I am ashamed to admit that I have never bothered with a *formal* skin care routine. That is, until now. As 43 has approached, I have begun to notice changes in my skin that bother me. There are wrinkles; deep "expression lines" on my forehead, the beginnings of crows feet, a nagging line above one side of my lip as a result of sleeping on my side. There are discolorations, especially on my forehead. The uneven complexion drives me insane. Finally, I just don't seem as *bright*, if that is understandable. I have combination skin, with the occasional, small pimple. I have no acne scars.
Time to take action.
First of all, I know that half of skin care comes from inside, and I am working on that, too. However, I wanted to document what I am doing on the outside right now. The changes to internal factors, well, I will talk about those later. The routine below is what I started on New Years Eve. I plan to stick with it until the first of March, and then reevaluate. And, as much as I hate having my picture taken, I think it might be a good idea to have some photodocumentation, just to see. I am grateful to having a husband who thinks I am beautiful the way I am, but he isn't the most reliable person to be honest about changes.
A little disclaimer. I am a long term vegetarian (since 2006) with *strong* vegan leanings. As much as I can, I try to use products that are cruelty-free and not tested on animals. I am also trying to make a transition to as many natural treatments as I can. However, I do have spa treatments on occasion.
So...here it is, my new regular routine...
In the morning, I simply splash my face with lukewarm water (I have not "washed" my face in the morning in a long, long time, because I don't want to over dry my skin). I then swipe with a toner (I alternate between Dickinson's Witch Hazel and Burt's Bees Clarifying Toner/Natural Acne Solutions). After that, I put on moisturize (Jason Age Renewal Vitamin E 25,000 I.U. AND Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Eye Cream with Clary Sage). While I wait for this to sink in, I gulp down 16oz to 20oz of water. I then apply Neutrogena's Ultra Sheer SPF 100+ sunscreen, and wait 15 minutes. During the wait, I drink an 8oz glass of hot water with 1/4 of a fresh lemon and cinnamon. I normally do not apply make-up until I get to work.
At night, I follow this routine. First, I remove my eye make-up with a make-up remover (Alba Botanica). Then, I wash with a non-soap cleanser. Currently, I am using Avalon Organics CoQ10 Repair Facial Cleaning Milk. I love it. It just feels good. (Before that, I used Burt's Bees Soap Bark and Chamomile Deep Cleansing Cream) I then use a honey (local) and Demerara sugar scrub on my lips. Every *other* day, I use Burt's Bees Citrus Facial Scrub OR a homemade sugar scrub to exfoliate. I follow with a swipe of toner. I then apply a retinol product (currently, I am using ROC Deep Wrinkle Night Cream, but may switch to something by Philosophy in the future. I am happy with ROC right now). While this sinks in, I have another glass of my "lemon tea". This is followed by my moisturizes, only at night, I bring it all the way down the decolletage. Lastly, I dip a Qtip in EVOO and apply this to my eyelashes, to make sure they get love, too!
In addition to all that, I like to do an enzyme peel (Neutrogena Ageless Intensives Tone Correcting peel and most recently, ones I create myself...like the Blackberry & Yogurt Peel I have on right now). Once a week, I use Queen Helene's Mint Julep Masque...which I have used for years.
So...there it is. And, it seems like a whole lot of work. Thing is, it isn't really. The most time consuming part is the *sinking into the skin* parts, and I use that for hydration time. I realize it can seem frivolous and maybe a waste of time. Maybe its a futile exercise. But, I have grown to love the routine. It puts me in the mind set of...its time for bed, or time to get moving on the day. And, I like that I am taking a small bit of time to pamper myself. That can't be a bad thing.
Any other suggestions you can think of? I would love to hear tips and ideas.
