Skincare Evening Essentials for Sweet Dreams

Do you ever get told something a million times and blow it off, and then feel really stupid when you try it and fall in love? Welp, that’s what’s going on with me recently. I have heard over and over that skincare is so important and that investing in your skin will improve the way your makeup looks. After all, your skin is like the canvas of your face, right? In the past, I would wash off my makeup at night and then maybe slap on some zit cream and a moisturizer, but that was about it. Then, one day about a month ago, I was like “Holy crap, what am I doing with my life?” I did some research, drove to CVS, and went buckwild in the skincare aisle. Today I’m going to go through my nightly skincare routine, which is 90% drugstore by the way!

Cleansing

I have super oily skin, and by the end of the day I’m ecstatic to take my makeup off. I start by removing my mascara with a cotton pad saturated with the Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water. I have raved about this before, and will rave about it again here. This. stuff. is. AMAZING. It makes makeup removal so ludicrously easy that there’s no excuse to ever not take off your makeup at the end of the day. After I’ve taken off my mascara, I use another cotton pad of Micellar water to remove the rest of my makeup. If I feel like double-cleansing, I’ll next go in with the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser. I love the gentle exfoliation I get when I wipe this off with a muslin cloth- my skin always feels super soft after I use this!

Toning

After cleansing, I usually tone with the Pixi Glow Tonic, which I recently picked up at Target. This is a gentle toner, not like the harsh astringents of my teenage years, and the botanical extracts give it a dainty floral smell. I also really, really love the Mario Badescu Cucumber Cleansing Lotion. This product claims to help reduce T-zone shininess, which the Glow Tonic doesn’t.

Serums and Treatments

I have read that Glycolic Acid is good for us oily-skinned gals, since it works to control oil and reduce pore size. I haven’t heard much about this brand personally, but I picked up a Nip + Fab Glycolic Fix Serum at CVS and have been using it for about a month. If I’m totally honest, this seems thicker than I hoped and doesn’t sink into the skin as easily as I wished. However, I’ll keep using it until I’ve made up my mind about how I feel about it.

I’m in my mid- to late-twenties, and I have started to notice some lines on my forehead (freaking.out.). So I’ve been using the RoC Retinol Correction Sensitive Night Cream every other night. While I wouldn’t classify my skin as sensitive, this product is formulated for retinol beginners, too. It’s only been a month, but I think I’m seeing a difference already!

Moisturizing

For my eyes, I’ve been loving the Shiseido Ultimune Eye Concentrate ever since I got this small sample in a Birchbox. It is lightweight, non-greasy, and sinks in super quickly! For facial moisturizer, I have been OBSESSED with the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel. “Water Gel” really is the best way to describe the consistency of this product- it’s unlike anything I’ve tried before and I LOVE it. The smell is super fresh, and I really look forward to applying this at the end of my routine. It’s the small things in life, people…

I have had the worst problem with chapped lips recently, so I’ve turned to the Jouer Lip Enhancer, another Birchbox gift. This works while I sleep to not only moisturize, but also reduce fine lines on my lips. I mentioned it here, and still love it!

The final step in my routine is moisturizing my feet, for obvious hygienic reasons. When I saw that Ulta was stocking Soap and Glory products, I was super excited. I grabbed a bottle of the Heel Genius Foot Cream and have been loving it. Although I’m not using it totally correctly (you’re supposed to sleep with socks on and I just can’t handle that), I love this product.

What products are you all using? Any recommendations for serums?

xoxo Katie