MY SKINCARE JOURNEY

After spending weeeeeeks trying to find time to update you guys on my skincare routine; I finally figured out that having it all in one place might be the easiest. This is both my morning and nighttime routine, you can also check out my future YouTube video for more info, I'll let you guys know when that goes up.

***Every product I mention has a picture allocated to it, just click on the image to open up the site where you can get more info and/or purchase the product***

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A LIL BACKGROUND

I grew up with acne-prone skin and didn't really do anything about it outside of going to Walgreens and trying out everything on the shelf. I really think at the time I should've left it alone so I didn't overly dry out my face; but when you're 13 and you have a giant pimple forming on your face every other day you're screaming SOS. Fast forwarding to April 2017, this is really when things got bad. I was breaking out way more than I ever had and I was scarring a ton too (hyperpigmentation) to the point where even makeup couldn't help cover it up all the way.

I decided that it's time to leave behind watching YouTube skincare hacks and call up a dermatologist. What I didn't know was I would have to wait 4 months to see her :/ but when I did I WAS RELIEVED. She diagnosed me with moderate cystic acne and put me on a very specific routine; which I'll share with you all. I started seeing results immediately after the purging phase (from the retinol I was on) which had lasted 3-4 weeks for me. I did break out more during this phase; but that wasn't even half as much the problem as the dryness was. I wish I was talking about dry patches but unfortunately I'm not. My face went through a period of serious cracking and tightness. This is normal but I really recommend staying out of the sun as much as you can when being on it (even if you have SPF on) for the first couple weeks because you'll feel very uncomfortable. Having patience is key at this point in time.

After about a month, I really started to see improvements. My deep reddish brown hyperpigmentation became significantly lighter and I had little to no texture. My face was finally starting to become smooth. It took about 8-10 months for my scarring to disappear and I was hardly breaking out after the first two months. At the time, I was using the retinol almost every day and lathering my face with moisturizer after. Now that my skin is a lot better it's changed a little since I don't use the retinol every night.

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MY CURRENT MORNING SKINCARE ROUTINE

STEP ONE: I use Dr. Bronner's Castile Peppermint Soap. I know this may freak some people out because it claims it can be used as a shampoo and a body wash making it seem like something you should stay away from, however, it really does wonders for your face. It's all natural and uses essential oils so it doesn't strip your face of its moisture causing dryness as a result. It comes in a giant bottle (usually lasts me about 3-4 months) for $16 at Target but you can really find it anywhere.

STEP TWO: I PAT DRY my face with a towel. I am stressing the need to pat dry because you can irritate your skin by rubbing it with a towel. I apply moisturizer that has at least SPF 30+ in it to protect my skin from future scarring or sun spots. I like to use as many "clean"/low-ingredient products on my face as possible as that's what works best for me. The moisturizer I use is Cetaphil Daily Facial Moisturizer SPF 50+. I've been using this since summer 2017 to now, definitely a holy grail product.

STEP THREE: I like to use a facial oil of some sort to layer on top for added hydration. I'm always trying out different oils; but some favorites of mine include: Drunk Elephant Virgin Marula Antioxidant Face Oil ($72 full size, $40 mini), Anastasia Beverly Hills Hydrating Oil ($45) and Good Molecules Ultra Hydrating Facial Oil ($10). Honestly, all of them do a good job in keeping the moisture in your skin, Sabrina (my sister) and I are skincare junkies so we're always trying out different products.

STEP FOUR: I like to spray some type of facial mist before going out or even if I am about to apply makeup. I tend to use rose oil because it works the best for my face but there are tons of other options as well. I use natural rose oil that you can find at a lot of grocery stores; I get mine from Patel Bros. or really any indian market/store since you can get a giant bottle of it for super cheap. All I do with this is pour the oil into a spray bottle and store it in my bathroom closet.

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MY CURRENT NIGHTTIME ROUTINE

STEP ONE: I always start with removing my makeup first; I use Deep Clean by Neutrogena (around $5 at Walgreens and Wal-Mart) but you can really use anything that removes makeup. I don't use makeup wipes because they seem to be way too harsh for my skin and I don't like the residue it leaves behind.

STEP TWO: I absolutely swear by micellar water. I think this was the biggest game changer for me when I started to clear up my skin other than the retinol because this takes EVERYTHING off. Part of the reason why I don't stress on what type of makeup removing cleanser I use is because of this. I usually pour some onto a round cotton pad and slide it alllllllll over my face and neck including my eyes (it gets every bit of mascara off!!). Depending on how long I've had my makeup on/feel/how heavy my makeup was that day I'll do this twice. You will be SO surprised as to how much dirt and leftover makeup there is even after cleansing it. I use the Garnier Micellar Water (the blue one--even though it's for waterproof makeup and I never wear waterproof I just find it to be better than the pink one).

STEP THREE: I wash my face AGAIN with my Olay Regenerist Cleansing Brush (around $30) with the Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Soap that I mentioned earlier in my morning routine. This cleansing brush works really well without irritating my skin. I've had it for at least 6 years, I just change out the brush head every month (I also clean those with the same soap after every use) to ensure that everything is as clean as can be. I've looked into getting different types of brushes like the Clarisonic and the small handheld silicone ones as well, but this is literally a fraction of the cost and it works amazing so I don't feel like moving away from it.

STEP FOUR: If I am using my prescribed retinol on this day then I would apply it right now and only put my Cetaphil moisturizer on top. HOWEVER, if I am not then I put some other products on with my moisturizer. The reason why I don't like layering products with my retinol is because the retinol is very strong on its own so I always fear that it'll react with certain types of moisturizers and products.

Anyways, since skin cells regenerate the most while you're sleeping so I loveeeeee layering on moisturizer to make sure the new skin is plump.

^me

I like using moisturizers that give ultra hydration because bouncy skin=nice skin. Currently I am using Belif The True Cream Aqua Bomb ($38 at Sephora). The closest dupe I could find for this was the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel with hyaluronic acid (around $20) which also works really well. Then on top of that I like to put a little bit of my Cetaphil moisturizer on top (don't ask me why I like to do this--I just do haha).

STEP FIVE: I usually apply a small amount of some type of serum to my face on top of the moisturizer. I really think this helps with achieving glowy skin because when you wake up in the morning your face is literally brand new. I have a wide array of serums I go between but right now I've been loving Skinfix's Barrier+ Triple-Lipid Hyaluronate Serum ($50 at Sephora).

STEP SIX: I apply some under eye brightening creams, again I go between a lot of different ones, but right now I like the INKEY List Brighten-i Eye Cream ($10 at Sephora). I feel like it really does help with reducing the appearance of dark circles and puffiness (sometimes I use this in the morning but not always).

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Well...that concludes my first ever post on this blog as well as answering one of the most frequent questions I get asked. I really hope I explained everything well, if you guys ever have any comments, questions or post requests leave a comment under this or message me here! See you guys in my next post ♥