Sunday, 2 July 2017

Updated skin care regime

Bangalore summer was bad, and the so-called rainy season is kind of non-existent. It has been fluctuating between being super dry and moist.
Basically I have extreme combination skin; an oily T-zone, oily cheeks. While my forehead and lips-chin areas are super dry (to the point that they flake). When I went to Spain, I went to this Kiehl's store, where the lady checked my facial moisture content. It was some 25% when the optimum is 50 odd. However, in Bangalore, my skin gets pimples in some areas as the weather is sometimes humid. I don't know - trying to find one product to suit my skin type is almost next to impossible. Hence I started reading up about Asian skin care. They have this concept of layering the skin with products. They do not follow a simple 3 step cleanse-tone-moisturise routine. They have layers of products that they apply one after the other - and all these layers help your skin. I mean, it's got to work right ? Those guys have flawless skin...

So, I've been following a skin care routine for the last 6 months and I think it is working for me. I'll detail the products below, from where I got them and why I am using them.

AM routine

1. Face wash : Shiseido White lucent. The reason I started using this is because I got a sample of this from Sephora in a kutti box. That tiny bottle lasted me 2 weeks ! And I loved the feeling of my skin after I used it. It was not squeaky clean, but it felt as though all the dirt had been removed without stripping excess moisture. The full size costs 2.8k - but trust me. I got mine some time in December, and the tube is around 3/5ths empty as of today.

2. Toner : Clinique No.2. This toner is from the range that is for combination-oily skin. So far it has suited me well. I use it on cotton balls - which held wipe off any dead skin that might be flaking off.

3. Pre-Serum : Shiseido Ultime Serum. This is my go-to product. I have fallen in love with this after trying not he samples that I got from the sample set I blogged about previously; and I am hooked. The serum glides on my skin and I am on my second bottle in 6 months. The 50ml bottle costs 6.55k and lasts around 6 months. Yes, it is a pricey product but I like the effect it has had on my skin (or so I would like to believe). The product is said to improve your skin's immunity and make products you apply afterwards work better. You have to apply something afterwards so that the serum does not evaporate off your skin - thus rendering its effects useless.
4. Serum : I decided to not go with what I was considering as per my previous post, and instead got the Vit C serum from OST (now called C-source). I read multiple good reviews about it online and I decided that I might as well try it out. It cost me some 700 bucks including shipping from Korea from this website called roseroseshop.com. The website recommends using it at night and that's what I am going to start doing (this will fall under PM routine :)). Until now I have been using it in the morning after the above 3 steps, but the website recommends using it at night as it is more effective (guess while you are sleeping you won't move around and touch your face much - hence product will stay longer).
Now you are supposed to leave this product on your skin for 15 odd minutes before you apply the next step of skin care. So usually after applying this, I iron my clothes, apply moisturiser on my body etc. That takes around 15 min :). Now given that I am going to move this step to the night, not sure how to kill time...Hmmm

5. Face moisturiser : Clinique dramatically different moisturising gel. Now, I am not sure if this is moist enough for my skin - coz I start flaking on my forehead and around my nose and mouth after 5-6 hours. I double moisturise - I use the Loreal Hydrafresh deep boost serum as well. I mix this with my SPF. I somehow still feel as though my skin gets dry towards the end of the day - so I have asked a friend of mine to send me the Clinique Dramatically different moisturising lotion. Let's see how that goes.

6. Sun Block : I have a couple that I keep switching between. Lotus SPF 50 for combination skin; and Shiseido SPF 50 water proof sun block. I like both of them a lot. The Lotus one is not water proof, so I use it to work; while the Shiseido one I use when it is humid / rainy / am in the beach :)

PM Routine

1. Cleanser : Sephora oil base cleanser. I was on the lookout for a make up remover cleanser that gently ensures every single thing from my eye make up is removed easily. Rubbing too much on your eyes with cotton / cleanser is not good - the skin below is extremely fine and prone to wrinkles. This cleanser is super awesome and removes everything very easily.
 

2. Face wash : I either use my all-time favourite Lakme Strawberry face wash, or The Body Shop's Tea Tree face wash. The Lakme one has small granules that are extremely gentle on the skin. Granules are for exfoliation, but too much of it can cause you to break out. In all my years of using this product I have never broken out - which means it is a gentle product to use :)
The TBS product is also nice; it has a slightly tingly sensation when you use it, and my face always feels so clean and fresh after I am done.

3. Toner : Clinique No2.
4. Face cream : I apply the Kiehl's Ultra Facial cream at night - it is super hydrating and my skin feels very soft and moist post application. It is extremely thick - so use it only if you have dry skin and the season is dry. I got this in Spain - where it was identified that I have super dry skin and the weather was not helping.

Additional things I do when I am in the mood, or feel like pampering myself :) :-
Sometimes at night I apply a face mask from The Face Shop (which is available on Nykaa). Read good reviews about the products, so I was like - lemme try. The sheet masks are goooood :) Too much fun in applying onto your face and chilling for 15 min while it works its magic.
a snapshot of my skincare cupboard :)
Another thing that I apply is a Shiseido Ibuki Beauty Sleeping Mask. It has some granules which melt due to our body heat and it smells heavenly :) I apply either one of these maybe once a week - when I feel like pampering myself :)

Well, that's it guys. Hope you found something useful in this post. Let me know if you have found any miracle workers that you swear by (a girl can never have too many skin care products ;) ).

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