Up Close With Kerstin- Germain Staff Feature

Just like our patients our Germain staff suffers from common skin issues, the occasional breakout and even wrinkles! Ever wonder what they do to look so fabulous? Find out on our Staff Blog post. Each month we will feature a different staff member their favorite products, routines, skin care battles and more.

Kerstin Felton 
Cosmetic Front Office Coordinator
26 years young
 Skin Type: Combination Skin, Sun Damage, Melasma

Morning Skin Care Regimen: 

Brightening Polish/Skin Enhancing Cleanser 10%
Skin Tone Enhancement Pads 8%
Advanced Vitamin C Brightening Serum
Dermal Restructuring Therapy
Magic EyesMatte Perfection Sunscreen

Night Time Skin Care Regimen:
Antioxidant Soothing Cleanser/Skin Enhancing Cleanser 10%
Rejuvenation Pads 2.5x
Magic EyesAdvanced Restorative Bio-Therapy 

Using Routine: Approximately 2 Years

Favorite Germain Rx Product:
Matte Perfection Sunscreen
“It’s perfect as a quick trick for camouflaging blemishes & evening out skin tone or as a make-up primer for even better coverage.”

Favorite other Product:

Skin Tone Enhancement Pads
“It helps to reduce pigmentation issues/skin damage/freckles in between Clear & Brilliant treatments.”


Favorite Cosmetic Procedure(s):  

Silk Peel with Dermaplaning
“Helps slough off dead skin and unwanted facial hair with no downtime! Makes your skin feel so clean & smooth & Clear & Brilliant Helps to reduce sun damage/pigmentation issues with little to no downtime.”

Favorite Facial Make-Up:
Jane Iredale Loose Powder in Suntan


Best advice from Dr. Germain:

“Everyone needs to be on a good sunscreen & retinol—they are the key to anti-aging” Sunscreen with a good physical block (zinc oxide or titanium dioxide) paired with retinol have helped my skin SO much. I am African-American and Irish, so even though I thought my freckles were hereditary I have learned that they are actually sun damage from all the years I spent not wearing sunscreen. Using a good sunscreen protects your skin from wrinkles and skin cancers like Melanoma & retinol helps to keep your skin turning over and producing collagen to help with acne and wrinkles. They complement each other and your skin will be the perfect testimonial! 

Kerstin’s Best Advice:“WASH YOUR FACE! It can be daunting and tedious at times but it is worth it! We all fall asleep in our make-up or get lazy and skip a night but you will end up paying for it!!”

Kerstin sends you off with these last minute words of wisodm, “The only way to have GREAT skin is to protect it! If you take care of your skin now you won’t have to worry about “fixing” it later!”

National Psoriasis Month~ Germain Dermatology

Did you know that August is National Psoriasis Awareness Month?

Psoriasis affects approximately 7.5 MILLION Americans and the trigger can be as simple as stress! 

Psoriasis is a chronic, noncontagious, genetic autoimmune disease that appears on the skin in red, scaly patches that itch, crack and bleed. It is the most common autoimmune disease in the country.

What many don’t know is that up to 30% of people with psoriasis develop psoriatic arthritis, an inflammatory type of arthritis that causes pain and swelling of the joints and tendons. Psoriasis is more than meets the eye.

What causes psoriasis?

Genetics and the immune system play a major role in the disease. In people with psoriasis, the immune system sends out faulty signals that speed up the growth of skin cells.

To develop psoriasis, a person must have a combination of the genes that cause psoriasis and be exposed to external “triggers.” Triggers include stress; injury to the skin, such as a tattoo or a scrape; smoking; and certain infections.

There is no cure for psoriasis, but many treatment options are available. Treatment is individualized for each person and depends on the severity of the disease, the type of psoriasis and how the person reacts to certain treatments.

Learn more about psoriasis, its associated health risks, treatment options and ways to effectively manage the disease at http://www.psoriasis.org/. Think you are suffering from Psoriasis? Call us, Germain Dermatology, for the best dermatological treatment in Charleston~ 843-881-4440.

Don’t Let Sweat Ruin Your Clear Skin~ Germain Dermatology

Even though Fall may be on the horizon August is one of Charleston’s hottest months. Sweat can wreck havoc on your pores, especially when mixed with makeups and powders. Sweat will combine with the product on your face and become occlusive, or air-tight, preventing your pores from breathing. The results are breakouts, bumps and blackheads.



Want to keep your clear skin even with the heat? We recommend our Germain Rx Pore Refining Mask. This specially made mask cleans and tightens pores while absorbing excess oils, which are abundant this time of year. Made with Gycerin, Zinc Oxide, Kaolin, Hectorite and Benzyl Sulfer this cleansing treatment reaches deep into the skin and even helps to dry up blackheads.

Dr. Germain recommends using the mask twice a week to keep pores open and clear.