My Skin Care Routine

Hi guys!

Welcome back to this week’s post, if this is your first time here, WELCOME!

This week is like a continuation of what we began last week, whereby I shared on my skin journey, particularly my journey with acne.

This week, I share with you guys, my skin care routine, the products I’m currently using, some tips that have helped me, plus some recommendations.

If you’re interested in such content, well, let’s proceed then!

PLS NOTE: I am not a dermatologist or skin care professional, these are just my recommendations and advice that I am giving based on my own experience. What has worked for me may not work for you, since all our skins (if that English is accurate) are different. But my goal in sharing this is to help us learn and hopefully give you guys a place to start if you’re starting out on skin care. There’s a lot I have learnt, and yet to learn too!

Anywayzz, let’s get into it.

So, when it comes to skin care, the first step that would be a guarantee to healthy skin, is having a routine that you can be consistent with, based on your skincare needs, time, schedule and resources. I personally like to keep things simple and straightforward, because I’m likely to be more consistent this way.

Step 1: Cleansing

This is basically cleaning your skin, removing dirt, sweat and make-up if you wear some. It’s a really satisfying feeling, at the end of the day, just getting to clean your face.

I use this cleanser by Garnier.

You can find this in any major supermarket or here at Jumia.

The process looks like this;

If I’m not in the shower, first I wash my hands, (cause you don’t want to transfer dirt from your hands to your face right?)

Then I wet my face with lukewarm water, put a little amount of the cleanser in my hands, rub together to lather up, then massage it all over my face. I do this for 60 seconds, then rinse off with lukewarm water as well.

I do this in the mornings and evenings. I am more thorough in the evenings since there’s more dirt accumulation and product build up than in the mornings.

I then pat-dry my face with a paper towel.

Tips:

Find a cleanser that cleans your face but doesn’t leave your face with that feeling of tightness and dryness, as this can cause oil build-up.

Use lukewarm water (at times even cold), as hot water can cause dryness which then leads to more skin oiliness.

Unless you can change your face towel on a daily, I recommend using a paper towel to dry your face. An already used towel probably has built-up moisture and bacteria from previous uses, which you may be transferring back to your face after cleansing and we don’t want that :(

Step 2: Toner

This isn’t a must in a skin care routine, but it’s great to include.

The essence for toning is to close pores and tighten cell gaps after cleansing, thus reducing the penetration of impurities into the skin. Toners can also help to further clean the skin while maintaining its ph balance.

I use this Rose Water and Glycerine from Alison's.

I put some in a small spray bottle, and spray all over my face after cleansing and leave to dry.

Step 3: Moisturizing

This step is to put moisture back into your skin after cleansing and toning, for that extra glow.

I use this dove moisturizer. It’s nicely thick and a little goes a long way so it lasts for ages.

It moisturizes my skin without leaving that feeling of ‘heaviness’ or as if your pores are clogged. One of my faves.

Step 4: Sunscreen

This is probably the most important step in your routine.

Sunscreen helps to protect your skin from UV rays from the sun, and helps to preserve your results from taking care of your skin, so the products you use are working effectively. Even though you may not step outside the house, it is recommended to apply sunscreen anyway, the UV rays from the sun enter in via the windows.

I use this one called Cosrx aloe suncream (the one on the right).

Or this one, The p.o. care Aloe moisturizing sun lotion. that I discovered recently and has been working well for me.

It’s recommended to apply the quantity of the length of three fingers, your index, middle and ring finger(s). Then massage it in your palms, apply on the face, neck, upper chest and behind and on your ears.

And keep re-applying throughout the day(especially your face), every 2 hours especially after swimming or sweating.

It sounds tedious, especially the re-applying thing, which is something I don’t do yet, but your older self will thank you.

I usually look for a sunscreen that doesn’t leave a white/grey cast, and the ones I've shown above ensure that.

That’s basically how my skin care routine looks on a daily, and this would be my morning routine.

My evening routine is slightly different:

The only difference is, Instead of using dove moisturizer, I apply the Ideal almond oil from Alison's.

In the evening is also when I exfoliate and use masks. Speaking of, let’s talk about that.

Exfoliation:

Exfoliation is a quick way of removing dead skin cells, which leads to a brighter complexion and can help to fade acne scars.

There are two types of exfoliation; physical and chemical.

Physical exfoliation is the removal of dead skin cells using small grains (which are usually found in facial scrubs), using facial brushes, or professional procedures such as microdermabrasion.

Chemical exfoliation is the removal of dead skin cells using chemicals which aid in new cell turnover. The chemicals used here are AHAs (Alpha hydroxy acids) and BHAs (Beta hydroxy acids) and one can use either according to their skincare needs. Without getting too technical, the acids one can use are lactic acid, or glycolic acid.

I recently discovered this, and I prefer it to physical exfoliation since it's gentler and I've gotten better results with this method. It gently lifts off the dead skin cells, exposing the new skin cells, and this one isn’t rinsed off immediately.

I use this Lactic acid from The Ordinary.

I use it 2-3 times a week. In the evenings. After spraying on my toner, I put 2-3 drops in my hands, rub a little and apply it all over my face, then top it up with almond oil.

This has really helped with my hyperpigmentation, brightening my complexion, skin evenness and texture. So, this one I recommend. You could do more research on this area and give it a try :)

Also, whenever I break out, with an annoyingly large pimple, I just dab a bit of this on it before bed, and by morning, it reduces, plus after it heals, it hardly scars, which is a major plus.

Masks:

This is an extra thing I like doing cause it’s fun and leaves my skin glowinggg

I rotate these two masks.

This one called Salicylic Acid 2% Masque from The Ordinary.

Or the PureActive 3 in 1 Charcoal Mask from Garnier.

I realized that my skin responds well to products with Charcoal, and Salicylic Acid is really good for acne-prone skin, which both of these products possess.

I try to do this at least once a week in the evenings. After cleansing, I apply the mask, and leave it one according to the instructions, then rinse off and continue with my skin care routine.

In case my skin needs a moisture boost, or just for fun, I like using sheet masks.

The last time I used them, I used these ones, the green tea and honey.

That’s basically my current skin care routine guys. I like keeping it simple and straightforward.

Now, to skin care plugs

I get most of my products from Clean Skin Kenya. If you’ve followed me on Instagram, I’ve shared about them in the past in my stories. They have amazing products, plus they constantly share on skin care tips on their page. You can learn so much from them, so I’d recommend that you give them a follow. It's a great place to start if you want to learn more about skincare.

Also, if you happen to buy their products, customer service is *chef’s kiss*

I got the lactic acid, Cosrx sunscreen, The Ordinary salicylic acid mask and sheet masks from them.

Then a person on the YouTube space, that I’ve learnt so much about skincare is BeautifulBrwnBabyDol aka Dr. Nina, her videos on Skin Care are amazing.

I also enjoy watching Dr. Vanita Rattan The Hyperpigmentation Clinic and Dr. Alexis Stephens. If you’d like to educate yourself more on matters skin care, check them out. :)

Anyway guys, thanks so much for being here and if you’ve made it to the end, thank you!

Remember to like and share this post, feel free to leave a comment if you’d like to. Also shoot me an e-mail, or we can meet in the socials and engage :)

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I'll see you next time!

Xoxo

BK.