My Nighttime Skincare Routine

Your skin, especially your facial skin, is extremely sensitive and over time it begins to show signs of aging, which is why following a nighttime skincare regimen from a young age is important; your skin will thank you in the future, trust me. So, I thought it might be beneficial for all of you to see the step by step nighttime skincare routine I perform [almost] each night before bed. Some nights I go to sleep with a fresh, clean face and do not apply any moisturizer or eye cream because overdoing it can deter your skin’s natural ability to self-moisturize. Our skin is designed to moisturize itself, and overusing products can make your skin dependent on them, which will also increase signs of aging because your skin has forgotten how to heal and moisturize itself.

1| Alba Botanica Pineapple Enzyme Facial Cleanser. 2| Tarte Maracuja Oil. 3| Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment. 4| Lush Tea Tree Water. 5| Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Cream. 6| Caudalie Makeup Remover Cleansing Water

Makeup Remover| I always remove my eye makeup first since taking off mascara is the hardest step for me. I like to use the Caudalie Makeup Remover Cleansing Water because it has beneficial ingredients– organic grape water, organic chamomile extract, plant glycerin– and it isn’t harsh on the skin since it doesn’t have any parabens, sulfates, or phthalates  The scent is also very refreshing since it includes orange and lemon blossom, watermelon, and mint leaves. Pour this onto a cotton round, let it rest on your eyes for 30- 60 seconds to loosen any eye makeup up and everything will slide off easily. Then, I dampen another cotton pad with this and remove most of my face makeup.

Cleanse| After I remove my eye makeup and most of my face makeup, I cleanse my whole face to get rid of anything left over. Lately I have been using the Alba Botanica Pineapple Enzyme Facial Cleanser, which smells really nice and leaves the skin feeling soft and clean. It has a gel consistency, which is what I usually prefer over foam or cream consistencies. Most of the time I just pump this into my hands and wash off my makeup, but a few times a week I pump it onto my Clarisonic to get a really good, deep clean. This cleanser is also sulfate, paraben and phthalate free so it is gentler on your skin than some other options out there.

Tone| Once I have cleansed, I like to grab my favorite toner, which happens to be the Lush Tea Tree Water at the moment, and spritz this all over my skin, let it soak in a bit and then pat the excess off with a cotton pad. This toner is very calming, restores the natural pH balance of your skin, and gets rid of any lingering makeup.

Eye Cream| Once all of my makeup has been removed and my skin has been toned, I like to apply my eye cream. Eye cream is extremely important because the skin under and around your eyes is very thin so it tends to begin showing signs of aging before the rest of your face. Lately I have been trying out the Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Cream, and I have been enjoying it thus far.

Moisturizer| After I have applied my eye cream, I like to moisturize the rest of my face. Moisturizing is very important and helps keep your skin soft and supple. Also, it helps prevent fine lines and wrinkles over time that are caused by lack of moisture in your skin– a natural byproduct of getting older because your skin becomes thinner, dryer and loses its elasticity. Thus, moisturizing is very important. My favorite moisturizer at the moment is Tarte’s Maracuja Oil. I like to use oils since I find that it moisturizes your skin better and reduces the amount of chemicals you are slathering on your face. I prefer to pour a few drops of this into my hands and then pat it into my skin instead of rubbing it in. Patting it in helps reduce the chances of premature wrinkling since you won’t be tugging at your skin. Keep in mind, some products claim to be oils, but if you check the ingredients you will see that there are a bunch of toxic additives.

Lip Balm| Lastly, I put on some lip balm to keep my lips nice and moisturized. Many people forget about their lips, but they are also very sensitive and need some TLC. So, pucker up, beauties! One of my favorites is the Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment since it glides on very easily, and it doesn’t contain any sulfates, parabens or phthalates, which is a plus. On the nights I don’t feel like wearing lip balm I opt for a more natural solution: avocado oil. Avocado oil is extremely moisturizing and leaves your lips feeling soft and nourished in the morning.

As you can see, I try to use skincare items that don’t have a lot of harsh chemicals, but do contain ingredients that are actually beneficial for the skin, which, as gross as it sounds, is actually our biggest organ. Our skin is constantly being bombarded by chemicals, pollution, and of course the sun, which is very damaging if you do not take proper SPF precautions. Thus, before I lay down for a good night’s slumber I like to use nourishing beauty products that will assist the biggest organ I have– yuck.

What products do you use for your nighttime skincare routine? Let me know in the comments!

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