Friday, July 19, 2013

Skincare: A Learning Experience




if you've been reading my blog for more than a few months you may have noticed that i've been posting a lot more about beauty and skincare lately. at the start of the year one of my promises to myself was to take better care of my skin and to actually take my make up off every night. last year if i was feeling generous i might use a facewipe to take it off, otherwise i'd just use any old foaming cleanser in the shower every other day (insert screaming face emoji).  if your routine is anything like mine was i don't want to make you feel bad about your choices, if you want to stick with face wipes that's your decision to make, but i've come a LONG way since then and i wanted to write about what i've been learning. 

the main reason i didn't have a skincare routine is because i didn't know where to start and because it hadn't really occurred to me that it should be a priority. but scouring countless beauty blogs and youtube channels and stalking the no-bullshit beauty goddess caroline hirons (whose rise to prominence happily coincided with my interest in skincare) has really changed the way i think. i've met some lovely beauty bloggers online and if you're reading this you probably won't find anything that's new to you. but i wanted to write a post for women who are are where i was and i want to share the lessons that have had the biggest impact on me in case it helps any of you take a bit more of an interest. so without further ado, my skincare realisations:



1. it's your FACE - you know, the main thing that people use to identify you and that makes you an individual, no big deal right? obviously your appearance isn't the most important thing about you but everybody cares how they look at least a little. maybe you think fashion and makeup are superficial, but i think expressing yourself through your appearance and being happy with the way you look is vital for your sense of self worth. it's not about what other people think of your appearance or about being conventionally "beautiful" it's about looking in the mirror and being happy with what you see. if you have absolutely no skincare routine and you look in the mirror and are perfectly happy then that's fantastic. but it doesn't mean that people who use beauty products or care about fashion and personal style are automatically vain or superficial and skincare especially should not have that stigma attached to it.

2. it's about taking care of yourself - once we get the superficial argument out of the way, to me skincare is about taking care of yourself. having healthy skin should be up there with having a healthy body and a healthy mind. if you care about eating well and exercising (okay i'm a little behind in these departments, but ignoring that) you should also care about the health of your skin, after all it's the body's biggest organ. taking an interest in skincare has made me feel more connected and in tune with myself. i'm noticing small changes that i would have otherwise overlooked because i'm actually paying attention and "listening" to my skin. now going through my skincare routine every morning and night is my way of showing myself that i care.



3. no one doesn't have time - i used to think i didn't but really, what's about four minutes each morning and maybe six at night? ten minutes out of your day isn't going to kill you. you do have time.

4. better skincare means less makeup - it's more important to invest your money in skincare than in makeup. of course there's nothing wrong with buying luxury makeup products but if you clean your face with a $2 packet of wipes (or not at all), what's the point? what you put into your skin is what you'll get out of it. if you pay a bit more for good quality skincare not only will your make up look better, but you'll need to use less of it and touch up less throughout the day. spending your money on your makeup and not your skin is like an artist buying the best quality materials and painting on a crappy canvas. obviously not everyone can afford to spend huge amounts of money on skincare, but as caroline hirons says, if you can afford to splurge on shoes or a handbag, wouldn't that money be better spent on your face? you'll have so many pairs of shoes in your lifetime but you'll only ever have one face.

5. use sunscreen - sunscreen isn't an option, nor is it an added bonus in your moisturiser. if, like me, you have fair skin, you should be using a dedicated sunscreen every day and there are lots of affordable options available that don't affect the way your makeup sits. make sure it's a broad spectrum SPF that protects against UVA and UBV. if protecting yourself against skin cancer isn't enough of a concern to make you wear sunscreen, UVB rays break down the collagen in your skin and cause wrinkles - take a look at this if you want a bit of a scare. also check out caroline hirons' SPF cheat sheet



and here is the video that changed everything for me and, i'm sure, for thousands of other women as well.


31 comments:

  1. OOH THAT'S A BIG SCARY FACE OF MINE! lol

    Thank youuu! ;)

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  2. Okay, I think it was time someone showed me what your skin looks like if you don't wear sunscreen! I am glad I saw that picture because I hate wearing sunscreen. It always makes me break out! I have good skin on my face until I put on sunscreen in which case I break out. I always find myself choosing sunburn before pimples and that is bad... Must find a sunscreen that works with my skin...is there any you could recommend that can be worn under makeup that doesn't look greasy or cause breakouts?

