Tag: skincare routine

My Morning and Evening Skincare Routine

~ Beauty Meow ~ Leave a comment

Aside from my love and passion for fragrance, I have a love for skincare as well. I think it would be safe to say its somewhat of an obsession. I really started to take care of my skin when I entered my 30s, and now that I am approaching 37 very soon, I have spent a lot of time and money really curating and finessing my skincare routine. When I started my YouTube channel, before I transitioned into it ultimately being a fragrance channel, I loved discussing and sharing my skincare journey! So I thought I would share my favorite products and current routine!

A bit about my skin…

I have oily combination skin, that has developed a lovely texture over the years. Also its very bratty and often throws tantrums, so add sensitivity to the mix! My skin texture I attribute to my youth, growing up my dad was a surfer and my family lived at the beach. I have VERY fair skin, so I was always drenched in SPF, as I got older I noticed my sunscreen would break me out so I stopped wearing it on my face. It was when I was in my 20s I realized… OMG Sunscreen for my body should not go on my face! So I started investing in great SPFs for my skin but the damage was already done… a lovely texture. Textured skin is a common concern for a lot of people, and for me aside from larger than life pores (THANKS genetics) congestion, and wanting to start on an anti-aging regime, it was the biggest issue I had with my skin. It was around 30 that I developed a desire to learn more about skincare, and not just to buy whatever a sales associate, friends or targeted ads told me. Learning about what ingredients and WHY became important, as well as an emphasis on realistic results. I knew I couldn’t fix everything. Repairing is much harder then preventing these issues. But over time I was able to work WITH my skin to see realistic results, and that was incredibly rewarding.

Realistic results?

So I will never tell anyone how to live their life, especially in regards to their appearance. However anyone decides to present themselves to the world is their own journey. I won’t police peoples choices when it comes to their appearance. Plastic surgery for a lot of people can be incredibly empowering. For me I never had a huge desire. Doesn’t mean I wont ever, buuuttt its not important enough for me to worry about it currently. What I mean by this is, there are some results that can ONLY come from getting injections/going under the knife. And if that is your jam, then own it and work it! I know a lot of my main issues could be completely resolved with cosmetic surgery and more invasive procedures. But I am not worried about it enough to consider these procedures currently. So when I look to skincare products I have a very real expectation for results. Patience is key as well. A lot of these products requite a few cell turnover cycles to show real results. So over the years I learned what to expect and when. It has really helped me not get discouraged, and truly find the right products and ingredients for my skin.

A little TLDR about my routines…

I have at least 2 routines, a morning and a nighttime. And with these routines I have a plethora of products. I am listing them below but know that all of these products have worked amazingly for my skin and concerns. Just because they work for me doesn’t mean they will work for you. Also some of these products are pricey. Price doesn’t equal quality or efficiency! There are some amazing products that are super affordable! I have just learned over the years what works for me, and why! If I can find a more affordable alternative I will always go with that. But I have no real budget if the product works well for my skin.

Day Time Regime

  • Cleanser (Either Micellar Water, or a gentle cleansing cloth)
  • Exfoliation (usually chemical but not always)
  • Toner
  • Essence
  • Treatments/Serums
  • Eye Cream
  • Moisturizer
  • SPF

Nightly Regime

  • Oil Based Cleanser or Balm (This step I will use makeup remover on eye makeup)
  • Water Based Cleansers or other…
  • Exfoliation (usually chemical sometimes mechanical)
  • Toner
  • Essence
  • Treatments/Serums
  • Eye Cream
  • Moisturizer
  • Sleeping Masks/ OR Face oil

Cleansers!

Cleansing is my favorite part of a routine. It feels so invigorating to wash off the the gunk from the past 10-12 hours, and so uplifting to clean your face to start your day! There are a variety of different cleansers for different skin types! I have oily/combo skin that is on the sensitive side. These cleansers are my most favorite and have worked the best for me.

Holy Grail Cleansers-

Other Favorites-

Exfoliators!

