My Evening Skincare Routine

A good evening skincare routine is essential to keeping your skin clear and making sure that your skin is the best possible base for your makeup. I have slightly dry skin, with a tendency for oiliness around my t-zone. I also find my skin can be quite sensitive so I try to stay away from anything harsh or soap-based. So here are the products I use in my evening routine.

1. I start by taking off any makeup either using a cleansing water or oil, depending on what makeup I have on. Currently I'm using Clarins Water Comfort One-Step Cleanser with Peach Essential Water, I absolutely love the smell and I find it does a good job of removing my makeup without irritating my sensitive skin. I will admit I am thinking of changing it either for Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water or Bioderma Crealine H2O because I have heard so many good things about them. Thoughts? The cleansing oil I use at the moment is L'Oreal Paris Skin Perfection Cleansing Oil, which has managed to get rid of my most stubborn waterproof products and is really good if my skin needs some extra moisture, I can't recommend cleansing oils enough if you have difficult skin.

2. Once I have removed my makeup I like to properly cleanse using Rituals Sensational Soft Cleanser. This starts off as a thick gel which you massage onto dry skin and then wash off with lukewarm water. It's a lovely consistency which turns milky when you add water and has a very slight herby smell. I have quite sensitive skin and this hasn't troubled me at all, plus it makes my skin feel gorgeously soft.

3. Twice a week I follow my cleanser with Dermalogica's Daily Microfoliant (you can use it everyday but I'm a little lazy and find my skin doesn't need it that often anymore). It comes in a powder which you mix with a little water which turns is into a fine paste. At first it doesn't really feel like your typical exfoliator, there is no grainy or abrasive feel, but it does feel lovely on your skin and once you wash it off it leaves your skin feeling soft and clean. This was particularly good during my teenage years when I had very bad skin.

4. I used to think that toners were a little bit pointless but can confirm I have been proven totally wrong by Caudalie Beauty Elixir. I have been using it for quite a while now and can really tell if I forget to use it for a few days. It makes my skin radiant and seems to really help my serum and moisturiser be absorbed. It also smells lovely and the nozzle (I guess that's what you call it!?)  makes it a really fine mist which spreads evenly over your face, I find that a lot of spray toners leave heavy drops on your face and you have to pat them in a little, not so with Beauty Elixir!

5. Then I put on my serum, I use Rituals Intense Moisture Serum and I normally wait for it to be absorbed into my skin by brushing my teeth. Since I've started using it I've noticed that foundation blends much more easily into my skin and I'm not nearly as oily in my t-zone. Hooray!

6. I set my serum with a moisturiser but at the moment I'm in between moisturisers, so I'm living off my hoard of samples! I used to use The Body Shop's Aloe Soothing Night Cream but I found it made my skin a little oily and it felt a little heavy. If you have any suggestions for replacements I'd love to hear them!

7. I finish off with bareMinerals Pure Transformation Night Treatment, which I reviewed in this post and which I highly recommend, especially if you are trying to tighten your pores. I find it succeeds in making my pores smaller without drying my skin out. Fantastic stuff!

Wow! That was a very long post. It normally takes me about five minutes to do my routine (if I'm exfoliating) so it's definitely worth it!

Do you use any of these products or have any recommendations? 

Much love,

Sasha Monday x

Emergency Skin Saviours!

Okay, so when I was a teenager I had really bad skin which I was really self-conscious of, especially since red spots are super obvious on pale skin. I really struggled with my skin for years but fortunately it cleared up as I neared my twenties, although I still get the odd breakout now and then. One of the things that having bad skin teaches you is exactly which products work in a crisis and which ones don't, so here are the products I turn to when my skin needs a bit of TLC.

Cleansing Oil

If you have bad skin the last thing you would think of doing is putting oil on it but honestly it could be exactly what your skin needs. If your skin is dry it can produce excess oil in an attempt to compensate and this can cause you to break out. Using a cleansing oil can help rebalance your skin and it doubles as a great make-up remover. I currently use L'Oreal Paris Skin Perfection Cleansing Oil because my skin is much better now and at £7.99 it's well worth having in your skincare routine. However, back when my skin was really bad I invested in Dermalogica Precleanse which at £10.95 for 30ml is much more pricey but I couldn't fault the results. It has a lovely fresh smell and it helps to get rid of nasties by prepping your skin and allowing your cleanser to be much more effective.

Tea Tree Oil

A very simple but really effective way to get rid of a spot quickly is to put a dab of Tea Tree Oil on it before you go to sleep (the smell is maybe a bit too strong to use it during the day). The oil dries the spot making it smaller and eventually getting rid of it. Seriously great stuff and you can find it in most drugstores. If you're suddenly caught without your Tea Tree Oil then you can use regular toothpaste  (again only use at night!), I know it sounds a bit weird but it also dries out spots, although not as effectively as Tea Tree Oil.

