I’ve been super busy over the past few weeks, vacations, Fourth of July, there’s a lot to do in the Summer. I thought I’d come back with an intensive blog post… my skincare routine. I think my skin is in the best place it’s ever been honestly, it’s hydrated, rarely breaks out, and radiant. I’ve always had really good skin generally, because of this my standards for my skin is basically perfect, like a tiny pimple is a problem to me. I’ve tried loads of skincare of the years, and these are my current staples I see myself using for a long time.

I’m currently 25 years old and I’d say the pillars of my skincare are a cleansing balm, a gentle yet clean feeling cleanser, a vitamin C serum, a gentle retinol, and all the moisturizing products to keep it hydrated. I also love face masks, but I think I’ll do a separate post on that or this will be far too long. So without further ado, here’s everything I use!

Cleansing Balms

I love a good cleansing balm to take off any makeup at nighttime. My favorites include the Clinique Take the Day Off ($31) Balm and the Then I Met You Cleansing Balm ($38). The Clinique one is amazing at taking off makeup easily and is fragrance free, whereas the Then I Met You balm is more of a luxurious experience it’s thicker and smells like a citrus dream.

Cleansers

I consistently use 3 different cleansers, that may seem very extra but it works for me. I like to use an extremely gentle one or I skip cleansing in the morning entirely, if I wash my face twice a day it gets extremely dry. If I cleanse in the morning I’ll use the Cerave Hydrating Cleanser ($13.99), in the evenings for a deeper clean I’ll use either the Youth to the People Kale and Spinach Cleanser ($36) or the Tatcha Deep Cleanse ($38). The Tatcha cleanser has very little exfoliating beads in it and makes my skin feel so fresh.

Serums

I’d say the most essential serums to have are a good Vitamin C, a retinol, and maybe an acid, I prefer to do face masks for acids though instead of serums. Vitamin C is a recent addition to my skincare routine and boy is it amazing, it’s got so many benefits, brightening, exfoliating, can improve the effectiveness of your sunscreen if worn together, hydrating, reduces redness, fades hyperpigmentation, boosts collagen production. Now you best belief something this amazing does not come cheap…. hence why I’ve never really used vitamin C before. The reason it’s so expensive, is because Vitamin C is largely unstable… and goes bad rather quickly. I keep mine in the fridge to preserve it longer.

I’ve tried other Vitamin C serums in the past and they didn’t do anything, but l LOVE the Drunk Elephant C-Firma Serum ($80), now it doesn’t smell very good and the texture is pretty sticky.. but it WORKS. I saw instant results when I first starting using it. It also isn’t a terrible price compared to other serums.

The only other serum I use is Retinol occasionally, like maybe once/twice a week. My favorite for years has been the Sunday Riley Luna Serum Sleeping Night Oil ($55). I think I first tried this out Freshman year of college…. I literally didn’t know what a retinol even was I just saw other beauty reviewers raving about it. Retinol in a nutshell speeds up cell turnover, kinda of like an exfoliator and reveals new cells underneath. This can prevent wrinkles from settling in from constantly turning over, but also helps clear up any acne spots you may have. This is a pretty gentle and non drying retinol, which is why it’s been my favorite for years. There’s a lot of reviews saying this is too gentle of a retinol for some, but it’s perfect for me. I remember my senior year of college, I still didn’t know what a retinol was and I just thought this was just like an oil to moisturizer so I was using it constantly and my skin looked amazing.

Moisturizing

My all time Holy Grail is the Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief ($28). I just keep repurchasing. It’s Tamanu Oil and is formulated with Niacinamide. It is so soothing on my skin and overall one of the best products.

I also enjoy the Drunk Elephant Marula Oil ($40), this hydrates really well and is very quick to absorb.

My top 3 favorite moisturizers are the Khiel’s Ultra Facial Cream ($32) and the Drunk Elephant Protini ($68) and Lala Retro ($60) creams.

I love Hyaluronic Acid as well and recommend the Ordinary Hyaluronic ($6.80)

Mists and Essences

I adore the Caudalie Beauty Elixir ($18), I’ve been using this since freshman year of college. It has a lovely scent and it’s uber refreshing, so spraying this on my face anytime.

Avene Thermal Water ($15) is another favorite super soothing, great for sunburns! Love keeping this in the fridge during the summer to spray after workouts.

I am super new to essences, I started using one last winter for added hydration, I used the Neogen Essense ($22), I liked it for Hydration in the winter, but I didn’t notice any brightening effects.

SPF

Lastly and most importantly is SPF. Wear one as often as the sun is out. It’s all about finding one you like, doesn’t smell like sunscreen, and isn’t super greasy to wear one daily. My favorite is the Elta MD UV Clear SPF 46 ($29) at dermstore.com. I took this to the beach recently and now I can’t find it, so I’ll need to pick up another… $29 is pretty good price.

There you have it! I’ve been a skincare junkie as long as I can remember, these are my current favorites and tried and trues! I think I’ll be sticking to this for a while, I don’t really feel a need to try anything else. Hope you found this helpful if you’re looking for some skincare recommendations!