Updated Skin Care Routine 2018

This continues to be my post popular blog post of the year! Everyone seems to be very curious to see what my updated skincare routine is. I only post these sort of blog posts once a year, if you want to check out my Updated Skincare Routine from last year for reference you will see A LOT of my skincare products have changed - a few goodies that have worked really well for me have stuck around.

For reference I have extremely dry skin all year round.

First thing in the morning I wash my face. I'm still using my Clarisonic plus but my face wash has changed. I found the last one stripped too much moisture from my face. In 2017 I discovered the dermalogica special cleansing gel. This has been great for cleansing my face but not leaving it with that dry stripped feeling.

On days that I want to exfoliate my face I have been using the Tarte Frxxxtion Stick. It's great at removing any excess dry skin I might have. At most I will use this twice a week.

Immediately after I will moisturize my face. Starting with eye cream I've switched to The Ordinary Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG. I was hesitant to use this as it's a liquid and not a cream, I didn't think it would  moisturize my under eye enough but I was WRONG. This is will moisturize, smooth out fine lines and reduce under eye bags. You want a very small amount day and night.

Next I have added in The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 for some extra moisture under my face cream. Then I layer my trusty Clinique Moisture Surge Intense - make sure if you try this you get the INTENSE not just the regular. The intense is much more rich and feels like velvet. I find that makeup just glides over my face with this face combo.

At night I wash my face with the same products as I did in the morning.

Then I follow that up with my night routine...don't get overwhelmed by the amount of products in the pictures - I don't use all of these every night.

I start with my same eye cream by The Ordinary that I used in the AM. Next I put on The Ordinary "Buffet", this is supposed to be an anti aging product that helps with dryness, fine lines, wrinkles, dullness and uneven texture.

Next I pick one or two oils to put on my face. The ones I have in rotation right now are all from The Ordinary.

Finally I follow that up with my lash serum that I'm still not using consistently but I find that it does make my lashes stronger and longer if used everyday.

BONUS PRODUCTS - These I tend to use 2-3 times a week. When every I feel my skin needs a little extra treatment I turn to these three products.

Sephora Mud Mask Purifying and Mattifying is great is you have any texture or blemishes you want to get rid of. This is a very drying mask so make sure to moisturize immediately afterwards.

Dermalogica Skin Hydration Masque is great for when I need a little extra hydration boot to my skin.

Under the eye I've been using Peter Thomas Roth 24K Gold Hydra-Gel Eye Patches. These are great for moisturizing and smoothing any wrinkles.

That's it! It seems as though my collection has grown since last year but it really hasn't gotten anymore complicated. Let me know if the comments below if these are any other products you would recommend my for dry skin.

Product Empties July 2017

Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping Night Oil - On the pricy side but worth it. This is a great night oil I use about twice a week-which also helps the product last a long time. I find this is really great at getting rid of any texture I have overnight. I have repurchased this but in the smaller bottle

Garnier Fructis Damage Eraser - Still my favorite hair mask -  I have about 6 jars I bought off Amazon. This just helps my mend my split ends and my hair feels instantly softer after using it. I have three jars left to use. 

Clinique Moisture Surge - I didn't like this face cream so I passed it off to my husband to use. He finished the jar but didn't like it either so I wont be repurchasing it again. I found it to be a wired gel formulation that left my face feeling very sticky and like there was a film residue on my face. I didn't like using it in the morning as I found my foundation would be patchy and awe foul. 

Clinique Moisture Surge Intense - This is by far my favorite face cream. It is so different from just the regular moisture surge. It is an in between cream and gel formulation. It glides over your skin and it leaves your skin feeling velvety smooth. My makeup just glides on effortlessly when I have this face cream on and my skin feels extra hydrated. 

Clinique All About Eyes - It's ok.....that's the best way I can describe this eye cream. It wasn't the worst eye cream I've ever used but it wasn't the best. I don't think I'll be repurchasing this again but I do want to try Clinique rich eye cream to see if that one would be better for my dry under eye area. 

Jergens Moisture for Wet Skin - I love this lotion but I do prefer the Argan Oil over the Green Tea Oil. I have one Argan Oil formulation on the go and I have one backup for when I run out. 

