Jessica Cooley – Why the TSG Community Made Me a Better Esthetician
The TSG Community made me a better esthetician in a few simple ways: it got me out of my comfort zone, it pushed me to be better, it gave me access to brands and brand owners, and it surrounded me with Esties who truly understand me. If you’ve been wondering whether The Skin Games is […]
Meet Tammy Duncan of Skin by Tammy Duncan
To tell you the truth, I didn’t know I was about to meet one of our most inspiring Players the day I asked Tammy Duncan if she did lash lifts. We were on a Zoom call, it kind of came up, and she said yes. So I said, well then you have to compete in […]
What My Age Management Entry Taught Me About Skin, Clients, and Growth
Today, as Director of Judges for The Skin Games, I understand the work that goes into a case study from both sides of the judging table. I also remember what it feels like to be the Player: making decisions, documenting progress, and hoping the final submission communicates the care behind every appointment. My 2020 Age […]
Inside the Skincare Competition
Skincare is The Skin Games’ flagship competition path, and the one most people picture when they think of this event. It’s also the most misunderstood: it isn’t one category, it’s nine, each judged on the same foundation (an eight-week, documented client case study) but built around a completely different kind of work. Here’s what each […]
Your First Skin Games: What to Expect as a First-Time Attendee or Competitor
If you’ve never been to a Skin Games event, here’s the honest version of what to expect: no gatekeeping, no separate line for “real” competitors, and no requirement that you’ve ever set foot on our stage before to belong in the room. Whether you’re walking in with a Student ticket to watch and learn, or […]
The Power of Longevity: What the Science of Living Longer Means for Your Skin
Longevity has become the buzzword of the moment. It’s on magazine covers, in boardroom conversations, and all over wellness social media. But here’s the thing longevity isn’t new. The pursuit of a longer, healthier life has surrounded us since the beginning of time. Healers, herbalists, ancient physicians: they were all, in essence, longevity practitioners. We’ve […]
Acne Awareness Month: Navigating Acne Beyond the Hype
Acne remains one of the most common concerns addressed in professional skincare, yet it is also one of the most misunderstood. Despite significant advances in research, ingredient technology, and formulation science, misinformation continues to influence how many consumers—and even some professionals—approach acne management. This Acne Awareness Month, we’re taking a closer look at the science […]
How to Confidently Get Your Skincare Clients to Commit Weekly
As skin care professionals, we’ve all been there. You’re mapping out a treatment plan for a tough skin condition, like grade 3 acne or a severely compromised barrier, and you know deep down that weekly treatments would yield the fastest, most stable results. But then, the inner monologue starts: “Is it too much to ask? […]
How to Tell Between Hormonal and Stress Acne and Build a Protocol That Works
Two clients walk into your treatment room with active breakouts. Both are adults. Both have tried over-the-counter products with limited success. Both are frustrated. But when you look closely at the location of the lesions, the morphology, the timing, the pattern, you begin to see that their acne is telling two different stories. One is […]
Why Treating Rosacea From the Inside Out Gets Better Results
When a client walks into your treatment room with rosacea, the instinct is to look at what’s happening on the surface, the redness, the diffuse flushing, the broken capillaries, the reactive patches. And while the skin absolutely needs targeted, thoughtful topical support, there’s a growing body of evidence that rosacea is not primarily a skin […]
Light, Current, and Channels: The Rebuild and Restore Stack
We’ve covered a lot of ground in this series. Previously, we explored the influence of zombie cells, the inflammatory broadcast that undermines optimal skin function, and the key upstream drivers, stress, sleep, gut, lymph, that determine treatment readiness. We also uncovered the chemistry of clearing, emphasizing that a peel’s effectiveness depends entirely on the cell […]
Understanding Post-Inflammatory Hyperpigmentation and Post-Inflammatory Erythema And How to Treat Them
When a client comes in frustrated that their acne is clearing but their skin still doesn’t look right, the answer almost always lies in two conditions that are frequently confused for one another: post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) and post-inflammatory erythema (PIE). Both appear after skin inflammation, both leave marks in the wake of a breakout, and […]