My Nighttime Skincare Routine for Dry Skin*

Skincare is one aspect of my life that I invest much of my time because I want it to always be in the best condition. I want to make sure I do everything I can to prevent early aging and skin cancer. I thought I’d share my nighttime skincare routine with some products that I highly recommend. These are the steps that I follow:

1. Remove all makeup with makeup remover wipes or micellar water.
2. Cleanse face with Foreo and cleanser.
3. Apply eye cream with ring finger.
4. Apply prescribed face creams by dermatologist.
5. Apply moisturizer to face and neck.
6. Apply chapstick.

After a long day of wearing makeup, I always make sure to remove it all before going in with my cleanser. I usually use a makeup wipe to remove my makeup like Neutrogena’s Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes (light blue packaging) or Simple’s Cleansing Facial Wipes. These two wipes are gentle on the face and do not irritate my eyes. However, they do leave a slight oily residue on the face so keep that in mind. A few makeup wipes that I recommend staying away from if you have sensitive eyes are Almay’s Oil-Free Makeup Remover Towelettes & Yes To Cucumbers Soothing Facial Towelettes. They both contain a form of cucumber extract which is what I think irritated my eyes, literally tears were coming down from all the stinging. Mainly for my eyes I use a liquid or lotion remover since it’s less abrasive on the skin. A few of the removers I use are Garnier’s Micellar Cleansing Water, Benefit’s They’re Real Remover, and Rimmel’s Just Let It Go Gentle Eye Make Up Remover. Just like the facial wipes, the Garnier and Benefit products do leave a bit of an oily residue but it doesn’t bother me.  I soak cotton pads and with my eyes closed I softly press them against my eyelid. This allows the removers to breakdown the makeup thus less rubbing. If you want a safe and really affordable eye makeup remover you can even use baby oil. It works just as well as the others I mentioned previously but if you don’t like oily products than obviously that would be a pass for you.

Dry skin is no joke, you can get dry patches anywhere and even some flaking so I need to make sure my skin is always hydrated and moisturized. I cleanse my face with CeraVe’s Hydrating Cleanser using my Foreo Luna Play on most days, once or twice a week I will cleanse my face with a 10% benzyl peroxide wash as prescribed by my dermatologist. The CeraVe cleanser leaves my face feeling plumped and the dry areas are much more hydrated. Another cleanser that I like for the same reasons is the Simple Moisturizing Cleansing Wash. I like using the Foreo Luna Play because I feel that it does a good job at exfoliating at the same time as it cleanses and it isn’t as harsh as a Clarisonic brush. The only downside of this mini version is that once the batteries die you have to throw the whole machine away and buy a new one. A cleanser that was way too harsh on my face, left my skin feeling tight, and even broke me out was Origins’ Mega-Bright Skin Illuminating Cleanser.

I never really thought eye creams were that important in a skincare routine. Honestly, I always thought they were a gimmick, yet after receiving this eye cream in my SephoraPlay! box a few months ago and giving it a try I think quite differently. The Complex Eye Renewal Balm by Algenist really helps to keep my under eye moisturized. I wake up in the mornings feeling how nice and soft they feel and even plump looking. I haven’t tried any other eye creams for comparisons though.

Although my skin does not break out that often and I’ve never been someone to suffer from severe acne, I do apply some prescribed acne medicine from my dermatologist. If you have skin issues that don’t seem to get better with over-the-counter products, I highly recommend going to a dermatologist. A lot of people tell me that their dermatologist never seems to help them, but are you really following the routine they gave you? Did you go to your follow-up appointment and explain how the routine wasn’t working and ask them to give you some other options? If that all fails then I suggest looking for a second opinion from a different doctor before giving up. Thankfully, my skin did cooperate with the creams I was prescribed.

After applying these drying acne creams, I go in and lather myself up in moisturizer. My current favorite is Ole Henriksen’s Sheer Transformation Perfecting Moisturizer because it is extremely lightweight and contains vitamin C complex. Vitamin C is really good to help treat any dark pigmentation left on the skin, for me that’s from previous acne spots. Since using this moisturizer I notice that the spots left from any breakouts are a lot less noticeable. For an added benefit, I’m planning to add in their Vitamin C Truth Serum in the future in hopes that it helps the dark spots too. Another moisturizer that I loved prior was the First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream Intense Hydration. This moisturizer is richer and thicker than the Sheer Transformation. The only thing I didn’t like about it was that it wouldn’t layer well on top of my acne medicine and would cause some flaking meanwhile the Sheer Transformation does not. Another difference is that the First Aid Beauty moisturizer, since it’s thicker, would take a bit more time to absorb into the skin; a similar drugstore moisturizer is the CeraVe’s Moisturizing Cream.

Lastly, I always apply chapstick before going to bed. I love Burt’s Bees Beeswax Lip Balm with peppermint. I’ve always noticed that any chapstick or lip balm that has menthol or peppermint actually heals my lips. I tried Burt’s Bees Passion Fruit Lip Balm and I did not like it at all; the product is supposed to be clear but it actually turns a light blue shade. I remember one morning while in class, I was wearing that lip balm and my friend asked me if I had eaten something blue because of the color of my lips. Ever since, I only wore that lip balm at home before sleeping and it didn’t even hydrate my lips as much as the original one. Although I love Rosebud Perfume Co. Minted Rose Lip Balm it doesn’t do much for me. It has much more slip since it’s a satin gel and also it’s in a tin which requires you to dab your finger into the product each time. If you’re really picky about possible contamination, this product also comes in a tube form.

Hope all you dry skin peeps find this useful, until next time peace out!

-All products have been purchased by me.-