Skincare Revival

Now that I have more time (so much..!!) on my hands, I have been spending more time on skincare. For the past three years, I had been only doing the minimal, i.e. cleanse, tone, moisturise, sunblock, with a few essences, pore minimiser etc thrown in. I did buy masks but hardly used them (busy... and also lazy la). Due to limited finances, I was mostly using cheaper brands found in Watsons. And it was really anyhow buy - I did not bother to read magazines as I knew I would not be able to buy most of the products recommended. So I just chose whichever was on offer :p All in all, I was just on 'auto-pilot' without thinking much about the care of my complexion.

Recently, partly because I have stopped reading parenting books, and probably also because I have been spending more time chatting with a group of girlfriends, I started paying more attention to skincare again. Now, I can't complain I have no time for masks etc! Have been spending the afternoons googling on this topic during the boys' nap and I have learnt a lot! The best part is, it's not just about buying expensive products, there are many things that I can DIY at home, and many things which are just a matter of inculcating good habits. So what are the new things I have incorporated into my face & body care?

1. Started on a new brand of skincare products and am now committed to sticking to the range, instead of hapzardly combining products from different brands. I am now using Laneige after my friends recommended its award-winning bestseller Water Sleeping Pack. Actually, most of the other items are not award-winning or especially recommended or anything. But I think it's easier on my brain to just focus on one brand - hopefully the products complement one another. In addition, I have realised it's also easier on the pocket cos I will not be as tempted to buy a product from another brand (that eliminates A LOT!). It's also good to collect points which can be used to redeem products. Fortunately, it is not too expensive a brand.

[read this for more info about mixing & matching skincare products]

2. Using oil! Yes you read it right, I am putting more oil on my oily face! Happened to come across this skincare method online, and a girlfriend also mentioned that the skin produces more oil because it is actually dehydrated. In that case, what better moisturiser than an oil?? So now I apply oil both on my face and my body (different types of oil, but the oils can be used on both. Just that I don't dare to apply cheap oil (Palmer) on my face and I don't want to waste expensive oil (Clarins) on my body). It's too early to tell whether the results are good, but I tell myself even if it doesn't solve my current problems of big pores and oily complexion, it is surely good for the future, i.e. prevention of wrinkles!

[read this on how to prevent oil stains on bedsheet]

3. DIY facial masks and body treatments. Since I have a lot of time but little money, this is good! Can use things like yogurt, oats, honey, lemon, milk, sugar, etc! I am thankful I have elephant thick skin and my skin is not sensitive and doesn't get irritated easily, neither do I get breakouts due to new products, so I can be adventurous and try new things : )

4. More of the basic stuff. Been doing more body scrubs, more face exfoliation and masks, more body moisturisers, started applying sunblock on upper body daily etc. My current body scrub is more than 3 years old! Obviously I wasn't using it much :p

5. Eating more fruits & yogurt. Used to be too busy and tired (ok ok, lazy) to even cut fruits for myself, but now I am not too busy to eat a kiwi or two everyday : )

6. Two simple things of using a separate towel to dry my face instead of one towel for face and body, and washing my hair before washing face.. [find out why here and here]

7. Double cleansing for face every night, because I use sunscreen on my face even if I am not going out and do not have makeup on. [learn more here]

8. Sleep early (by 11pm) every night! (oops I am late today!) [click here for more info]

Things I hope to do soon:
Learn how to do eye makeup.
Use hand cream & lip balm regularly during the day.
Apply body moisturiser & sunblock to legs every morning.

My friends mentioned in a different context that they felt I would be able to do anything I set my mind to. It was just a passing remark, but somehow it stuck in my mind and I have been thinking about it quite a lot. I guess it's quite true - I had encountered many uncertain situations before in my 32 years, and somehow I managed to conquer all - attaining the results I wanted in exams, marrying the husband I wanted, completing marathons, coping with the care of two young children as a stay-at-home-mum... There are also things in the future which I KNOW I will be able to achieve, such as improving my marathon timings and losing weight after my final pregnancy! So, why not skincare and makeup? I believe that as long as I resolve to do it and spend enough effort & time on it, I WILL be able to succeed! For skincare - I shall read and read, devote the same amount of focus and diligence as I did to parenting books for the past 3 years. For makeup - I shall read & consult & learn, and more importantly, not be afraid to try and experiment. So what if I fail and embarrass myself? I should have done this when I was younger, but better late than never, right? At the very least, I am learning new things and having fun! : )

P.S. All the links above (except Laneige) go to the same local beauty blog which I have been reading diligently. I like this blog because it has a lot of information and not just reviews of products. Please do let me know if you have other good beauty blogs to recommend! Thanks in advance!