Tag: skincare

Posted on in beauty

What I Do To Keep My Skin Glowing.

My eight-step, Daytime, Pre-makeup, Skincare Routine.

(A picture of my skincare products by Renee Medina)

Yes, my daily morning skincare routine consists of eight products. It is not necessary to use eight products; realistically, one to three products will suffice (for dry or combination skin). However, (for someone with dry/oily t-zone skin), I find that having a multi-step routine works best.

For reference, I’m not a certified dermatologist; I’m just sharing my routine! Health.com published a medically reviewed article on how to layer your skincare for maximum benefits. These are the steps to follow:

  1. Cleanser
  2. Toner
  3. Spot Treatment
  4. Serum
  5. Retinol
  6. Eye Cream
  7. Moisturizer
  8. Face Oils
  9. Sunscreen

I don’t use retinols or face oils in the morning. I save them for nighttime since oils can make foundation separate. I also avoid spot treatments in the morning unless needed, as many contain benzoyl peroxide, which dries out the skin and can be less effective when layered with moisturizer. So, here’s how I follow the recommended routine with descriptions:

  1. CLEANSER: Bipit Cica Face Wash Foam

This cleanser removes sebum, dirt, and skin cells for clear and healthy skin. I use this almost daily to remove excess oil on my face and to help calm my skin during acne breakouts.

2) TONER: Prettyskin Rice Niacinimide Toner

After cleansing, I apply this toner to my skin to retain moisture and adjust my skin tone. It also gives the appearance of slightly brighter skin after prolonged use.

3) SERUM 1: The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Solution

This product is one of my favorites! I never skip a day without using salicylic acid. I feel as if it creates a barrier under my makeup to prevent clogged pores. It is drying, so I follow up with serums and moisturizers. It also helps with acne!

4) SERUM 2: Radiance Glow And Protect Vitamin C Serum

According to their website, this serum is clinically proven to brighten and even skin in two weeks. It also helps reduce fine lines, wrinkles, and smooths out skin texture. I love this serum! It gives my skin such a nice glow! Definitely a top-tier skincare product!

5) EYE CREAM: Skinfix barrier + Triple Lipid Brightening Eye Cream

I am not a huge fan of eye creams. I feel they don’t do much for the dark circles under my eyes. However, I do like this eye cream for the hydrating and brightening effect. It was the Allure 2024 Best of Beauty Award Winner. I have recently started using this product and have only positive feelings towards it!

6) MOISTURIZER 1: Tosowoong Arbutin 7.0 + TXA 4.0 Cream

Tosowoong’s Arbutin Cream is a glowing moisturizer that gives the appearance of radiant skin. After seeing ads for it on Amazon (with almost 5-star reviews), I decided to try this product myself. Although I don’t have glass skin, this cream gives that appearance after application. It leaves my skin feeling plump! You can also layer this 2-3 times!

7) MOISTURIZER 2: Versed Dew Point Moisturizing Gel-Cream

This moisturizer is light and airy. It has calming green tea and aloe vera for hydration. It doesn’t suffice as a heavy-duty moisturizer, but it is perfect for summer and warmer weather. I apply this on top of a heavier moisturizer for dewy skin.

8) SUNSCREEN: Mixsoon Bean Sunscreen SPF 50

Mixsoon is a viral Korean Skincare brand. So when I ran out of my Innisfree sunscreen, I bought Misxoon’s Bean Sunscreen. This is a light sunscreen texture that gives a glowy appearance and is suitable for all skin types. After layering this over my moisturizers, my skin is tacky and ready for makeup!

(Image of Skincare Products by 588ku on pngtree.com)

I always patch test on my wrist before using skincare on my face, as it might not always be suitable for everyone. Typically, I like to wait at least ten minutes before applying makeup immediately after skincare. I haven’t had any reactions when layering these products, even with sensitive skin!

Most of the products I use are Korean. Korean skincare is excellent, and I love many of their products. They’ve really improved my skin! My skincare routine might seem expensive, but I usually find cleansers, toners, moisturizers, and serums at Marshalls or TJ Maxx. As a former Allure Glam Bag subscriber, I got eye creams and moisturizers for about $25 a month. Amazon is also a good place to find discounted skincare.

Enjoy!

Posted on in beauty

Top Five Makeup Hacks You Didn’t Know About.

(Photo by Amy Shamblen on Unsplash)

Disclaimer: I am not claiming these hacks are my own. Credit goes to the original creators of these hacks!

With that being said, let’s jump right in!

  1. Add loose-setting powder to thin mascara

(I experimented with this hack)

Finding the right mascara can be a struggle, especially if you’re unwilling to splurge on an expensive brand. As a drugstore makeup junkie, I found that adding loose-setting powder to your drugstore mascara can drastically change the consistency to the one that you’re looking for. In particular, L.A. Girl’s Volumatic Mascara’s consistency was a bit too thin for my liking. After I applied the product to my lashes, it took forever to dry and smudged all over my brow bone. After adding setting powder to the wand several times and dipping the wand back into the mascara tube, I noticed the consistency had thickened and there was less smudging. In addition, my lashes looked a wee bit longer and thicker after applying.

As always, take precaution when adding powder to mascara as some loose setting powders contain harsh ingredients such as talc which can cause eye irritation.

(As a side note, I have not gotten any type of reaction to my lashes or eyes when doing this, though this is something that I only do with thin mascara formulas.)

2. Mix your blush with highlighter

This next hack comes from Edward Avila, (whom I’ve been following for a long time!)

If you want to use your favorite powdered blush but want to keep that dewy and glowy makeup look, dip your blush brush into your favorite blush shade and then into your powdered highlighter of choice. For a glowy look, apply the now shimmery blush as you normally would.

With this hack, you can even skip applying highlighter to your cheekbones depending on how much you’ve added to your blush. This hack has only one drawback: your highlighter might absorb the pigment of the blush you’re mixing it with. Nonetheless, this is probably one of my favorite hacks as I love how it leaves my cheeks bright and glowy!

3. Use a highlighter on your waterline

This hack may already have been circulated on social media, but to make my eyes appear brighter and more glassy, I will apply a (powdered) shimmery highlighter or eyeshadow color to my lower-lash waterline. Usually, I reach for a nice gold shade but you can use any colored highlighter (or shimmery eyeshadow) to match your look.

Use a shimmery/glittery shadow sparingly on your waterline, and stay away from chunky shadows with thick pieces of glitter. This could result in eye injury and possibly a trip to the eye doctor.

4. Apply setting spray to your eyeshadow brush to enhance color

In high school, an old friend recommended applying setting spray to my eyeshadow brush. Doing this before dipping the brush into your eyeshadow will make the color appear more prominently on your eyelids and help keep the color in place. I love doing this hack, particularly with shimmery shadows as I feel it makes the shadow appear brighter too.

5. Apply a liquid highlighter over facial lotion to achieve a dewy look

(Another experiment )

My favorite hack for a dewy base probably already went viral, but it’s something I like to do whenever I want a luminous base. All you have to do is just take your routine facial lotion (make sure that there is no tint in it), mix in a few drops (or more) of your favorite liquid highlighter and apply it to your face as you would normally apply your lotion.

You can mix any 2 of your favorite brands together, such as Cetaphil’s moisturizing lotion and J.Cat Beauty’s aura glow highlighter.

This will give your skin a glowy and “wet” look which is great for the summer!

Just make sure not to get any lotion in your eyes!

Lastly, experiment with products!

Have fun with your makeup and feel free to share any hacks that you have!