An Updated Retro Look

Getting Back Into A Routine

I’ve decided to try something a little different – for the next month I will religiously stick to a beauty routine – day and night. My skin has been acting a fool lately! It’s been dry, I have breakouts almost every other day; it’s just a mess right now so I need to take some quick action. And, I think the best thing is to go with more natural products to bring back the balance of natural oils to my skin. (FYI, I know this seems complicated, so you can always simplify it for your routine by doing only moisturizer/spf in the morning and cleanser/serum at night). Also, these aren’t even my favorite products, or ones that I know will work, but I’m all about testing different things to see how skin will react, so I’ll keep you updated.

Here’s what I’ll be doing:

Morning:

1. Cleanser: Cera Ve (in the shower)

2.  Moisturizer/Softener of Skin: Honey (in the shower)

3. Toner: Clinique Clarifying Lotion #2 (I need to start getting back in the habit of using a toner – a separate post to come about toners soon)

4. Dark Spot Eliminator: Clinique Even Better (I’m still testing this out b/c I don’t know how well it really works yet)

5. Moisturizer/SPF: Oil of Olay Regenerist UV Defense Regenerating Lotion, SPF 50

Night:

1. Cleanser: Cera Ve

2. Moisturizing Oil: 100% Jojoba Oil

3. Moisturizer/Serum: Olay Regenerist Regenerating Serum

4. Applying Castor Oil to my eyelashes and eyebrows (it’s apparently great for hair growth, so I wanted to throw in a little extra something into my routine)

2x/Week:  Moisturizing Mask: Greek Yogurt left on my face for 15-20 minutes

Daily:  Water, water, water! I’ve so been slacking on this!!

I’ll let you know how I’m feeling in the morning after tonight’s rituals!

Face Cleansers

So I’ve taken a poll from among my friends and haven’t yet found a consensus regarding best facial cleansers (there are soooo many out there!) so I’ll be listing the ones I’ve tried over the years and give my rating from 1-5 and why. Also remember that based on your face’s composition (oily, dry or combo) some of these may work better for your skin, based on the season. For me, these listed below are regardless of weather (the moisturizer you use has more to do with the weather more than your cleanser). Here they are in order from favorite to least favorite:

1. CereVe – $13 (you can find it at any drugstore ) – Rating: 5

This stuff is seriously magic. Want to know why? Cuz the ingredients are basic and minimal! I’ve heard and read time and time again that the simpler a face wash, the better it is for your skin (and health) overall. (That can also be extended to the type of foods we eat as well – preservative-heavy foods v. natural foods make a big difference in the look and feel of your skin). It doesn’t strip my skin and my face doesn’t feel dry after I’m done. As a matter of fact, it feels as smooth as a baby’s butt, no kidding! Run out and get this.

2. Olay Professional Cleansing System - $40 (Any drugstore/Costco) – Rating: 4

I actually really like this for a deeper cleansing, especially at night. During the winter, so I don’t strip my face of the little moisture it has, I use this only at night. During the summer, you can use it more often, but I’d recommend using a more gentle cleanser (see CeraVe above) in the morning, and using this one to get that deep clean after the grime of the day.   

3.  Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash Cleanser - $7 (any drugstore) – Rating: 3

This used to be my go-to cleanser because it gave me a tingling feeling and made my face feel super clean and fresh. But, I realized that’s all it did. It kept my skin a little more oily than normal and I was more prone to breakouts when on this cleanser. Use at your own risk.

4.  Aveeno Positively Radiant Cleanser - $8 (any drugstore) – Rating: 2

I do not see what the big deal about this cleanser was AT ALL. This has been on a few different “Best of” lists but I have not seen the benefits (short or long term) from this product. Aveeno is supposed to have mild products, I get that, but this just feels as if it goes on the surface of my face and never sinks down into my pores the way the other products on this list do.

CLEANSER WITH REVIEW TO COME:

Bobbi Brown Extra Balm Rinse - $58 (bobbibrowncosmetics.com) – Rating: ?

So I haven’t actually tried this yet, but two friends whose skin is beautiful have said that this is the way to go. Now, I don’t usually spend $60 on a cleanser, but after looking at the Bobbi Brown site and seeing that out of 119 ratings, it has an average of 4.8 stars out of 5, I’m willing to give it a try – stay tuned!!