My Daily Skincare Regimen

Here’s the thing. Most of us would love to have a naturally clear, poreless, baby soft face that glows from within. But almost no one actually does. We all gotta work for it.

Except maybe Kate Bosworth. That skin is ridiculous. I probably should have had my fake assistant people reach out to her people and ask if she’d like to write this post…

Anyhoo, one of the most common requests this weird blog lady gets is, “Bitch, what are you using on your skin?! Share that secret regimen!”

You know I love compliments, so I obviously appreciate the skin flattery, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t surprised by it. I suppose I shouldn’t be given that I basically light my wallet on fire every time I walk into a Sephora, and skincare is my number one hobby (closely followed by luxury bathing and extreme television watching), but I am.

This is probably because I haven’t always had great skin. I didn’t have terrible acne as a teen, but I definitely struggled with my fair share of zits and stubborn T-zone blackheads (exacerbated between the ages of 12 and 14 by some unfortunate bangs), which I attempted to clear by scrubbing my face with the strongest possible astringents and refusing to use moisturizer like a true genius.

When I finally stopped stripping my face of its natural oils in college, I was still all over the place with my skincare. I had no real routine and went to bed every other night with allllll my makeup on, so my skin was generally kind of dull and clogged. Regular kegstands and an all-carb diet may have also contributed to my lackluster mug, but let’s not dwell on the past here, people.

I started taking much better care of my skin post-college, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that I got super serious about it. I consciously switched to mostly natural products, which made a huge difference, as did sticking to a streamlined 4-step routine both morning and night: cleanse, mist, serum, moisturize. (I currently use the exact same products a.m. and p.m., plus sunscreen during the day so girlfriend doesn’t get more sunspots and wrinkles.)

I also committed to drinking a ton of water, exercising on the reg (heyooo #fitnessjourney), and taking Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides every damn day. And that friends, is when the skin compliments really started rolling in. HALLELUJAH.

I’ve experimented with an embarrassing number of products over the years—and I’m sure I’ll continue to until I die—but right now, I swear by the essentials detailed below. Happy shopping reading, my fellow skincare junkies!

My Everyday Skincare Regimen

1. CLEANSE: Biossance Squalane + Antioxidant Cleansing Oil

I have dry, sensitive skin, so gentle oil cleansers tend to work best for me. I love this one because it removes all my makeup and leaves my skin silky without any oily residue. (With most cleansing oils I’ve tried, I’ve had to use a washcloth or cotton pads to remove them, but this one is completely washed away with some good splashing! Genius.) My only complaint is that it burns slightly if you use it on your eyes. This is annoying, yes, but the magic it works on the rest of my face far outweighs the inconvenience. I now just remove my eye makeup with coconut oil before cleansing. No biggie.

*FYI: Biossance is made with 100% non-toxic, sustainably sourced ingredients, is EWG Verified, and comes in eco-friendly packaging. Into it.

If you’re someone that must use your oil cleanser on your eyes (I get it), I used Juice Beauty Stem Cellular Cleansing Oil for about a year, and I really liked it. It did require the aforementioned washcloth or pads to remove it though.

2. MIST: Perfect B Niacinamide Topical Spray for Problematic Skin

I found out about this vitamin mist a while ago through a friend who works in the beauty industry, and I’ve slowly fallen in love with it. I started using it early this winter, and it’s made a noticeable difference in the size of my pores. (I’ve always had a lil blackhead issue on my nose and chin, and I’m convinced this is responsible for clearing a lot of them.) Only minor downside—the spray nozzle is batshit crazy and doesn’t “mist” like it should, so I spritz it onto an organic cotton pad and then swipe it all over my face and neck.

AND Mother Dirt AO+ Mist

If you hang out with me on Instagram, you may recall this winter’s struggle with The Rash. I’m prone to rashiness in general—most notably eczema and perioral dermatitis (fun!)—but I got hit particularly hard this December/January. My skin was a hot mess of angry red itchiness, and I tried everything from smothering my face in honey and avocado to hardcore steroids to get it under control. Ultimately, an employee from MotherDirt slipped into my DMs claiming that the AO+ Mist could clear up my rash in two days. Needless to say, I was skeptical, but the man didn’t lie. After 48 hours of using the stuff, my rash was barely noticeable, and I’ve been a devotee ever since. It’s loaded with probiotics to help balance your skin’s microbiome (you can read allll about the science-y stuff here), and I’ve noticed my an improvement in my skin’s overall clarity/sensitivity since it came into my life. I regularly alternate this with my Perfect B mist.

3. SERUM: Biossance Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Oil

For a very long time, I used Skinceutical’s CE Ferulic serum. I stand by it being a fabulous product that evened my skin tone and seriously upped my glow, but it does have a little bit of a sticky feel and is terrifyingly expensive. SO, when I ran out of it a couple months ago, I decided to give this Biossance oil a try. It appears to have the same effects as the CE Ferulic, but it’s about half the price, not remotely tacky, and has made my skin softer than it’s ever been. If you have oily skin, I imagine you could get away with this as a combo serum/moisturizer, but I’m super dry, so I follow it up with a layer of Protini. (See below.)

4. MOISTURIZE: Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide Cream

This cream is loaded with amino acids, signal peptides, and safe, synthetic growth factors, and it. is. glorious. I have an issue with moisturizer sitting on top of my skin, but this one penetrates and leaves my face feeling pleasantly plumped and dewy. (I use a little more at nighttime for extra hydration.) I have to say, I’ve also noticed a big difference in my neck skin (that feels weird to type) since I started using Protini in January, and you know the neck is one of the first places to age…

*I also love that like Biossance, Drunk Elephant is committed to clean, additive free ingredients.

*EYE CREAM: Biossance Squalane and Peptide Eye Gel

I can honestly say that this gel is one of the most hydrating, non-greasy eye products I’ve ever tried, and I’ve tried a truly absurd number of them. It doesn’t contain any retinol (which I like because my eye area is extra sensitive), but it does combat puffiness and fine lines beautifully and absorbs in seconds.

*SUNSCREEN: Skinceuticals Physical Fusion UV Defense SPF 50

As I’m trying to stay looking approximately 27 forever, I never leave the house without sunscreen. This particular SPF was recommended by my facialist (Suen at Tribeca MedSpa, I love you!), and I’m hooked. It happens to be very lightly tinted, which is great when I want to skip the makeup but still have a little bit of dewy “coverage.”

In addition to using these products on the daily, I loooove me some face masks, and I typically do three a week: one exfoliating, one clarifying, one moisturizing. You can find all the details on my favorite face masks here.

Oh, and because I put so much effort into healthy skin, I don’t like to wear a ton of makeup. But if you’re interested in my everyday essentials, I ran them down here.

Disclaimer: Skincare is extreeeemely personal. I have dry, sensitive skin that’s prone to rosacea and rashes of all sorts (fun!). I don’t know what your skin is like. The products above work wonders for me, but I have no idea if they’ll do the same for you. I say this to manage expectations and to remind you to make any purchases via retailers with lenient return policies so you can return the shit that doesn’t make you glow like the god/dess you are. xox, Captain Obvious

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