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    1. aww, that's such a shame! i just wear a 30+ broad spectrum sunsense one from priceline because my skin isn't particularly sensitive and i haven't really had any break outs from wearing it, but i've heard lots of good things about the la roche posay anthelios range and the kiehl's 50+ sunscreen, although i think the kiehl's one is quite pricey.

      i'm not sure how you take your makeup off in the evenings or if you know for a fact that you're allergic to sunscreen but i've read that the reason most people experience breakouts from sunscreen is actually because they're not taking it off properly. if you wear sunscreen and/or makeup you're meant to double cleanser every night with water and a muslin cloth or flannel to make sure everything is definitely off. so if you already do this it might be that you're allergic but if not maybe try double cleansing when you wear sunscreen and see if it helps? :)

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  3. I've been locked in a battle with my skin for a few years now, because I get bad acne. I've only just realised like you that I need to actually take care of my skin, rather than punish it by exfoliating every day!

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    1. yep! my skin has never been particularly bad, but it should be about taking care of it every day instead of using harsh treatments on pimples when they show up, which is what i used to do!

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  4. I thought the same thing - that I don't have time... what a mistake. I agree with you about that 100%.
    Oh, and sunscreen, I have to wear it all the time :)

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  5. i totally feel you on the skin care issue! i used to be so lost and still feel a little bit that way.

    to me it's mostly that my skin keeps breaking out and i still haven't found the right combo, but after giving up on foamy cleanser there's been a significant improvement.

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    1. yeah, foaming cleansers are meant to be really bad for the PH level of your skin, not sure if you watched the video i posted but caroline says to avoid foaming cleansers at all costs so it's good to hear you've had an improvement from doing that. :)

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  6. I really need to get a routine going. When I was younger I had really bad acne and I definitely had a routine. Now the acne is mostly gone, so I just use face wipes. I bought an antiwrinkle cream last year and I still haven't used it because I'm so lazy with my skin! I don't have wrinkles, but I want to start early since I'm almost 30. Thanks for inspiring me to get it together!

    Mabel
    Life of Mabel

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    1. yeah i think because i'm in my mid-twenties now (well, 24) i'm worried about getting older and i want to start taking care of my skin now so i don't get to 35 and wish i'd started earlier!

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  8. I agree that good quality products can really improve your skin so you will wear less make up... I was also thinking about trying some of the products you featured here, so thank you, x

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  9. really cool products, I have my routine to, and thats imortant for skin

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  10. I must buy it!
    http://coeursdefoxes.blogspot.com/

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  11. Great post, Jessica! I'm definitely guilty of using face wipes, so this is probably the kick I need to stop being lazy and start putting effort into my routine... It's a shame that most popular products like Bioderma aren't available in Australia, but I guess the extra investment's worth it eventually!

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    1. that's how i've been feeling. i just didn't really think of it or bother for a long time but now i see it as an investment, and really when you spend $50 on something that lasts 6 months it's really not that expensive in the long run, especially if you choose good products and you can see the results.

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  12. using baby wipes to get rid of make-up at the end of the day is not sufficient enough. Thanks for the post jessica, will set-up a better routine to keep my skin healthier.

    watchthissale.blogspot.co.uk

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  13. Yay for taking care of your skin! I absolutely love my skincare routine and while there are nights when I cannot be bothered, I always get off my lazy ass and take my makeup off. I can't even remember the last time I slept in my makeup! I just hate the feeling of waking up with crusty mascara eyes and oily skin and that's how I always motivate myself.

    I used to suffer from really bad acne from around the ages of 17-22 and I think when you've been down the road of bad skin, you learn to take good care of it. I went on the pill which helped and I also did a complete skincare overhaul and started investing in good quality products. Liz Earle is amazing because it's all natural and I think a good cleanser is so important! I always double cleanse.

    You should invest in a serum next, your skin will LOVE you for it! My favourite is Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair, which is basically heaven in a bottle. I have very little signs left of old acne scarring and my overall complexion is a lot more even.

