Skincare Routine: November 2013

Nothing is more bothersome for me than skincare. Not because I don't like taking care of my skin, but because I feel like my skincare routine is always lacking/not working the way I wish it did. In any case, I thought I would share some products that I've been using for the past few months and that are doing a pretty good job with the madness I'm dealing with. The only reason I can't say they are spectacular is because I'm currently suffering from some pretty stubborn hormonal acne that has been tormenting me. Nothing I do completely gets rid of them, especially since I haven't been able to get my hands on Stieva-A which was prescribed by my dermatologist and was keeping my skin pretty balanced. Just a few notes on my skin type, I have fairly oily skin but as the temperatures are dropping I'm heading more towards combination skin with some dry patches around my nose, between my eyebrows and on the sides of my cheeks.

Now that all that is out of the way, here's a bit about the products I'm using (Note: You will see a lot of Lancome products mentioned, all of these are deluxe samples I've collected since my mom has a friend who works at the counter but they come with purchases. That was the first disclaimer I've ever given so sorry if it's not too official haha) Although I have oily skin I don't like my cleansers to be abrasive or overly drying so I've been using this smaller tube of Lancome Creme Radiance for normal/combo skin and I'm a big fan. You honestly need the smallest amount and it gets rid of all your makeup, including tough mascara, without leaving your face tight. Out of all of these products this is probably my favourite of the bunch. If I still have remnants of my mascara and want to avoid having racoon eyes, I use my Lancome Bi-Facil Double Action Eye Makeup Remover. This is one of those products you have to shake before using but it is certainly not greasy whatsoever and makes it a breeze to remove mascara, even your stubborn waterproof formulas. Next I take a small amount of the Lancome Visionnaire Serum and pat it on areas of my face where I have scarring or larger pores. I'm using up the few little bottles of samples I got as a gift with purchase and I'm aware that a full size bottle of this stuff is not cheap so if you want to try it I'd recommend keeping an eye out for gift with purchase deals at department stores.

The next steps of my routine change quite frequently or are included sporadically. The moisturizer I'm currently using is the Embryolisse Lait-Creme Concentre which I purchased in Paris, so finding this may be a bit tricker and could involve some research on Ebay or Amazon. To be honest, I wasn't the biggest fan of this when I tried it in the summer months on my oilier skin. Recently I've gotten some dry patches around my face and this has seemed to work really well on my skin this time around. It doesn't leave me too oily and doesn't feel sticky which giving my skin an extra dose of moisture. If you have any moisturizer recommendations send them my way because moisturizer is a tricky step for me. Next I apply either Clean & Clear Persa-gel 5 or Tea Tree Oil. For the past few months I've switched back and forth between the two and have found that the persa-gel works best on larger, under-the-skin pimples (you know, the ones that are a serious pain) and tea tree oil is great for smaller pimples that tend to develop the white centre.... this is not a fun topic to write about. But it's all about keepin' it real, ya feel me? Again, speaking very honestly, eye cream is a step I forget a majority of the time. I use it as a precautionary step because the signs of aging are already smacking me in the face, hello grey hairs! This is a sample of Lancome Absolue Eye Premium BX. Since I don't worry a whole lot about this, which I probably should, I can't really tell if the cream does much for my eyes other than keep them hydrated and help my concealer go on smoothly. Once this little pot runs dry I'll probably buy a cheaper alternative because the hydration factor is all I'm looking for right now. And finally, once a week I will apply Vichy Normaderm Tri-Activ Mask which I do really like! The product says it can be used as a cleanser, exfoliant or mask but I tend to use it as a mask only because it's a bit too harsh as a cleanser and once I remove the mask it performs the function of an exfoliator. On days when I have dry spots but need to be a little gentler I use Aveeno Skin Brightening Daily Scrub. I can't say much on the brightening front because I don't really notice a difference but it leaves my skin smoother without being harsh and abrasive. I definitely want to try the Alpha-H Liquid Gold though, I've heard it's incredible so any opinions on that would be welcomed with open arms.

Wowza, did you make it? There you have it folks, what I'm currently using on my face. I'm still on the journey to find better products and am doing so much research that my Google searches consist of skin care routines and every product under the sun that I've heard does wonders. Once I update this routine and find things that do the job more efficiently I will give you guys a bit of an overview.

Glorious Peonies.