A Handdrawn Anatomy Lesson
I should stick to my preferred artistic medium, actual skin
Oh hello!!
Yesterday I had the honor of being mentioned on The Love List, a shopping newsletter on the culture of shopping written by the incredibly chic
. Thank you, Jess! Tons of new subscribers seem to have been intrigued by Hotline Skin’s description as skincare products and advice from an actual esthetician. You clearly have excellent taste and I think you made a great choice, I hope you agree.
Two quick things before we dive in:
Psyched about all the interest in the CO2 Lift Mask. I will need to restock soon so get your orders in. I copy/pasted the info from last week at the bottom of this newsletter.
My October books are open at Practise! Appointments are filling up quickly, but there are still a couple of weekend spots. As always, put yourself on the waitlist. The more days the better.
In case you’re new or just forgot, last week we started an exploration of body skin vs. face skin and I introduced you to LILIS, a new luxe body care brand that I’m fairly positive you’re going to start seeing everywhere. (Congrats to Leah, Jessie and Stacy for winning the giveaway! If you didn’t win, you can still get 20% off with code JOLDEF)
We have different attitudes and behaviors when it comes to our body skin and it’s not just because we can’t be bothered with that much surface area. It’s also because it doesn’t always need to be bothered with in the same way as our face. It seems like we all generally know that body skin is “thicker” but what exactly does that mean and how does it impact function and presentation? To answer this question, you need to have a basic understanding of skin anatomy, so today I’ll give you overview, highlighting some key components and processes.
I’ve been advised not to share my entire ~process~ but I like to storyboard my writing, especially when talking about something science-y. I will literally talk out loud, as I (very poorly) sketch concepts out, as if teaching with a whiteboard. It helps cut out the noise (what would become unnecessary text) and with visuals, I’m literally able to see the whole picture, helping me determine the most logical and least overwhelming way to walk someone through new information. Usually, I’m the only one blessed to see my artwork, but I think the visual aids will be useful for everyone today. I cleaned them up in Canva, but please remember that my expertise is skin, not graphic design and these diagrams are (obviously) not at all to scale. (Please let me know if this was helpful in the comments.)
The skin is composed of 3 main layers, which are further divided into even more layers. The differences between face and body skin is the composition, and thus the behavior, of these layers.
The epidermis is the outermost layer of skin and itself has 5 layers. The epidermis also has 5 main types of skin cells. For our purposes, you only need to know the 2 layers in the graphic and 2 cells, keratinocytes and corneocytes, which make up the majority of skin cells.
For curious minds, the other 3 types of skin cells are:
Melanocytes (pigment producing cells)
Merkel cells (nerve cells)
Langerhans cells (part of the immune system)
Keratinocytes are your fresh baby skin cells. They contain keratin, the protein that makes up most of your skin (and hair and nails, though those are a slightly different type). They are produced in the stratum basale and travel upwards to replace the dead skin cells on the surface. As they travel upward, a number of things happen, resulting in the cells compacting and hardening to form the tough, waterproof, outer shell of dead skin that we see. At this point, these dead cells are known as corneocytes.
Many layers of compacted corneocytes form the stratum corneum, the uppermost layer of your epidermis. Corneocytes get lifted off the surface naturally (via a process called desquamation) and via exfoliation.
The process of new skin traveling up and replacing old, dead skin is called cell turnover. Sound familiar?
The dermis is the second layer of skin. It’s where most of the action within your skin is happening and subsequently, where my sketching skills truly failed me. I told you there was a lot going on! Luckily, Johns Hopkins Med School captured it better below. You’ll notice there’s collagen & elastin crisscrossing, blood vessels, unfortunately shaped hair follicles attached to sebaceous glands, sweat glands and more.
The dermis is a support structure, giving skin its strength and toughness and allowing it to move and stretch. It provides nutrients to the epidermis, which doesn’t have any blood vessels–remember, it’s mostly dead skin! (Think about that for a second…that’s how microscopic we’re talking. You don’t need to cut yourself deeply to see blood, but if you see blood, you’re already past the epidermis!)
The hypodermis, also known as the subcutaneous layer, is the innermost layer of skin. It’s primarily made up of adipose, or fat, tissue. Adipose tissue helps to insulate the body, store energy in fat cells and provide protective padding. Below this layer are muscles, then bones.
The distribution of adipose tissue is largely genetic and is influenced by things like diet and exercise, as well as your sex (you know, childbearing hips and all that).
Alrighty, how are we doing? Now that we know the basic structure of all skin, it will be much easier to understand the differences between face and body skin. We’ll tie it all together next week.
Daise x Hotline Skin Giveaway
A few months ago, I mentioned I was sent c from new UPF brand, Daise. I’ve never really met UPF clothing I didn’t like, but I truly can’t get enough of theirs. These joggers and this gauzey shirt have been my dog-walking uniform since they arrived. But, it might be another one of their products that excites me the most: The Sun Cooler. It’s an insulated pouch to keep your sunscreen safe & stable. It came with me to New Mexico, California and will be in tow on pretty much every vacation moving forward. And could be on yours, too…
ENTER TO WIN A DAISE SUN COOLER by liking this post. That’s it! One winner will be chosen on Tuesday 8/6 and notified via email.
But wait! There’s more! I’ll also be doing an Instagram giveaway for another sun cooler PLUS $100 Daise gift card. Follow me so you don’t miss it!
Three Other Things
SELF published an incredible article about how standard sunscreen guidelines (which are based on approx. surface area) ignore people with larger bodies. They even created their own Size Inclusive Sunscreen Guide. (This article was coincidentally written by an old high school friend–hi Sarah, thanks for putting in the work, this rules!)
Another sun-related article that has stayed with me recently. Evan Shinn, co-host of Dewy Dudes and brains behind everyone’s favorite extremely niche skincare memes, wrote about being diagnosed with skin cancer as a person in the skincare industry.
I continue to get compliments on this lip balm every time I wear it. The color is gorgeous, the formula is juicy, it softens & hydrates and the staying power is legit. I wear Fig Sauce.
Office Hours Reminder
Join us for Office Hours on Sunday! This exclusive weekly opportunity is available to paying subscribers.
Every Sunday at 5pm EST, I’ll begin a new thread for the week in Substack Chat, where you can ask me anything. Every Monday from 5-6pm EST, I’ll be in that chat live, answering questions for the hour. That way, if you can’t make it, you can submit any time after 5pm Sunday and still get an answer. If you can make it live, join in! You can ask questions in real time and (hopefully) interact with others in class ;)
CO2 Lift Mask Info
CO2 Lift Mask is a carboxytherapy gel mask. Originally used only in medical settings post-procedure, it’s basically like a hyperbaric chamber for your face. When you mix the two packets together, it releases Carbon Dioxide, oxygenating the skin, increasing blood flow, hydration, lifting and more. It’s incredibly healing and reparative, reducing downtime and clinically proven to increase hydration by 117% after 1 use. Doing a series of 3 or 6 is best for healing and improvement in elasticity though. The mask stays on for 45 minutes and is then peeled off. You have the option to have it applied in treatment or take it home with instructions to apply yourself post-facial. I offer it in my facial pop-ups.
I love these masks always, but they’re pricey so I save them for after facial treatments or before big events. I will be doing 2 more this week and then another 3 the week of my wedding. It’s a mask but thinking of it more like a treatment helps justify the $100 price tag. If you’re interested in purchasing or want more info, email hi@joldef.com. I can give you a discount on 3+.
Have a great week!
xx,
Jolie