After a busy week of work, crazy weekend activity, and living in a harsh environment (South Dakota Winter BS), our skin has been exposed to a lot of harmful stuff. Over time this can result in damage to the skin and cause pre-mature aging. Because of the harm, it is important to take care of your skin! The benefits of a night skin care routine include improving skin tone & color, reducing skin blemishes, and hydrating and rejuvenating your skin. Establishing a Sunday night (or any night you choose) skin care routine will allow the skin to breathe, heal, and restore to an amazing healthy youthful glow.
Sunday night for ME is the perfect opportunity to start the new week fresh while having some me time in pampering myself a little bit. I like to start my Sunday evening off with a hot shower to open up my pores, exfoliate and prep my skin for a little fake tan (I'll link my favorite self tan/what I use down below). Once out of the shower I lightly moisturize all over from head to toe (to avoid patchiness associated with fake tan). Fresh out of the shower is also the perfect time to do a mask.
There are many, many reasons to do a mask:
Face Masks are an excellent way to keep your skin beautiful, but deciding which one to use or paying an arm & leg for a facial can often stop you from investing in one. However, these treatments are excellent at clearing our pores, cleansing, detoxifying, and hydrating our skin. Let me help educate you on which one will be best for you.
But before I do, I want to give you a few guidelines to follow regardless of which mask you using. Always start with a freshly washed face. You can do like me and take a shower first, or you can use a hot wash cloth pressing it onto your face to open up your pores before beginning the mask. The heat will work to soften the debris in your pores and clean your skin. And don't neglect your décolletage (neck) it is just as important as your face. You don't want to take excellent care of your face and then later in life end up with a turkey neck. Ha.
So there's really only 3 Categories when it comes to Face Masks:
A hydrating mask will be best for this skin type. I'd try something that has a cream base to maintain skins natural oils and help replenish your skin's hydration. You want to completely avoid anything harsh like a scrub or anything abrasive. If you are a DIY'er you could always mix a little Greek Yogurt and a tablespoon of honey together. The enzymes from the yogurt will gently take away dry skin flakes while keeping your skin nice and soft.
Bombshell Recommendations:
This is the category I fall under and I have absolutely been loving my
GlamGlow SuperMUD or my
Pumpkin Enzyme AHA Mask. Both do an extremely good job and clearing gunk out of my pores leaving my skin refreshed soft and amazing. The GlamGlow Mask fights all common skin concerns including breakouts, discoloration, black and white heads, razor bumps, and in-grown hair. It's a powerful, skin-clearing mud that visibly draws out dirt and congestion. The Pumpkin Mask has glycolic acid to go to town on your skin’s flaws dissolving impurities like dead skin and clogged pores. It adds brightness and radiance to the skin and significantly improves the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles after a single use. And boy is that the truth! Both are great!
The most vital step in helping Oily & Acne prone skin is moisturization!!!! I cannot stress this enough. So many people with oily skin think they shouldn't moisturize because it will just make them oilier. NOT TRUE. It's actually the exact opposite. If you have oily skin and do not moisturize after cleansing, your skin will notice the lack of moisture and will compensate by producing MORE oil, causing more breakouts, leaving you in a vicious breakout circle that you just cant shake. Another thing is using a facial oil like
Josie Maran's Argan Oil can be super beneficial to oily skin. I know, I know sounds weird. Why would you put oil on oily skin? Wont that make me break out? This is an extremely common misconception. Using facial oil as a "leave on" mask is fantastic for acne-prone or oily skin. Fighting oil with oil will actually re-balance your sebaceous glands and help heal your spots. It’s extremely important to replenish the natural oils within your skin.
Bombshell Recommendations:
All can be purchased at Sephora.com
With combination skin you should address it in different parts. You can have different skin types all over your face, so treat each area accordingly. For Example, if you have an oily t-zone or a blemish you can use the
GlamGlow SuperMUD on those specific areas and a hydrating mask—like the yogurt concoction or
GlamGlow ThirstyMUD—to the rest of your face. Your skin can also change with the seasons, so you may need to change it up accordingly.
Follow all instructions as far as how long to leave mask on or any other sort of guidelines the manufacture has on the package. They are usually very simple (leave on 10-15 minutes blah blah you get the picture). Don't neglect your lips apply a lip balm so your lips can get some love while your mask sets.
So, while my mask is on I utilize this time to either paint my nails, tweeze my brows, read a book or watch housewives. Yeah I'm guilty of this. SO what. When your mask is ready wash it off and remember to MOISTURIZE afterwards! Put on an eye cream & a little more lip balm and your ready for the fake tan....
Bombshell Recommendations:
By now we alllllll know (or at least I hope you know!) tanning beds are VERY harmful to your skin and will make you look 80 when your 30! With that being said I suggest using a self tanner. :) There is soooo many on the market today but just take my advice and go with my suggestion on this one. I have tried so many and all of those many are horrible. Except this little baby right here ---->
St. Tropez Self Tan Bronzing Mousse.
It is the ONLY one that I will use.
What it is:A super-lightweight, easy-to-apply, velvety mousse that dries in 60 seconds and delivers a rich-bronze tan.
This lightweight mousse delivers a rich-bronze tan and is infused with conditioning aloe vera. You will get a perfectly natural looking, streak-free tan that dries in 60 seconds. The innovative Aromaguard™ fragrance technology eliminates the tell-tale self tan aroma by a minimum of 70%.
What it is formulated WITHOUT:
I'll do a more in depth blog post on how I prep my skin & how I apply it very soon but for now that's the short story!
I hope this helps you guys to establish a good mask/ skincare routine!
