Squeeky Clean: Cleansers

I love doing skincare posts for you guys because, quite frankly, I'm obsessed with what skincare can do not only to keep your skin where it should be, but how you can use it to prep for whatever makeup look you're going for!

Let's say you want something more long lasting and matte for the evening...choose your skincare based around that look (maybe using a mattifying hydrator as your moisturizer, or an oil control primer).  Glow like J-Lo more up your alley?  Grab some radiance serums and a lightweight face oil to press into your skin.

I spend the most amount of time on skin when I'm doing looks not only for myself, but for clients as well.  If this is something you're not used to or have any questions about, let me know and I can lead you in the right direction :)

Now, I'm sure you know by now that if you're wearing makeup all day, please, PLEASE, I BEG YOU...take it off at the end of the night.  I will say here: I don't love wipes as a primary method of removal (try taking a cotton round with some cleanser over your face after you use a wipe...you'll see what I mean...) but if it's late and you simply can't make it to the sink, it will work in a pinch.

I'm a huge fan of the double cleanse, myself.  I find that it is quick, effective, and keeps my skin in tip-top shape.  But Ashleigh, what's a double cleanse???  Quite simply, cleansing twice!  My routine goes something like this:

                                        

*  Use either a cleansing water (also known as a micellar water in some circles) or a cleansing oil to really break up and remove the bulk of the makeup (oils are fun because it's like finger painting as your mascara and liner starts melting...I never said I wasn't a fan of the panda look, as long as I can get it off quickly!  Haha!)

     Shown Above:  Boscia Makeup BreakUp Cleansing Oil

*  Then I'll grab either a creamy or a foamy cleanser that has a makeup removing property and my Clarisonic Aria and get to exfoliating and really cleansing the grime and makeup off.  I like doing this second because I don't get the bulk of the makeup on the Clarisonic bush and have to deep clean it all the time.

     Shown Above:  First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser, Sephora Collection Radiance Cleansing Foam

*   A couple times a week I will forgo cleansing with my Clarisonic and manually wash with the second cleanser so that I can do some kind of a manual exfoliation or a peel.  I like the Peter Thomas Roth Pumpkin Enzyme peel in the photo because I can use it both as an exfoliator and a mask.  It has since been repackaged so don't be surprised if you don't find it in a tube!

*  The odd man out is my Jack Black Post Shave Cooling Gel.  I don't mention this a ton, but I do have hirsutism that stems from a PCOS diagnosis and I have facial hair I need to get rid of every day.  Sucks, but what can you do, right?  So I use this to keep my skin from freaking out and turning red on me...LOVE IT.

                                                

So then this is the result of some epic cleansing (and then layered off with skincare that is appropriate to my dry skin type)

What's your favorite cleanser?  Skincare Item?  Tell me!!!

Disclosure:

In addition to the products I purchase, I receive a lot of product as GRATIS through my job.  I know I say this all the time, but it cannot be repeated enough in a social media dominated world -- It is up to me (and me alone) to feature what I feel are good products that I can stand behind 100%.  I always take the utmost care as I write my posts to give you, the reader, the best information that I can about my experiences.  If I love a product, I'll say so.  If I hate the product, I'll tell you why.  It's equal opportunity on my blog in all aspects.  I am in NO WAY a spokesperson for my job when writing on this blog.  No company, including the one I work for, has any influence on what I say or what I feature on the blog.

Summer Skin Edit: What I Love

Oh hello, Golden Gate Bridge!

HELLO HELLO!  I figured I'd try to not let a long time go before I wrote another blog.  I'm awful at making time for myself much less anything else that isn't either work or theater.  However, you can see in the photo above that when I travel FOR work, I will make some time to take in the sights!  

I was fortunate enough this past week to be in San Francisco for work and since my best friend Heather lives just about a half hour outside the city proper, she generally plays tour guide for me when I'm there. (Bonus!  work fun AND bff time!)

Anyways, that's not really the point of the post, so let's just get right into the skincare, shall we? 

I begin by saying (as always) that I have an extremely dry skin type.  In the summer I tend to lean a little more normal but by no means do I have enough oil to be considered combination.  So I tend to stay with my creamy formulas, but they tend to be either oil-free or still hyper-hydrating.

