Archives for March 2019

Hey little chicks! The wait is finally over! My most requested post everrr is here… MY SKINCARE ROUTINE! First, let me just say how flattered I am that you babes think I have beautiful skin. Like, thank you!

For this post, I have decided to include both my morning and night skincare steps. I will also list some products I occasionally use at the end!

I just want to make clear that none of these products are sponsored. I have bought everything myself, and I have been using these products on my own for a year or longer. In no way, shape or form have any of these companies reached out or influenced me using them. *This post does contain some affiliate links through LikeToKnowIt, where I have potential to make a small commission at NO extra cost to you.

So without further ado, let’s dive in!

Morning Routine

Most mornings I am usually still half asleep. I try to keep my skincare routine simple and effective. I take a dime size amount of my Tula Purifying Face Cleanser and massage it into my face with warm water. Once I rinse off and pat dry, I then will apply a serum all over my face.

I have a few favorite serum brands, and alternate buying different ones. I am a big fan of affordable serum! One of my favorite serums is by Measurable Difference. I love their Vitamin C Serum, Collagen & Retinol Serum and Hyaluronic Acid. Another brand I am a big fan of is, The Ordinary. They have a really good and inexpensive Retinol Serum, and I am also currently using the Ethylated Absorbic Acid 15% (direct acting form of Vitamin C). I will say that the Vitamin C by The Ordinary is more of an oil texture than serum. The last brand of serum I really like is by Valjean Labs. The Revive and Hydrate options are two of the best.

After serum is applied, I go ahead and moisturize my eye area. A clean beauty option I use is Dr Roebuck’s Down Under Collagen Boosting Eye Treatment. Although it is $38, the container size is pretty abundant and double the size of a lot of eye creams on the market. I do not use this often though, because I do find it to be a thick moisturizer. I would recommend it more for the dryer months. Another under eye cream I am actually obsessed with is SkinLab’s Lift & Firm Eye Gel. This gel is so lightweight and cooling. It rubs in quickly too. I found this gem at Marshall’s for only $6.99! If you are unable to find it at your local Tjmaxx or Marshall’s, I have found some links for you! If you are more of a drugstore type of gal, Olay Eyes Deep Hydrating Eye Gel is a great choice too!

Once my serum has absorbed into my skin and I have applied my eye cream, it is now time for my final step…moisturizing my face! I have a few face creams that I loveeee at different price points. I usually use my Tula Hydrating Day & Night Cream. I love this cream because it is light feeling, while delivering deep hydration. My little sister is obsessed with it too. On days where I want a lighter feeling moisturizer, I use the Tula Aqua Infusion Oil-Free Gel Cream. I love the gel feeling and it’s really great as a summer time skincare product.

I completely understand Tula is more of a higher end skincare line when it comes to price point. There are two other face creams that I love, and they are about $10-15 cheaper. If you have not tried Olay Whips yet, like what are you waiting for?! It is seriously the best! I use the Olay Regenerist Whip. It is so light and fluffy! It smells amazing and leaves my face feeling soft as a baby’s tooshie! I also really like the True Cream Aqua Bomb by Belif.

As a recap: I wash my face with cleanser, use serum, moistures my eye area, then moisturize my whole face! In this exact order! Simple as that!

Night Routine

My nighttime skincare regimen is very similar to the morning, but a few things vary.

Before I begin, I just wanted to share some honesty. I know a lot of bloggers use and share Tula products. When I first bought Tula in November 2017, I HATED it. I thought it made my skin look worse. I was legit like what the actual fuck?! I decided to stick it out for a few more weeks, and something amazing happened. My skin cleared completely. My skin has never been better, and I am an official believer in this brand. It was one of those things where results did not happen over night. I needed to use the products for a full month. Tula is probiotic skincare and I think my skin cells just needed to get used to it.

Unfortunately, I do not have a promo code for Tula, but one of my good blogger friends Natalie Kennedy does! She is kindly letting me share it with you! To get 20% OFF your purchase with Tula use code “NATALIEK”.

