Love The Skin You Are In
Navigating the skincare world can be a very confusing place, but don’t worry! I’ve got your back… and your face! Did you know that you should apply your skincare in specific steps in order for them to absorb correctly? Always go from thinnest to thickest. If you try to apply a thin serum after you moisturize the bigger molecules of the moisturizer will block the smaller molecules of your serums and you are essentially throwing your money down the drain.
Cleansing always comes first, no matter what, but after that here are the steps to getting your healthy skin glow on!
Exfoliate: It’s super important to exfoliate so that your skin can soak up all the goodness you are going to put on it. You need to slough off all the dead skin and expose the new healthy skin so that you aren’t moisturizing the dead stuff.
You should be exfoliating both your body and your face, but did you know you shouldn’t use the same products? The skin on your body is so much tougher than on your face so you can afford to be a little more aggressive when it comes to the type of product used as the exfoliant. Walnut shells make an excellent exfoliant for your body.
The skin on your face is much thinner and using something too rough, like walnut shells, can make microscopic tears in your skin. This can lead to irritation, inflammation, redness, and even infections and acne. Look for something with a smoother exfoliant like jojoba beads or perlite.
Making your own sugar scrub with 1 part olive or coconut oil to 1 part sugar is safe for both face and body, but if you aren’t all about that DIY life you can check out my favorite one for body here and for face here.
Serums: After exfoliating your skin is ready to accept all the nutrients and goodness that comes next!
Now is the time to apply your serums for tightening, toning, brightening, and anti-aging. I recommend these natural serums. Together they are a powerhouse for that youthful, healthy glow! Serums are generally talked about more for the face, but you can use them on your body as well for tightening skin and reducing the appearance of scars and stretch marks.
Moisturize: The next step is moisturizing. This step is what actually adds moisture to your skin. I like to stick with natural products that moisturize but also allow your skin to breathe. Try to stay away from products with mineral oil or petroleum based products. They may feel like a protective barrier, but they are suffocating your skin and can make skin issues worse. For the body I love this moisturizer or this one. Your face moisturizer will really depend on what type of skin you have. For dry or mature skin look for something that hydrates and holds onto water like this one. For Oily or acne prone skin you’ll want a lighter moisturizer, I know it’s counter-intuitive to skip this step if you have oily skin, but don’t do it! You may end up with even more shine as your skin produces more oils to make up for the imbalance of hydration in your skin.
If you’re not adding oils to your skincare routine you are missing out on so much!
Oils help dry skin stay moisturized, damaged skin heal, reduce inflammation in sensitive skin, help oily skin produce less oil and even treat acne!
These three oils are good choices for almost any skin type.
Marula Oil: This is one of my favorite oils because of its many great properties! It absorbs easily and it’s non-greasy making it great for oily skin. It’s antibacterial properties may be beneficial for acne-prone skin. It’s soothing and can help reduce irritation of itching and dryness from eczema and psoriasis. And it’s chocked full of antioxidants, fatty acids, and amino acids which make it a perfect choice for mature or damaged skin.
Sunflower Oil: Sunflower oil is another great one that many skin types can use. It contains fatty acids, Vitamin E, and antioxidants that can heal and soothe damaged skin, promote elasticity, and increase production on new skin cells!
Argan Oil: Similar to both Marula and Sunflower oils, argan oil is a powerhouse for improving elasticity and softness of the skin, heal damaged skin, reduce breakouts, and control oil production.
