I get asked how my skin is so clear and blemish-free quite a lot.
I don't mean to brag when I say this, but it's something that I've had to get used to. It's honestly embarrassing to me sometimes. So, I've decided to share some quick-tips I have to hopefully help someone.
Before I continue this post, I want to say that acne is not a bad thing – unless it begins to hurt or gets infected, of course. Everyone gets acne because acne is simply foreign particles (such as dead skin, oils that your body produces, etc) that fail to come off your skin and instead get trapped in the pore.
I also want to say that not every treatment works on everyone the exact same. We all have different skin types and we have different reactions to products.
Let's start this article with a small list of things to be mindful of.
• Skin type is genetic. In my family, clear skin has been a generational gift – my maternal grandmother has never had a pimple until she was pregnant and my mother never had any blemishes unless she was on her period. It's very important to know what type of skin you have – oily, dry, or combination? I have combination type skin. To find out your skin type, you can find out via online surveys.
• Environment matters: If you're going to be in the sun, prep your skin by applying sunscreen. If you live in a dry cold climate, it's best to put lotion on before you go out. There are brands of lotion that have modified their formula to be less oily so it can be used on the face. Smog affects the skin as well, so it's best to cover your face before going out in polluted air; if you Google "air quality near me" you should get an idea on how clean your air is.
• Habits are a factor: Smoke can irritate your skin. Sleeping in makeup causes it to get trapped in your pores. Not washing your hands before touching your face makes blemishes. Not drinking water can cause more skin irritation.
• Don't stress your skin out! When switching your products, it's best to start slow with one or two products at a time. It's also best to try each product for a week or two so your skin can adapt to the product – unless that product starts causing you pain! Your skin is very sensitive. It does not bode well with an overhaul all at once!
• Let your skin breathe! It's important to let your skin breathe and go without products. I usually don't wear makeup or sunscreen when I'm having a day to myself, alone in my pajamas.
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From My Shower To You: An Ameuter's Guide to Clear Skin!">
My Morning Routine
I repeat these steps when I'm prepping my face to put makeup on. Before I do anything, I usually wash my hands or use hand sanitizer.
First, I usually wipe accumulated grease (either from my bangs, as I have a fringe, from sweat or just from being human) off my face with a cotton ball. You usually can find a giant bag for under $5 at your local stores like Walmart or Target. I get a small bag at a dollar store.
Although as I've mentioned before, I don't deal with a lot of acne, I do deal with a fair amount of oil. My most problematic spots are my forehead and my chin.
Using a new cotton ball, I douse it with Thayer's Rose Petal Witch Hazel. Witch hazel is an astringent, meaning it tightens pores on your skin which helps ease blackheads. The brand I use is $8 on Amazon, but I began using a cheaper witch hazel product from Walmart for cheaper.
Finally, before I even put my primer on my face, I use Neutrogena's Clear Face Break-Out Free Liquid Lotion Sunscreen SPF 55. I find that it's very light and not sticky whatsoever. Even if it's winter or very cloudy, I use this to combat any type of sun damage.
I then continue with putting my full face of makeup on.
My night routine is pretty much the same, with the exception of putting on lotion, I take it off!
I wipe my makeup off with Equate facial wipes (found at Walmart) and wipe my face with a cotton ball doused in witch hazel.
My Shower Routine
The next area I'm going to cover is my shower routine. Here, I usually tend to use the more "harsher" products – aka things that should only be used once or twice a week.
I think it's very important to have a skincare routine in the shower because the warm water is great for opening pores, allowing the dirt and the oil from your face to be cleaned off easily.
One of the first things I do in the shower is getting a soft rag wet and wash my face.
The first product I use is the Cetaphil Extra Gentle Daily Scrub all over my face, then proceed with usual shower things like brushing my teeth, washing my hair and cleaning my body.
Although the packaging says to use this product daily, I sincerely benefit from using it every time I take a shower.
When I used it daily, it caused blotchy red areas on my skin to appear, which ended up being a sign of over stimulating your face with products!
After washing the Cetaphil Daily Scrub off my face, along with my body and hair, I move onto shaving my legs and my armpits. My family uses gasoline to heat our house; when we run out of oil, we run out of hot water. I usually try my best to conserve water, so I fill a plastic container up with warm water and turn the water off while I shave.
Before I turn the water off, I put St. Ives' Gentle Smoothing Oatmeal Scrub and Mask on areas of my face that need exfoliation. The great thing about this product is that you can use it as a face mask or a scrub, so if you don't shave your body, it's still great to use it outside of the shower.
I avoid razor bumps and ingrown hairs with a homemade sugar scrub, rubbed on the areas I'm going to shave before I do so. The sugar scrub is just virgin coconut oil and sugar mixed together. This gets the dry skin off and the hair follicles open. I don't recommend using this on your face because the sugar on sensitive skin that your face has causes micro-abrasions.
I rinse the shaving cream and coconut oil off then finish my shower.
In my experience, the cold Alaskan climate is harsh against every area of my body. I deal with dry skin more often than not. After I get out of the shower, and before I dry the excess water off my body, I take Health Smart Baby Oil (bought from a Dollar Store) and rub it onto my body; I leave my face alone because Baby Oil causes your facial skin to become too oily. To keep my face hydrated, I use lotion made specifically for your face.
The Benefit of Dry Brushing
I'm not really one to try the more new-age things I see on Facebook or other places on the Internet, but I'm very happy that I tried this out.
Dry brushing sounds weird at first, I know, but there are multiple benefits to doing it.
You take a brush with softer bristles and drag it across your skin – most people trace a pattern alongside their body, but I usually just let my mind relax and wander. It gets the dry skin off your body easier. Often times, it squeezes the ingrown hair out of the follicle it's trapped in. It lifts the oil and dirt out of your pores, causing them to become smaller or even close; despite this, I would assume it's not best to do it on your face because the bristles may cause micro-abrasions on the sensitive skin that your face has.
Like most things, you can read about it online, where there are articles that are written by people who know more about it.
From My Shower To You: An Ameuter's Guide to Clear Skin!" width="299" height="299">
I included this because I think it's a very effective thing for my legs, which are often very dry to the point where the skin cracks.
I recommend it to everyone!
With that, I'm going to leave! I hope that there are some cool tips and products that you can find beneficial. Leave me a comment with your skin type and what has worked for you!</p>
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