Skin Care Routine

So as I mentioned in another post (which can be found here), I'm obsessive about my skin. When it's clear, I'm happy...and when it's not...well...that's grounds for a complete and utter MELTDOWN. Yes, it's juvenile to sit on your floor and cry because of the occasional rouge blemish on your face, but I've done it. Actually, I probably did it last week some time. Either way, we all have our thing that makes us insecure. But sadly for me and my skin, I'm not one of those people who has what you'd call...umm...self control? Yeah, self control. I pick, prod and puncture every blemish on my face. Always. Which, as any woman anywhere (or any teenager going through puberty) can tell you, is a big, giant NO-NO! You're just supposed to sit there and let it heal, even when it's looking at you in the mirror begging to be popped. Yeah, okay. If you're someone who can do that, I applaud you. I have "okay" skin, in my opinion. Not horrible, not great, but definitely not my friend about 85% of the time. It's oily sometimes, dry others, acne prone, sensitive to everything including sun, medications, hormones, what day of the week it is, the phases of the moon and so on. You get the idea. But I think I may have found a routine that works for me. I repeat: A ROUTINE THAT WORKS FOR ME. If you try this out and love it, hooray! But, if not, you may just have to figure out how your skin works; what it likes and what it hates. It's a process, ladies and gents. And my routine has taken a while to perfect.

Products I Use Currently
♥︎Proactiv + Skin Smoothing Exfoliator
♥︎Proactiv + Pore Targeting Treatment
♥︎Proactiv + Complexion Perfecting Hydrator
♥︎Glamglow Supermud Clearing Treatment
♥︎Mario Badescu Drying Lotion
♥︎Aquaphor
♥︎Paula's Choice Resist Ultra-Light Super Antioxidant Concentrate Serum
♥︎Clarisonic Mia 2
♥︎Proactiv + Eye Brightening Serum
♥︎Yes To Cucumbers Hypoallergenic Facial Towelettes

The Process
1. I take off all my makeup (including eye makeup) with a facial towelette to make sure I have everything off of my face before I wash it.

2. I grab my Clarisonic, wet it with some warm water, apply a small dollop of Exfoliating Cleanser to the brush and turn it on. Since the Mia 2 has a "T-Timer" function (small pulses that let you know when to move the brush to a new area), I spend 20 seconds on my forehead, 20 seconds on my nose and chin, and 10 seconds each for my right and left cheeks. One minute total face washing time is all you need.

3. I rinse my face with warm water and then splash it with cool (not cold) water and PAT (not rub!) it dry with a clean towel.

4. Now if I'm going to do a face mask (in this case, my Glamglow), I apply it at this time onto my clean face before putting any other products on. I let it sit for the full 20 minutes and rinse it off with a wet washcloth. I usually do this about 2-3 times a week.

5. After that, I apply my Paula's Choice serum to my clean face. I usually like to let it sink into my skin before adding more product. Once it's good and absorbed, I put my Pore Targeting Treatment on, let that sink in, and then the Complexion Perfecting Hydrator.

6. I then pat a little bit of Eye Brightening Serum under and around my eyes with my ring finger while my moisturizer dries.

7. I get super duper painful chapped lips all the time when I use random chap-stick brands, so I stick to Aquaphor. I put some of this on my lips every night before I hit the hay.

8. My last step is to take care of any blemishes that may have popped up. I use the Mario Badescu Drying Lotion and this stuff is a MIRACLE PRODUCT! I absolutely love it. I just dip a Q-Tip into the bottle all the way down to the pink lotion at the bottom and pull straight up slowly. I apply a little dab of this to blemishes on my face (no matter what stage of horrid development they're in) and it clears them right up.

So, What's Worth Buying And What's Not?
Not everything I use on my skin is an amazing, ground breaking product. I'll be honest about that. But there are a few things I use that I know work extraordinarily well, and I think that anyone would benefit from having them.

