I’ve been getting so many comments on my skin lately, and it’s pretty much the best. One of my goals for 2019 was to take better care of myself, and that includes skincare! In all honesty, I’m not perfect with my routine. There are nights I go to bed without doing the entire regimen. Some days are harder than others, and there have been times I’ve literally rinsed my face with a wet washcloth and called it good.

But overall, I am really trying my best to take care of my skin. I shared in an instagram post a little bit ago how I’m trying to learn to accept who I am and what my body looks like. And I think that’s true with my skin, too. I was always so embarrassed of my freckles and pale skin. When I was really young, my brother told me that my freckles were because “God pooped through a screen”. So I’ve always had a negative connection with them. But they’re just as much a part of me as my blue eyes and gray hairs.

Dermalogica customized skincare:

I am no skincare expert – let’s just get that out of the way. However, I treated myself to a facial earlier this year and my esthetician was amazing. You guys know I love dermalogica – I’ve been sharing about their products for forever. So when we moved to California and I realized this is where their headquarters was, I knew exactly where to go for my first facial. 

Not in the California area? Or don’t have time to head to your local spa? Dermalogica has this super cool Face Mapping on their website. Just upload your picture with clean, no makeup skin, and they’ll suggest products. I am kind of obsessed with the Face Mapping tool and recommend it to everyone I know. It tells you what they see as skin issues, and then recommend products that will help! 

Full disclosure: 99% of these products are dermalogica. Why? Because all of dermalogica’s products are gluten free, vegan, paraben free, cruelty free and contain no artificial fragrances and colors. And when the esthetician set me up with my customized skin care routine plan, she obviously recommended products she used and knew would work for me. My skincare concerns: dull, uneven tone, redness, dark circles, and dehydrated skin. And whatever she recommended and used on me, we made sure was pregnancy safe. (Make sure to check with your OB / midwife / doctor if you have any questions / concerns.)

My pregnancy safe (+ cruelty free) skincare routine:

Morning skincare:

1: Special Cleansing Gel. This is like heaven for my combination skin. It’s soap free, so great for dry and oily skin alike. Take a pea amount and rub it together in hands to form a foam. Then wash face!

2: Antioxidant Hydramist. Mist all over to firm and hydrate skin. The rose and clove combo in this makes for a really wonderful scent!

3: Redness Relief Essence. A brand new product I’ve only been using for about 2 weeks, but I’m already obsessed. It’s a lightweight toner, so it can be used after toner, in place of toner, or right before your moisturizer! Aloe and oatmeal both hydrate and calm skin. It immediately lessens any redness I have, and the more I use it, the less redness I have overall! 

If I remember, I use my C-12 Pure Bright Serum before I moisturize. More on that below!

4: Stress Positive Eye Lift. Thanks to pregnancy insomnia and kiddos that hate sleep, this is my under eye pick me up. The applicator is magical and helps cool while lifting, depuffing, and brightening under eyes. I apply a generous amount after my serum, brush my teeth, and then you can either towel off or massage the excess cream into skin.

5: Dynamic Skin Recovery. With SPF 50, this is a powerhouse moisturizer. Hydrating, age fighter, and skin protectant all in one!

6: If I’m going to be wearing makeup that day, I use Skin Perfect Primer before my tinted moisturizer. It has SPF 30, which is really important in this California weather! There is also crushed pearl powder, which gives a really beautiful iridescent glow. On no makeup days, I’ll still use the Skin Perfect Primer if I’m wanting a little something extra! It helps even my skin tone and lessen the appearance of any acne that pops up.

Shop my morning skincare routine here:

Evening skincare:

1: If I’ve worn makeup that day, I start with Precleanse. Use this cleansing face oil with dry hands, on dry skin to melt away the day. This stuff takes off makeup like no ones business! After massaging into your skin, add water to foam up and rinse away with no oily residue! Otherwise I go straight to Special Cleansing Gel.

Special Cleansing Gel.

2: Daily Microfoliant + Daily Superfoliant. If I’ve worn makeup, I use the Superfoliant, but if I went bare faced, I use the Microfoliant. For either, empty a small amount onto hands and mix with water to form a paste. Then gently exfoliate skin. These brighten and help combat the crazy air pollution. 

Which is best for you? -> Daily Microfoliant is gentle for all skin types and brightens the skin while preventing breakouts. It has Phytic Acid and Salicylic Acid. Daily Superfoliant is for normal to aging skin. It detoxes the pores with charcoal, 3 types of enzymes, Lactic Acid and Manic acid. It is an anti-pollution treatment! Both can be used everyday, however they are very different! 

*1-3x a week* Charcoal Rescue Mask. A few times a week, I replace the Micro / Superfoliant with the Charcoal Rescue Mask. This all in one face mask detoxifies, brightens, and invigorates normal to oily skin! Addresses aging, breakouts and dullness all at once.

3: Antioxidant Hydramist.

4: Redness Relief Essence. 

5: Bio Lumin C Serum. This stuff is like magic in a bottle! Lactic Acid, Chia seed oil and vitamin C help to brighten, hydrate, nourish and firm, and it majorly combats fine lines and wrinkles. Full disclosure: I lost mine a few weeks ago, so I’ve been replacing this step with my C-12 Pure Bright Serum. C-12 is amazing for hyper pigmentation!

6: Skin Smoothing Cream. I use this as my medium weight night time cream. It has put the kibosh on my dry patches! If you struggle with dry skin at all, you NEED this. Every other night I add one drop of my Isle of Paradise Self Tanning Drops and mix them together before applying to my face. 

7: Sound Sleep Cocoon. My magical nighttime skin care secret! It has lavender and patchouli, so it promotes a good night’s sleep and I swear on nights I remember to use this I feel like I wake up looking freaking amazing, ha. Right before bed, I apply to my face and then hit the sack. 

Shop my night time skin care routine here:

That’s it! Let me know if you have any questions. I know it’s not a super simple routine, but in all it only takes about 5 – 10 minutes. I’ve come to find that I enjoy having a more detailed routine – it helps me decompress at night. And in the morning, it feels like I am way more motivated to actually get ready and take on the day when I’ve spent the time to do each step.