Skin care routine - Night time edition

I have always found it difficult to stick to a skincare routine partly because of the reason that I am a massive product hoarder and love trying out new products. I have also struggled to find products that have worked for my skin but I now finally have a routine in place that is working well for me and have been trying to be consistent with it. For me, my nighttime skincare is the most important and a must. Regardless of whether or not I am wearing makeup that day I make sure to cleanse my face before going to bed as throughout the day our skin is exposed to harmful elements as a result of environmental conditions. A well put together skin care routine can provide a vast number of benefits to the skin and enables your skin to breath and restore moisture whilst you get your beauty sleep. The following steps are a must in my routine for ensuring my skin is free from any dirt/makeup and to keep my skin feeling plumped and hydrated.

Makeup remover
On days when I'm wearing makeup I start off by removing it first before deep cleansing my skin. For this I use the Garnier Micellar Water. I moisten cotton pads (I have found the ones from Primark to be the most effective) with the Micellar Water and mainly concentrate this on my eyes. Mascara is often quite a struggle to remove so I use one cotton pad per eye and hold it on my eye for about 10 seconds and wipe my eye makeup away. I then go over my lash line and remove any last traces of mascara or eyeliner. Whatever is left on the cotton pad I use to remove my face makeup. This step doesn't remove all my base products but the next step in my routine will ensure that my face is squeaky clean. 

The Garnier Micellar Water is a great dupe for the ever so famous Bioderma. I have tried the Bioderma and I do think it is slightly better as it is hydrating and what I found was that Bioderma removed makeup effortlessly whereas the Garnier one requires a bit more effort. Nothing major but I thought I'd point that out and although I have gone through two bottles of Bioderma, I am also now on my second bottle of the Garnier Micellar Water. Neither products irritate the skin and work well for even the most sensitive skin. I first tried the pink bottle of the Garnier Micellar Water which is targeted towards those with sensitive skin and when I went to stock up recently the pink one was sold out so I picked up the green bottle for combination and sensitive skin to see if it worked just as well. Because the latter is suitable for combination skin I find it is less hydrating. It removes eye makeup easily however I do not find it as effective in removing the base as the pink bottle but this doesn't bother me as much considering I mainly use this product for my eyes and brows. Since the Bioderma and Garnier products are comparable and the Garnier dupe does a fab job, for me the price tag does not justify making the splurge. If however you are interested in trying out the Bioderma you can purchase it here for £15 for a 500ml bottle. A 400ml Garnier Micellar Water retails for £4.99 and is available to buy here. 

Cleanse 
Once majority of my makeup has been removed, the next step is to deep clean my skin. I first wash my face with warm water to open up the pores, then cleanse my face and rinse with cold water to close the pores. For this I use my beloved duo, The Clarisonic and Philosophy Purity Made Simple 3-in-1 Cleanser for Face & Body (that was a mouthful). If you know me you'll know by now how much I love this combination and how excited I was when they were both in my hands. I've realised how much I have to say about these products so I will be doing a detailed review in a separate post. 

Tone

I pat my face dry after cleansing and soak a cotton pad with toner and wipe it across my face and neck. This helps to remove any traces of makeup or impurities that may have been left on the skin. It helps to refresh my skin and controls the oils hence prevents the skin from looking shiny. Also, a toner helps to balance out the PH levels of the skin. The one I use is the Body Shop Toner from their Tea Tree range which I have featured on my previous post on clearing up breakouts and reducing hyper pigmentation.  Read here.

Moisturise

Now that all dirt and impurities have been removed from the skin, it is important to restore the moisture back into my skin. A night cream will nourish, regenerate and rejuvenate the skin. To moisturise my skin I use the Nivea regenerating night cream which makes my skin feel hydrated and plumped. It is the first night cream that I invested in and I really like how rich the consistency is. Moisturising well with a good moisturiser at night allows me to wake up in the morning with smooth skin that instantly makes me feel refreshed and wide awake. 

The skin around the eyes are super sensitive so they too will need to shown some TLC. Using an eye cream will replenish the under eye area, reduce puffiness and fine lines. I'm not going to lie, I often neglect this step only because I forget but when I do remember I use the Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream which is lightweight and helps keep my under eye area hydrated. I want to branch out and try some that are a bit richer and will hopefully provide an intensive treatment since my eye area is quite dry. The ones currently on my list are the Origins Ginzing Eye Cream and the Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment. Lastly, I use a lip balm to prevent chapped lips.

Products mentioned:
Garnier Micellar Water. Buy here
Bioderma. Buy here
Clarisonic Mia 2. Buy here. (Get £5 off your next purchase with their loyalty scheme)
Philosophy 3-in1 Cleanser. Buy here
Bodyshop Tea Tree Toner. Buy here
Nivea Night Cream. Buy here
Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream. Buy here

Origins GinZing Eye Cream. Buy here
Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado. Buy here