Lately I have decided to try and stick to one fairly simple nightly routine. I used up one whole bottle of Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish and although I love the smell and the feel of the product my skin just doesn’t love it. I have tried it on and off over the years and I always end up giving up. Its so frustrating I want to love it but I really feel like it congests my skin. I have suffered with adult acne in the past, after I stopped taking the contraceptive pill about 8 years ago now my skin went absolutely crazy but thats for another blog post…
Even I do believe in cream/oil/balm cleansers you remove with a warm wet cloth but unfortunately I don’t think they work for my skin as an evening cleanse. (LOVE Emma Hardie Amazing Face cleanser in the AM btw). So at the moment I am using 3 products which are keeping my skin clear and and glowing.
Medik8 Pore Cleansing Gel which is a foaming gel cleanser, I still double cleanse with this I just splash off the first cleanse and use a warm wet flannel to remove the second cleanse. I do have to admit that when I remove the second cleanse with the cloth I do get slight make up residue on the cloth so I can clearly see I do need to double cleanse with this cleanser. It contains Mandelic, Lactic and Salicylic Acid which are great for acne prone skin.
The Ordinary Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion which has a milky consistency that is a joy to use. I love the idea of using Retinol in my daily routine as we all know it is the only ingredient with scientifically proven evidence it has anti-ageing benefits but I don’t want anything that will make my skin flake off. This is super gentle, if its your first time using retinol maybe alternate nights to begin with would be a good way to start but I can use this everyday quite easily.
Neostrata Bio-Hydrating Cream is an emollient moisturiser containing PHA acids which gently exfoliate while hydrating the skin. I have used this on and off for years, I actually first started using this when recommended by a top London Dermatologist but she recommended it as my day cream (obviously with SPF on top) but I decided as it has no SPF in it I would use it as my night cream and benefit from it over night while I sleep instead.
This routine is working well for me at the moment, its quick and simple. Once I have put the twins to bed I do this routine then have the evening free to chill or blog… I had recently been exfoliating using pads every Sunday night but as I have quite tolerant skin I might start using them on Wednesday nights too so on these evenings I may switch up my moisturiser or drop out the Retinol depending on how my skin feels. I’ll do a blog post on my Wednesday and Sunday night facials soon.
NJ x
nicola jayne 