In the photo above (my very messy bag o' skincare) you'll not see a cleanser because it's in the bathroom...but it's the Sephora Collection Supreme Cleansing Oil (which is sadly, out of stock right now!)  It gets my skin super clean (especially when used in tandem with my Clarisonic Aria!) and I absolutely love using oil cleansers!  I'll have to do a specific post on them soon!

Then you'll see the Josie Maran Argan Milk - this is one of those hyper-hydrating products that I absolutely love especially in the summer months.  It gives me all the hydration of argan oil, but without the heavy feeling -- I'm actually not a lover for the pure argan oil on my face...I much prefer the texture of Argan Light if I use Josie's...but then again, I'm a total Fresh Seaberry convert (see my post here!)

I mix a few drops of that Seaberry oil (or any oil really...in my bag is a trial version of the Kate Somerville Dilo oil...more on that later once I've made up my mind about it) into the Ole Henriksen Sheer Transformation moisturizer.  This is a must-have product for me.  I love the lightweight whipped texture, and it has licorice and pea extract for brightening!  This container is probably the third full size jar I've gone through in the past three or four years so I'm always trying new things, but eventually I get back to this one.

I also am trying out a trial of the Kate Somerville Age Arrest eye cream.  I like the dense texture that immediately sinks into the eye area...and it leaves my skin very velvety feeling which I adore!

There are a few other things you're seeing in the bag and they're more like my ancillary products...not necessary but nice to have every once in a while...Peter Thomas Roth Lashes to Die for serum (LOVE!), Amore Pacific enzyme peel scrub, GlamGlow Supermud trial, Murad Acne Spot Fast Fix, Clinique healing gel, and the Peter Thomas Roth 40% peel.

If you have any questions or would like anything more in-depth, leave a comment!

Some products shown in this blog post were received as gratis from my job.  This does not influence my thoughts or opinions on any of the products I choose to show on my blog.  I am not sponsored by any of the companies featured in this blog post - I do not make any commission by including links, nor am I blogging on behalf of my employer.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Autumn Edit: Current Skincare Routine

I feel like I keep updating my skincare routine.  If I'm completely honest about it though I am a proud product junkie so I love using things up to try more! (and believe me, if you could see my bags of skincare I have waiting to be used, you'd understand why I'm so impatient!)

My big thing right now is minimizing the amount of products I actually have opened at any one given time.  I tend to get super excited about the next thing I want to try and (admittedly) sometimes I'll give in to the temptation and open it while I'm still trying to use up my current products.

All that aside - here's what I'm using currently as we transition into winter!  I've got a photo of the current skin creams and I'll list the rest :)

Cleanser (not pictured):  Still using my ever trusty Boscia Makeup Break-Up oil cleanser

Toner (not pictured):  Sephora Collection Instant Refreshing Toner

Serum:  Rexaline Hydra-Force Concentrated Hyper Hydrating Anti-Wrinkle Serum*

Eye Cream:  Rexaline Hydra EyeZone Hyper Hydrating Anti-Wrinkle Smoothing Eye Contour Cream*

Day Cream:  Beyond Belief Vita-C Nourish & Diminish Day Cream

Night Cream:  Lancome Primordiale Night Skin Recharge Cream*

Exfoliation:  I use multiple types of exfoliation and my skin can handle it.  Know your skin and what it likes when you exfoliate...and please don't over do it!

• Day:  F.A.B. Daily Radiance Pads
• Evening:  Philosophy Miracle Worker Pads
• Manual: Peter Thomas Roth Peel & Reveal Dermal Resurfacer OR Philosophy Microdelivery Peel (2-step)
• Chemical: Dr. Denis Gross Alpha-Beta Daily Peel Pads

* - Product has been discontinued

I'm so sorry to have so many discontinued products in my line up right now - especially for people who come to my blog looking for dry skin fixes (I will be writing a post on some of my favorite *not discontinued* hydrating products soon!)

