face care routine | natural + not harsh

It's an obsession of mine, really. In high school I had perfect skin and it wasn't until college that I had to worry about what I was using to wash off my makeup and moisturizing my skin with. I was sadly set on using products that dried out my skin when I was a freshman in college. Two years of research, pinterest wisdom, and trial and error led me to the routine I use for my skin now. It is so important to moisturize your face with specific types of lotions and oils that do not clog your pores, this will give your skin a balance of healthy oils and will in turn erase acne as well as acne scars.

Yes, I have a lot of products that I use every morning and night and yes I do follow this routine to a tee every single day. I have been asked to post my whole list of face care products and the order I use it in, so here it is:



I am against wearing makeup to bed because it is the equivalent of nails on a chalkboard. I use Cetaphil facial cleanser every night twice, one to get my mascara off and the second to use with my clarisonic brush. This cleanser does not dry out my skin and provides a deep clean that will make your pores quite fond of you afterward.



After all my makeup is off, I use this combination of aloe vera, tea tree oil, vitamin E, and coconut oil that I store in this Listerine bottle. I apply this to my face and wait for twenty to thirty minutes. I use a hot washcloth after this (from the microwave or just heat up water) to cover my face until it cools off. This opens up my pores and also provides some awesome vitamins and oils to my face.



I don't use coconut oil every night but when I do I make sure to use small amounts and thoroughly moisturize my face with it. Then I will heat up the wash cloth again and cover my face until it cools off, which usually takes around 30 seconds.



So after this forty minute process I apply this cucumber night cream which soothes my skin while I sleep. In the morning, I use this tomato cleanser that also has watermelons in it. This has a more natural and less harmful acid in it from the tomatoes that contributes to clear skin.



After using the cleanser I apply this lotion to my face which also has SPF in it to protect me from the sun. This keeps my face moisturized so my makeup doesn't look all gross because no one wants to put makeup on an un-moisturized face!



Once a week I use two different face masks on two different days of the week. Around the beginning of the week I put honey on my face and let it sit on my skin for at least a solid hour while I clean the house or cook myself a meal. The second mask I use during the middle of the week and was only $3 for this whole bottle. It peels off and apparently shrinks your pores or something but it makes me feel like I'm in a spa so I keep buying it.

A lot of people find it crazy that I do this every single day, I'm a little obsessive compulsive about it. I suggest trying the two masks I use (simple + cheap can't be beat) or simply investing in some sort of light moisturizer/night cream. Keep your face happy!