Back to my skincare! At night, the first thing I do is take off my make-up. I use the Ultra Compact Make-up Remover Wipes from Amazon. I love these! Not only do they smell amazing and effectively take off your make-up, but they come in a pack of three for under $14! That is cheaper than other brands, like Neutrogena. They go out of stock all the time, so be sure to order yours ASAP! After I use my little wipe, I then take some liquid eye make-up remover and put it on a clean corner of the wipe I just used. I take off any excess eye make-up that did not already come off. I really like the Sephora Collection Waterproof Eye Makeup Remover.

Once my make-up is off, I wash my face. I take my Clarisonic and a dime size amount of my Tula Purifying Cleanser. I only use my Clarisonic at night, but you can use it twice a day if you’d like. If you want a cheaper brush option, Olay makes a really good cleansing brush. I still have mine, and I use it in the shower. After washing my face, I will occasionally use a toner. I use toner about 3-4 nights a week. The toner I use is Problem Solution Toner by Belif. This toner contains tea tree and helps with blemishes. Another great toner is by Tula. It is the Pro-glycolic Resurfacing Gel. It works well, but I like using a liquid toner better.

After my toner drys, I apply serum. At night, I am currently using the Tula Aqua Infusion Power Liquid. When it’s gone I will continue to use the serums in my morning routine, because the Tula is a little expensive for me. While the serum absorbs into my skin, I moisturize my eye area. I then moisturize my face with one of the creams I listed in my morning routine. The final part of my skincare routine does not happen until I go to bed. Right before bed, I apply my Curology. Curology is custom skincare made just for you! I use a cream that was created for me before bed, and only on areas that may need it. If you want to learn more, check out my previous post on Curology!

To recap: I take off my make-up, wash my face with my Clarisonic, use toner, serum, moisture under my eyes, moisture my face, and then use Curology before bed.

On Occasion

There are times when I need to use certain products that are not apart of my everyday skincare routine.

Let’s say I have a blemish or two lol, my go-to pimple fighting solution is the Mario Badescu Drying Lotion. This stuff is your golden ticket, your get out of jail free card when it comes to zits! I leave it on overnight, and when I wake up in the morning my pimple is usually a lot smaller or drying up.

Another product I really like when I am suffering from breakouts is GlamGlow Supermud Clearing Treatment. This is a mud mask that you leave on for about 10 minutes. It definitely helps when my little guys need to be gone in a short time frame.

When my skin is dry, peeling, or flaky from a sun burn I turn to my Virgin Marula Luxury Facial Oil by Drunk Elephant. It helps nourish and heal my dry skin. It also makes for a smoother make-up application.

When I get far less than my 8 hours of sleep, my holy grail product for puffy, tired eyes is NO MORE BAGGAGE by Dr Brandt Skincare. The gel helps de-puff and refresh my eye area. Literally, a miracle worker.

About once every three weeks, I use a tingle toner. If you have never used a tingle product before, this is your fair warning! Tingle products don’t tingle per say. They actually sting or burn. The light burning sensation is TOTALLY normal. You may experience flushed or red coloring of the skin. This is fine too and will go away within 20-30 minutes. I use the Tarte Knockout Tingle Toner. The tingle toner helps resurface the skin, improve the look of fine lines and wrinkles, and it helps reduce pores. The toner gently exfoliates and supports new cell growth. Some people use this multiple times a week, but I do not.

The last product I occasionally use is really fun! I only use it after wearing a lot of make-up for a long period of time. If that is the case, I would use a BUBBLESHEET by GlamGlow. It is a face mask that is oxygenating, and will literally bubble up. It helps remove make-up and dissolve dirt. It will leave your skin feeling purified and will reveal a nice glow.

We are now at the end of this post! Stay tuned for a video on my Instagram stories that will show you how I complete these steps! You will also be able to shop these products via the LikeToKnowIt app, but all products are linked multiple times throughout this post!

I hope this was informative and everything you wanted it to be!

Love you the most!

xx Courtney