My Skincare Routine Partie 1

This is definitely my most highly requested post so I'm suuuuper excited to share my skincare routine!! This comes at kind of a bad time (?) since I’ve been using the same products for the past two years or so and they’re all about to run out. MEANING I will soon be revamping my routine (reviews to come). But for now….these have been my fav products keeping my skin clear luminous and healthy.

Étape 1: Makeup Remover

As a former theatre kid, and very lazy person, I used to be a huge fan of makeup wipes. They’re easy and compact, and I always followed up with a cleanser anyways so whats the big deal?? (I will take this time to remind all of my readers to ALWAYS DOUBLE CLEANSE. Makeup wipes are bad enough on their own but if you don’t use a cleanser afterwards they basically just dry up your skin without even properly cleaning it…ick) the big deal is that they’re terrible for the environment and your skin. I remember using those awful grapefruit cleansing wipes from Neutrogena after the musical and having my skin BURN. Your skin shouldn’t burn from skincare products—no matter what they tried to convince us in the early 2000s.

In France, I made like the French and started using micellar water to remove my makeup, which is better than wipes but not by much. Finally, after receiving a sample of the Huile Démaquillant (makeup removing oil) from chez Oh My Cream I made the switch. Now, I use their Baume Démaquillant which is basically the same just a balm instead of an oil. I only wear concealer and eye makeup so all I need is a pea-sized amount that I rub into slightly damp skin. It dissolves the makeup, I rinse it, and any residue is removed by my cleanser.

Honestly, I’m still on the lookout for a good makeup removing balm because I don’t loooove the texture of this one. Using oil/balm makeup removers definitely takes some getting used to, and it is certainly messier than wipes but à mon avis… it’s worth it. It’s much gentler on your skin AND much more effective at removing gunk + sunscreen + makeup.

Which brings me to my last point which, in case it wasn’t obvious, you should only be double cleansing at night. I suppose the title of this section is a bit misleading because the balm/oil step of the double cleanse should be performed regardless of whether or not you’re wearing makeup. It removes sunscreen, sebum, pollutants, and bacteria that have accumulated over the course of the day.

Étape 2: Cleanser

So I actually don’t use a cleanser in the morning unless I forgot to wash my face the night before (shhh) but at night I always use the Lumene Foaming Peat Cleanser. Let me tell you, as soon as I started using this cleanser my skin improved SO MUCH. I first got a travel sized version in my advent calendar and would literally ration it because I didn’t want to run out. Before this, I kind of bounced around different cleansers—from Clinique to this random one I got chez

Oh My Cream in Paris…nothing really felt amazing on my skin or did much to help it tbh. I originally liked this Lumene one because it has little peat flecks and I felt like they were exfoliating my skin. Now I know that they don’t actually exfoliate which is good because physical exfoliants on the skin cause micro abrasions that lead to long term skin deterioration (I’m lookin at YOU St.Ives scrub!). Still, this cleanser does an amazing job at getting all the gunk out of my skin and out of my pores. Protip: make sure you rub in your cleanser for at least 30 seconds.

Étape 3: Exfoliants

This is your final reminder not to use any physical exfoliants on your face (oats, walnuts, sugar, salt etc.) I know it feeeels like its cleaning, but it’s genuinely so bad for you so please do not. Luckily for you I have a stellar alternative! I first got the Oh My Cream Poudre Exfoliant as a sample after visiting one of their stores, but it was so damn good that the next time I was there I had to get a full size. It’s so gentle but effective! You mix a bit of it with water and rub it into your skin like you

would a cleanser. It cleans my skin so super well, really removes any texture or clogged pores and makes my skin feel like a refreshed blank slate again It foams up quite a bit, more than my cleanser lol, but I think that’s adjustable based on how much water you use. It also has a faint rose scent that I was put off by at first but have grown to like. I’ve tried the Dermalogica exfoliating powder as well, but I definitely think that the Oh My Cream one is better.

The REN Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic is also in my daily rotation. I use it in the mornings as a second or third step, either after cleansing or after applying a mist. I feel like it removes any dirt, or anything accumulated from a night sleeping and refreshes my face making it absorb my other products better. I also love that it fits in with my glowy morning routine with my vitamin C serum and Valo moisturizer

If youve made it this far thanks for sticking with my ramblings—can you tell I love skincare yet?? Part 2 will be up soon with sections on serums, oils, and moisturizers!