Happy Monday Friends! I hope you had a fabulous weekend! This weekend consisted of me pampering my skin! Due to the weather change I've been experiencing some dryness on my face. Let's be honest...dry patches on your face are NOT cute. This brings me to the topic of today's post, my skincare routine. This routine was constantly changing, at least once a week. I was on the struggle bus for about 8 years...yes you read right 8 years. Let me give you a little background on my skin.
I started getting breakouts in the 8th grade just along my chin and forehead. It didn't bother me too much because they weren't too noticeable. When I was in high school the breakouts were more noticeable and it definitely made me self conscience. I wore loads of makeup to cover the breakouts, and to make matters worse I sometimes slept with my makeup on, gross, I know. My skin obviously worsened over time and I had no idea what to do. My mother purchased me a trial size of Proactive to see if it could help my skin. Within 2 weeks, my skin improved buuuttt I had horrible peeling and dry patches, a side effect of Proactive. So I toughed it out for about 6 months, my skin was a MESS! I continued to get breakouts constantly so my skin was always in a state of healing, meaning peeling and dryness all the time. You can't imagine the affect this had on my confidence, I always felt like people were looking at my skin and not me. I finally gave up on Proactive and decided to use Neutrogena, which helped deal with all of the dryness and peeling, but the breakouts continued.
Let's fast foreword to my first year of college. My breakouts were God awful! They were all over my face and very painful. I would sometimes avoid sleeping on my sides because of the pain on my face. The stress of college definitely took a toll on me and you could see it all over my face. I really was at a loss and I had no idea what to do. So I called my mom and told her to make a dermatologist appointment. My doctor prescribed me a lotion and face wash, which made my skin worse because it was trying to get all of the bad stuff out of my skin and then it finally started to get better. I still had a bad breakout every now and then which was a huge improvement compared to multiple times a week. These breakouts usually occurred around my period or when I was very stressed about school.
When I graduated from college my skin was completely healed. I've had friends who had similar acne to my own tell me that once I finish school the acne would go away. I really thought that I was the exception but low and behold my skin was clear for weeks. Frightened that my acne would come back I created a skin care routine that has really been working for me. I found products that work really well with my skin after a lot of trial and error.
It's important to know that what works for someone else's skin won't necessarily work for your skin. It took me a long time to realize this!
Do your research and figure out what kind of skin you have. I have combination skin, meaning I tend to have an oilier forehead but my checks and chin a prone to serious dryness. When I educated myself about my skin it was smooth sailing!
Sorry about the long introduction! Here is my skincare routine!
Please do not be alarmed! I know this is a lot of products but I don't use all of this daily.
Morning Routine
First thing in the morning I was my face with the Clean & Clear Morning Burst. It leaves my skin feeling fresh and ready to start the day. I then pat dry my face and apply toner. Ladies, if you have combination skin like myself toner is a MUST! It helps ward of oil and refreshes your skin. Anything your cleanser may have left behind your toner will pick up. It is essential that the toner is alcohol-free, you don't want your face to be stripped of it's essential oils! Lastly I apply this Target brand moisturizer it keeps my face hydrated while aiding in keeping my acne at bay.
Gym Mornings
If I go the the gym in the mornings I use my Olay Effects brush with the Clean & Clear Brush to get rid of any extra dirt that may have developed during my workout. I tone and moisturize like normal.
Night Routine
At night my routine is a little more extensive. I first remove my makeup with Neutrogona makeup remover wipes. Then I use my St. Ives Green Tea Scrub, this scrub is gentle enough to use on a daily basis. I tone like normal then apply my spot treatment. You should always put spot treatment on somewhat bare skin so it doesn't have to fight through the moisturizer to work. Next I put on the tiniest amount of eye gel, just for preventative measures. Lastly I moisturize like normal!
Weekly
Once a week I try to pamper my skin with the Freeman Cucumber Facial Peel-Off Mask. This mask is amazzzzzing for when you have a few irritated breakouts, it cools and soothes them instantly. Plus, peeling off the mask is pretty cool too! If I feel like my skin just doesn't feel as clean as it should be I use the Freeman Charcoal and Black Sugar Facial Polishing Mask. This leaves my skin feeling like butter, all I want to do is touch my face afterwards... but we know that can lead to more breakouts! Am I right ladies?! For a polishing a mask it surprisingly leaves my skin feeling hydrated.
I hope you all enjoyed this post! Let me know if you have any suggestions down below!
xoxo
P.S- If we aren't friends on social media we need to change that...like now!
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