In regards to the Rexaline products - Sephora manufactured them - and now they have their own collections of skincare dedicated to your specific concerns...which is why you won't find Rexaline on the shelves anymore!  Don't pay exorbitant prices for it online...it was replaced by the Sephora Collection Skincare which has many of the same ingredients and gives many of the same benefits!  Rexaline worked because of high doses of hyaluronic acid to hydrate - and the new Sephora Collection Skincare has Hydrosenn+ (a plant derived version of said acid)

Boscia Makeup Break-Up has been on my favorites list for going on a year.  I was a little wary of oil cleansers at the beginning (yes, even with my dry skin!) because I completely despise any greasy feeling.  However, it goes on creamy when massaged into dry skin (it doesn't feel greasy to me!) and turns into a lovely milk texture once you add water to it.  And it rinses completely clean!  It takes off everything from dry lash glue to waterproof mascara - all around it's a winner!

Sephora Collection Instant Refreshing Toner was a random purchase for me.  I don't think everyone needs a toner, and certainly no one needs an alcohol based toner!  I basically use toner to pick up whatever my cleanser missed - nothing more and nothing less.  I haven't yet joined the ranks of the Clarisonic users so until that happens, I will be happy to use this as a final sweep.

Rexaline Hydra-Force Serum has been a staple of mine since last winter.  I have really dry skin and for some reason last year it got a little out of hand and all of a sudden I had chapped and cracking skin ON MY FACE.  Painful doesn't even begin to describe it...but this serum helped my skin so much that I bought a bottle of serum, and then a kit that had the serum and a moisturizer when it went on sale (as it was being discontinued for the Sephora Collection Skincare).

Rexaline Hydra-EyeZone Eye Cream again is in my line up because of it's intense hydration.  It's an all around eye cream that packs a punch with hydration.  My skin eats it up!

Beyond Belief Vita-C Day Cream is something of an accidental discovery.  When Em was visiting over the summer we went to Sally Beauty Supply and the deluxe size samples were on 99c. offer at the register.  So being the junkie I am and not being tied to any one brand/company/etc. I decided I wanted to try one.  Am I glad I did!  It's an anti-aging day cream and because of the vitamin C it's a BLT (Brighten, Lighten, Tighten).  It's not too thick and it keeps my skin nicely hydrated throughout the day.   I can't wait to get a full size!!

Lancome Primordiale Night Cream - I can't say it enough...my skin...LOVES Lancome and for the life of me I can't figure out why.  This night cream is supposed to retexturize your skin as well as kick start your cell renewal over night and contains Biotin which is a water-soluble B-vitamin (B7 specifically...which is vitamin H).  My skin never feels greasy and it's so soft every morning when I wake up.  LANCOME WHY YOU DISCONTINUE GOOD STUFF (Collaser-5x?  Remember that? I LOVED THAT!)

My exfoliation is a long list.  Basically my skin is so dry I can exfoliate it to death and it doesn't hurt it.  Granted I still will only exfoliate up to 3 times a week (unless it's the dead of winter and sometimes I'll do 4x)...but in a nutshell here's what I like about these exfoliators:

• F.A.B. Daily Radiance Pads - Lactic and Glycolic acid gently exfoliates chemically.  Safe and gentle enough to use every day and even good for people with "angry" skin (aka skin that gets red very easily)
• Philosophy Miracle Worker Pads - high performance retinoids (HPR) boost surface cell turnover rate (which slows in your 20's from 30 days to 60 days...did you know that?) and the best part is...no irritation like you would get with a traditional retinol!
• PTR Peel & Reveal Dermal Resurfacer is a bead based manual exfoliator.  It peels with alpha hydroxy acids, exfoliates with pumpkin enzyme, and polishes with aluminum oxide crystals.  Leaves skin silky smooth AND it smells like pumpkin pie. 
• Philosophy Dual Phase MicroDelivery Peel - polishes skin with vitamin C/peptide crystals and a lactic/salicylic activating gel that warms on top of the polishing beads.
• Dr. Denis Gross Alpha Beta Peel Pads - this is quite possibly my favorite exfoliator on the face of the planet.  I'll give you a moment to process that.  ................. I LOVE THESE THINGS!  I'll have to owe you a legit post on them...but the short story is:  travel friendly packettes, no irritation, great for all kinds of skin concerns (helps complexion issues, balances oil production, tones skin, boosts radiance!) and just all around amazing.  Non irritating and great for use every day!

What have you been using lately that you are in love with for your skin type?


Some of the products contained in this post were obtained through my job and some were purchased by myself.  Any and all opinions are fairly based on my own experiences with the products and no one else has any bearing on what I say on my blog.