Meet Lynn Laporte, Licensed Esthetician, Esthetics Instructor, Certified Nutritional Aesthetics Practitioner, Reiki Master Teacher, Nationally Certified Reflexologist, oncology-trained skincare professional, Color Code Certified Trainer, and Expert Judge for The Skin Games.

With more than 20 years in the skin and integrative self-care industry, Lynn has built a career around one central idea: skin does not exist separately from the person living in it.

In this episode of TSG’s Director’s Cut, Lynn shares how her work expanded from traditional esthetics into nutritional aesthetics, reflexology, Reiki, personality-based communication, and a more holistic approach to client care.

We also talk about the role of connection in the treatment room, why understanding how a client communicates can be just as important as understanding their skin, and how Lynn uses the Color Code personality system with both clients and students.

Lynn reflects on her work as an educator, what newer estheticians need beyond textbook knowledge, and how her whole-person philosophy influences the way she approaches judging for The Skin Games.

She also shares why The Skin Games is about more than results alone, what she looks for in a Player’s thought process, and how competition can become part of a larger professional growth journey.

Join Brenda Hogsett, Director of Player Experience, and Kelly Wolcott, Director of Judges, for another candid conversation about holistic esthetics, education, connection, and the professional journey behind The Skin Games.

Take the Color Code Personality Test here: https://www.colorcode.com/choose_personality_test/

Meet Angela Eklow, skincare professional, educator, ingredient and modality expert, multi-award-winning Skin Games competitor, Judge, and Lead Judge for the Acne category.

With more than 40 years in the skincare industry, Angela has built her career around one thing that has never changed: a deep curiosity about how skin works and how to create meaningful, lasting results.

In this episode of TSG’s Director’s Cut, Angela shares how her own skin experience at 18 helped spark a lifelong interest in skin health, what she learned from working internationally, and how building her clinic in Åland shaped the practitioner she became.

We also dive into the part of Angela’s work she is especially known for ingredients, cosmetic chemistry, modalities, and treatment planning. She explains why understanding an ingredient list is very different from simply recognizing a “hero ingredient,” and how deeper knowledge helps estheticians make better decisions in the treatment room.

Angela also reflects on entering The Skin Games after decades in the industry, what competition revealed about her professionally, and how that experience ultimately led her from Player to Judge and Lead Judge for the Acne category.

Join Brenda Hogsett, Director of Player Experience, and Kelly Wolcott, Director of Judges, for a candid conversation about curiosity, expertise, competition, education, and what it really means to keep learning after more than four decades in esthetics.

Meet Jessica Cooley, licensed esthetician, instructor, entrepreneur, product creator, and international award-winning skincare professional.

Jessica’s career has moved through corrective and oncology esthetics, education, leadership, entrepreneurship, and product development. After beginning in retail management, she transitioned into esthetics, where her father’s stage IV melanoma diagnosis helped shape her interest in oncology esthetics and the kind of professional she wanted to become.

In this episode of TSG’s Director’s Cut, Jessica shares how one opportunity led to the next, from building a solo practice and becoming an instructor to stepping into a Director of Education role and creating the award-winning Skin Wand Pro during the 2020 shutdown.

She also reflects on the decision to sell Skin Wand Pro in 2026, what it meant to step away from the treatment room and teaching, and what this season has taught her about identity beyond professional titles.

Jessica takes us back through her Skin Games journey as a five-time finalist, Spirit Award recipient, and award-winning competitor, including third place in Compromised Skin and second place in the Open category in 2021. She shares what competition taught her and what stayed with her long after the event itself.

And she gives us a glimpse into the direction of her new chapter.

Join Brenda Hogsett, Director of Player Experience, and Kelly Wolcott, Director of Judges, for another candid conversation about growth, reinvention, letting go, and making room for what comes next.

Around 25 minutes, give or take a really good story.