Lotions and potions...

Lancôme & Clinique

Welcome back! I truly hope you enjoyed my first blog post, and that you've been glorious and golden ever since. My second blog post is going to be all about my skin care routine in as much detail as I can give. Enjoy! 

I am a huge Lancôme fan. I try every product and use them religiously which is why it makes up 100% of my skin care routine on a normal day. Usually, my skin is combination which means I have oily parts and dry parts or that they bounce between the both. When my skin isn't dry it's super oily and make up slides completely off my face and I also develop blemishes - this is when I bring out the big guns, my 'Clinique blemish solutions' range to help get back to normal.  

When my skin is dry: 

To begin with, I'll remove my make up with a face wipe but leave my eyes alone. I'm really not bothered which, I tend to buy baby wipes as they're cheaper and I find they work just as well on my skin been as I cleanse anyway but I prefer simple baby wipes as they're a lot less rough and have more moisture than some other brands. Then, I'll use either a small cotton pad or a baby wipe and put on a few drops of my Lancôme Bifacil eye make up remover as this stuff literally melts makeup. Either works well, but sometimes my eyes are super sensitive and I find using it on a baby wipe is a lot gentler on my eyes. 

Then I'll use the foaming cleanser "Creme mousse confort" by rubbing a small amount on to wet skin and running around until it's all foamy (can you tell I'm not a professional?!). Pat my skin dry, then apply Lancôme "tonique confort" toner and allow it to dry before applying my moisturiser. The moisturiser I use is Lancôme "Hydra Zen" for normal skin. I use this rather than dry skin because I don't want to put too much moisture into my skin because it's not overly dry, just in parts and it helps to balance out my skin. I don't use this around my eyes - I did before and cried for about 30 minutes from the stinging! For my eye area I use "Hydra Zen" eye cream and use my ring finger to gently pat this below and above my eye (underneath eyebrow) but don't get too close to your eye with this either - the skin by your eyes is really thin so the product spreads around. I then let this all dry, and then go ahead to apply my primer/garnier lotion in my last post. At night, I do the same routine but I apply Lancôme "hydra zen neurocalm night cream". I tend to use the dry skin products even though I have combination skin because my skin is very very sensitive and they're more gentle. 

When my skin is super oily: 

When my skin is super oily it will usually last around a week but it's really manageable with the right products. I find that my skin gets oily and I'll develop blemishes when I'm run down or not well, but I very very rarely get spots. I have 3 products I live by during this time as I don't like applying too many products, I like to keep it simple and fresh to help with the oiliness. 

Clinique "anti blemish solutions" is my go-to range. I bought a mini set of all 3 products and they're great sizes considering I don't have to use them too much and it was around £25 which is a great price! I use the same products as above to remove my eye make up and a baby wipe to cleanse before hand. I then use Clinique "anti blemish foaming wash" and pat my skin dry. Then apply Clinique "anti blemish clarifying lotion" to my skin using a cotton pad. Once dry, I apply the Clinique "all over clearing treatment" which is the moisturiser in the set. After using all 3 my skin feels so fresh and clean and stays this way until I cleanse again at night time. I try not to wear makeup during this time to reduce the amount of products going onto my skin. It usually goes back to normal after a few days and my blemishes disappear so quickly after using this, but it can tend to really dry your skin out in some places so you have to be careful. 

Extra tips: 

When my skin is its normal self, I use "Lancôme exfoliance clarte" twice a week after my face wash to keep my skin exfoliated and remove dead cells. It really keeps my skin looking fresh! Also, depending how dry my skin is I will use "Lancôme hydra intense mask" to pump the moisture back into my skin, usually once or twice a week. The mask has to be left on for a few minutes and then wipe off the excess with a cotton pad, however, my skin usually sucks it all in before I get the chance! My skin glows after using the gel mask. 

When I have blemishes I still stick to the Clinique range. I'll use the Clinique "Anti blemish clinical clearing gel" and apply a dab to wherever it's required before I apply my moisturiser, then let it dry and apply the moisturiser. I'll also use the Clinique "oil control clearing mask" for an all over treatment to keep the oils at bay. 

When my skin is good it's perfect, when it's bad it can be very very bad. I use all Lancôme skin care and make up usually as I love their products and the way they make my skin feel, but I choose to use Clinique when my skin is oily because I personally think that Lancôme doesn't do anything powerful enough to help oily skin as I find all products, even the ones for combination skin are very moisture rich, but that's just me! I do have a range of Lancôme skin care products that I use rarely if i have no Clinique available that are more suited to oily skin, but these rarely come out. 

Just for the record- I don't switch and swap every week as that's really bad for your skin to pump moisture in and then wanting it stripped out. It's every few months I use the Clinique, as said when I get unwell or run down because it gets super oily. Usually, I stick with the Lancôme products. As said in my last post I'm no expert, I've just been using these products for years and I know they work for my skin.

*shoutout to my local Lancôme lady for always hooking me up!*

Any questions on my routine, or have anything you'd like to know/want advice?

P.s. In the image below the eye cream and night cream are tester sizes- I don't like opening my big ones until I've used up little ones!:)

Lots of love! X