Do you ever get sort of tired of seeing all the same things on social media? Like every single person you follow is sponsored by the same company to bring you the same products, and it’s just a race to see whose discount code gets the most traction? Don’t get me wrong, I 100% acknowledge that these influencers are business women and they are fulfilling a contract similar to any other industry. But it causes me to pause and wonder if the product they’re promoting is really that awesome, or if it’s just the brand that pays the highest commission. Companies are (smartly) using influencers to share their products, and that’s FANTASTIC! But as we learn to make decisions in this influence-driven culture, it is so important to still be mindful consumers and not just fall into the trap of becoming Instagram puppets who just follow every trend, fad and ad that hits our feed.
Nevertheless, skin care is something that I am increasingly interested in (because as it turns out, I am not Benjamin Button and I am, in fact, aging) and the presence of skin care ads and posts in my feed seem to know it. Disenchanted by the amount of bandwagon advertising I’m seeing, I decided to take the mindset of improving my skincare regimen and starting in my own medicine cabinet. Between 1 million Sephora samples and a collection of various brands and potions I already owned, I knew that if I simply created some consistency in my routine with the products I’ve already got, I would likely see some improvement in my skin, WITHOUT having to completely reinvent the wheel and start from scratch with a new beauty line.
I sat down one evening, opened my apothecary cabinet, grabbed a piece of paper and a pen, and inventoried what I had, creating a weekly regimen that I thought might be sustainable. I AM NOT AN ESTHETICIAN. OR A DERMATOLOGIST! I KNOW, you’re shocked by that discovery. I’m sorry to let you down this way. I am, in fact, just a very average Jane with fine lines and a million serums I didn’t know how to use. So everything you read about my regimen is just my own two cents, based on the products I had in my cabinet, my limited knowledge of skin care, and the desire to simply start some good habits for my skin in this middle-thirties season of life I’m in. So you wanna know the tea?
Ok, well let’s start there. I begin every evening with a cup of tea and Collagen Peptides (I use Vital Proteins, always have). There are at least four thousand ways you could choose to consume collagen, but I have found my favorite to be dissolved into a cup of tea in the evening. Lately, I have been drinking Tazo Peach Tranquility which is decaf and delicious and totally hides any hoof-y taste of the collagen (yes, hoof-y…. let’s just be honest about it). Collagen has a slew of benefits, including skin elasticity, radiance (allegedly), nail and hair growth, etc. This stuff might be snake oil, but I believe in it and swear that when I’m consistently taking it, I have clearer complexion and all the other good stuff.
Here is the rest of my weekly calendar that I’ve implemented after taking into account the products I already had on hand, using generic product categories instead of specifics so that if you want to implement a similar routine at home with your products, you can, too.
Now let’s talk details. I built this calendar around our life knowing that some days I would be more willing to have a lengthy routine than others (i.e. Saturday nights are often scheduled with dates, family outings, etc. so I will be lucky to accomplish the bare minimum of washing and moisturizing, hence no special steps that night versus Fridays which we almost always spend IN, a perfect excuse to slather some goo on my face and let it work its magic while I hang out on the couch watching The Morning Show on Apple TV with Stockton). Take your own family calendar into consideration if/when you make your own weekly skin care plan.
The inside of my cabinet is full of varying products, which I was determined to make good use of. There are, in most cases, even multiples of every product category. For instance, I have a great creamy cleanser (which is also a “clean beauty” product) for normal skin days, but I also have an acne wash for those times (of the month) when breakouts are more prevalent (not clean beauty because #balance). I switch it up as my skin requires. The same is true of masks and serums, which I will use interchangeably throughout the week depending on a) my needs, b) my mood, or c) for no apparent reason at all, because like I said before I AM NOT A SCIENTIST. I am simply a person who has a face, and thus, am trying my hardest to make it not look like a raisin before I turn 40.