Exfoliators can be a game changer when it comes to your skincare routine. There are many different exfoliators on the market, mechanical, physical and enzyme. Making sure you don’t over exfoliate is very important, as you can hurt or damage your skin. Also the illusion of needing harsh or extremely abrasive mechanical exfoliators can definitely lead to such damage. I prefer enzyme and chemical exfoliators, but sometimes have a gentle abrasive physical one can be nice too.

Holy Grail Exfoliators-

Other Favorites

Toners and Essences!

Toners and essences can really change the game when it comes to your skincare routine. The first thing to remember is not all toners and essences are created equally, so finding the right ones can be very important. I like to use hydrating toners mostly, but there are other ones for soothing, and exfoliating. My essences I am very particular about!

Holy Grail Toners-

Other Favorites-

Holy Grail Essences-

Other Favorites-

Treatments and Serums

When I first started navigating skincare treatments and serums were the most foreign to me. There are so many different treatments and types of serums and you can easily get lost. You can use one or layer, but you always want to be mindful that ingredients work well together. You also want to be mindful of not overloading your face with to many products. You can always rotate your treatments nightly if you find your skin doesn’t absorb them well. But consistency is key, as well as patience. I prefer to use brightening and protective ingredients in the morning, and reparative treatments at night. I believe one of the most important ingredients to any skincare routine is an excellent vitamin c product!

Holy Grail Serums and Treatments-

Other Favorites-

Eye Creams!

The honest truth is, you don’t NEED eye creams. You can always dab a little extra moisturizer under your eyes. But some people love the feel and ritual of an eye cream. and yes for some people they can see a real difference. As I got older I noticed finer lines and a lot of dryness under there. My main focus is hydration, anti aging ingredients and yes… SPF! If I can find a good eye product that has SPF, well that’s worth the investment for me! A good rule of thumb if you want an eye cream in your routine is to have a good absorbing one in the am, and a nice hydrating and plumping one at night. Heavier formulas during the day can get all wacky if you wear a lot of make up or heavier concealers. Also a little goes a long way. An ounce of eye cream if used day and night can last you 8 months to a year!

Holy Grail Eye Creams-

Other Favorites-

Other eye products I love!

Moisturizers!

Moisturizers are single handedly one of the most important steps and products in your routine. And if you have to ask… YES you need a moisturizer. Oily skin can be dehydrated, just because your skin is oily doesn’t mean that it is hydrated. A lot of people with oily skin will skip using a moisturizer and that can cause damage to your skin’s moisture barrier (there are other factors that can cause damage, harsh cleansers, genetics, and environmental factors like pollution to name a few). A proper moisturizer will help protect and boost your skin’s moisture barrier The trick is finding the RIGHT moisturizer. I have Oily/Combo skin on the sensitive side so these products work amazing for me. But if you have dry or normal skin I would try and find different products, or versions that would work better for you.

Holy Grail Moisturizers-

Other Favorites-

SPF!

One of the biggest enemies to your skin is sun exposure! Finding the right SPF can be tricky. Navigating different strengths and formulas can be daunting. But after a lot of trial and error I found the ones that work the best for me. One thing to remember is any products like a moisturizer or face make up that contains SPF will never have enough to truly protect you. Don’t rely on them, use a separate dedicated spf product for your skin!

Holy Grail SPF Products–

Other Favorites-

Masks!

Masks are an effective tool that you can use to customize your skincare experience. Depending on the mask and treatment you can use them in the morning or as part of your nighttime ritual. I prefer to use masks at night, but sometimes will use hydrating and plumping masks in the morning if I want to pamper myself. Masks come in a wide variety of applications, sheet masks, clay masks, wash off masks and more. Below are a few of my holy grail masks!

Sheet Masks-

Sleeping Packs and Nighttime Masks-

Clay Masks-

Other Favorite Masks-

Face oils and other favorite products!

Here are some other essential and favorite products. I like to use specific facial oils at night instead of a sleeping mask. I usually will rotate these every other night. As for the other products they aren’t necessities, but I do love using them and find them helpful. I am particularly obsessed with hydrating mists that I love to spritz through the day!

