Yay! Good luck.
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Also… do I tip her for services since she’s the owner? I had heard a long time ago that owners did not get tipped, only workers did. But maybe that has changed? How much? 20%?
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Hmm I would probably tip by default (we certainly did this growing up when my mom went to a hairstylist who owned her own salon). Same way as I would tip a restaurant owner who happened to be my waitstaff.
I err on the side of overtipping though.
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Same… I’d probably tip; it can’t hurt and it’s not going to be seen as a faux pas I don’t think? Paging @Marcela
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I do too. I think I will tip, I would rather pay a bit more than be thought of as cheap!
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It wouldn’t be offensive or anything, but the “rule” used to be someone who sets their own rates has accounted for what they need to receive for it to be profitable. A tip would be an extra token of appreciation. However tipping culture has absolutely exploded and now we top and it becomes expected to tip nearly everywhere with little rhyme or reason.
Do whatever feels right to you.
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Hi friends!
Somehow I have just now noticed this thread?
Cool! Glad to find it!
I went from washing my face with literal handsoap for bout four decades and never having used lotion in my life, to developing a bit of a special interest in skincare over the last 3-4 years. I mean like reading research papers level of special interest, ha.
Anyways, for my first post here, I’d love to hear if anyone has experience with either the Derminator II or Dr. Pen (specifically m8s, but also any of their devices) microneedle pen?
I’ve been to the bottom of the internet and I’m 99% sure the Derminator will be getting my money even though the company/owner is a very odd duck… but thought I’d see if anyone here has an opinion?
And my most recent tested (under eye and skin texture) product that falls into the Affordable & Worth It category for me is this stuff
Everyone is different obviously, but I ran through a bottle of this over 4 months (it’s not empty yet) testing it against 4 months of tretinoin alone & found it to work better for skin softening, dark under eye area (although nothing but a lower bleph will actually fix this for me at this point), and it did not irritate my skin at all like tret can do. I’ll repurchase the next time I find a coupon or an exact match of one of the overseas shops.
Anyways sorry for the brick of text. It’s my signature move to info dump too much, try to trim it down, and then still say wayyyyy too much.
Love y’all. I’ll try not to blow up this thread too much now that I’ve found it - but excited to be here!
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Yo skincare is THE info dump game.
I’ve been very curious about red light therapy lol. The mechanism is believable at least!
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I have a red light mask. I can’t say if it really does a lot or not because I’m very bad about consistently using it! I need to work on that. Shit wasn’t cheap!
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Welcome, JJ! Sorry I don’t have anything to contribute about microneedling.
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I also have one and haven’t used it in ages. I read online somewhere that it aggravates melasma which of course is the last thing I need so I quit using it. But as with everything I’m not sure if it’s true or not and can’t really find definitive information.
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Yea I was a non believer for SURE, but I used a stronger version for canine arthritis and started hearing about the skin benefits in the 630 nm to 800 ish nm range. I read the Kinda weak study 
and found a mask with a certified nm range for under $60 and I went for it. Now, I was doing other interventions so I can’t say it’s the red light therapy alone, but the extreme texture (felt like actual sandpaper) that I had on my temples for years is completely gone these days.
So something worked. And I like that it sorta forces me to relax for 15 minutes. I have to trap myself to do that.
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Oooo could be interesting!!
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Out of curiosity which mask did you go with? I’m interested but the number of seemingly scammy or $500 products is overwhelming!! I’m also on the fence about a semi-single use product, since I actually want something for scalp/hair growth at least as much as face skin.
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Let me dig and see if I still have the WhatsApp conversation (I hope my dumb butt don’t delete it).
I found the manufacturer of a very expensive one in China and got it directly from them for like 1/10th of the rebranded US price, but I’m not sure I have the conversation anymore. Please hold!
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Damn you are a master at sourcing !!
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Ok! They don’t make my exact one anymore, but the new one they make looks exactly like mine, and they have an Ali Express store now, which is convenient
^$59
I also own this, which tested above 700nm (which is as high as that app reads) so I use it for my hair and my one achy knee when it acts up. It’s built like a tank.
^$46
What I did to test mine while it was within its return window was use this app
^Free two week trial app, then $2.99
My friend has this one which we also tested and it measured between 630-650nm, which is what it advertised.
^$32
I know it’s considered “tacky” to purchase from these websites or direct from a manufacturer outside of the US, and to do the whole WhatsApp thing - but when my other option is a US-based company that is just rebranding the literal exact same one that they purchased from overseas from the exact same place, or do in office treatments (
), these options that are mostly under $50-60 work for me.
Edited to add in prices
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I didn’t know it was considered tacky! I’m too nervous to do whatsapp, but I order from Shein or Ali Express instead of Amazon because why does an American company get that mark up?
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Yeah exactly. The markup is the actual tacky thing (yes I understand how resale works) in this scenario.
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I’m being influenced to buy a red light mask…. @JanetJackson i love your nerdyness on this and being able to piggy back!
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