Simple Steps

Avoid razor bumps by taking a hot shower before shaving with the grain and not stretching skin. Rinse with cold water and moisturize afterward.

Avoid moisturizers with paraben, alcohol or mineral oil. Look instead for humectants such as urea, glycerin, alpha hydroxy acids and dimethicone. Oily skin should be clean to avoid acne breakouts, but moisturized to prevent dryness and capillary damage caused by cold, sun and wind.

Vitamin A (no more than 10,000 IU/day) can help regulate skin cycles and prevent acne in men and women who are not pregnant or nursing. Food sources include sweet potatoes, carrots, broccoli, spinach and fortified cereals.

Hydrate by drinking roughly 13 cups of water a day if you’re male, nine cups if you’re female.

Invest in a bedroom humidifier; your central heating system dehydrates your skin.

Monitor your moles, or anything you think might be a mole. If moles change, have irregular borders, strange (black) or uneven coloration, bleeding or itching, visit a dermatologist. Remember the ABCs—asymmetry, border, color—when checking moles.

Technology

SPF: Learn the math. In simple theory, if 15 minutes in the sun is enough to burn you, SPF 10 would allow you to stay out in the sun for 10 times longer, or 150 minutes. Intensity (8 am vs 2 pm sun) and activity (swimming, sweating, etc.) make it nearly impossible for a 50-plus SPF to remain fully effective for 12 or more hours. Reapply every couple of hours.

Acne: Food technology may hurt your face. Processed, sugary foods spike insulin levels which causes a hormonal reaction that can lead to clogged pores. Some studies show hormone-filled dairy products can worsen some acne-sufferer’s breakouts. Foods with a high glycemic index including refined grains, sugary drinks and highly processed snacks can reduce the number and severity of breakouts.

Warts: Human papilloma virus vaccines are for both genders, sexually active or not. Most warts are caused by harmless strains of HPV, can be easily removed or go away on their own. Genital warts, however, can cause psychological damages related to anxiety and feelings of worthlessness. HPV vaccines last five years, protecting your 11-year-old in high school when even oral and protected sex pose an infection risk. Gardasil—approved for males and females ages 9 and older—is the only vaccine that prevents HPV strains 6 and 11, responsible for 90 percent of genital warts in both men and women.

Tips

“To keep your skin healthy, hydration is essential, and the best way to do that, in addition to drinking plenty of water, is to apply skin care products with a significant concentration of hyaluronic acid.” —Marianna, esthetician, Boulder

Like this photo? Check out more of Julia Vandenoever’s amazing photography at her website.

The post Health and Beauty 360: Face and Skin appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.

A practical fixture in the Colorado jazz scene, Mark Diamond’s bass has backed up nearly every serious player in the state at one time or another—to the point that he now fronts several of his own acts, including the Heavy Cats, which hosts blues and jazz jams every Sunday of the month at the Boulder Outlook Hotel. Here, Mark talks about 30 years of Colorado jazz, musical telepathy and why he loves living in Colorado.

French Davis: Mark, can you talk about your background and history in local jazz and blues? You’ve become a bit of a fixture in the last few…well, decades, now, isn’t it?

Mark Diamond: Ha, yes, decades! Thirty-one years and counting. I moved here from New Jersey in 1980 with the band Arabesque, a five-piece acoustic string band that looked like a bluegrass band, which we were, but we also played jazz and swing, country, funk, a little reggae and almost anything else.  Then I joined a traveling band called “The Seattle Rhythm Band,” which played Latin jazz/rock, salsa, funk and contemporary tunes of the time.  After a year on the road, I came back to Boulder and joined a blues band from Fort Collins which became The Blues Survivors. During this time I met pianist Andy Weyl and alto sax player Michael Sweeney, and we started a jazz happy hour on “The Mezz” in the Hotel Boulderado. This turned into a five-days-a-week jazz happy-hour gig that lasted through most of the ’80s.  We called it “The Jazz Showcase” because each day we “showcased” a different special guest artist, which might have been a horn player, guitarist, drummer or singer.  This gig was a big part of my jazz education because I got to play with more experienced, world-class musicians every single day. Twenty-nine years later Andy and I, along with drummer Paul Romaine are known as “Big Swing Trio,” and are the house band for The Sunday Night Jazz Jam at the Boulder Outlook Hotel, among other gigs.

FD: You’re working with some of the best-known and most talented players in the state. How does your communication evolve, musically, playing with the same people week-in, week-out?

MD: The longer you play with somebody, the higher the level of telepathy that occurs. When I work with musicians that I’ve played with for many years, there is an inherent trust that allows us to go where we want to go musically.  When you know the language of jazz, or any other style of music, you can play with anybody, anywhere, and create a great performance.  It doesn’t matter who you add to the mix, as long as they know what they’re doing. I’ve been in foreign countries where I couldn’t even speak to the band and yet we were able to play great music together!

FD: Why Colorado? Why not New York or Chicago or LA? What has kept you here?

MD: I came to Colorado from New Jersey, very near New York City, where I cut my teeth as a young musician.  As great as New York is, I always had affection for the mountains.  I first visited Colorado in the summer of 1977 while hitchhiking all over the country with a friend.  This is where I met my great wife Karen, raised two wonderful children, and made so many friends. It’s home!

FD: Who have been your biggest influences in music and why?

MD: This is always a hard question to answer because it takes the history of music to answer it.  I love and play so many kinds of music, and when I’ve delved into each style that I’ve studied, the innovators stand out.  If I have to choose a few, I’d say Traffic, Joni Mitchell, John Coltrane, The Beatles, Scott Lafaro, Ron Carter, CSNY, The Allman Brothers, Charles Mingus, Muddy Waters, James Brown, Willie Dixon, Tito Puente, you get the idea.  And as for why, I’ve had an emotional response to all of these artists, and I think if the music moves you, it’s serving its purpose.

The post Four Questions with Jazz Pro Mark Diamond appeared first on Yellow Scene Magazine.