Skin-Deep Stories

Thursday, September 03, 2025

In the retail setting where I work, customers often share personal details about their lives. Recently, a customer told me she had used a new weight loss drug, had rapidly lost weight, and was surprised upon seeing what she referred to as her “Ozempic face.” She explained that people using the latest weight-loss medications are often taken aback to find that their skin changes do not keep pace with their rapidly shrinking bodies. As they lose weight, they may look in the mirror and see faces that appear older—hollow and lined—despite their slimmer figures.

I have been aware that our skin does regenerate periodically, and wondered why skin changes lag so behind rapid weight loss. What I have learned is that human skin actually works on two timelines. There’s a surface layer that renews itself every month or so—quietly and reliably, like clockwork. But our skin also has deeper layers, where collagen and elastin live, that move much more slowly. When we’re young, our skin fibers stretch and spring back relatively easily; however, as we age, the fibers adapt more gradually. Our slower weight changes make our skin adaptations seem more manageable. When our weight drops fast, our skin simply can’t “catch up.”

For younger people, or those lucky enough to have naturally springy skin fibers, time and hydration may soften skin changes over a few months. However, for the rest of us—especially past fifty—the adjustment could take a year or more. And in cases of significant weight loss, skin may never fully rebound.

Yet maybe that’s not entirely bad. Perhaps we’ll adjust by learning to allow our skin to carry our stories–as written in its lines and folds. Our skin can show where we’ve been, what we’ve endured, and how life can surprise us quickly. Essentially, whether it’s about weight loss, aging, or just the turn of a season, our lesson is the same: the outer covering we live in writes its own timeline.

Dear friends, we can lose weight quickly, but our skin takes its time and tells our stories.
—Diana

Deep Breathing

Chanel #5, first marketed in 1921, updated and modernized with Nicole Kidman

Wednesday, July 10, 2024

I’ve been chatting about fragrances with a young coworker, Sally, an expert in the Makeup Department. She also knows much about the co-evolution of fragrances and social changes. She made me aware of how the history of perfumery is intertwined with cultural shifts, technological advancements, and changing perceptions of gender, identity, and lifestyle.

We started with how, after many years away from Chanel #5, I still prefer its scent. Sally, who also likes it, explained that Chanel’s popularity dates from the early and mid-20th Century. That fragrance was pleasant and also reflected women’s wishes at the time to be associated with a pleasant and lasting scent, but subtle and lasting, and not overpowering. Chanel fit the bill.

She spoke of newer trending fragrances, like Christian Dior Poison, Yves Saint Laurent Opium, and Calvin Klein Obsession, explaining their evolution and popularity. She said that during the 1980s and 1990s, women gravitated towards stronger, bolder scents. The trend reflected that era’s evolving social landscape—pointedly, women’s growing financial independence and empowerment.

According to Sally, today’s young women’s fragrance preferences reflect their individuality and this generation’s varied lifestyles. Sally has observed that modern young women prefer stronger scents, and very often floral ones. They also prefer unique and unexpected combinations, like those trending toward unisex wearables.

That brief tour with Sally opened my eyes to social elements I’ve not considered much. Perfumes never were big elements in my personal world. However, after months of working in a large department store and having recently joined its Jewelry Department, I need to understand better why people generally tend to wish for, seek, and purchase “noncritical and impulse” items.

Dear Friends: I’m exploring a newfound fascination with the world of fragrance. Diana

Scenting

Monday, July 08, 2024

Yesterday, my “midday shift” at work was a dream. My hours were free from the usual opening and closing duties, meaning I had no heavy lifting, no bending, and no worries about getting everything done perfectly. The primary purpose of my shift was to cover a coworker’s lunch break.

The scorching heat kept customers scarce, leaving me with ample time to explore a nearby fragrance counter. I had avoided perfume for years since my earliest gym days when I became wary of combining scents with sweat. But yesterday was a scorcher and our store had few customers.

After years of steering clear of commercial fragrances and now having free time, I wandered to Fragrances. It was hard to resist free-spray opportunities from numerous tester bottles, and I opted for a few casual sprays. However, when Chanel No. 5, a fragrance I had long forgotten, landed on my wrist, it triggered a flood of memories. Another surprise is that the original Chanel version is still pleasing.

The familiar fragrance instantly transported me back to younger, more carefree times and prompted me to reconsider my perfume aversion. I often returned to the Chanel tray through the rest of that shift. That classic fragrance will come back into my life; perhaps in one of its newer, slightly altered iterations.

A pleasant bonus was the lingering, subtle scent at the end of the day. That entire fragrance experience got me thinking about the fascinating world of scent perception. I could delve deeper into it, but for now, yesterday’s olfactory adventure adequately satisfies.

Dear Friends: What a delightful surprise! Diana