Night Time Skin Care Routine.

Since high school I've been really into skincare. I never really had bad acne on my face, but I do get a lot of it on body, mostly my back. During my teen years it was pretty bad, with my back constantly hurting and being sore and inflamed from all the break outs. I first started with Proactive as I knew nothing about skin care and no one was really talking about that in high school in terms of products. Their body wash that they had really helped with my inflammation but didn't clear up any breakouts nor prevented them, so I started doing my own research and got very invested.

Fast forward to today, I wish I knew what I know now then and wish someone was more open about skin care versus just being grossed out at the fact of talking about my back acne. It's super important to understand your skin type. For myself, I have combination skin, I have very oily skin but I also have eczema which is a skin condition that causes your skin to be very dry, flaky and inflamed. I have eczema patches on my nose and eyelid so I have to treat them like severe dry skin which is basically what it is. Oily skin is actually dehydrated skin as well, the reason you have so much excess oil is your skin over producing oils to help itself hydrate. Understanding what and why your skin is the way it is will 100% help you pick products that will get it back in check.

These products have really helped me lately get my skin feeling hydrated, soft, and keeping my redness and dark spots away. Lately my allergies have been insane, I normally get pretty bad seasonal allergies but thanks to all this So Cal rain we got during our winter this super-bloom we are experiencing now this Spring is beautiful but deadly for my allergies. My eyes and nose everyday have been a mess for about a month and half now, drug store allergy medicine isn't even cutting it anymore. So my nose and eyes have been extremely dry. Some of these products are targeted specifically to that, some I've been using months prior.

My first step is of course cleanser. I got a sample a couple years back of the Boscia Detoxifying Black Cleanser. This cleanser is soooo good, one special thing about it is that it's a warming gel. As you rub it in it gets warm, warming up your pores and faces can really open them up and get rid of deeper impurities the skin is holding on to. I'm also a firm believer in rubbing in your cleanser for 60 seconds, just by doing this step alone I promise you, you will see a change in your skin if you are not already doing so. Let your cleanser do it's job, by rubbing it in constantly for 60 seconds and then rinsing you are letting it really get in there and get everything out. Also, start by washing your hands before ever touching your face, use warm water to initially wet your face and pat in to again open those pores up and then use cold water to rinse to lock in the nutrients from your face wash!

This step is actually new for me, but I really have to talk my talk with this product because holy shit it's gold. The Youth to the People Superfood Mask is amazing. I got it literally a week ago after hearing that it's really good for hydrating and detoxifying your face all in one. I have my own detox face mask that is really bomb but it really pulls everything out of your face so I usually go in with another hydrating mask after to restore my skin after pulling it dry. I put this mask on and I noticed it didn't burn or make my face itch which sometimes happen with detoxifying masks. You leave it on till it get's dry and I never noticed my face feeling super stiff to where I can't move it or feeling like it was time to take it off. After a while I looked in the mirror to see if it dried down as it felt the same as when I put it on and it was completely dry to my surprise. When I rinsed it off it turns into a serum like texture re-hydrating the skin as you take it off, it's like nothing I've ever used before honestly. After my face was a dream, it was glowing, hydrated, soft, all of the above. I've been using it every night now as you can use it every day if desired and it's amazing.

Next I'll go in with my serums, this is constantly changing for me but one that will never is vitamin c serum. This is your key to success for dark spots, trust me. I first started using a vitamin c serum about a year ago, I put it all over my face, chest and my back anywhere I had dark spots from acne scarring. I've had these scars on my chest and back for years, I mean a good 5 - 6 years and nothing lifted them until I got a vitamin c serum. They were gone in about a week and I was never happier. (I also started exfoliating my body as well regularly in the shower which really helps too!) The one I'm currently using is the Youth to the People Vitamin C Serum. This is my second vitamin c serum I've used and this one is my favorite, the first one I started using eventually started breaking me out. A good tip I came across was that your vitamin c serum should never have a color to it. This one in specific you have to first dampen your face and then apply so it doesn't make your skin super tight, it's such concentrated serum that if it's not mixed with water it can be too strong for the skin. Always pat in your serums/oils so they can really soak in, never tug or pull on your face!

The next serum I use to the Caudaíle S.O.S Thirst Quenching Serum. I've used this serum in the past just because I had a free sample and I loved it. It makes my face extremely soft and also gives it a glow over time. I started using it again after I got a full size sample and I noticed it was targeted for hydration, and it's been one of my new favorite serums. This brand is well renowned for it's skin care and I totally understand why. Even if you need just a little pick me up in your normal routine I would recommend this product!

This step has been changing depending on the night, normally I'd go in with a moisturizer which I bounce back and fourth with, the two I currently have are the Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream and the Youth to the People Adaptogen Deep Moisture Cream. I stopped by Kiehl's and talked to one of their associated about wanting a new heavy moisturizer for overnight, as I like to really lather on products before going to bed. He showed me the ultra facial cream and I wasn't in love with it but he sold me on it. It was their heaviest facial cream they had in store so I took it. I started using it and it works, but I wouldn't say it's done wonders to my skin but it does what it's suppose to. The YTTP cream is really nice, I've used another YTTP moisturizer in the past and it was good but it was too much for my skin it almost felt like it was sitting on top versus soaking in for me. This one however is one of my favorite products right now, you can install feel how it makes your skin soft and soaks in despite all the other products I've put on prior.

However as of lately since I've really been needing that extra hydration in my life I've been using the Kiehl's Ultra Facial Overnight Hydration Masque. I honestly first bought this becuause for the price the amount of product you get is insane, the jar is huge and you only need a little. I don't even know how long this will last me but I'm totally okay with it. This masque is really fucking good man. You want hydration she is that bitch, I use this instead of a moisturizer at night about once a week but you can use this daily if needed like I've been doing lately. I want to say this is really one of the key items that's brought my skin back to life after all these allergies and weather changes.

The last product I use is the Cannuka CBD Calming Eye Balm. I discovered this product when it came into Free People. Since California legalized marijuana we are one of the only stores who can carry CBD product lines! I first tried this out at they gave us some free samples to understand how the products work to be able to talk about with customers. I used the eye balm and the results were honestly shocking. As I said I have eczema on my nose and eyelid, overnight after the first use my dry flaky patches of skin on my eye lid were gone, my eye didn't feel puffy nor hurt in the morning like it typical does and it stayed that way all day long. To apply this product, make sure to use your ring finger to warm up the balm and then tap in, using you're ring finger you are using the least amount of pressure causing a lesser chance to create under eye wrinkles. This is the key to skin disorders like psorisiors or eczema! I also started putting it on my nose and it works just as well, the CBD in it has zero effect on my body in the sense of how THC works, aka I don't get high. The medical properties is what the CBD holds and helps with inflation, dryness, dark circles, and more. Their entire line is honestly amazing and available to purchase through the U.S. It's a dream product.

This night time routine changes depending on the season, this is mine currently and it was similar during the winter as well. Consistency is key, give any new product at least 2 weeks, if you experience break out's don't freak out. I always get a few new pimples/zits on my face when using new products because they are getting out the nasty shit. If the break out's continue I'd give it up. Of course if you start having any bas reactions I'd dump it right away. You will never see a huge change over night but with time and a continuous routine you can get your skin in check! Hope this helps someone, if you have any questions please comment below or contact me on my contact page! xx Analisa