    Blogging has definitely made me spent more money than necessary, but investing in good quality products, especially for your skin, is so important. I always choose quality and I'm such a beauty product snob now, lol.

    http://vintagemachine.blogspot.com

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    1. me toooooo! i used to just not even think about it and now i always take it off every night, even if i get in at 5am i still wash my face. it makes the biggest difference, i used to wake up and look in the mirror and think "EUGH, GOD" and now that i clean my face properly i wake up and think "oh, okay yeah that's not bad!" haha

      i've never had particularly bad skin so i think that's why i've been able to get away with not doing much for so long, but after getting into make up and beauty blogs becoming interested in skincare was the natural next step, especially because it's worth the investment a lot moreso than makeup (i think anyway) because even if you have the most expensive makeup it won't look great unless you take care of your skin underneath it.

      ah, i've heard you talk about how great that serum is before! it's so expensive, but of course given the popularity of it and how long it's been around that probably means it's worth it. i've got the caudalie vinosource serum but i'm sure it's not on the same level as estee lauder. i'll definitely keep that one on my wishlist!

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  14. These are very helpful. Thank you for sharing <3

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  15. Thanks for sharing the video, it's brilliant. I totally agree on the skincare thing, it's so important and something I have only really started realising recently. I do think there are some great budget skincare brands too though, and although I still love the higher end stuff (I have such a Ren addiction!)

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    1. REN products are so great! there are definitely some great alternatives that aren't too expensive, it's funny how popular the french pharmacy products are when people will turn their nose up at cheaper british/american/australian option. i think there are definitely cheaper products that really do the job well, you just have to know what you're looking for and be informed about ingredients.

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  16. this is a great and useful post. i‘m new on your blog and i really like it :)

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  17. I was where you used to be a couple of years ago too. I only used face wipes thinking that was enough to CLEAN my face, I didn't moisturise because at that point I had oily skin and thought that meant I didn't need to, and I never took my makeup off. Granted at that point I hardly wore any makeup, but still, I literally can't believe how I used to approach my skin. I learnt all of these things from beauty blogs as well and had to build up all of this knowledge over time and through experience. I wish I'd come across an informative post like this when I was just a newbie that lays it all out on the table and explains everything so well :) I find it helpful even still as someone who loves skincare to read back over things like this to refresh it all in my mind :)

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    1. aww, thanks lovely! i'm glad you enjoyed the post, i figured since i've only just gotten into beauty blogs recently most people that read my blog don't come here for that and maybe won't be familiar with more than the basics, so i thought a post like this might make a few people more interested in all the beauty/skincare posts i'm doing now. :)

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  18. I really do agree! Skincare is so important! SPF is a must for me! Thanks so much for sharing this video!

    Rebecca
    www.winnipegstyle.ca

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  19. It is very important to take care of yourself. I like your point of taking better care of yourself means less makeup (and with that more confidence). Gotta love that!

    P.S. I'm dying to try the Bioderma. Do you like it?

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    1. bioderma is great! i just use it to take my eye makeup off before doing a full double cleanse on my face so it's probably not necessary for me because my cleansing would take it off anyway, but it does do a great job and i prefer using it since it only takes an extra 30 seconds. you can also use it as a first cleanse to remove makeup on the whole face and then follow with a balm or cream cleanser and a cloth.

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  20. I love my massive bioderma, im just finishing my bottle up now after 9 months. I have always been addicted to skincare but suffer from really terrible skin no matter what I do. I hope something of what I am doing is helping it though! Skincare can just be such a lovely luxury and treat to yourself
    xox

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    1. i'm sure some of what you're doing is helping! it's a shame you have problems with your skin but hopefully you find the products that are right for you soon!

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  21. Excellent, heartfelt post and reflection on the importance that skin care has come to have in your life, honey. My skin is uber sensitive (though, thankfully, it handles some make-up items better than most cleaners, toners, moisturizers, etc), but over the years I've developed a solid group of products that its usually okay with, and which I turn to everyday. Because it's also quite dry, I find that leaving my make-up on at night only exasperates that dryness (and sometimes the sensitivity too), so I do try my darndest to cleanse (and then moisturize) my face at night and again the morning. If I accidentally fall asleep with my face on, then the first thing I do in the morning is scrub it (gently!) off right away. As you said, these steps take relatively little time but can reward you so very much with lovely, dewy skin that seems to respond better to make-up and moisturizer, so the investment of time is beyond worth it, IMO.

    ♥ Jessica

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