Updated Skincare Routine Spring 2012: Face
Good morning from Singapore! I touched down yesterday at 630am after an 11-hour flight from Frankfurt and I was seriously jellified from jet lag yesterday. While it is always a fierce battle to stay awake during the day, I always love the super early mornings although I cannot sleep in the wee hours so I went for a jog and watched the sun rise over the Little Red Dot – light purple, streaky orange, pale blue skies dotted with white fluffy clouds. It was sweltering even at 6am but what else can you expect from a hot and steamy tropical island. eh?
So it does seem a little weird to be blogging about my spring time skincare routine in Japan but I thought it could be interesting for my fellow sensitive skin sisters to have a look at what’s working for me right now.
Just a bit of background for those who don’t know my skin type: I have oily combination skin that is prone to dehydration and acne, plus I tend to get rashes if I use heavily fragranced and/or complex formulas, so I keep it really simple these days.
In the morning, I wash my face with CeraVe Foaming Facial Cleanser. I may alternate this with the Hada Labo es Foaming Facial Wash and the only reason I do so is that I may take a shower in the morning and the Hada Labo one sits in the shower room and the CeraVe one is next to the bathroom sink. I like both equally and they clean well without stripping my skin.
Next, I dot my T-zone with my ever-reliable Clinique Anti-Blemish Clearing Moisturizer with salicylic acid to prevent my pores from clogging. Then, I follow up with a coin-sized blob of Physiogel Cream all over my face and neck, after which, I would put on whatever sunscreen I may be using at the moment. I’m almost done with the Hada Labo UV Cream (this has been sadly discontinued) and will switch to a lighter one as soon as the weather gets warmer.
In the evening, I remove my makeup with Mutenka Cow Brand Cleansing Oil. I stopped using eye makeup remover for now because this cleansing oil does a pretty good job of taking off all my eye makeup (and my mascara of the moment is Deja Vu’s Fiberwig Mascara which is easy to remove).
And then I use CeraVe or Hada Labo to wash my face with my Clarisonic. Now, if I had a particularly sweaty day or wore my makeup for more than 12 hours, I would use Clarins’ Gentle Foaming Cleanser as it has a slight stripping effect which is something I actually like when my skin feels all clogged up.
Then, like in the morning, I follow up with the Clinique moisturizer on my T-zone, and then I spread three drops of Jason’s Natural Vitamin E Oil all over my face and neck.
If I have a pimple, I would spot treat it with Clean & Clear’s Persa-Gel 10 which heals zits like a charm and I’ve been using this for the past couple of years.
So that’s it – really spare and simple and this has helped my sensitive skin immensely. I’m on the hunt for an eye cream because I began to notice visible fine lines around my eye area and I’m tempted start experimenting with serums again since my skin has stabilized.
Do you have any serums you can recommend for sensitive skin? What’s your tried-and-tested skincare routine? I love reading about other people’s skincare routines because you never know what might work for someone else, could also work for you.
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My skincare routine for now:
Day:
Wash face with water -> Hada Labo lotion -> Laneige Water bank essence on face/neck, more on the cheeks -> light spread of SK-II Cellumination Essence and more on the freckles -> Lancome absolue premium BX (cos I have a 15g sample) else usually I am using Lancome bienfait multi-vital spf30 lotion due the many vitamins included in the moisturizer -> Lancome Genifue eye cream -> Skinfood Quine Whitening Sun Lotion
Night:
Fancl cleansing oil/ Lancome bi-facil eye make up remover on days I have eye make up on -> Fancl washing powder with my clarisonic mia-> Hada Labo lotion -> SK-II essence water -> Laneige Water bank essence on neck -> SK-II Cellumination Essence and more on the freckles -> Laneige Water Bank gel cream or Laneige Water bank sleeping mask once a week -> Lancome Genifue Eye Cream.
I use Ettusais acne Clear spots when the occasional pimple pop up.
I used to use Skinfood raspberry anti aging eye cream (2 bottles of it!) but I ran out, it was really good on the lines on my eyes and my Korean friends recommended it to me. I love the ginseng smell from it too. it is not costly if purchase from Korea but a light dab would be enough as it is quite rich.
I tried some Lancome Visionnaire sample and I feel that it is really great for the fine lines. I bought some Fuji Astalift samples from the recent Japan trip and cant wait to try them out too. =)
Thanks for writing out your skin are routine! Laniege is def a brand I am interested in using…heard many great things about it. The skinfood eye cream sounds v intriguing too!! Thanks for the recommendation. I have been wondering if the Lancôme Visionnaire did live up to the hype…I guess it does
If you head up Korea, I bet you would love it there…….just Myeongdong will keep you entertained the whole day cos ALL the different brands are just there. Exit 6 from the subway, and just walk down that street. If you head there, let me know..I shld have some links that you can dl for discount coupons
Sounds like you’re a Seoul veteran. Thanks for the tip! Will def keep this in mind if I travel to Seoul.
lol, no i only been there last May and the impression was too deep cos I only had 1.5 hours to shop! =P So i hv to do all my homework in advance.