You will notice certain steps in the routine are non-negotiable. Removing makeup, cleansing, moisturizing (with a cream AND an oil), lips and lashes are all on the agenda, every night. Additionally but not written: Viviscal supplements, Hair, Skin and Nails supplements, and collagen as I mentioned before. I have no concrete evidence yet of whether or not these work because I JUST started the Viviscal about 3 weeks ago, but I’m excited to see if this consistency yields any measurable results (stay tuned).
So here are the products. Ready?
Makeup Remover: Sephora Cleansing Water (love this, will continue to buy) and Shiseido Facial Cotton (these are stupid and fancy versions of cotton pads but I love them because they have absolutely no lint and they take the makeup off beautifully).
Cleansers: Korres Greek Yoghurt Cream Cleanser or Peter Thomas Roth Acne Clearing Wash (will always keep both of these products on hand because I think they’re the perfect combination of basic and big guns).
Masks: My assortment of masks comes from this insanely good value gift set from Sephora. Not all of the masks that came in the kit are pictured because I depleted some quicker than others, but this set gives you a great range of treatments from detoxifying to moisturizing and even some exfoliating options. It’s seriously a good value and will keep you well-stocked for, I don’t know, probably decades.
Anti-Aging Serums: This is another area I kind of throw on a blindfold and randomly pick whenever my calendar calls for a serum. Some of them have retinol in them like the Sunday Riley and Shani Darden (which was a product I received as a gift in my Rachel Zoe Box of Style), and others are more peel-like in nature like the Beauty Counter Overnight Resurfacing Peel and the Dr. Gross Universal Daily Peel. I’m winging it on this and hoping that if you throw enough balls in the air, one of them is bound to make you look young again (or however the saying goes).
Moisturizers and Oils: Do you ever zhoosh up your moisturizer by adding oil? If not, and you want to personally know how it feels to be a human slip-n-slide, I HIGHLY encourage you to try it. But in all seriousness, it definitely adds a little extra hydration to moisturizer and is really great for overnight. It’s like adding a floater to your Piña Colada (metaphorically speaking). I always always always use the Korres Wild Rose 24 Hour Moisturizer (clean beauty product). This is a product I originally purchased in a Korres starter kit (similar set linked here) which is a great way to get several of the products I reference in this post at a discounted price. To this moisturizer I will either add the Wild Rose Brightening Oil (clean beauty product) or the Beauty Counter No. 1 Facial Oil (also clean beauty product). I think they’re both great and leave your face looking slicker than snot, which has to count for something.
Acne Treatments: Okay, acne treatments are on an as-needed basis, hence why they are not on the schedule. The less frequent I need to use these, obviously, the better. But now that I’m done nursing and my peri-partum season of life is over, my hormones are back to their old tricks which means sometimes I need to break out the emergency treatments. I mentioned above that I will switch to my acne cleanser when I have breakouts, and in addition I will add in an acne gel as needed, liquid spot treatment (I think I see better results with this product than this product, though the latter is invisible when rubbed in making it a more favorable choice for daytime), PATCH spot treatment, and hydrocortisone cream for reducing inflammation, per my dermatologist. Let’s talk more about this patch. It is new to me, and highly researched. This particular product is way cheaper than a competitor I saw advertisements for and after my first time using it, I would say it works, but I may recommend using it repeatedly until the spot is gone. In general, I suspect this shortens the life of a pimple or breakout in a discrete enough way that if you were desperate enough, you could wear this patch in public.
Supplements & Finishers: This *sort of* falls under the category of skin care only because it’s a part of the whole performance. But right before I tuck my little self in bed, I slather on this overnight lip treatment, paint my eyelashes with this lash serum and whisper words of encouragement to them so they’ll grow long and strong, and pop a few supplements (Viviscal and Hair, Skin and Nails).
Guys, the moral of the story is this: my medicine cabinet is a complete melting pot of products. And it’s ok if yours is, too. Just use the stuff. Find a system that works for you and if that involves swiping up on an influencer post, YOU DO THAT! Those influencers will be able to continue bringing you fabulous content because you engage with and support them by using their links. But, by no means are the products they’re repping the ONLY products you can or should be using. Do. You.
I hope that I can be a positive “influence” today simply by encouraging you to wash your freaking face before bed. #goodadvice
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