Face Oils

Hydrating Mists

Other Favorite Skincare Products-

So that is my skincare routine in a nutshell. I do rotate various other products that I received as gifts, as gratis or purchased to test out. but overall these are the products that I love and have seen real amazing results! If you have any questions or feedback on any of these products let me know.

*** Links above are affiliate links! ***

New Skincare Routine for Spring/Summer

~ Beauty Meow ~ 2 Comments

I think I finally got the perfect routine of skincare down. I haven’t seen my skin improve so fast in such a long time. I haven’t had as much irritation lately. my pores are getting so small (areas were they were prominent are completely gone, just smooth flawless skin) and it feels so happy, healthy and hydrated! So here is an updated routine.This is my current skincare routine (with list of products).

Again,I change or try new things every few months, so I will probably be updating this blog with what I have tried and what works and what didn’t. However I am loving this routine so this may stay the same through summer.

My Skin

I have a very pale complexion, with combination sensitive skin. I also suffered from enlarged pores. I have lived in South Florida my entire life, and would wear sunscreen everyday on my arms and neck but not my face. As such I had some sun damage, and some issue with a nice texture on my skin. At 30 (I’m going to be 32 in a few months) I decided it was time to put on my big girl pants and start really taking care of myself. Diet, exercise, and SKINCARE!

I don’t like under-exxagerating how bad my skin was, because truly whats the point- I had bad skin. Breakouts, pores, flaking. All because I didn’t take proper care of it. It was MY FAULT. So when I owned up to that (rather then blame genetics) I started to see a VAST improvement.

After trying new products, and really refining my regimen  I can say that my skin hasn’t felt this healthy, or looked this good ever! I have been doing this routine for about 3 weeks now.

My Routine

Morning

  • Oil Cleanser – Clean It Zero From Banila Co. This is a great first cleanse in the morning. Sometimes I do not do a double cleanse in the morning, but if I wake up and my face is extra greasy then I do this. I can say I usually do a double cleanse in the morning. at least 5 times a week.
  • Foaming Cleanser –Secret Key Snow White Foaming Cleanser. I love this in the morning,. my complexion looks brighter and my face feels great.
  • Toner –SK-II Facial Treatment Lotion
  • Exfoliate – Cure Natural Aqua Gel (twice a week, I love this) or Freeman’s Charcoal Sugar Scrub (this one is ok, just using it up right now since I don’t like to waste product)
  • Essence – SK-II Facial Treatment Essence- Put a small amount in my hands and gently pat into my face. I let it absorb completely before moving on, BHA Blackhead Power Liquid by Cosrx – I put a fair amount on a cotton pad and dab in on my entire nose and chin. I wait for the SK-II to absorb before I move onto the other.
  • Serums –Tatcha Firming Serum, Then Red Tea Antioxidant Serum from Ole Henriksen
  • Eye Cream –SK-II Eye Cream, this one has been one of the better ones I tried. Although I am still a fan of the ETUDE House Moistfull collagen one.
  • Cream- Perricone MD Cold Plasma, this is a dream product. It smells horrible but it makes my skin look amazing.
  • Moisturizer – Indigo Soothing Triple Recovery Cream by Tatcha.
  • I also apply Nature Republics Aloe Vera Gel all over my body and chest and neck area.