Mac Fix+ - LOVE this face spray. I use this after I powder, I find that even with my dry skin I still need to set my makeup otherwise it wont stay in place....but if I powder my face I look like I have a cake face. This takes that cake face away completely! That means I can powder and lock my makeup in but still look flawless. I have already repurchased two new bottles. 

Josie Maran Whipped Mud Mask - I do love this mask when I feel my skin needs some extra moisture but it is very expensive. I haven't repurchased this mask as I am trying some cheaper options but if they don't work out I would defiantly go back to this mask.

L'Oreal Elnett  Satin Hairspray - Make sure if you ever try this to get the Extra Strong Hold UNFRAGRANCED. I can't stay the fragrance smell of this hair spray but I love the hold that this gives. I was so happy when I found the unfragranced formula and I don't think I would ever try another hairspray ever again. This is a strong hold hair spray that you can brush right out. It gives the perfect amount of hold but still allows your curls to bounce and look natural. Your hair will never look or feel crunch no matter how much product you put in. 

Where Are They Now? May 2015 Favorites

As much as I love reading other blogs, I also like watching many YouTubers. One of my favorites to watch is MsGoldGirl who I have watched do many videos on "Where are they now?". She goes back to find out what her old favorites use to be and shares if she is still using those favorites today. I always wonder when watching YouTubers post their favorites if they are sharing something that is simply a fling for the month or a holy grail product. 

I looked back on my blog and the oldest post I have way May 2015 . I usually try to limit my favorite posts to about 5 products so here are my top 5 products I was using in May 2015 and here is what I am using now. 

Nume Signature hair dryer was replaced with the BaByliss Pro Rapido. I found the Nume to be very hot and dried my hair out. It was also very heavy and my hair always takes forever to dry. The BaByliss was made in Italy and was a collaboration with Ferrari. It takes very little time to dry my hair now and I find that this doesn't dry my hair out at all. It is much lighter and easier to work with. The only downside is the price tag. It is pretty expensive but I did find mine through an Air Miles deal....so keep your eyes peeled for deals. 

Diorskin Star Foundation was replaced with Dior Forever. I did love the Star foundation but I found the color didn't match me perfectly and it would slide around on my face if I didn't set it was a lot of powder - which I try to stay away from with my dry skin. I started to explore other foundations by Dior and fell in love with the Forever. I find you don't need to set it as much and the color suits my skin ton almost perfectly. 

Fresh Lotus Face Cream & Freash Seaberry Skin Booster was replaced with Clinique Moisture Surge Intense & The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid. Unlike the Fresh face cream and oil I was mixing together I have been layering the Hyaluronic Acid & Clinique face cream. I find the Fresh products didn't give me enough hydration, I have extremely dry skin. With The Ordinary and Clinique products my skin feels hydrated and velvety smooth. 

21 Day Fix EXTREME - This is the only favorite that I still use today. I jump around between different Beachbody programs but I have a special love in my heart for the 21 Day Fix & 21 Day Fix Extreme programs. Back in 2015 I was using these programs to get in shape for my wedding. I was concerned with my wedding dress that my arms would be showing a lot so I wanted to tone them up. Now I'm using the program as cross training to get ready for worlds - which is in 94 days and counting! I'm not following the training program as usual. Basically on my cross training days I will only use lower fix, upper fix and abs. My aim on cross training days is to strength those areas for training rather than trying to tone or loose weight.

Let me know if you enjoyed hearing about my old favorites in the comments below. Have you tried any of these products?

Updated Skin Care Routine

My last skincare routine post was EXTREMELY popular on my blog but that post is from way back in December 2015. I decided to post an update as some of my products have changed.

For reference I have extremely dry skin all year round.

First thing in the morning I wash my face. I use the Kate Somerville ExfoliKate Cleanser with my Clarisonic Plus. I love using my Clarisonic with any cleaner as I feel it does a better job than just using my hands.

This isn't my favorite cleaner and I am on the hunt for something I like better - but in the mean time I'm just trying to use up this product.

