Work has taken up a lot of my time and whenever I’m free, I’d be busy planning for my engagement and wedding. Yes, I am getting married – to one of my best friends of 10 years too. I didn’t see this coming at all, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I came back to Malaysia a couple weeks back from Europe – it was for work, of course, not a vacation…..as a matter of fact I can’t even remember the last time I had a proper holiday. My schedule has been so packed – not that I’m complaining.
Being occupied with work and all these engagement/wedding plannings, of course I have to take extra care of my skin if I want to look good on television and on my big day. Before this I had a regiment already but I guess because I am getting older and my skin condition keeps changing due to my age and hormones (let me add stress levels too), my routine has changed to cater to my skin’s needs.
Daytime Skincare Routine
I like to start off my day with a fresh face. I like feeling clean. Bear in mind however, that your skin isn’t necessarily dirty when you wake up in the morning. After all, when you’re about to go to bed you have to take all your makeup off so the only stuff sitting on your face the moment you wake up would be your skincare leftovers from the night before. Which is why I use the Eucerin White Therapy Clinical Gentle Cleansing Gel.
It is very gentle to my skin, and doesn’t make me feel too stripped of my natural oils. It takes out all the leftover products and prepares my face for a brand new day – fresh and clean.
In the mornings I don’t do too much to my skin – I go all out only before bed time. I feel that the more products we apply on our face, the greasier we would look, and greasy is not the look that I want to go for especially in the morning.
After cleansing my face, I would tone my face with the Laneige Perfect Renew Skin Refiner to prep my skin with just the right amount of hydration. I love this toner because it makes my face feel supple and healthy, also because it smells great. I used to have a problem with scented skincare products but for some reason, my skin isn’t as sensitive as it was before. Back then my face would burn and go red, but not anymore!
After toner, next would be my eye cream. I currently use (and love) the Supergoop Eye Cream with Oat Peptides, which was sent to me by Sephora. They sent me a whole bag of goodies, but I think this eye cream with SPF 37 would by far be my favourite. You can never be too careful when it comes to protecting yourself from the sun, can you?
There are days that I’d feel extra dry, so I would use serum to help control that – my top picks would be The Ordinary and Innisfree. My favourites by The Ordinary are the Hyaluronic Acid 2% and the Ascorbyl Glucoside Solution 12%. I mostly use the Hyaluronic Acid, this would be my third or fourth bottle I believe, and the Ascorbyl Glucoside Solution I would use when I feel a bit dull and need some brightening up. The Innisfree serum was customised for my skin type – it is the Jeju Lave Seawater Boosting Ampoule that I customised to cater to my dryness and pore problems.
The next step would be my moisturiser, Ceramidin Light Cream by Dr. Jart. It isn’t particularly my favorite, for day moisturiser I would either use this or the Clinique Moisture Surge Extended Thirst Relief.
Lastly, I always make sure to keep my skin protected from the sun with my Supergoop Play! Everyday Sunscreen. It doesn’t leave a white film on my face like most sunblocks do, and it’s scent isn’t very noticeable. Sunscreen to me is the most important – whenever I forget to put some on my face before leaving the house, I always get paranoid.
When I need a refresher, I spray some Laneige Waterbank Mineral Skin Mist throughout the day. I have a full sized bottle at home, but in my handbag I always make sure to have a travel sized version of it. Call me vain whenever I spritz some on my face, I don’t care.
Nighttime Skincare Routine
My bedtime routine would always start off with me taking off everything I have on my face – although I barely wear makeup outside of work nowadays, I would still be sure to take everything off with a makeup wipe, or cleansing water. I don’t have a favourite brand, but I truly dislike cleansing oils. It’s either wipers or micellar water for me, all the way.
At night, I wash my face with the Miisha Super Aqua Refreshing Cleansing Foam. My little sister got me a free sample of it from Seoul, and I fell in love almost instantly. I loved it so much, that I immediately ordered a full sized tube from Hermo. It doesn’t make my face feel tight and tingly, instead I feel super refreshed after a good cleansing. It also takes off all the makeup residue I might still have on my face, even after the first step of my double cleansing process.
After patting my face dry, I use the Pixi Glow Tonic to prep myself for the next step – which is the Laneige Water Bank Essence. It makes my skin feels more “awake”, and ready to absorb everything else that I am going to use. I am a sucker for serums and my current favourite for night time is the La Chinata antiOx Regenerating Serum. I bought this in Spain and it is made of natural ingredients, enriched with olive leaf extract and argan oil. I swear, if I run out of this serum I might just cry because I checked their website – they don’t offer worldwide shipping.
Another important step I never miss out on is caring for my eyes. I’m older now, so my eyes are a bit wrinklier and my dark circles are more obvious – I use the Laneige Eye Sleeping Mask. I love this product because it has a ceramic ball that helps massage my eyes, it feels very cooling and soothing, I love it. It helps with de-puffing, so basically I don’t look like a goldfish the next day.
After that’s done, I pat some La Chinata Miracle Oil on my face, it’s main property is olive seed oil which I appreciate very much. I used to use the Innisfree Olive Real Essential Oil EX, also made of olives. There’s something about olive oil that just makes my skin feel its very best!
First Aid Beauty Ultra Hydra Firm Sleeping Cream would normally be my final step before calling it a night. I apply a generous amount on my face, and then go to bed. Sometimes when I’m feeling old and pruny, I add Pond’s Age Miracle Intensive Wrinkle Correcting Cream to the mix, right before my sleeping cream. Pond’s sent me a box of their Age Miracle products – and this one so far doesn’t feel so bad…however I don’t use it every day because it feels quite silicony. I like the scent that it has, and the effect it gives me the next day when I wake up.
Final tip: Avoid wearing foundation as much as you can. I’ve skipped foundation for almost a year now and it sure has helped my skin improve. There are days when I feel like sans foundation is a bit too bare – so what I do is I use gold eyeshadow from my Dior 5 Couleuers Couture Colours as highlighter. It gives out an illusion that you’re “glowing”, even though you might not be. It’s a very clever trick really, because all that everyone would see is the “glow” but of course, a clean base would be very helpful. Can’t be having dinosaur skin and putting on highlighter, expecting to look like a goddess, no?
MY LIPSTICK STAIN 