Hello ! Firstly, I find your website fascinating and really informative (I bought two BB products from Nanoce from you – to Toronto) and my girlfriend is loving them. Like you, I’m a product junkie and my complexion is also acne prone and dehydrated at the same time. It took me a long time to figure what works and what doesn’t but this is my routine. Do note that it tool me 3 years to get to this routine… an almost organic and natural answer to acne free and hydrated skin! =)
Night time cleasing : Cleanse with pureandsimple.ca organic vanilla cleansing powder (infused with Organic Willow Bark powder for anti-inflammatory + stimulates new cell formation;
Organic Calendula Powder for anti-inflammatory + healing;
Yellow French Clay detoxifies the skin;
Organic Vanilla Powder nourishes the skin;
Organic Buttermilk Powder nourishes the skin + helps to eliminate dead skin cells;
Organic Colloidal Oatmeal Powder calms the skin + reduces redness) – fyi, it works!!! Off my Salicylic acid base hydrating cleanser)
Toner : pureandsimple.ca lavender hydrosol or chamomile depending on my skin
Daily acne treatment : Neutrogena 2-in-1 hydrating stress acne lotion (very hydrating)
Serum suitable for asian skin and anti-pigmentation (not whitening but brightening) : Nuxe (from sasa.com) brightening serum OR Caudalie (from sephora and from France) Vino serum
Anti-aging serum : collagen serun from pureandsimple.ca
Moisturizer: Martina Gebhardt – Black Mud Facial Cream from pureandsimple.ca
(Revitalizes lacklustre skin;
Balances + repairs oily, blemished skin types; Calms + moisturizes irritated sensitive skin – and it works !)
On occasion : 2-3 drops of Kiehl’s Midnight Recovering Oil
Day :
Same cleanser
Same toner/hydrosol
Same anti-acne treatment
Same brightening serum
Anti-aging and hydrating : pureandsimple.ca Algae Serum for hydration (no collagen for day)
Moisturizer : pureandsimple.ca Soothing Pomegranate Seed Lotion ( it does not contain water, but instead is packed full of organic aloe vera juice as its calming base. Contains punic acid from pomegranate, a known anti-inflammatory + powerful antioxidant. Spirulina, which has high amounts of vitamins (E, B12, Beta Carotene), anti-oxidants (superoxide dismutase and vitamin E), + minerals (over 90 trace minerals + 58 times more iron than spinach) as well as essential fatty acids omega 3 and 6.
Raspberry Extract, that contains phenol anti-oxidant – ellagic acid – which reduces oxidative stress + maintains proper cellular function. Improves skin conditions eczema, seborrhea + psoriasis)
SPF : Kiehl’s 50 SPF
That’s all =)
Oh yes, and my esthetician convinced me years ago to give up on daily (which improved the acne a lot!). =)
c.
Hi Carmen, thank you for sharing your routine. Sorry for the late reply as I have been quite busy in Sydney. I have heard good things about Nuxe but don’t know pure and simple but will look out for it as I’ve the same skin type as you and might find this brand could work for me. And yes, I always notice a difference in my skin if I avoid dairy, gluten, and alcohol.
Hi Yuming, I love reading your blogs! They’re so informative and remind me of what it was like to live in Japan (as an exchange student), with its wonderful products!
I have quite different skin from you but I’ll post my routine in case it’s useful to anyone. I have dry-combination skin and my nose has been plagued by unsightly blackheads for years, till about 2 months ago. What’s worked for me so far is the following routine:
DAY
- Cleanser: Hada Labo Hydrating face wash
- Toner: Hada Labo Hydrating Lotion
- Moisturiser & coverage: This is a little messy but I mix up a large drop of the Hada Labo Hydrating Milk with Hada Labo BB Moist Cream and apply this in one shot. I’m not sure why but this makes my skin look clearer, more dewy and yet appear to not have makeup on it.
NIGHT
The same steps, without the BB Cream. If I have acne, I pop on a Nexcare pimple patch to extract the oil while I sleep and the next morning, the little volcano would have become flat and easier to conceal. I’ve tried this on a backne before to similar effect.
ONCE A WEEK (Blackhead extraction + sheet mask)
- Prep: I wash and dry my face, then rub a pea-sized amount of Elizabeth Pore’s Care warming gel all over my nose. Then I rinse this off with warm water.
- Pore pack: The most effective one I’ve tried is the one that sometimes comes packaged as a free gift with the gel. Apparently it’s from Nesura, a Korean brand. Kose’s Cosmeport charcoal pack is not bad too. Pore packs can be quite harsh on the skin, so it’s best not to leave one on till it’s stiff.
- Exfoliation: After removing the pack and rinsing off the residue, I use Cure Natural Aqua gel to exfoliate, being careful to avoid the area that the pore pack had adhered to. Then I rinse and dry my face
and apply Elizabeth Pore’s Care astringent gel to my nose to “shrink” the pores.
- Toner, as usual
- Sheet mask: At the moment, I’m using Utena’s Puresa brightening sheet masks. These are quite moisturising but I don’t think my skin looks that much brighter.
I’ve done the weekly routine for about 3 months now and my blackheads have shrunk significantly. I forgot to do this 1 week and was surprised to find that the blackheads hadn’t grown as quickly as they used to. Also, the skin of my nose used to be quite hard and actually a little inflamed but now it’s much softer and my cleanser easily washes out the smaller blackheads, unlike before.
I’m really an amateur with regards to taking care of my skin and I’m only now finding out how best to do this. For now, this is it. =D
Hi Fiona, thanks for your detailed skin care routine. The mixing of Hada Labo moisturizer and BB cream does sound interesting. I prefer dewy finishes over matte so might try that for summer when I am looking for lighter coverage. Sounds like your routine is really helping your blackheads… I do find with clogged pores, one needs to be persistent and keep up some kind of regime to keep them at bay. The thing about Nexcare is that I can find them easily in SG but I really have to look hard in Japanaese drugstores…though purchasing them online is prob the most convenient solution.