Then I follow up right away with my moisturizers. First I start with my eye cream which is the Shiseido WrinkleResist 24 Eye Cream, this is still an amazing eye cream. It is very thick and creamy, it tends to smooth out my under eye area and hydrate it very well. Next step is new - I've been using the Sephora CC Eye Cream + Concealer. This has a slight tint to it and will cover up any under eye bags I have going on. I find that using these two products together means I have to use less makeup as there is less to cover up.

Finally I use the Clinique Moisture Surge Intense Skin Fortifying Hydrator. If you have extremely dry skin you need this in your life. This is an instant drink of water for my face and it leaves my skin feeling velvety smooth and soft. I find that since using this product I use less primer and less foundation because everything just smoothly glides over my face.

I start by using my same cleaner with my Clarisonic Plus.

At night I am still using the Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping Night Oil and I follow that up with the Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil. My skin loves oils at the end of the day and when I wake up in the morning my face feels amazing.

I use the same Shiseido eye cream and I use a lash enhancer serum by NeoStrada. This is a product I use off and on again but it really does improve the strength of my lashes.

Finally some bonus products - typically I use these 2-3 times a week. Eye masks have become a huge part of my life. As I'm beginning to age I'm finding my eye area isn't the same. I've been loving the Sephora brand eye masks and specifically the Rose, Pearl and Orchid are my favorite.

For the actual mask I've been using the Sephora Mud Mask Purifying & Mattifying, this is great if I have any texture or blemishes on my face. It gets rid of them instantly but does dry out my skin so I do have to moisturize immediately afterwards.

For a moisture mask I've been loving the Joise Maran Whipped Mud Mask. This is infused with Argan oil and feels amazing on my dry skin. Highly recommend if you face needs and extra hydrating boost.

Let me know if you use any of these products in the comment below. If you think there are any other skincare products I need to try out for my dry skin leave you recommendation in the comments below.

January 2017 Favorites

Sebastian Dark Oil - My hair has been very dry this past month and I've been using a lot of hair oils. My favorite oil has been the Sebastian Dark Oil, it leaves my color treated hair soft and silky. It was a bit on the pricey side but I only use two pumps at a time so it seems like it should last me a while. 

Moroccanoil Dry Shampoo Light Tones - With my hair being so dry I've stopped washing it so often which means I've been using a TON of dry shampoo. My favorite have been the Moroccanoil Light Tones Dry Shampoo. It has sort of a purple/white tint to it but once you brush it out this wont show in your hair - even though I have darker roots it still wont show. This leaves my hair feeling refreshed and helps with styling my second or third day hair. 

Clinique Moisture Surge Intense - I picked this up because I saw MakeupByTiffanyD talk about this on her channel. I have loved a lot of her skincare recommendations and since I have dry skin that no moisturizer can quench my thirst I decided to give this a try. She seemed pretty confident in this moisturizer and she was right! This makes my skin feel like soft velvet, I've been using it both at night and in the morning. I've noticed that since I've been using it my skin is a smooth canvas for makeup and I seem to be using less foundation which is always a plus in my books. 

Tarte Amazonian Clay BB Tinted Moisturizer - I've been getting away from foundations on a day to day usage. Recently I've been testing out different CC and BB creams - this one was a winner for me! My skin tone is very difficult to match so while a lot of CC and BB creams might be amazing, but it they don't match my skin tone I wont wear them. This still doesn't 100% match me but it's pretty close, my skin feels light with this BB cream on and it wears very well throughout the day. 

Sephora CC Eye Cream + Concealer - Speaking of trying out CC and BB creams I've also been trying out this CC eye cream. This was very inexpensive CC eye cream and I love the Sephora skincare line as it is very affordable. This is a great eye cream that I've been using in the morning. It does give me a little bit of coverage but I still use my normal concealer over top - however, I definitely am using less concealer which it great! The better my skin is and the less makeup I have to pile on is always a plus in my books. I am a little concerned as this product has been out of stock on Sephora's website for a while so I'm not sure if they are carrying this product anymore but this has defiantly opened up my eyes to trying other CC eye creams - if you have any suggestions of other eye creams I should check out please leave those in the comments below.