Skincare Routine

So I have fairly decent skin and people often ask me to recommend products that I use. Maintaining good skin takes constant work and it's something I deem to be quite important. My skin now is quite clear and healthy looking but it wasn't always that way. During my early teens I, like many people, developed acne. I had an oily t-zone so my acne developed there. Lots of blackheads on my nose, and little red dots along my forehead and occasionally my chin. My father liked to call me "pizza face" because he said the tiny red dots looked like pepperoni. Cruel, I know. But he's also the one that bought me all the products that fixed me up. So now I have him to thank.

He bought me my first Biore pore strips to try get rid of all the blackheads on my nose. To this day, I still use them. They aren't miracle workers and are a bit harsh to remove but they definitely take quite a bit of gunk out of your skin, which you can see on the strip once it's removed. I really do recommend them, and I like to try to use them once a month. The package of strips that we bought came with a sample of a Biore cleanser. I decided to try the cleanser and I haven't looked back. This is what cleared my pre-teen skin and I continue to use it to this day. 7 years later, and a few bottles down, I'll never look for another cleanser as long as skin continues to stay the same. Which by the way, currently I have combination skin. An oily t-zone, more so in the warmer months, and dry patches, more so in the winter. My skin is clear, aside from the one pimple I get right before "my time of the month." However I'm also highly sensitive to skincare products, particularly makeup remover. I've had no problems with makeup breaking me out till recently--- needless to say, I will now be staying away from MAC liquid foundations. So all the products that I'm about to mention are for combo sensitive skin. If you have the same issues then I highly recommend you check these out.

I'll start from the beginning of the process. Removing makeup:

Like I said above I am extremely sensitive to makeup removers. It took me quite a few products to find ones that didn't burn, make me itchy or, in the case of the Equate Walmart wipes, break me out in hives (never buy those!!!). So I have now found my dream team of makeup removers. For my face I use the Bioderma Sensibio sollution. It's gentle, it cleanses, it's fragrance free, it really takes everything off, it's a bit more expensive than I'd prefer, but I'll never buy another. Even though it can be used on the face and eyes, I have a separate eye makeup remover which I really love. The body shop camomile gentle eye makeup remover is everything it should be. Again, I'll never buy another. I use cotton pads with the both of these. Out of all the makeup wipes, these are my favorite. They are the Neutrogena deep clean oil-free makeup remover wipes. I will probably repurchase these for traveling, short trips etc 

 Cleansing:

The Biore cleanser I mentioned previously is the pore unclogging scrub. It cured my teenage problem skin and continues to keep it clear. This is definitely my secret to clear skin and what I recommend to everyone. It is a bit drying, but a good moisturizer solves that, which is mentioned later in this post. A few months ago, in April I believe, I got the Clarisonic Mia with a Sephora gift card from my boyfriend for our two year anniversary. I really do like it. It makes me skin soft and ready to absorb skin care products. It broke me out at first during the "purging" phase that many people experience but now it's ok. After playing around, I have found that it works best for my skin to use about 3 times a week, not every day as recommended. 

Toners:

Since I have not found a toner that works for me I have decided to include what hasn't worked. (From left to right:) The body shop seaweed clarifying toner made my skin feel a bit itchy and sticky. The Lush tea tree water (one from Ontario and one from Quebec, hence the French) didn't do a thing, I just felt like I was spritzing scented water on my face. And the Neutrogena oil-free acne stress control triple-action toner (wow what a long name) was too harsh and drying, probably because it contains a high percentage of alcohol. 

Kristin Cavallari uses this toner and it really seems to suit all my needs, however it's quite expensive for so little product. My other alternative is a Mario Badescu one, which isn't as expensive but also not as natural. I think I am leaning towards the Suki skincare one.

  The last step in my everyday routine, moisturizers:

I found my holy grail moisturizer the same way I found my holy grail cleanser- through a free sample. I got a couple of free samples of the Ole Henriksen truth creme advanced hydration facial moisturizer in Sephora awhile back and bought the full-size along with my Clarisonic. This has changed my skin and I will be lost beyond belief if they ever discontinue it. I think this is a product that will benefit almost anyone and trust me,  it's worth every penny of the $60. Since I loved the moisturizer so much I decided to get an eye cream from the same brand. The Ole Henriksen eye cream isn't holy grail, but it does a great job and I will also continue to repurchase this. I use just the original Nivea cream as a moisturizer for my neck, because it makes the skin on my neck soooo soft! There's not much in the container but you don't need much product because it's so thick. I searched long and hard to find this formula made in Germany because most of them are made in Mexico. The German formula doesn't contain the harsh chemicals that the one made in Mexico has. If anyone is wondering, I found it at Starsky, a local polish grocery store and it was really affordable at around $3. I would look on amazon, ebay or any European store if you want to find it.

I'm also interesting in finding a night cream for those winter days when my skin is really dry. I'll probably try an infamous Mario Badescu night cream.

Pampering:

When my skin isn't looking the best I'll pamper it with some masks and pore strips. Since I already shared my opinion on the strips earlier in the post, I'll focus on the masks. The Freeman cucumber peel-off mask doesn't make much of a difference but it is refreshing and fun to apply and peel off. Masks that really do make a difference in your skin are the ones by Lush. I love, love, love their masks. I've tried a few and currently I'm using the Cupcake one which I'm on a second tub of. This cupcake one is great for controlling blemishes, but it's pretty much a guarantee you can find a Lush mask to suit any of your needs. Make sure you store them in the fridge though or they'll go rotten!

Before I apply the Lush masks I like to steam my face with these Lush tea tree toner bombs. I just boil a pot of water, drop one of these in and then sit with my face over the pot and a towel over my head for a few minutes. This allows you to sweat out all the gunk in your skin and opens your pores to really let the masks do their work. 

Suncare:

I barely barely use these products but if I were to reach for these types of things, they would be these ones. I like the Aveeno continuous protection sunblock lotion spf30 for my face. It's not too greasy and it's specially made for the face. I don't really wear spf, probably because I'm naturally tanned and don't burn (naughty, I know) but I like this if I'm going to be spending a lot of time in the sun, either at the beach, on vacation in Cuba etc. After I'm sick, if my face is looking a little pale, I may use the L'oreal sublime bronze self-tanning lotion to restore a little bit of color and glow to my face. 

So that's basically my entire skincare routine! Like I said, I'm still looking for the right toner for me and will probably be adding a nightcream. As well, I always like trying out new Lush face masks, but rather than that everything else will be staying exactly the same. I hope this was helpful for anyone looking to try out new skincare products,
until next time,
xoxo V.