Meet Gina - Ritual Aesthetics
Meet Gina - Owner of Rituals Aesthetics Skincare
"Take care of your skin, it has to last you a lifetime"
When I started Rituals Aesthetic Skin Care in 2000, I knew I wanted to be in an industry that produced real results for people I cared deeply about. I have been in fashion and makeup for over 30 years and made a conscious decision to enter the Skin Care business because I knew I could make a difference in people's lives.
One of my clients gave me a plaque that sits in my treatment room that says, “It’s a rare person who can take care of hearts while also taking care of business”. Those words mean the world to me.
When and how did you discover you discover your passion for skin?
I found my passion for skincare at the young age of 18. My mom had always told me to take care of my skin and so I did. I started getting facials at 18 and fell in love with it all! I would read everything I could on skincare and makeup. While raising my three boys I would freelance as a makeup artist and work behind the counters of Nordstrom, Macy's and Neiman Marcus. I never felt good about selling over-the-counter products and would send customers elsewhere to buy high-quality products. I knew I needed to do something that I felt good about, so at 36 I went back to school to get my esthetician's license. And that is where it all started.
What do you love most about your profession?
I get to make a difference every day in the lives of my clients. Whether it is transforming their skin, supporting them through challenges in their lives or providing a safe, relaxing space that they can recharge, they make me feel like what I do is so important to them. It truly is a privilege to lay my hands on someone and be trusted with their body and soul and I never take that for granted. One of my clients gave me a plaque that sits in my treatment room that says, “It’s a rare person who can take care of hearts while also taking care of business”. Those words mean the world to me.
GINA'S FAVORITES
I can never stress enough to my clients to keep their hands off of their faces.
What are some of the worst skincare sins you have seen throughout your years of practice?
Picking! I can never stress enough to my clients to keep their hands off of their faces. This is where scarring occurs along with prolonged healing. I remind them of the steps I take (cleansing and exfoliation with steam) before I even begin to extract, not to mention that I am trained to do this properly. They just look in the mirror, see a blemish and go at it!
Getting laser treatments done in the spring/summer months. I have seen severe pigmentation on a few of my clients for this very reason. They think they can avoid sun exposure but in all reality, it’s extremely difficult during those months. This is fresh new baby skin and wearing sunscreen and a baseball hat is just not enough. My advice is to do these treatments anytime from November through February to give the skin time to recover safely.
What is one of the biggest skincare myths you’ve ever heard?
One myth that I hear too often is, ’my skin gets used to products’. I ask them if their body gets used to vitamins? This is their reason for changing up their skincare regime. I let them know that if they are not exfoliating (through a good quality peel) on a regular basis, their products are not penetrating as they should and that is why they are not getting the results that they desire. There are so many wonderful things that happen immediately after a peel. Signals are being sent to make healthy new cells, collagen production increases and the skin is creating more hyaluronic acid. Our skin is very intelligent! Le Mieux had a great post with a field of fallen leaves covering the ground. In the middle was a kittens’ head popping out of the leaves. It talked about if you were to try and fertilize the ground, the dead leaves would absorb most of the fertilizer and very little would make its way to the ground. I think it is the same way with our skin and that is why I love to use peels to rid the skin of the excess buildup so products can get right in and do their job.
My most popular regimens?
Most definitely Rituals Non-Surgical Facelift paired with a peel. I tell my clients that this treatment is my drug of choice! This microcurrent machine is one of the few that is coupled with light therapy so they are getting two treatments in one. With the added exfoliation the skin is ready to absorb all the goodness of the Le Mieux serums. We end with either Bio-cell + Mask for a flawless finish or the Moisture Rescue Mask for a glowing, hydrated result. Our clients always leave feeling phenomenal.