Swathy and Sky

Blogger Series Vol. 7 – Should you give feedback to your blogger?

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This is not for the bloggers but for the readers! So, you all have your favorite blogs and not so favorite blogs. No assumptions over there. But, no blog is perfect. Sometimes, you might have some readability issues or slow loading issues or some other issues with any blog. 

Now, many of the readers don’t even bother to give any feedback. If they like a blog, they continue reading and if they do not, they can just move on! Well, that sounds very practical. But, what if your favorite blogger has some real issues with her/his blog?

These issues can be technical in nature or may be in her/his writing skills or in pictorial representations on the post or may be a lack of detail in the post. The issues can range far beyond what I have stated. So, have you ever thought that by letting the blogger know about your issues, you might help her improve the blog?

Your feedback is extremely important to any kind of blog – big or small. As a reader, you would be doing a favor to the blogger. Now, how the blogger reacts to your feedback is something which lies in their jurisdiction. So, do not take it personally if they do not respond back or do nothing!
Many readers or rather I would say it is a problem in real life that we never think of reporting the problem. We just love to sit back and crib. So, take some action. Go ahead and report your issues. But, yeah, one more thing is do the thing gently and diplomatically because some times your wording may sound very rude, whether you want to or not. 
And, whatever the blog, if it is made for the readers, they would DEFTINITELY listen to you! So, do not be skeptical. Aah..let me also add that please, PLEASE do not expect the answer immediately. Very few bloggers are full time and they might also not get time to reply to your suggestions or in general any query immediately. Please give me them time and if they do not, it is quite possible that they have missed your message as much as is possible that they have ignored your message!
So, how many times have you helped your favorite blogger improve her blog?
Related Posts:

Blogging Series Vol. 6 – How to design the layout of the blog?
Blogging Series Vol. 5 – How to time the posts?
Blogging Series Vol. 4 – How am I able to try out so many products and its affects on my skin?

When should you use home remedies? {Beauty Products}

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Ok, being a more natural blogger, this is one of my major concerns. At least one reader among all reader’s queries I get everyday ask me when will they see results or ask for home remedies on issues like eczema, psoriasis or hyperthyroidism. That attitude of people disturbed me a lot.

As a reader of the blog, I probably have assumed too much from you. So, this is a post to clear out those assumptions and make you more aware that this blog is merely a zeroth step when you face some issue whether it is skin or hair, in the least. If you have any issue which you think is beyond normal, you SHOULD immediately seek doctor’s advise.

Why? Let me tell you that some of the very minor skin or hair problems can also be treated as symptoms of something major problem in the body. For example, a small lump in the skin for a prolonged period or sudden appearance of too many brown spots on skin can mean that you should get yourself checked for cancer. Or, excess hair loss can lead to diagnosis of PCOD or thyroid or any other issue.
 
Ok, HOLD ON!! Don’t just run to the doctor right away. Please finish reading the post.

It is natural for a human being to exaggerate the minor-est of the symptoms. So, if you find yourself losing 30-40 hairs, please note it is quite NORMAL to lose up to 200 hairs everyday in this hectic lifestyle!! Oh yeah, you must be wondering why I am telling you this. Trust me, there are people who get concerned about even 15 hairs falling per day!
No, I am not making fun of you. I appreciate your concerns about yourself. But, it is very important to know WHEN to consult a doctor. Do NOT rely on home remedies when you already are aware of any serious problem in your body. That is why it is very important to get whole body checkups done every six months but once a year is also fine!
And, to answer the question I posed? Use the home remedies as a preventive measure than a curative measure. You can ask me a question now – Should I consult a doctor if I have regular acne because the medicines prescribed for acne are birth control pills? It is a very difficult question to answer. So, I would say yes. If your case is bad acne problem or if you regularly get cystic acne, it can be a result of hormonal problems. So, you can try out the home remedies for a limited period of time and if there is no change, I would definitely suggest a doctor.

