Friday 1 February 2013

ROUTINE: Updated Skin Care Routine

Since my last skin care routine post, my skin care routine has been simplified. I've stopped using products aimed at oily and blemished prone skin and moved onto products that are more cream based and anti-ageing. I'm now aiming to fade my scars. When I get the odd spot once a month or so, it doesn't bother me. But my scarring does. I should probably also note that I have combination skin - my chin and cheeks can get really dry but my forehead and nose are prone to oilyness. Also, this is just my basic skin care routine. This doesn't include any exfoliators/face masks but I will be doing a post on those later on in the month.


I change between 4 cleansers depending on what I need them for. At night time I use the No7 Beautiful Skin Melting Gel Cleanser for Normal / Dry Skin - £9.00 as it's just perfect. I've only been using it for a week but I'm already in love. It starts off as a gel cleanser and then once massaged into the skin, it changes to an oil cleanser which dissolves make up perfectly. If you keep massaging it into the skin it then changes into a milk cleanser to nourish the skin and leave it feeling perfectly smooth and soft. This also means that there's no nasty oily residue left over afterwards. Secondly, although I don't use it as often as I used to, I couldn't get rid of the Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser* - £12.75 altogether so it's still in my skin care routine. I use it once a week when I give my skin a facial as it's such a luxurious skin care product that exfoliates, hydrates and cleanses my skin in a way that a lot of other cleansers can't. If I don't have a lot of make up on - say I've just come back from a lecture and I want to take my make up off - then I'll use the Soap & Glory Peaches And Clean Deep Cleansing Milk - £7.00. I use this as a hot cloth cleanser almost. I massage it into my skin and then remove it with a flannel and it leaves my skin make up free and feeling beautiful. The smell of this is also gorgeous and as the name suggests, it's a lovely fruity fragrance. And finally, I use the No7 Beautiful Skin Cleansing Water for Normal / Oily Skin - £9.00 when I want a quick boost. For example, in the morning I use this to quickly sweep away any dirt and grime from the skin after my sleep. I don't use this as a cleanser for my make up as it doesn't remove it that well but it's great for refreshing the skin.
My spot treatment of choice is the Tretinoin Cream, USP 0.025%* - price varies which I was given when I attended Freedomhealth Clinic on Harley Street last year. It's a great spot treatment as it gets to work instantly and a spot doesn't tend to last longer than a day on my skin. It also isn't drying and it's unnoticeable on the skin. As I mentioned last week, I've changed my skin care routine so that it's anti-ageing and my moisturisers and serum of choice is the No7 Protect & Perfect Night Cream - £23.00, No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Serum - £23.00 and the No7 Protect & Perfect Day Cream - £22.00. Since using these products I've noticed a reduction in my scarring and I believe that these have been working on my hyper-pigmentation and really helping to soothe them and remove them. The skin on the right hand side of my face in particular has really been reduced and I don't even have to wear concealer over those scars any more which is fantastic. If you've ever seen a picture of my bare skin then you know how bad my scars actually are. So for me to not have to wear concealer on one side of my face (unless I have a breakout) is a big deal. I haven't been using anything else other than these three moisturisers that could possibly have had that affect on my skin. So if you're looking for something to reduce scarring and improve the appearance of your skin then I'd highly, highly recommend these. And finally, last but not least, I use the Liz Earle Daily Eye Repair* - £14.25 every day and night underneath my eyes to give them a boost. I find that this reduces the appearance of eye bags and just makes my eyes look more healthy and awake.
What items are in your skin care routine? Do we have any of the same?
xxx
*PR Sample