I often hear from my friends things like 'I'm too lazy to apply cream', 'I always forget to use lotion' or stuff like 'I just use any foundation'... Wrong, wrong and wrong. We are young but that doesn't mean our face and skin can endure everything and just forget. From sunburns to dry skin and bad makeup, everything we do or don't do for our skin will later come out as wrinkles or big pores. My Mum has great genes and people always say she looks 10 years younger- but her trick isn't botox, but the fact that she has taken care of her skin all her life and doesn't go to sleep without putting on creams and serums. She's always been reminding me to be persistent and take care of my skin.

 Last couple of months I've been taking more care than ever to continue my regime and there really is a difference. So I'll be sharing a bit of what I've gathered through years and I hope it'll help some. 

I hit puberty really early and had problems ever since. It was never acne, but there was always constant redness and zits coming out at most terrible times. My main problem was that everyone was assuring me it was my oily skin that was the problem and I was treating it for years (literally 4 years), but it turned out it was my puberty hormones that were guilty, and my skin was actually dry-  I was only making it worse by clogging up my pores with bad creams. 

Unfortunately, it has taken me four years to come up with a right skin regime.

I'd like to start from the beginning, which, for me, is from the inside- food and metabolism.

There are numerous articles online with what to and not to eat if you want clear skin. The truth is, there is no rule. Sure, choccolate can induce zits, but a zit is just bacteria in a clogged pore and you can't blame choccolate for putting a bacteria on your face.

But certain foods can induce face bloating and irritation (redness)- in my case it's dairy products and oily food. Whenever I drink milk I get redness from my nose to cheeks; it's because I have a slight irritation towards dairy, so slight it's not harmless but still causes these kind of problems. You can have mild allergies towards food without even knowing it. And like I said, there is no rule because everyone has different types of metabolisms so they react in all different ways.

There is one golden rule and it's hydration- drinking at least a bottle a water a day keeps the zits away and I've proved it myself.

Second is the most important- cleaning makeup and washing your face right.

I bet 90% of face problems come from not fully cleaning your face. You have a great foundation and even powder on top, it covers everything and you couldn't be more satisfied- the more coverage the more work there is to get it off. Good coverage foundations have really small particles that go even further on and in your face than you've put it- after washing up your face I believe it's a must to rub on some lotion and go even further- like the beginning of the hairline, neck, etc. Soap is great but it dries the face- a dry face starts foliating which leads to clogged pores. Lotions tend to hydrate while also extra cleaning, so it's good to have a hydrating lotion close.
I use Mia Clarisonic every few days like an exfoliating solution, but I don't recommend daily use because the skin starts to get too thin. Exfoliate from time to time to get rid of the dead cells.

For getting makeup off I use Lush Kalamazdo soap- it smells great but it's also good for dry skin. I'm not usually a fan of their cosmetics, but this is from a new line that doesn't dry the skin and works on making it soft.

As for the lotion, I'm currently using Lancome but any can do as long as it says alcohol free.

Don't forget the eyes too- heavy eye-makeup removers can make allergies and cause eyelashes to fallout, so stick to micellar water- I use Biotherm or Nivea.

Third is what you do after cleaning. The face is dry and a bit 'tortured' so you can't leave it like that or you'll have redness. 
The deal with creams is so messed up- every skin type has its own best solution. I've tried literally dozens of serums, creams, tonics... When I find something good, it's usually good for some time but then it's like my face gets enough and starts reacting so I gotta find something else. For some time now I've been using Biotherm Skin-best serum and cream.

 It's for normal skin and really concentrated, but it does the magic. Another thing most girls forget is putting something in the morning before makeup. I forget it most of the times, but that makes 
a) makeup last longer and 
b) skin smoother. 
If my skin gets too irritated from all the products, I give it a day free of products, only a simple mask for a bit of recovery. Try with some clay and fruit masks- I recommend Shiseido clay mask.

Last would be proper makeup. That's a whole other story. I remember when I was 15 and buying foundation and the woman at Clinic sold me foundation I later found out was for wrinkled skin. Clerks at the cosmetic departments are usually not the smartest to listen to. I had a lot of trouble finding the right type of foundation- lasts long, doesn't look to fake, right tone, not heavy... And the conclusion was that our face has two separate periods- Winter and Summer. At Winter (along with the fact I'm marble pale) my face needs more foundation than on Summer. I don't mean more as in 'make it 3 layers', but as finding a more durable, concentrated product. We're out in school or work all day and we go to and fro, so you get my point. I use YSL Youth Liberator- has golden particles so it gives life to my pale complex. A dash of MAC pressed powder and good to go.

As for Summer, try going light. I used to mix L'Occitane BB cream with Illamasqua concentrated foundation- the BB cream is dark and the foundation is pale with great coverage- so you could get a matched tone and it's long lasting. But honestly I go without foundation on Summer (and nobody died).
I was sick sometime ago and due to penicillin my face got fully cleared, so I tried Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua and would recommend to girls that need just light coverage- it's so light your forget you have it on, but it stays the whole day. As soon as my redness returned unfortunately I had to get back to higher coverage foundations.

Also a big big big advice- buy a good foundation brush. Might seem like more work around your face, but really it's not and it's an investment. When using fingers you get a lot of foundation in your skin on hands, fingers etc and later wash it away- so you just throw away a lot of it. Secondly, there's less chance of bringing bacteria to your face via hands (as long as you keep the brush clean). For pressed powder I use BOSS brush (but any can do), but for liquid foundation I suggest going for brushes that have microfiber hair. Trick with that is that it doesn't suck foundation inside but rather leaves it on the edges of the brush and it doesn't bring on bacteria. I swear in Illamasqua brushes- I use the concealer one for the whole face. They have bigger ones but I like the small one because I can get the foundation in every corner.

So here's all my wisdom about skincare. It feels like writing an essay haha but I'll have to sum up in 5 golden rules:

1. A bottle of water a day keeps the acne away

2. Micellar water - soap - tonic - cream; leave one out and the others don't count any more

3. Exfoliate twice a week but always put a creamy mask afterwards

4. Use the right foundation and always keep it light- avoid powder if possible

5. Never use too many products- too much is never good

Be nice to your skin- you only get one and it's on your face so everybody sees it. 

In the next post I'll bring out the foundation again but I'll deal with makeup and some looks too, so keep up xx