I think I need to clean out my inbox more often than my hand lotion container. The story goes like this:

I spent last summer in Europe and sublet my apartment.  Before I left, to make space in the bathroom, I put my Lubriderm hand lotion in a drawer.  When I got got back, I put it back on the counter and did what I always do, put it all over my arms and legs.  A few days later, I developed a big nasty blister on my shin, which I thought was just an allergy (my skin is super-sensitive), so I just put some hydrocortisone on it.  But it spread, all over the place:  various spots on my legs, my arms, even a spot on an underarm, and then one really nasty one on my left index finger (it was really disgusting—I’ll spare you details).  That one really worried me because it just would not go away and was spreading, so I called Group Health and told them I was worried about MRSA.  I described symptoms and they told me get over right away.  The GP was worried, and thought it might be some auto-immune response, so she called in the dermatologist who biopsied the blisters. We went over all the possible things that could cause something like this:  I had spent the summer in Spain, I go to a gym regularly, but nothing made sense.  She didn’t think the lesions were auto-immune but was worried about MRSA and she gave me both mega-dose topical steroids in case it was an allergy and an antibiotic in case it was a bacteria.  She asked me if I used any new skin products, and I said no, I’m really fussy about that.  What she didn’t ask me was whether I was using any OLD skin products.  It turns out that the culprit was that bottle of Lubriderm that sat in a drawer in my bathroom, all summer (an especially warm one), and it was the perfect incubator for bacteria.  Blame both my thriftiness (there was about 2 inches left in the bottle!) and the fact that it never occurred to me that Lubriderm could have a shelf life or grow bacteria.

The story has a happy ending.  The steroids + antibiotics combo worked like a charm, the biopsy showed nothing but bacteria.  A few weeks later my skin was back in the pink, not red and blistery, and only the fingernail on my left index finger betrayed any signs of all that nasty bacteria.  Now, I use those Beauty Alert stickers on EVERYTHING.

One more thing:  I should see you more often, not just because my brows need attention but because I always come away inspired, with such good advice on how to live a healthy life.

Thanks!
Theresa

Here is the link

This is a photograph of my father’s ex-wife. She was an actress in New York, and this is a picture that was taken at a photo shoot for an audition. It was a test to see who would be the print model for a large cosmetics company. I don’t think she got the job, but my father kept this picture of his ex-wife in his wallet his whole life. Her stage name was Alix Taran, and she was married to my father Richard Riley Shepard back in the late 1940′s. I had this photo restored for him by Panda Lab as a gift a few years ago. She passed away a year or so after that. He passed away in November, 2009. They never spoke after they separated in 1952, but I am glad I have this photograph. I think it was for an Elizabeth Arden ad.

Face Powder Does Not Last Forever

Today I did a photo shoot with David Hiller, photographer to the stars. He is as good shooting product as shooting Robert Downey Jr., and all the other cool people he has photographed over the years.  While we were doing our Beauty Alert! photo shoot today, he admitted to me that he had powder in his kit that was well over 20 years old.  MY GOD.
I can totally see how that could happen. It is a very old Joe Blasco powder he got back when he was in LA. Time does fly, people. And powder is dry, so it can be good for up to three years if you are not putting dirty tools in it, but really….yikes. Anyway, he doesn’t use it on anyone, so I am not ratting him out or anything, he just keeps it there like guys do. Anyway, check out David’s fantastic work…but do bring your own powder if he takes your picture!