I was a very pretty child who came from a very pretty family. I had a rough go there during my tweens (yikes) but pulled out of it by my teens and landed my first modeling contract when I was eighteen. I had great skin, three years of braces, and my height and natural weight were just what agents were looking for.

I modeled full time for six years before, at the ripe old age of twenty-four, I was “washed up.” When your entire occupation is based on your looks, it is hard to get older. (Yes, I thought 24 was old.) As a model, one’s entire identity and worth is wrapped up in beauty and age.

So I put on more and more makeup. Got a little older. Got a lot more stress in my life. And somewhere along my late twenties, I started getting the worst skin! Acne began to plague me. And I straight out panicked! I started reading about how to get great skin. How to be more beautiful and ran across a book on herbs. Well, y’all know how that turned out. It completely changed my life and I’ve been a clinical herbalist ever since.

Along the way, my skin cleared up, my eyes got brighter, my skin refreshed. Oh, I still got wrinkles! I earned those suckers. I am happy every year I am here on this planet, and I will take the signs of aging with grace. But, I rarely wear makeup (if I do, it is just a touch of mascara and some tinted lip gloss), and the number one thing I get asked from people, is how do I have such great skin?

Your skin is a mirror of your insides. It speaks of toxicity, cancer cells, stress, poor diet, dehydration, and disease. It also speaks of health, joy, vibrancy, and energetic foods. Your skin can change day to day depending on how you feel or even what you ate yesterday!

I have learned a great deal about the skin from being an herbalist. Cancer cells that become prevalent or that are being detoxed through the skin from the sun (a good guy) can become cancer cells in a toxic environment. I have seen many cases of Psoriatic Arthritis, where sometimes there is a hole in the skin all the way to the bone. Severe eczema, psoriasis, acne, rashes, hives; all ailments of the skin show what is going on inside the body. Even sluggish, tired skin can tell of insomnia or a sluggish digestive system. So how do we fix it?

Moisturize Inside and Out:

1. Drink 1 teaspoon of good olive oil 4 times a day.
2. Keep a glass by the sink and drink a cup of water every time you go in the kitchen.
3. Get a water bottle you like and take it with you everywhere.
4. It doesn’t have to be just water! Kombucha, tea, and fresh juices all count!
5. Coconut oil protects against sun burn and keeps skin feeling soft.
6. Try my lotion recipe for really soft skin! It also protects against sunburn but allows beneficial sun rays to reach us.
7. Need even more moisture? Make my skin oil for super nourished skin.

Be Kind to Your Skin:

1. Get at least 30 minutes of sun exposure daily.
2. Sunscreen causes skin cancer. Research it.
3. You do not need five layers of foundation. It settles in our wrinkles and makes us look ridiculous, then clogs pores, causes acne, and makes us look even more ridiculous! Ditch the makeup.
4. Embrace flaws. Liver spots? Guess what? They aren’t from the sun. Or the liver. We white girls get freckles, then spots. Get over it. You look great.
5. Most skin care lines are toxic. Try my recipes for body products. I use face wash (but not every day!) and lotion. That is it. Secret’s out!
6. Life is too short for stress. Your skin will thank you.

Check Your Diet:

1. Green smoothies and loads of vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, seeds, mushrooms, and whole grains have antioxidants which improve skin and slow aging. Meat and dairy contain zero antioxidants. Any nutrition you get from animal products is from the plants they ate. Skip the middle man and skip the toxins that you end up with. Dairy is especially bad for the skin.
2. Eat lots of great spices and herbal teas.
3. Incorporate fermented foods like pickles, sauerkraut, kimchi, and kombucha into your diet for gut health.
4. Wild greens are blood purifying. Your skin will tell you when you need your blood purified. They will also heal kidney problems and help rebuild bone. Dandelions, goosefoot, burdock, mallow, and even kale, chard, and spinach will make your skin look fabulous.

Now, as we get older we may care less and less about our looks (do these galoshes match my apron?), but we should always associate skin health with organ health and do our best to have vibrant, youthful skin. It is easy to do! And it is kind of fun when folks are shocked that you are a grandma.