After being asked to speak at a local school about makeup and skincare for teens, I decided to compile a list of do's and dont's. As far as teenage skin is concerned, These are the tips I give most often to my teenage clients:

1. Don't use products that are too harsh for your skin. Most teens get patchy oiliness and occasional breakouts. Using a skincare line from the drug store that is meant for people with acne is too drying for someone who doesn't have a serious acne problem. Most of us think of a single pimple as a "serious problem, " but blasting your whole face to take care of one pimple is going way overboard.

You should wash your skin morning and night. Make sure your cleanser removes your makeup completely. This is especially important at night before you go to bed.  Your skin should not feel "tight" after you wash you face. If it does, you are stripping away too much of your skin's natural oils. If you strip away too much of your natural oil, your body will start to over-produce oil to make up for what you are stripping away.

If your cleanser does not remove your makeup well, you need to use a separate makeup remover. Water based makeup removers are best, but if you wear water-proof mascara you will need an oil-based makeup remover. Be aware that if you don't completely remove the oil from the makeup remover with your cleanser, you will have oil left on the skin that will start removing the makeup you apply the next day!

If you would like to use a toner after you wash your face, use something with gentle, calming ingredients to re-balance your skin's pH level. Do not use toners with alcohol in them.

My favorite store-bought cleanser in the $5 range is Basis Cleaner Clean Face wash . Ulta carries it on a regular Basis, but they always seem to run out. Try searching for it on-line and buying a couple of bottles at a time. The whole family will love it. It removes makeup and cleanses the skin without stripping away too much of your skin's natural oil. It smells great and foams up beautifully.

2. Even if you have slightly oily skin, you still need to moisturize! If you have normal to dry skin, use a light-weight moisturizer that soaks in quickly and has a SPF of 15. It will keep your skin hydrated, and block out some of the UVA and UVB rays that are so damaging to our skin. Don't worry, you will still get a tan, even if you are wearing it! Try Kiehl's Ultra Facial Moisturizer SPF 15 . It runs around $19

If you have oily skin, use a gel moisturizer that has natural ingredients with healing properties. Tea Tree oil is naturally anti-bacterial and does a great job of preventing new breakouts. The Body Shop has a fantastic Tea Tea Tree Skin Clearing Lotion for oily skin that runs about $13.

3. Exfoliating your skin removes dead skin cells that cause your skin to look dull and can trap dirt and bacteria in your pores.You should exfoliate one a week for best results. 

Most exfoliants are manual scrubs that remove dead skin cells with an abrasive. If they are gentle, they can be used weekly to remove dead skin cells, but take care not to rub too hard on your skin. It is possible to do more harm than good if you are too rough with a scrub.

A good alternative to a manual scrub is an enzyme mask. My favorites are enzyme masks that use pumpkin or papaya to gently loosen and dissolve dull surface cells and impurities. Alba makes an inexpensive Papaya Enzyme Facial Mask that works well for around $9.

4. When you get a breakout, don't freak out. Most breakouts faced by teens are caused by hormones and/or oil and bacteria on the skin. Take these steps to shorten the trauma:

• Make sure you are cleansing your skin morning and night.
• Change your pillow cases nightly - bacteria and oil love to hang out on your pillow-case!
• Try not to touch your face too often during the day.
• Drink lots of water!
• Use a spot treatment on blemishes, not on your whole face. Tea Tree Oil works beautifully!

I hope this helps you or the teenager in your life get through the hard times. As always, please contact me with any questions you may have at jessica@bomberbetty.com. Enjoy, and please pass this along to friends and family!