And, when will the home remedies show results? Honestly, there is not guarantee that a particular remedy would work for you! It might work and it might not work. It might show results soon or it might take time. Its more of a chance than a surety. So, when you try a method, be positive and hope that it will show the effect but do not get disheartened if it does not. Also, when you are trying out a new remedy, always give it a month at least so that your skin or hair adjusts to it and gets some time to show the difference! 

Dermatologists are not easy to get. Yes, absolutely TRUE! It is damn difficult to get a good dermatologist. At least I did not get one till date! And, many might not even have the money to spend on going to different doctors. So, what to do in such a case? I would say go to a good general physician or a family doctor and ask for their opinion. And, also beware of the fact that some of them have collaborations with the brands so they can suggest you really expensive medicines or products!
Should I use pharmaceutical brands? I will take a case to explain this. In case of acne, there are many drugstore products which have salicylic acid. Or, some anti-aging products have retinoids or such ingredients. Or, some people like taking supplements. Always remember that DO NOT take the supplements without consulting your doctor. It is not a good habit because excess of any vitamin can be equally harmful as its deficiency! Same way, do not use products which are supposed to be prescribed because you think it might work. Using over-the-counter products is a different deal, though! Also, changing products too frequently can cause skin sensitization which is equally harmful.
Do you agree with me? Do you also think that people should be aware of when to rely on home remedies and when to consult a doctor? And, do you prefer taking the supplements on your whim? 
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Clinique 3-Step Skin Care Samples

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Clinique 3-Step Skin Care Product Review

Well, you must have already been aware of the amazing 3-Step Clinique skin care routine. I got their samples very recently and I used them for a week now. Since the turn-around time was very less, please consider this as a preview instead 🙂

I was definitely excited about using their products because I have heard all the amazing things about the Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion. So, finally, I got a chance to use it and how did it fare for my skin? Ok, let me start with the face wash. Before I start, please consider that the products I received were for dry-combination skin.

Clinique Liquid Facial Soap Mild (1st Step)

Clinique Liquid Facial Soap Mild (1st Step)
The product is transparent and is gel-like in consistency. I don’t remember reading the ingredient list so can not say if it has SLS but I think it is soap free. Anyways, it lathers really well. But, somehow I felt it has alcohol because it smells of it sometimes! But, the product is really gentle on skin and cleanses well. I do not remember it drying my skin.

 

Clinique Clarifying Lotion Clarifiante 2 (2nd Step)

Clinique Clarifying Lotion Clarifiante 2 (2nd Step)

The toner is supposed to clean the skin, remove the makeup residue and the dead skin cells. It smells strongly of alcohol. And, stings the eyes real bad! I am using it very regularly after the face wash. It cleans the skin well as it is supposed to. It also controls the oil production and the best part is it leaves a cooling sensation which stays for like 10-15 minutes which feels really awesome in these hot summers.

 

Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion (3rd Step)
excuse the extremely dry skin!!

 

Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion (3rd Step)

The product is very light and non-greasy and literally disappears into the skin. But, since it is for dry-combination skin, I guess it wasn’t enough for my skin! Sometimes, I did feel dry after using it. But for the most part, especially in the morning, it suited me perfectly. The MVO sunscreen glided on the moisturizer easily and my skin did not feel dry AT ALL which it sometimes does because of the Zinc Oxide in the sunscreen. And, the oil on my skin was almost non-existent!

Clinique 3-Step Skin Care Product Review

Overall Experience with Clinique 3-Step Skin Care
Since my skin is not exactly troublesome, I would not say I saw drastic difference. But, when I started using these products, for the first two days, I saw my skin behave really well. But, later, somehow it returned back to normal or may be I just got used to the change. I am not able to decide which one is the case with me! But, yup, if you are willing to shell money, I would definitely recommend the kit. And, I think it would be of more help to the oily skin people. But, damn the expense (the regular kit is around 4k!).