Evening/nighttime

  • Oil Cleanser – Tatcha Camellia Cleansing Oil. This leaves my face clean, and takes off all my makeup and gunk from the day.
  • Foaming Cleanser –USUALLY Jeju Clay Pore Cleanser from Innisfree, which is my holy grail cleanser. But If I wore a very heavy face of makeup I use La Mers The Cleansing Gel, which is amazing, and during hormonal breakouts I use Tatcha’s Rice Enzyme Cleanser. I found a big difference when I catered my cleansers to certain times of the month, and different instances as well.
  • Toner –Benton BHA Aloe Vera Toner
  • Exfoliate – Cure Natural Aqua Gel (twice a week, I love this) or Freeman’s Charcoal Sugar Scrub (this one is ok, just using it up right now since I don’t like to waste product) I used to just exfoliate at night but I was still getting clogged pores. Now that I do it twice I have seen a huge difference in the amount of blackheads I get
  • Mask– Either a foaming mask, clay mask or sheet mask
  • If I am using a sheet mask I skip this step/ If its a wash off, peeling or clay after I rinse it off then I will wipe my face off with the Green Tea cleansing water from Innisfree
  • Tone Again- SK-II Facial Treatment Lotion
  • Essence – SK-II Facial Treatment Essence- Put a small amount in my hands and gently pat into my face.
  • Serums –Tatcha Firming Serum, Then Red Tea Antioxidant Serum from Ole Henriksen
  • Eye Cream –SK-II Eye Cream
  • Cream– Perricone MD Cold Plasma, this is a dream product. It smells horrible but it makes my skin look amazing.
  • Moisturizer – If my skin is irritated at all I will use Tatchas Indigo Soothing Triple recovery Cream. If my skin isn’t irritated I use Creme de La Mer from La Mer
  • I also apply Nature Republics Aloe Vera Gel all over my body and chest and neck area.

 

I CAN SAY THIS. I used to dread cleaning my face a few years ago and now its one of the favorite parts of my day. And I get to do it twice!! I really look forward to it.

Again I have seen the biggest improvement in my skins overall health and appearance since I have switched up my routine. I do know a few of these items are very pricey. So if I had to only recommend one or two to add I would definitely say add the Sk-II essence and lotion, or just the essence. I think essences are one of the most important things in any solid skin care routine.

❤

Skincare Tips :: Busy Morning Routine

~ Beauty Meow ~ 2 Comments

I know some mornings I have an appointment to get to or I wake up way to late and just want to start my day with little fuss. But it is never good to skip your morning routine. Rather amend it. I have several products lines up for when I am feeling super lazy about my skincare. Using these in the am, still gives me a fresh, clean, and moisturized face, without the 12 steps.

Heres my quick routine and the products I use

  1. Cleanse once – I use either a cleansing cloth or Jeju Volcanic Pore Cleansing Foam from Innisfree
  2. Toner – I am still using and loving Aloe BHA Skin Toner by Benton
  3. Essence – Currently using SK-II Facial Treatment Essence 
  4. Eye Cream – Moistfull Collagen Eye Cream by Etude house
  5. Moisturize – Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion

This routine takes me no longer then 5 minutes or less, and leaves me with a clean fresh face. If I am super rushed I usually slather some BB cream, powder, blush, and mascara and run out the door. I can get ready in under 10 minutes, and still look put together, and not sloppy at all!

This routine is also a great way to jumpstart  a new skincare routine, especially if you want to go to 10-12 steps. Get used to this first, and find the right products for you then you can experiment with new steps and products, and have a good core regime down!

Good Luck ❤

My Current Skincare Routine

~ Beauty Meow ~ 2 Comments

This is my current Skincare routine (with list of products) I change or try new things every few months, so I will probably be updating this blog with what I have tried and what works and what didn’t.

My Skin

I have a very pale complexion, with combination sensitive skin. I also suffered from enlarged pores. I have lived in South Florida my entire life, and would wear sunscreen everyday on my arms and neck but not my face. As such I had some sun damage, and some issue with a nice texture on my skin. At 30 (I’m going to be 32 in a few months) I decided it was time to put on my big girl pants and start really taking care of myself. Diet, exercise, and SKINCARE!

After almost 2 years my skin looks a bazillion times better. My pores are considerably smaller and cleaner. My complexion is more even, my creases are diminishing and the smoothness of my skin is vast improved. Its very soft now, which is so nice.

I don’t like under-exagerating how bad my skin was, because truly whats the point- I had bad skin. Breakouts, pores, flaking. All because I didn’t take proper care of it. It was MY FAULT. So when I owned up to that (rather then blame genetics) I started to see a VAST improvement.

