Skincare SOS - my current beauty regime

With the weather getting cooler and the heating going on at home some evenings, I've started switching up my skincare routine as my skin is starting to get drier and in need of TLC. So I thought I'd share a few things that I'm loving at the moment.

First of all, I want to share how fab double cleansing is. I ditched the face wipes a long time ago and have been making a real effort to properly take off my make up at the end of each day. 

My nighttime routine consists of the following: eye make up remover, a cream or oil based cleanser first with a hot flannel before using a facial wash and an exfoliating sponge. I then use the Nip + Fab Glycolic Acid Pads (currently on offer for £9.06 at Boots) - this is a new find and addition to my routine, since I've read how important this acid is for improving skin texture and hydration. After my skin is squeaky clean, I dot eye cream around my eye sockets and pat a few drops of facial oil all over my cheeks, forehead and jawline. Sometimes I will finish with a night moisturiser too, if I feel my skin needs it - the XYZ collagen cream is still a fave.

I've been getting a few small patches of psoriasis appear on my face recently, which is really annoying, but I do find that a facial oil helps to keep my skin as smooth and hydrated as possible. I really rate The Body Shop Oils of Life Revitalising Facial Oil (£30 for 30ml), but if you want something a little cheaper, B Radiant Antioxidant Boost Facial Oil is lovely too (both pictured, currently £6.95 rather than £13.99).

After my beauty sleep, I cleanse once, use a hyaluronic acid facial spritz, eye cream, a serum (currently a Nip + Fab one) and then a day moisturiser (Garnier at the moment which is gentle, but I'm on the hunt for something new so let me know if you have any recommendations).

I can then prime my skin and apply make up. It's more than I used to do but I think my skin is thanking me for it; aside from that time of the month and the odd hormonal breakout, my skin is pretty clear.

I've also picked up one of the L'Oréal Pure Clay masks, the Glow one with red algae, for a weekly deep treatment. I love a face mask but haven't tried anything new on a while so going to try this out.

I've been giving my skin a boost from the inside too, with a new supplement that I have been taking for the past month. It's called Absolute Collagen and it comes as a fortnight pack of pouches containing collagen in gel form. The dose is only small and you can either take it straight from the pouch or you can mix into a drink (this is my recommended method - whilst there is a slight lemony flavour added to the supplement to make it more palatable, for me this wasn't enough and I'm not keen on the taste, so mixing it with some juice is much better).

Here's what you need to know:

• By the time we are 25 our collagen levels begin to deplete, and by 40 we’ve lost around a third of our natural collagen, causing our skin to wrinkle and sag. This is why collagen is a popular ingredient in many branded face creams which work topically.
• Absolute Collagen is a powerful anti-ageing liquid high grade marine collagen that fights against the visible signs of ageing and supports skin, nails, hair and joints from the inside out
• Take direct from the sachet or mix into a drink
• Each dose provides you with  the highest concentrated dose of premium peptan f2000 hydrolyzed marine collagen - 8,000mg (8g) in each 10ml serving
• The advanced formula is also infused with vitamin C, which works synergistically with marine collagen for optimum skin rejuvenation and tissue renewal
• Absolute Collagen is as absolute as possible, hence each daily 10ml dose contains 8 grams of collagen, 36 calories and 9 grams of protein

After a couple of weeks', you should start to see an improvement in your skin tone and texture, and hopefully appearance too. I have been taking better care of my skin as I say, but I have also had a busy time recently with disrupted sleep and stressful moments so taking a supplement to help boost my skincare regime from the inside I do think has helped. We all know that we lose collagen the older we get, and at 33, I'm thinking it's not a bad time to step things up a bit and give my skin some real TLC. It is a treat, as it costs £29.99 for a two week supply of Absolute Collagen, but if it works for you then isn't it worth it? 

What skin loving products are you using right now? Do you change things up when the weather changes?


* I received a trial of Absolute Collagen for purpose of review. Other items mentioned were bought by myself. All opinions are my own.