Today I'd like to address the third topic suggested in my recent 10k giveaway. This request came from Fabienne, 3rd prize winner, who would like to know what my daily beauty routine looks like.
I think this is an excellent question and I know I'm always highly interested in how other people do it, so maybe a few of you would like to know how I do it!
Here's what I do on a daily basis:
I wash my face while I'm in the shower. I use a cleansing foam from Yves Rocher called Hydra Specific. It moisturises and cleanses, but it doesn't make you greasy.
Then I apply some skincare. I only use one facial cream at a time. At the moment, I'm finishing up some essence My Skin series creams. In the summer, I used the moisturising cream-gel with lime and cucumber and SPF (bottom right picture) because it's light and absorbs quickly and now that it's winter, I use the intensively caring cream with bamboo and pomegranate because it's a little heavier. It also leaves skin incredibly soft, which I love. Right now though, I'm finishing up my essence creams and will be moving on to some balea ones in the very near future, which I've picked up not just because I'm running out of essence creams, but because they seem to fit my profile even better than the essence creams. I will definitely post reviews once I've started using them!
If I'm going to be outside at all, even for a short while, I then apply sunscreen. I use the Sundance one from German drugstore dm, as it protects against UVA and UVB as well as free radicals. It's also dirt cheap for a really great product! I put sunscreen all over my face, my neck, my décolleté, the back of my neck and the back of my hands. I know it's not all over, but this will just have to do. Also, it's not like I bare that much skin that I really, really need it everywhere.
My deodorant is from German brand sebamed. It's a roll-on with little to no scent, which is how I like my deodorants. sebamed doesn't use alcohol or aluminium (and other yucky stuff) in their deodorants, yet they are still super effective. I've used different ones for many years and none has ever disappointed me. If you pick one up, just go for whichever tickles your fancy most. sebamed regularly gets the highest marks in product tests and I can attest to the fact that there's a reason for that. For a while, I also had a face cream from them and that was fab as well.
And that's it for my daily skincare! Some days, I then proceed to put makeup on and some days I just leave it at that. Therefore, I can't say "and then this is my daily makeup routine". Every time I do my makeup, be it a little or a lot, the look is different. I don't think I've ever repeated a look, so I can really say there's no routine there whatsoever.
All these products are good enough that combined, they give me really pretty skin and personally, I don't mind going out of the house without a molecule of makeup. I would like to add, however, that I am somewhat prone to (adult) acne and that I only got it under control with isotretinoin (one of the brand names is Accutane). No matter what I did, I never got a handle on it until I took this hardcore treatment. Now, I only have to apply zit cream or blemish-zappers topically. Yes, I still get them, even after the isotretinoin. But, it's not as bad as it used to be. I mostly get acne flare-ups when I'm hormonal or sick nowadays, so I thank my lucky stars for that.
As an extra "treatment" measure, I use these two things once or twice a week:
On the left, we have some rose oil, which I use as a serum. Rose oil is a great antioxidant, deep moisturiser and it can also reduce redness, age spots, wrinkles and scars. When I say I use it as a serum, I mean that I only use it sporadically, since it packs such a punch. Usually, I will apply it before going to bed (on clean skin) in the same areas I apply sunscreen. This is because the rose oil is slightly photosensitive and because I like giving it a good night to seep into my skin. It also has a fairly strong scent (which I'm not particularly into, but I'm not using it for its scent) that I prefer not having on during the day. At night, I don't notice it! There are various rose oils on the market in virtually every price range, but I use this one from dm's Alverde brand because it's organic and it doesn't have additives. It's basically, genuinely, just the rose oil. I think this bottle (the cap has a pipette in it for easy, mess-free application) retails at 3,95 and one such bottle lasts me about 6-8 months. You don't need a lot per application!
On the right, we have my homemade mixture of red wine vinegar and water. I just mixed half and half in a pump bottle. I use this as an astrigent and disinfectant. The red wine vinegar has some antioxiditative properties and I feel like it keeps my breakouts in check quite well (most of the time). You need to have water in the mix to make it less aggressive though! To use it, I just pump a little on a cotton pad and clean my face with it. No need to wash it off either!
I have no night-time routine to speak of. If I've been wearing makeup, I remove it with olive oil and/or a makeup wipe. If I haven't, I just stick with brushing my teeth. The only thing I apply at night is the rose oil, but that's just a few times a month.
I'm actually a big believer that less is more when it comes to skincare. While my routine might not exactly seem like "a little" to some, trust me, I know tons of people who use about 3 times as much every day. That's mostly unnecessary. I think you can overload or even "confuse" your skin if you just pile on the skincare products, one after another. I think it's more important to find those key products which really make a difference for you than to amass oodles of gunk just because people say you "need" this and this and this and this and this too.
To anyone new at building a skincare routine or someone looking to change theirs, I'd recommend starting with very few products and then, if needed, building from there to find a combination that will work for your skin specifically.
In my eyes, the essentials are clear: a cleanser, a cream, sunscreen. These are the basic building blocks of any good skincare routine. And you know what? Most of the time, you will find all you need combined in one or two products. For instance, a cream may moisturise, help prevent breakouts and have a sunscreen, all in one! Then all you need is a cleanser and you're good.
Anyway, those are my two cents on the subject! I hope you enjoyed reading about this and if you have any questions or remarks, please post them in the comments!
See you soon with a new shower gel review!
Stay beautiful, inside and out,
Anna
I'm glad to hear, that you also don't have such a strict daily routine using tons of different products. i'm also quite lax with my daily routine and i always feel bad when i see others using 10 different products in the morning. i always ask myself if the get up 1 hour earlier just to do their routine. :-)
thanks for sharing!
Posted by: Mora | December 09, 2012 at 12:10
Haha, I bet they do get up 1 hour earlier to get it all done! I don't have the patience or the inclination to live like that though :D I'm more the kind of person who cleans her ears while brushing her teeth!
Posted by: Anna Rudschies | December 09, 2012 at 15:24