouts. The good news is that now, while your skin is most responsive, is the perfect time to prevent wrinkles and lines.

Looking for Mr. Right
You need to find your perfect suitor, and for younger skin, that means light-weight but intense. Skincare is not a one-size-fits-all deal. Find a skincare company that offers different levels within their products. This can be a good sign that they offer quality, tailored-to-you skincare. Look for a moisturizer that combines peptides, antioxidants, and anti-aging in a light formula to effectively prevent signs of aging.
We recommend: Sothys Grade 1 First Wrinkles Revitalizing Serum

Now that you know what to look for, start taking care of your skin while it’s at its most responsive time in its life and will be receptive to fast, efficient results.

Are you taking care of your skin outside the salon? Here’s your guide to at-home facials!

Make a resolution for your skin: Don’t Pick!

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For your New Year’s resolutions, we hope you saved some time for your skin. Skincare is equally important in bettering yourself, as say, a gym membership. The good news is that proper skincare takes a lot less work than attending spin class! Here are two resolutions to start now:

Don’t Pick
Instead, use an exfoliating scrub twice a week! Clogged pores are caused from dead skin cells mixing with oil and dirt, which then attract bacteria causing inflammation and breakouts. But instead of picking at your breakouts, use a scrub to slough away bacteria and dead skin, which will clear your skin fast.
Products we love: Sothys Desquacrem (deep-pore scrub, $31), or Spa Cells facial sponge, a honeycomb sponge used with your cleanser to gently scrub away dead skin. This is a great inexpensive tool ($12) to clear pores. You can now buy Spa Cells at the salon!

Wash your face at night
We have plenty of clients who through changing this one habit, cleared their skin instantly. Many women don’t realize the effects of not washing your skin at night. Make it your resolution to wash at night! You will be amazed with the results.

Need more skincare resolutions? Call the salon for a skin analysis!

An Evening of French Beauty Secrets

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With champagne glasses filled and chocolates tasted, we began our exploration into an evening of French beauty secrets with Yvette Colombier, Patricia Kaspian’s mother and skincare expert last Thursday evening. For those of you who weren’t able to attend, we thought we’d share a few of the details:

A Bit About Yvette
Arriving in Santa Barbara from the French Riviera in 1964, Yvette Colombier brought with her the French women’s understanding of how to care for and keep skin youthful. A move to Northern California’s charming Los Gatos with her husband Pierre (a handsome Frenchman!) convinced her that American women were ready for the French philosophy of healthy skincare maintenance – no longer a rare privilege.

Her Beauty Secrets Recap

  • Don’t ignore your neck and décolleté, they need product care just like your face.
  • The French use toner in place of water to remove cleanser, as water can be impure.
  • The best tool to work in products? Your fingers! Use gentle lifting movements as you work them in.
  • Eye cream: a little goes a long way! Rub your cream between your ring fingers to warm the product, minimizing the amount used.
  • Use glycolic acid on a daily basis and glycolic peels monthly.
  • Sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen! 99% of aging is due to sun damage. A summer glow isn’t worth compromising your beautiful skin!
  • Try an anti-aging serum before moisturizer. It has a smaller molecular weight so it boosts the anti-aging actives sending them straight to the cells.
  • Are you cheating? Washing and moisturizing before you go to bed can’t be skimped!
  • It’s never too late to start taking care of your skin. Yvette basked in the rays of the French Riviera until she realized (in her 30s!) that she needed to care better for her skin. Now look at her!

    • Highlights of the Night

    Donna was the lucky model of the mini facial demonstration.


    Judy won the raffle prize: a glycolic peel!

    It’s important to match products to your skin. We provided our guests with goodies based on theirs! Want to know your skin grade? Come into the salon for your personal analysis.

    Want to see more highlights from the event? Check it out here at our Facebook fan page!
    Eager for the next event? Stay tuned for details on upcoming Dec. 2 and Dec. 16 events!
    Next week: Save your skin. Save your life. It’s as simple as sunscreen!