MY UPDATED NATURAL SKIN CARE ROUTINE

Hey guysssss!!!

Happy New Year again!! I hope you all had a wonderful time over the holidays. I’m not too happy about being back in uni but such is life!

Those of you who read my last post will know that I’m expanding Nature’s Locks to include natural skincare. I made the change to natural skin care products and my skin has improved sooooo much in that time. Back in July, I did a post on My (Nearly) All Natural Skin Care Routine. However, since then, I’ve had to make quite a few changes to my skin care regimen. Basically, I’ve always had normal to dry skin (but more on the side of normal). BUT when I moved to Cali, OMG my skin became drier than the Sahara Desert! Literally, SO SO dry. I don’t know if it’s the water or the heat or what it was, but my skin was looking SO lifeless. Some things stayed the same but I had to switch things up a bit. Stay tuned…

Cleanser
While I still love my African Black Soap (and I still use it when I need a really deep clean), using it everyday was just making my skin super dry out here so I swapped to the Burt’s Bees Intense Hydration Cream Cleanser (which I featured in my 2015 Hair and Skin Favourites (Continued) post). This cleanser has given me the hydration my skin so desperately needed. And despite it being very creamy, my skin actually feels very clean after using it. And it’s 99% natural. I am a huge fan. I still use my Clinique Sonic System Cleansing Brush with it.

Burt’s Bees Intense Hydration Cream Cleanser

Clinique Sonic System Cleansing Brush

Exfoliator
My exfoliator has stayed the same. I still use the St Ives Apricot Scrub. As I said before, I have been using this scrub for a really long time. It leaves my skin looking smooth and shiny without stripping all the moisture away.

St Ives Apricot Scrub

Toner
Hmmm toner! I’ve been up and down with this one. Honestly, I barely use a toner at the moment. It’s kind of a ‘when I remember kinda thing’ (which is probably not good) but that is partly because I am yet to find a toner that I really like! When my skin got super dry, the apple cider vinegar-water mixture wasn’t cutting it. At the moment, I still use the aloe vera gel from time to time. I will keep you posted on the search for a good toner. Stay tuned…

Moisturiser
As mentioned in the last skin care routine post, I still use the almond oil and shea butter at times but I’ve actually added a few more options to my list. Nowadays, I tend to use the oils at night or when I’m having a no make up day. But for the day, I like the Burt’s Bees Intense Hydration Day Lotion (also mentioned in my 2015 Favourites) and I also like the Avalon Organics Vitamin C Renewal Rejuvenating Oil-Free Moisturiser but as it’s oil-free (so good if you have oily skin), when I use it, I like to add a drop of almond oil. The Burt’s Bees one is super super moisturising, leaving my skin smooth and soft. The Avalon one is packed full of vitamin C and antioxidants, giving my skin a healthy glow and firming the skin. I’ve also now started using extra virgin olive oil on my face. It is amazing. This was a bit of a happy accident. I ran out of almond oil and didn’t have anything with me that I could use, apart from olive oil. I tried it and now I’m hooked. My skin feels so soft and supple and I’m definitely adding it to my regimen. I still use the Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser in Cuba when I need a bit of coverage without wearing a full face of make up.

Burt’s Bees Intense Hydration Day Lotion

Avalon Organics Vitamin C Renewal Rejuvenating Oil-Free Moisturiser

Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser (Cuba)

My make up remover, face masks and sunscreen have not changed!! So basically, I just had to change my skincare routine in order to accommodate my newly acquired dry skin. What makes this dry skin thing even more frustrating is that I basically had to purchase a lot of new make up. ANNOYING AND EXPENSIVE! For example, my trusted Nars All Day Luminous Foundation started to look ashy and dull on my dry skin (however, when I recently went back to Lagos, where it’s more humid, and I wore it, it looked great). I had to then switch it up and buy a new foundation, the Lancome Teint Idole Ultra 24H Foundation. That really gives me a nice and healthy glow and doesn’t look dull or flaky on my skin (I would show you a picture but I carelessly knocked it off the table and it broke – I nearly cried). So the Nars one is still a great foundation. I just can’t use it in LA unfortunately. Sad times!

Anyway, there we have it cuties! Please pop back to the original skincare post and just see if there’s anything there that you can use or relate to. Both regimens have worked really well for me but of course, sometimes you just have to change things around.