Mask Treatments

My go-to mask no matter the problem is Dead Sea Spa Magik Delicate Boosting Mask. I still use this if my skin feels a little dull or if I'm starting to break out and it's just fantastic, I'm yet to find a mask that beats this one. My skin feels gloriously soft after using it, it has a lovely creamy texture and it smells like a fresh seaside morning. The only quibble I would have is that the mask doesn't dry when it is on your face, so I tend to end up smudging it off on other things when I put one on, but otherwise I would highly recommend it!

One thing I will say is, if you have bad skin I know just how horrible it is to look in the mirror, only see your imperfections and want to cover them up with makeup. I made that mistake and it can just make things worse, so try to resist piling on the makeup everyday and, trust me, it's not as bad as you think it is. Chin up, it will get better.

So those are my skin saviours. What products do you reach for when you have a skin emergency?

Much love,

Sasha Monday x

My Summer Favourites

This year we have had an actual summer in the UK (hooray!) and this has meant a little overhaul of my old summer makeup, which was well past its best. Here are a few of the products I've been loving this summer.

Makeup

Most of my makeup collection can be used in any season but some of it is particularly suited to the summer months when I want to look a little more natural during the day (or at least have less of an ice princess look!) My summer must-have is NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser in the shade Finland, it has a lovely light texture, blends flawlessly into my skin and is even SPF 30. If you have pale skin I can highly recommend NARS as they have a wide-ranging colour palette and an SPF is always very welcome as the lobster-look is not good no matter the season!

As a part of my more natural look I have found that bareMinerals READY Blush in The Whisper is perfect for adding a subtle healthy glow to your cheeks. It's easy to blend and removes the need for bronzer (which can be a difficult look to pull off if you're fair).

If I want to look super-natural I'll just apply Palmer's Cocoa Butter Lip Balm and leave it at that. It has been my favourite for a long time, I just love the chocolate flavour and the SPF15 is an added bonus for the summer. If I fancy adding a little colour though, L'Oreal Glam Shine Stain Splash lipgloss in Lolita is my go-to for the summer months. Its lovely texture, cherry scent and staying power are second only to the gorgeous colour, I find it really shows off blue eyes. I originally looked into them because Fleur de Force (link to the post here) rated them as a good dupe for YSL Glossy Stain and she was right! So if you are looking for a cheaper option these are a good place to go.

Skincare

I had a bit of a haul at Rituals recently (I'm weak!) and have been really impressed with what I bought. Their Sensational Soft Cleanser is great for removing makeup at the end of the day and feels really lovely on your skin. It's also tailored to sensitive skin which is great for me as fair skin tends to come hand-in-hand with sensitivity.

I always follow my first cleanse with a cleansing water and I am currently in love with Clarins Water Comfort One-Step Cleanser with Peach Essential Water, it's a must-have for me, despite being a bit of a mouthful to say. I have always been a big fan of cleansing waters and the peachy scent is heavenly.

My other skincare favourite is Rituals Intense Moisture Serum. My skin veers between combination and dry depending on what it's feeling like on the day and a lot of serums leave my skin feeling too oily, but not this one! It hydrates the parts of my skin which need hydrating but doesn't make my T-zone oily or sticky and I love its light texture, just perfect for summer.

Much love,

Sasha Monday x

Review: bareMinerals Pure Transformation Night Treatment

I have always been really sceptical about products which claim to reduce the size of your pores. I had never found one which had any effect on my pores (perhaps they are particularly stubborn?). Anyway, I had read several glowing reviews for bareMinerals Pure Transformation Night Treatment but didn't really want to splash out on something which I wasn't very optimistic about, but I put my faith in my fellow bloggers and took the plunge... Happily I was proved very wrong! Even after one use I could already see an improvement to my pore size and my complexion, my skin looked healthier and felt lovely and soft. Now this is a product which I couldn't be without anywhere in the world.

Who knew that putting makeup on before bed was good for your skin? I was a little concerned that it might stain my nice white pillows but  that hasn't been a problem. There is also something therapeutic about putting it on. Using a brush which is built into the lid, you gently buff the powder into your skin.

You can buy bareMinerals Pure Transformation Night Treatment here and it comes in four different shades: Clear, Light, Medium and Tan. I use Clear but the other shades are available in case you want a little bit of coverage after your nightly cleanse (perhaps after going to the gym in the evening) and you can use this without having to worry about it clogging up your skin. If you do have fair skin and are worried about the colour match it's probably best to start with the Clear version as I have found that even that one provides a little coverage. When you wake up in the morning your skin feels softer and has a lovely natural glow to it.

A product I highly recommend!

Much love,

Sasha Monday x