In this blog post, we're going to be discussing one of my favourite beauty topics….SKINCARE! 🧖🏾♀️ I’ll be giving you the rundown on my entire skincare routine start to finish, with product links AND a skincare routine video at the end! I’m really spoiling y’all today.
Before jumping into my skincare routine though, I did want to note a few things:
I have been blessed to be born with relatively unproblematic skin (thanks mom and dad). It’s not extremely sensitive, acne prone or oily, just a wee bit dry, but that’s about it! So take my product recommendations and my routine with a grain of salt, and remember that what might work for me and my skin, might not necessarily work for you.
Healthy skin > “Perfect” skin. We are striving for healthy skin over here okay! The products I recommend and the routine I use might not give you crystal clear, glass skin. My skincare routine is created mainly to prevent the early onset of wrinkles and protect my skin from the harmful UV rays.
Textured skin is normal! Flawless, smooth skin is great, (especially for those golden hour selfies) but it’s not always realistic. I can’t guarantee that these products or this routine will give you perfect skin.
But enough of my ranting, on to the routine!
My skincare routine is divided into two main categories: Morning skincare and Night time skincare. Both routines are pretty similar tbh, but I do tweak a few things, so let's get in to it!
MORNING SKINCARE ROUTINE
Step 1: Cleanser
I recently switched to the Cerave Hydrating Facial Cleanser. It’s for Normal to Dry skin, but the brand does have other cleansers for a number of different skin types that I heard were also very good!
I learned this next tip from @LaBeautyologist on Twitter a few years ago, but make sure you cleanse for 60 seconds. Yes sis, a full minute! It’s essential in order to give the cleanser enough time to actually work and penetrate your pores. Try it!
Step 2: Serum
After cleansing my face I move on to serum. The only serum I use at the moment is the Hyaluronic Acid serum by The Ordinary. This is my second time purchasing this product and I LOVE HER. Besides the super aesthetic bottle, the serum is great for keeping my face plump and moisturized! Plus, it’s vegan! (😉) I like to apply this product while my skin is still damp.
Step 3: Moisturizer
The moisturizer I use depends if I’m doing my morning or nighttime skincare routine. At night I prefer thicker and more oily moisturizers, while in the morning, I like my moisturizers to be more of a light and jelly consistency. At the moment, I’m loving the Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-Cream. This one is formulated for dry skin and has the perfect jelly consistency that I like. Even though it’s pretty light weight, it’s been doing a great job at keeping my face moisturized without leaving it greasy! It does have a bit of a fragrance, so keep that in mind if you have more sensitive skin.
Step 4: Sunscreen
Despite popular belief, black people actually do need to wear sunscreen! It’s not only used to prevent sunburn, but it’s also important to help protect our skin from the harmful and very aggressive UV rays. Sun damage can cause premature wrinkles and increase your chances to develop skin cancer in the future (EHE Health., 2020).
I haven’t found a sunscreen that I absolutely love but I feel that wearing a subpar sunscreen is better than none at all! Right now I’m using the Pure and Simple Coppertone Mineral Sunscreen Lotion. It’s specifically made for your face and has an SPF of 50 which is great, but it does leave a white cast on your face if you use a lot, especially if you are a POC. Word on the street is that Coppertone is not the best brand for face sunscreen, so two brands you should check out instead are SuperGoop! Unseen Sunscreen and Black Girl Sunscreen.
And that's it for my morning skincare routine! Let's move on to my night time skincare routine.
NIGHT TIME SKINCARE ROUTINE
Step 1: Remove Makeup
I make sure to start of my night time skincare routine by removing my makeup. Sleeping with makeup is not only GROSS but it can clog your pores and leave you more susceptible to breakouts and acne. My favourite makeup remover is the Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water in waterproof. This product is also great to use as a "double-cleanse" on the days you aren't wearing makeup.
Step 2: Cleanser
My night time cleanser is the same as my morning cleanser, the Cerave Hydrating Facial Cleanser for Normal to Dry skin.
Step 3: Toner
Toner is often hit or miss for me unfortunately, but the toner I've been using lately has been a big hit so far! Recently I've been using the E.L.F Supertone Toner with Fruit Acids. The product advises you to only use it once a day, in the evening so I've been following that. It does have a bit of a fragrance for those of you with more sensitive skin so keep that in mind.
Step 4: Serum
My night time serum is the same as my morning serum, the Hyaluronic Acid serum by The Ordinary. Make sure to apply it on damp skin.
Step 5: Moisturizer
This next product has been my family's beauty secret for YEARS. It's been given a bad rap recently but us Sampson women swear by it. My late grandmother used it and she lived up until her 70s with virtually no wrinkles (an icon)! The moisturizer I use is the Nivea Creme moisturizer. She's VERY thick and greasy, so I'd be hesitant to recommend it to those of you with skin on the oily side. But if you have normal to dry skin like I do, I would HIGHLY recommend!
EXTRAS
So that's my entire skincare routine for both the morning and the night time! However, since I'm feeling generous today I'll also recommend you guys some of my other skincare favourites.
Face Masks
My favourite face mask right now is the L'Oreal Paris Pure-Clay Cleansing Mask!It's made with 3 mineral clays and red algae and gives the skin a light exfoliant when you wash it off. I don't put on face masks often, (because I always forget 🙄) but when I do remember, this is the one I always grab!
Chapsticks and Lip balm
Chapped lips are a no go for me, so I make sure that I invest in a really go chapstick or lip balm. My favourites are my handy-dandy Cocoa Butter Vaseline and the Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask in Green Apple.
Face Steamer
Lastly, if I feel like being extra and giving myself and extensive self-care day, I'll use my facial steamer! I got this one from Amazon and I love her! It has multiple nozzles to target different areas of your face and you can adjust the temperature so it doesn't get too hot. Incredible!
And that's it! That's my entire skincare routine from start to finish! I hope you guys enjoyed, let me know in the comments if you've tried any of these products or if you have any skincare recommendations that I should try! If you want to see a video version of my skincare routine, click on my YouTube video below!
Love,
-M
EHE Health. (2020, December). TOP 5 IMPORTANT REASONS YOU SHOULD ALWAYS WEAR SUNSCREEN. EHE Health. https://ehe.health/blog/always-wear-sunscreen/.