Morning & Bedtime Skincare Routine

Happy TUESDAY FAM. Today’s post is breaking down something SUPER important: my bedtime & morning skincare routine! Skincare is the #1 most important thing in beauty. Your makeup only looks as good as your canvas, so if you don’t take care of your skin, you likely won’t be totally happy with the results of your makeup. Your skin is your biggest organ so taking care of it is SO SO IMPORTANT.

That being said, there is always going to be the occasional trouble acne and certain skin conditions that people deal with on a daily basis. That doesn’t mean you can’t have beautiful makeup. Having a good morning & night skincare routine will simply aid in making sure you have LESS to deal with and can focus on healing your skin and making it as healthy as it can be.  Ok, I’ll step off my soap box now so we can dive into this.

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Morning & Bedtime Skincare Routine

Gooooood morning!

We are going to start  with my morning routine and go in order. Here we go:

Step one: Splash cold water on my face.

This step seems silly – but it tightens up pores, reduces redness and aids in waking you up in the process.

Step two: Use a makeup wipe to get any remnants of mascara or eyeliner that may have been stubborn the night before.

It’s important that you have a clean canvas every day. Be careful around your delicate eye area, but make sure you really get in between your lashes so there isn’t anything hanging around for days.

 

Step three: Wash my face with Dermalogica Facial Cleanser OR L’Oreal Pure Clay Cleanser.

I alternate between these two depending on what my skin is doing in the moment. If it’s really clear and I’m just trying to get dirt and oils off from sleeping the night before, my Dermalogica cleanser does an amazing job. It also helps keep acne at bay. If my skin is having a rough time with breakouts, needs some help with oil control and redness, I reach for my L’Oreal Pure Clay Cleanser “Purify & Mattify Eucalyptus Cleanser”. It almost has the consistency of a a mousse and feels SO hydrating and refreshing, while simultaneously zapping the excess oil on my face and reducing redness. I find it’s a little bit much to use every day (that’s why I alternate with the gentler cleanser) – but GREAT on my problem days.

Step four: Moisturize with Dermalogica Active Moist.

This is my favorite moisturizer of ALL TIME. It’s SO good because it doesn’t leave my skin feeling greasy but I do feel hydrated and it releases any tightness remaining from washing my face or hot water in the shower. I generously apply this all over my face and neck. If I know I will be going outside in the sun, I will also apply a moisturizing sunscreen all over as well (yes, even in the winter).

Step five: Apply eye elixir by Pixi Beauty by Petra.

I don’t know if you’ve tried anything by Pixi – it’s a drugstore brand sold at Target (and coincidentally – the first real eyeshadow palette I ever purchased was by this brand) – but I love them. They have seriously QUALITY products and I actually love their skincare. One thing I’ve been trying to use more regularly is eye cream / eye oils to help reduce my crows feet. It wakes up my eyes, helps repair damaged collagen and is suitable for sensitive skin. 

Step six: Spray Mario Badescu Facial Spray with Aloe, Chamomile & Lavender all over face.

This is my favorite step because I love this product so much. I use it every single day WITHOUT FAIL. This is like a primer and toner all in one. It helps to balance skin PH to brighten and reduce redness and problem areas, soothes skin and smells like actual heaven. I find it’s ALSO the perfect way to prime your skin for makeup because it helps everything you’ve put on that morning really soak and melt into your face.

Gooooood night!

It’s time to take off your makeup and take care of your skin before bed. If I hear of any of you going to sleep with makeup STILL ON YOUR FACE I will have to come hunt you down. IT’S NOT WORTH SACRIFICING YOUR SKIN.

Step one: Apply Dermalogica Pre-cleanse to entire face.

This is arguably one of the most important steps of the night. It effectively begins to remove your makeup (especially mascara), gets deep into your skin to start loosening up dirt and oil and eliminates the amount of rubbing on your delicate face skin you need to do to clean your skin.

Step two: Use a makeup wipe or Micellar water to remove makeup.

At this point, it’s time for your makeup to hit the road. I prefer to use a facial wash cloth (I use Pixi’s bamboo wash cloth) and micellar water because I think it is easier on my eyes and gets rid of makeup without wiping or scrubbing! I also don’t think it’s that much more expensive that makeup removing wipes. However, you can choose any method here that gets the makeup off your face and fits into your budget.

Step three: Apply face mask and let sit for 10-15 minutes.

You do not have to do this every night but it’s good to do it at least 2-3 nights a week to refresh your skin and you can target problem situations with the type of mask you use. I like to do it 3-4 nights a week if possible, alternating sheet masks and regular face masks. I use a combination of brightening masks, acne masks and moisturizing/refreshing masks. 

Step four and five are going to be the same as the morning routine with face wash and moisturizer.

Step six : Apply Thomas Peter Roth Retinol serum to entire face.

This step should AT MOST be done every other day, and I actually do it every 3 days. This has been proven by dermatologists to be the most effective way to reduce wrinkles and fine lines so I am ALL about it. Keep in mind: it takes about 2 months of consistent usage to start seeing results. I essentially just rub the serum into my face with gentle circular motions and let it dry. 

Step seven: Apply topical acne treatment if you have/need it.

This is a completely optional step. If you don’t struggle with acne, you obviously do not need to do this. If you DO however, or are just struggling with the occasional zit to appear on your face (like most people do), you can do this just when necessary.

PIN THIS FOR LATER:

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It is SO easy to get caught up in your daily routine that you don’t have time to do every step in the getting ready process or the thought of doing 5-6 steps every morning and night overwhelm you. HOWEVER – consider these three facts about keeping your face clean:

1. Your skin sheds DAILY. That means while it may look fabulous today – your skin may shed to show dull, less than perfect skin tomorrow. Keeping it washed, moisturized and cared for will ensure that each layer of your skin is healthy and bright.
2. Beautiful skin doesn’t happen overnight and it is a lifelong process. If you want beautiful skin in 30 years, you will start taking care of your skin now.
3. Prevention is key. It’s SO much easier to prevent potential skin problems than to fix them. Washing your face before bed is a WHOLE lot cheaper than going to see a dermatologist for skin damage.

Beautiful, healthy skin starts with a good skincare routine. What kind of skincare routine do you have? Do you have a favorite product? Let me know in the comments below!