My Nighttime Skincare Routine

My nighttime skincare routine is very similar to my morning routine, with a the addition of a few more products; a makeup remover, a physical exfoliator, a mask, and a thicker moisturizer.

I start my nighttime regime with the Vichy Purete Thermale, which is a waterless cleanser. I use this strictly as a makeup remover and the way this product works is it comes out as a milk. I apply it to dry skin and it dissolves my makeup, including waterproof mascara, and I then wipe it away with a muslin cloth. It's very similar to a micellar water, but I find it's slightly more nourishing and less stripping than most micellar waters that I've tried. It's so easy to use and after a night out it'll suffice on its own without a second cleanse. 

Next, I use the Philosophy Purity One Step Facial Cleanser as my second cleanse and I typically do a second cleanse after the Purete Thermale because I like to a do a thorough cleanse with a product that I know keeps my acne at bay. After the second cleanse, I move on to my physical exfoliant, the Mario Badescu Botanical Exfoliating Scrub, which I use two to three times a week. Physical exfoliants are a bit controversial, but I love, love, love this scrub because it's gentle, but effective. The physical bits are crushed seeds, from what I can remember, so it's far more natural than other scrubs.

I only do this next step, again, two to three times a week. This Clarisonic Detoxifying Mask is incredible! It's honestly one of the best masks I've ever used! It really does pull out all the dirt and gunk from your pores over the next day or two following one use. It's seriously so good, give it a try if you're looking for an awesome mud mask. I also found that it doesn't dry out my skin at all. Last step is the Mario Badescu Seaweed Moisturizer. Now this product is nothing special to me, if I'm honest. I started using it in the winter because my skin tends to get a bit more dry and this helped to keep the dryness away. I enjoy it, but it's not necessarily a stand out product for me.

Overall, I'm very happy with my skincare routine at the moment and I don't see myself changing anything any time soon. If you enjoy these sort of "beauty and cosmetics" posts, please do let me know! Ta for now!

My Morning Skincare Routine

Aloha! I thought now would be a good time to write about my current skincare routine because my skin is better than it's been in a very long time. It's nowhere near perfect, I still get a few spots here and there, but still my skin hasn't been this smooth and clear in years. To start us off, I'll tell you a bit about my skin type. I have combination skin, meaning I'm oily in some areas, but very dry in others. I typically get quite a few hormonal spots, but I've mainly been battling my acne scarring for the past few years. So now you have a bit of insight into how my face likes to function.

Some of these products I've been using for over a year, but the newest additions to my skincare routine are what I believe have made a difference! I start off by dragging myself out of bed and into the bathroom where I start with my Philosophy Purity One Step Cleanser. I splash some water onto my face and then rub a dime size to a quarter size amount of the cleanser onto my skin for a minute and then rinse off. I pat my skin dry and then I take one of the Nip + Fab Glycolic Acid Pads and run it gently all over my face. The glycolic acid gently exfoliates the skin by removing dead skin cells along with any impurities that the cleanser may have missed. This is one of the new awesome items that I was referring to earlier. For months I had a problem with little bumps all over my forehead and a bit on my cheeks and my esthetician suggested a chemical exfoliant. The Nip + Fab pads completely got rid of the bumps after a week of daily use and they're amazing because they don't break the bank.

I sort of flap my hands at my face to dry off what's left from the pad without removing the magical stuff and then I move on to my serum which may surprise some of you. Every other day, I use the Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair serum by taking about a pump and massaging it into the skin and a bit down my neck. The label clearly says night repair (and in next week's post you'll see I do, indeed, use it at night as well), but ViviannaDoesMakeup mentioned how she uses it in the morning as well as night, so I figured if she can, I can! I've found that this serum has helped immensely with my acne scarring. I wish I had a before picture to compare to an after picture to show all of you, but you'll just have to trust me. 😋 I finish off my routine with my all time favorite daytime moisturizer, Cetaphil Oil Control Moisturizer. It's moisturizing enough to hydrate my dry areas, but combats the oil in my t-zone at the same time. It also goes under makeup very well and I'm just absolutely in love with the stuff. This is probably my third bottle of it!

Let me know if you've tried any of these products and how they work for and also feel free to leave any recommendations you have in the comment section below! All the best! xx