✘Proactiv + // This is a good product, but when my skin was badly reacting to some medication I was on, it didn't clear everything up quickly or even keep it gone. It's kept my breakouts at bay now that I've switched medications, but it is a bit pricey and it doesn't always work wonders in extreme situations like it suggests. Just because you use Proactiv products doesn't mean all your blemishes will be gone forever. It's still a great face wash, but not worth the price tag if you can't afford it. There are many other great facial cleansers out there with less medicine and a lower price.
+Alternative! Kiehl's Blue Herbal Gel Cleanser, Kiehl's Blue Herbal Moisturizer, Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment With Avocado & Kiehl's Calendula Herbal Extract Alcohol Free Toner. I'm a huge fan of Kiehl's products and have them stashed away in my bathroom drawers as back-ups!

♥︎Glamglow Supermud Clearing Treatment // This stuff is amazing! It's expensive, but it's amazing! When you put it on, you begin to see little tiny black dots all over your face as it dries. Those are blackheads being purged from your skin and it's awesome (does anybody else get excited when they take off a nose strip and see all the crap that was in their face?). I use this weekly and have definitely noticed a difference in my skin texture & clarity.
+Alternative! Everyone knows about Bioré Deep Cleansing Pore Strips by now, and if you don't, I don't know where you've been for the last 10 years. These things are great in a pinch and work pretty well to get the surface dirt out of your pores.

♥︎Mario Badescu Drying Lotion // I was walking through Ulta with my Mom and she's actually the one who picked up this product for me saying "I used to use this on my skin a long time ago and it works great!" I'm inclined to believe a woman who's had her own share of skin problems and who looks 10 years younger than she actually is. Wouldn't you? This product is great, and pretty moderately priced. I don't know what I'd do without it now!

♥︎Aquaphor // Cheap and easy, people. You can find this stuff at Wal-Mart (I have a big tub of it that I bought there) and it works. Like I said before, I get REALLY chapped lips, and they react badly to random chap-sticks. Aquaphor can fix blistered lips in a day or so. This stuff doesn't have a scent really, and goes under and over lipsticks and lip stains beautifully. It contains Eucerin as well, which helps with the healing process. It keeps your lips soft and supple and I have this stuff wherever I go.

✘Paula's Choice Resist Ultra-Light Super Antioxidant Concentrate Serum // This is actually something that I got in February's Birchbox (which you can read about here) and to be honest, I just like the way it makes my skin feel super hydrated. It's not something I even own the full size of, and when I run out, I'm not going to feel compelled to go and buy another one. It's a nice little something to use while I have it, but definitely not a staple. 

♥︎Clarisonic Mia 2 // I love my Clarisonic! I have noticed a definite difference in my skin since I started using it. I use the sensitive brush head for mine which is what comes with it when you purchase one. It's diminished some of the fine lines on my forehead as well as cut down on blemishes (because it cleans so deeply), and has altogether made my skin appear brighter, fresher and younger. My face feels very soft and makeup-free when I'm done using it, and for someone who's neurotic about still having makeup residue on her face even after washing, this calms those fears. I totally recommend getting your hands on one of these babies!
+Alternative! Now I know that nothing can really compare to a Clarisonic, but washing your face with a textured hand mitt can definitely help you get deeper into pores. The Magic Mitt from Jane Iredale is a great pick, but there are plenty of other textured mitts available for washing your face.

♥︎Yes To Cucumbers Hypoallergenic Facial Towelettes // Once again, cheap and easy. These can also be found at your local Wal-Mart. I love these because they're hypoallergenic and they don't break me out, dry me out, nothing. They simply do what they are designed to do; take off my makeup. And with a price that's so reasonable, why wouldn't you pick some up?

Whew! That turned out to be a bit longer than I had anticipated, but there's my entire skincare routine. Pretty simple, eh? I'll do a post in a few days/weeks about how I remedy an already-messed-with blemish, since it's something I do from time to time...ugh. Tell me what you all use on your skin, and any recommendations for good products!