My Routine

 

  1. Oil Cleanser – Clean It Zero From Banila Co. After removing makeup from my face if there is any there I put a small amount on my face and massage for 20-30 seconds then gently rinse off.
  2. Foaming Cleanser –Jeju Volcanic Pore Cleansing Foam from Innisfree. I lather this on and then very gently use a pore brush to lather the last bit.
  3. Toner –Aloe BHA Skin Toner by Benton. I use a cotton swab and gently swipe across my face, I like this one because it is very soothing.
  4. Exfoliate –  Cure Natural Aqua Gel (twice a week, I love this) or Freeman’s Charcoal Sugar Scrub (this one is ok, just using it up right now since I don’t like to waste product)
  5. Essence – SK-II Facial Treatment Essence- Put a small amount in my hands and gently pat into my face. I let it absorb completely before moving on
  6. Essence –BHA Blackhead Power Liquid by Cosrx – I put a fair amount on a cotton pad and dab in on my entire nose and chin.
  7. Mask -(I only do this twice a week. Either a sheet mask, Lindsay makes an AMAZING Pull away charcoal mask, or the Milky Piggy Carbonated Bubble Clay Mask by Elizavecca)
  8. Brightening Oil – Wild Rose Vitamin C Active Brightening Oil by Korres – Alittle goes a long way. I just take the dropper and put 3 drops in my hands and gently apply to face and neck
  9. Serums –ULTIMUNE Power Infusing Concentratefrom Shiseido (I use this first) Then Serum Vitamin C Collagen Booster by Ole Henrikson, For the Ole Henriksen serum I do like the results of it, however it makes my face EXTREMELY red right after application and it stays red for 15 minutes, so I don’t think I will be rebuying. I am looking for another serum that has vitamin C thats a bit gentler. I think Etude House or Innisfree has one.
  10. Eye Cream –Moistfull Collagen Eye Cream by Etude house – I gently pat this under my eye and gently apply it to my lids
  11. Moisturizer –Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion+ from Clinique. Gently put a small amount on my face and neck
  12. OK if it is the morning I will use a BB cream + primer and do make up and skip this last step
  13. Night Cream – Indigo Soothing Triple Recovery Cream by Tatcha. Its a Japanese brand, and they have amazing products, however they get a bit pricey. I might look for something else to see if it compares, if not I will get this again. I do adore this.
  14. I also apply Nature Republics Aloe Vera Gel all over my body and chest and neck area.

It took me several months to really get into this routine. I used to just wash-tone-moisturize at night so going from that to this twice a day  was something I had to do slowly. I recommend adding in 1-2 steps every 2-3 weeks. First I would add essence and eye cream, then night creams, and then serums. This will let you get used to the routine, and will let you see how each product improves your skin. I realized that a good essence and night cream are what really worked for me. Rather then get some super expensive serums. But for other people may be the other way around.

I CAN SAY THIS. I used to dread cleaning my face a few years ago and now its one of the favorite parts of my day. And I get to do it twice!! I really look forward to it.

My absolute FAVORITES from this list are Jeju Volcanic Pore Cleansing Foam,Aloe BHA Skin Toner,Indigo Soothing Triple Recovery Cream and Nature Republics Aloe Vera Gel, and the SK-II Facial Treatment Essence.

As for products I hated my old moisturizer I just changed. I used to use Oil of Olay anti Aging, but I switched to the one with an additional spf 30. Sounds good right? WRONG. It broke out my entire face after only one application UGH so I switched to another moisturizer and stopped using that one for now. The Clinique Moisturizer isn;t the best as far as moisturizers (for my skin) go. But it is much better then the Oil of Olay stuff I was using. I NEVER throw away products. I usually suck it up and use them unless I get a super bad reaction. So thats what I had to do with the Oil of Olay One. Also Truth Serum Vitamin C Collagen Booster give me great results but right after application it makes my face EXTREMELY RED, and little tender. So I still use it for the results but I will not be rebuying it. So sad 😦

Also although I have nothing bad to say about BHA Blackhead Power Liquid, I don’t see much of a change or results. my pores are alittle better. I may or may not rebuy this! WE will see what happens after I use the entire bottle.

Thank you all for reading, comment below if you have any questions!

❤