2015 Skincare Routine!

Alright so 2015 was a pretty big year for Shannon's skin. I tried a lot of new products and I noticed a big difference like instantly. I'm not a great "skincare routine" type of person... there will be a lot of times when I skip it and weeks where I'm like "when was the last time I moisturized? Is that why I'm so dry." And that's something I'm going to work on for 2016... I'm going to need to get better.

But I've pretty much been using the same stuff and most of it I've tried this year... so that's pretty cool actually.

Also this week is going to be Skincare Week. I've tried some different masks and I've reviewed what I think of them from the first impression and updating a little bit... so Every other day I'm going to post something skincare related... basically mask reviews. Lol. So this is my intro to that.

First off... The Purity Facial Cleanser. This stuff really changed my skin. I used to use the Simple Moisturizing face wash, and I still have that and I still use it from time to time... but the Purity did a better job at balancing my skin out. I don't really get as many blackheads, I don't break out as much, I'm not quite as dry but I also feel like I don't get oily and my skin feels nice and smooth and this has really helped a lot. And I never would have tried it if I didn't get a free sample from sephora. Lol. Every once and a while they gave out a free perk for VIB's and VIB Rouge's and this and an eye cream was one of them. This worked really well, I guess the eye cream worked too... can't really remember. But the little sample lasted me a while and the big bottle lasted me quite a long time too. I really like it.

The other product I've been using a bunch in 2015 is the Garnier Charcoal Scrub. This is more geared toward oily skin, it can be a little harsh on my dryer areas... but this is kind of the best scrub for my skin. My skin seems to respond really well to charcoal. It makes it smooth, again I don't get as many blackheads on my nose and my face doesn't get bumpy or anything. Its really good. I also had my time of the month recently and I've been a little better with my skincare and I didn't get any breakouts. I don't break out a ton... but I've been kind of stressed and it was that time of month... and I didn't break out... so that's pretty cool. This has salicylic acid in it, which is good for acne. I used to exfoliate 2 times a day... now I'm trying to just do it once a day cause I think it can be a little harsh twice a day... but its not bad.

For nighttime I've been using the Elf Night Cream which I really like as a moisturizer. I don't know whether this is something I'm always going to stick to. I may try another night cream when I run out of this one, just because I don't know if this is the absolute best out there, but its good. It does the job. I want to try one thats more accessible, this I have to order from the Elf website and then usually I end up buying more elf makeup than I need and getting some sort of magazine subscription for free... which I also don't need but do love the subscriptions I've gotten from Elf orders. Lol. I have Entertainment Weekly, Better Homes and Gardens and In Style... there was an option for no magazines... I didn't see that and now I'm subscribed to 3... but whatever. I like them and some day I will have the best home and garden! Lol.

Then I also use the Tarte Maricuja Oil. I discovered this in a Tarte holiday set last year. I really liked it and I saw it was on sale for $25 at Ulta during their 21 days of beauty so I snatched it... and it lasted me almost a year. If I were a little more consistent with it, I probably could have used it longer. I have a backup that I have not opened yet. I love this for keeping in moisture. It works well mixing with foundation also, as long as you don't use a setting spray or beauty blender after it works great. It really works and I love it.

And moisturizers... I'm bad with. Lol. And that's like the one thing I really need... but I haven't found a daytime moisturizer that I love. I have the Ponds one, which is a little heavy for daytime... but I do still like it for that. And I have an Elf one that I like because it looks nice under make up. Its almost like a primer. The elf one isn't heavy and I think that might be more for oily skin... but I've been liking it. The packaging is great too... it has a pump! At the bottom of the tube too... so that's just beyond brilliant. The Elf Skincare line has really great packaging... which is something to keep in mind. I think things like Glamglow are ridiculously expensive and a lot of it is just the packaging. It comes in a massive box that says Hello Sexy on it, and then its in this nice glass tube and its like... really. Do I need to feel this gorgeous because of the packaging, or is it because of the product. I was not a fan of the glamglow mask I tried... but I know most people love them... whatever. Personally I feel like this has similarly nice packaging for a low price tag and I'm good with that. Its adorable and affordable. Lol.

And for masks. I really liked the Origins Intensive Overnight Mask. That was my favorite of 2015. I love it for my dry chin. It just works really well. And I just tried the Original skin and I have a review of that up... but it was fantastic at exfoliating, and it left my chin nice and smooth. So I was really happy about that. I feel like that mask will help me a lot in the winter.

I also like the Freeman Masks. They're not as amazing, but they do what they're supposed to do and they do a good job of it. I like the Avacado one the best... but the charcoal one and the glowing grain one are quite good also. I would repurchase any of these. They're super affordable and a great alternative to something like origins.

Another thing I tried this year and used up so its worth a mention... but I don't think its anything amazing... the Biore Charcoal nose strips. I liked these at first, my nose felt smooth, all my blackheads were gone and it was nice... for a few days then the blackheads came back and I'd need another pore strip and it would be annoying. I think toward the end of the time I was using them, I thought that I was needing them sooner and sooner. So... I feel like those are kind of a gimmick. I like just focusing a little more on the nose area with the charcoal scrub or using a charcoal mask on the nose area specifically. Charcoal is very effective at getting black heads away... but pore strips are not that effective... so mehhh.

Alrighty, that is everything! Hope you guys enjoyed it!

Byeee!
-Shannon

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