Hello Beauties,
Today I am here to shock you with my skincare routine! I am sure it is very confusing to many of you especially since there are so many products on the market claiming all kinds of results, banking on our insecurities and of course our wallets. So I will dive right into it!
The importance of using natural and organic products
Our beautiful skin deserves the best especially since we can’t always do so with makeup. If you are curious, here is a brief explanation from a professional makeup artist with over a decade of experience who has tested all kinds of makeup products and brands. The fact is natural and organic products will simply never have the long lasting quality and effect their counterparts do. And the reasoning is the nature of the ingredients used - they will rub off, smear, and eventually fade a lot faster. So if you would like your makeup to last say 17 hours - in case you are wondering, yes, it has been achieved on a client of mine for the Grammys, then you simply have to use silicone based foundation for example. And just for the record she did touch up her lips throughout that day - a girl’s gotta eat, drink and enjoy the party after all.
And there could totally be a balance where in everyday life you use the sweet natural stuff and at your interviews, red carpet or important life events, like your wedding, you or your makeup artist use the long lasting hard core products! And remember to always take off your makeup and wash your face at the end of the day to provide nourishment with natural organic skincare.
So my rule of thumb when it comes to skincare is always Back to Nature. Think of it this way - if you could get an oil or ingredient directly from a plant or purchase for instance 100% rose water, why would you buy a product that includes 3% of it and 97% of who knows what ingredients you can’t even pronounce, let alone know what they are… Unfortunately the beauty industry often focuses on all the wrong things, in my opinion, which is why there are so many myths and so much misinformation. I have seen products advertised as all natural that contain alcohol which is a killer to your skin, or products advertised as say pure aloe vera, but instead the first ingredient in them is water. Read your labels! If you check the labels on the food that you eat or clothes you purchase, there is no reason you shouldn’t be paying extra attention to the ones on the products you are applying on your precious skin!
Here I'd like to point out when it comes to skincare less is more! Truth! There are so many products you simply do not need, like toner (ask me if you want to know why), and so many that have similar purposes but are sold as 2 or 3 different forms instead. Why? To get you to buy more! Yes, that’s it. The industry is more focused on making millions rather than to be real with you. That is another reason why very often brands that ARE natural and organic are small and unknown to most. So if you find one you love, support it!
This is the place I go to and trust for information on brands, products and ingredients: https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ Their database is not 100% updated all the time, imagine the amount of products that pop every day. But if I am unsure and they don’t have info on a specific one I either research the ingredients separately or simply move on and choose one that is in the system. You could also build your own report and have a lot of fun. Warning you could easily spend hours on their page.
The first product that I will talk about is face cleanser:
It is crucial that our skin is fresh and clean, so I make sure to wash my face first thing to start my day and last thing in the evening before I nourish. In the morning to wash off any residue from the bacteria that lives on it and at night to remove any residue from makeup and pollution I have been exposed to during my busy day. Contrary to what most of you think, oil is an essential part of our skin and very much needed to keep the wrinkles away for as long as possible. By the way, that is the main reason people with oily skin look young longer, wink wink. So no matter what your skin type is, read that again, you need a nice natural oil based cleanser. I use the Organic Flowers Cleansing Oil from Whamisa or Cleansing Oil Squalane & Antioxidant from Biossance. I alternate when one or the other is not available, besides that can be helpful, just like workout routines, for improved efficacy. I have personally researched and tried these two brands and can vouch for them.
Just a note, remember some brands will still offer some of the products that I would not recommend simply because a demand is already in place. I would not consider that dishonest especially since we have a long way to go when it comes to education about beauty and I don’t blame them for trying to survive in this harsh market where so many misconceptions have been born over the years and are still fabricated daily.
For some people it seems counter intuitive that foaming cleansers strip all oils from our skin and leave it irritated and dry. They struggle with the transition to oil based cleansers, but once they try and notice the improvement on their fabulous faces, they never go back. One of my clients struggled with acne for months and was prescribed antibiotics for 6 months. That simply destroys your microbiome for years ahead and cause all kinds of issues. It makes me so sad and frustrated sometimes. When she came to me she was planning her wedding, so as my usual practice we did a skin consultation and guess what, she was acne free in only 4 weeks, right on time for her big day. And that was simply by changing her foaming cleanser to cleansing oil. Besides it only took that long, because she didn’t completely switch right away, but was using the old and new ones at the same time. Once she completely made the transition, clear results followed in only a couple weeks.
My second most used product
is 100% cold pressed Rosehip Oil. It is light, absorbs fast and has amazing benefits: helps against sun damage (this does not mean we do not need SPF for prolonged sun exposure) it is anti inflammatory, offers antioxidants, boosts collagen formation, provides hydration, brightens our skin tone, reduces hyperpigmentation and appearance of scars and fine lines. I use Cliganics and purchase from Amazon, if you have a better more reliable source go for it.
The third product in my skincare routine is lip balm
My favorite is Marshmallow "Anywhere" Jumbo Organic Moisture Stick from Treat. All natural and organic with only a few ingredients, deeply nourishing to the lippies and smells like heaven, no really wait till you get your hands on this baby! As a bonus you can apply it anywhere and everywhere, and the cherry on top - it is ginormous compared to others, yes the size matters for this one! Most lip balms actually do not nourish your lips because their key ingredient is petroleum jelly and its molecule is simply too large to penetrate your skin. That combined with other unnecessary ingredients causes the opposite effect which is why some people believe to be addicted to their lip balm. Instead they simply keep feeling the need to moisturize their lips, because they are not getting deep nourishment.
And that is it!
Wait, really? - you ask. And I respond - Yes, really! This is all I use as skincare. I occasionally use aloe vera and some natural face masks, but this is all I use on the daily. To be completely fair the oil based cleanser can be completely substituted by any light oil. There was a period in my life, I washed my face with olive oil and surprisingly to me back then - it worked. My skin was just as fabulous and I still use it to this day if I am trying to break down waterproof makeup especially mascara. I have used it as moisturizer as well, only at night though, because it is heavier and does not absorb as fast as rosehip oil, therefore not really suitable to apply before makeup if you want your makeup to last that is. If you decide to try that, make sure after massaging your face with the olive oil to dissolve any makeup or pollution, to rinse really thoroughly and generously. There will always be some residue at the end and that is good, just make sure you wash off the excess that contains all the dirt. And yes, if needed you can still nourish after. The down side is you might smell like pizza, but is that really a down side? (giggle)
I hope this information was helpful and cleared up some confusion and misinformation. Never forget everything on the market is business, so do your research because if you are not paying attention nobody is going to do it for you, well except for me here typing these cute little articles, because I care for your beautiful faces!
And of course you can absolutely build your own routine, but don’t purchase products blindly just because of an ad or commercial - remember those are in place just to do that - sell you on as many of their items as they can and entice you to come back for more. So do your diligence and research, research, research! Be the smart, beautiful, and wise human you are and don't let big companies fool you with their targeted million dollar campaigns by putting pink colored glasses on your beautiful face, so you don’t dare attempt to see the truth.
What is your skincare routine?
The comments are open, so ask me questions and let me know what you’d like to read about next!
Until next time, and now…
“Look in the Mirror, You Are Beautiful!”
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