017. Lanshin and My Facial Gua Sha Journey, The Assistant, Women Who Inspire
Hi! I'm Maggie and welcome to Tender Forms Off-Camera: a weekly newsletter about slow beauty and slow living. If you enjoy and would like to support this newsletter, click the button below! No pressure but thank you if you do.
It's almost been a year and a half since I purchased the Lanshin Pro Gua Sha Tool. To say it's changed my skincare routine is an understatement. I will be the first to admit that I'm a creature of habit, and I love incorporating new items into my routine and sticking with them. And while I love slow living, my overactive ambitious brain doesn't always allow me to live it. And so, in more ways than one, facial gua sha has encouraged me to slow down and take care.
Like with many things, you get out of facial gua sha what you put into it. And luckily, what you invest, truly personifies and returns tenfold. For roughly a year and a half, I've done (mostly) weekly facial gua sha (three times a week if I can swing it). In doing so, I've noticed a tremendous difference in my TMJ, forehead lines, and overall face geometry as Sandra (founder, woman-extraordinaire) calls it.
For those who don't know, in person, I'm very expressive. Always quick to laugh, and my facial expressions are often exaggerated because I think it's fun, and it brings me joy. However, that also means I have plenty of smile lines near my eyes, forehead lines from those "I can't believe it" brow raises, 11s between the brows from pretend-scowls, etc. It's fine to do these when you're young, but the face does indeed get stuck in its ways, quite literally.
By now, you must know I'm a big fan of the Lanshin Pro Tool.* You've seen it in countless stories and posts on my Instagram and in YouTube vlogs. I had grown so attached to my Pro Tool, that I didn't think it could ever get any better. Until, Sandra and Ilana from Lanshin, sent me the latest version, along with the Sculpting Spoon in Nephrite, rounding out my Lanshin collection to well, perfection. At least in my eyes.
*I purchased the previous version of the Lanshin Pro Gua Sha Tool myself. I also purchased the Massager by ACERA after Lanshin gifted me one that I gave to my Mom because she loved it so much. I wanted to iterate this because it's essential for you to know which brands I support with my hard-earned income. And I think there's no better testament of how I feel about a product than if I am willing to invest in it myself!
Now I've had months with these tools, and honestly, from the bottom of my heart, they make me so content. They don't leave me wanting. Instead, they leave me relaxed and reinvigorated. Another thing these tools have allowed me to experience is getting to know my own face and body on a deeper level.
Like great barbeque, facial gua sha is done best low (light pressure) and slow. By repeating these movements, I learned my shapes—the hills and valleys, where the knots lay, and how to ease their tension. This didn't just apply to my face, either. By using the Lanshin Massager by ACERA, I learned the same of my arms and legs, my shoulders, and back. And you know what? Spending so much time with my face and body has led me to grow to love the shape of me. I feel so at ease with myself when I do facial gua sha and so relaxed when I treat myself to a body massage. I'm taking care of myself, and it feels great to spend that type of quality time.
With all this said, I hope you'll enjoy the second installment of my YouTube Spotlight series. Today's is, of course, on Lanshin. There's a brand background, unboxings, and reviews of all the tools mentioned above with lengthy demos. I hope it brings a bit of relaxation to your day too.
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This first premiered at Telluride (Film Festival) in August 2019, which is how it came on my radar (from reading press, I didn't attend the festival). Then closer to its nationwide release in January of this year, I watched the trailer. This was one of those trailers where immediately afterward, I had irrationally high expectations.*
I think it’s best to go in without knowing anything, but if you must watch the trailer, just know that the film itself plays out in a very different pace.
There's something that felt very voyeuristic and messy about it, despite appearances. Seedy. And I was already seduced by the cinematography. It's got that quiet, something rising beneath the surface tension, and of course, the elephant in the room subject matter. We watched this last weekend, and I am so pleased that this fully met my unrealistic expectations. What an incredibly beautiful, unctuous slow burn of a contained movie, relishing in the mundane.
Kitty Green (writer and director) managed such a sophisticated telling of a tale we all know (where many have experienced first-hand), with the delicate handling of a fine art auctioneer, and the brute willingness of a taxidermist wrangling a beast post-mortem. I know that was an intense statement, but if you watch this film, you'll know what I mean.
Undeniably the star of the show is Julia Garner. With notable 'cameos' from three (can you spot them all?) Succession alumni including Matthew Macfadyen (our beloved Tom Wambsgans), Kristine Frøseth ('Looking for Alaska'), Noah Robbins, and Patrick Wilson (executed perfectly in his allotted screentime of ~40 seconds).
Coming in at a mere 87 minutes, I urge you to give this one a chance next time you're looking for something to watch. Available on Hulu.
Lately, Husband and I have gone down two YouTube rabbit holes. Both are ultra inspiring in unexpected ways. Below are a few I genuinely respect and bow down to in terms of skill. These women know no bounds in their redefining of strength!
Kako and Ako: First up are these Japanese sisters who are competitive eaters. Their entire YouTube channel is made up of enormous meals for two women who weigh around 100 pounds each. The amounts they're able to eat are jaw-dropping, but I love seeing how much they enjoy the food regardless. I can only imagine how sore their jaws and cheeks must be from all that chewing. I wish I could eat this much food (but also, how does one afford to?). Anyway, there are no subtitles, but since we're all familiar with fast food, might I suggest starting with this one or this one to put into perspective a "fun, easy challenge" day for them.
Rogue Women’s Record Breakers 2020: If you read Newsletter 014, you might remember my latest obsession with Strongmen competitions. Well, now it's Strongwomen. In particular, the Record Breakers 2020 Elephant Bar Deadlift and Monster Dumbbell Press were my favorites. It got me so pumped, always in awe of recorder breakers. But the support these women show for one another left a tear in my eye.
2019 Reebok CrossFit Games Sprint Couplet Individual Women Event 4: When it comes to CrossFit, I'm always asking myself, "why?" Why do these insane reps? Well, these women certainly don't ask why, and they just do. I can't believe how big this field is, and how many muscle-ups have to be done between sled pushes down said crazy long field. If it makes you feel any better, they all collapse at the end of the event, much like how I would collapse after a measly 20 minute HIIT workout.
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I'd love to know if you also incorporate facial gua sha into your skincare routine and women you're finding inspiring! I hope you have a great start to your week. See you next Sunday!
Maggie, for some reason, your video and your demo with Lanshin really made me tear up! I love learning how the Pro Tool has become such an important ritual in your beauty routine. It's beautiful how a beauty routine can change, but there's always one that stays the same. We have talked about this a little while back but I'm always in awe of hearing your testimonies about your Gua Sha routine and how your mum made use of the massager :') it's a sweet story and I hope her massager still keeps her well. I also want to ask - What's the difference between the newer version and the updated version of the Pro Lanshin Tool? (I'm sorry if you already explained in the video and I somehow missed it!)
And thank you for sharing all these awesome movies and videos! Omg, I just watched Kako and Ako Sisters! They made me smile the whole way but my belly feels so full already from watching it - they are amazing! I just love all the way until the very end that their expression is the same as before they eat!