Rinse & Repeat

This week’s newsletter is a collection of random bits and pieces, so grab a cup of tea, settle in and bear with me? Life has felt pretty rinse-and-repeat lately. Babies love routines, medically complex babies even more so — so my days have very much revolved around meeting all of Greta’s needs. Lots of appointments. Lots of making sure she’s hitting developmental milestones. And after so much of her tiny life spent in hospital, it’s truly a miracle that she is.. She started standing this week which.. at seven months… and after all that she’s been through is honestly mind blowing!

In my last update I shared that I barely had time to focus on myself and any skincare and I’ve been trying to make an active effort to reprioritise that sort of thing lately. Getting dressed, getting out of the house, feeling somewhat put together. You know?

Ten minutes for a more productive and fulfilled ten hours, as they say..

So I thought it could be an opportune time to update you on the things that have been helping me feel a little more me, lately. What’s making up my morning and evening skincare and self-care (a stretch!) routine as well as rating products that Lucy and I’ve recently finished.

I’m very fortunate in this job to try lots of different products and I’ll always be honest about what I genuinely love and where I think you’re better off saving your money.

Morning Skincare

I don’t really have too much time in the mornings, so instead of washing my face I’ll gently cleanse with this micellar water. My favourite facialist Melanie Grant sold me on Bioderma over any other micellar water alternatives on the market years ago, so I always have at least one big bottle in our bathroom cupboard and another mini in my always-packed-and-ready-by-the-door-hospital-bag. I use two Swisspers to wipe the nighttime off and wake myself up. I then go on with a few sprays of this face mist. I like to spray it into my palm and then rub my hands together before patting it into my face. I’ve been loving a few drops of this ceramide rich face oil and then finishing off with a favourite SPF. (I’ve been dying to try this one, will report back!) On days that I like to feel a bit more put together I’ll pop some of this new SPF 50 skin tint on — I like to apply it with a brush — and it gives just an even glow. I’ve actually been blown away by this product. MECCA Cosmetica know a good thing but this hits it out of the ball park. Watch my friend Gem show you how it applies to the skin, here. My face doesn’t feel like mine without a quick fill in of the brows. I keep coming back to this brow pencil, but Boy Brow is a staple as well. Depends what I’m in the mood for. I pop on a pair of earrings, lately it’s been these, and I’m ready to pick Greta up out of her cot beside me begging for attention. Never mind the fact that I sang to her during this entire routine!!!

Evening Skincare

I’m a night time shower person so I’ll pop an oil cleanser on my face giving it time to work it’s melting magic before jumping in the shower to wash it off. I promised you skincare but now that we’re in the shower I may as well tell you what comes next. I keep my hair (brown, chin length bob) looking its best when I only use shampoo (sorry conditioner!) and shampoo 2 x over. I have fine, oily hair and conditioner just makes it look too heavy/clumped together so I’ve learnt that shampoo-only is the happy place. I don’t use anything fancy at the moment. Lucy’s been using this one so I’ve piggy backed off her hair’s current requirements. Once out of the shower I’ll wipe my face clean with micellar water and a Swissper. Again, MG told me that the Bioderma formula also does an incredible job at prepping the skin for any serums and products that follow so her voice echoes in my mind whenever I feel tempted to skip that step. I then gently wipe on then pat a few pumps of this serum on before either indulging in this sheet mask ($$ but the BEST!!) or going straight to moisturising. In Winter my skin really needs the extra hydration and has a tendency to be far angrier (read: red) in the cooler months, so B5 / panthenol to the rescue.

Honourable mention to my LED Mask that does a lot of the heavy lifting post cleanse pre topical skincare three out of five nights of the week.

I’ve also just started using this for postpartum hair loss. Months three to six were particularly brutal in that regard. So I will report back with my findings.

Incase you care, some recent skincare empties:

This multi-action face cream — 10/10
Incredible product. Has me very excited to try their hair serum.

This pigment serum —11/10
Honestly, phenomenal as well. Love every product I’ve tried from the brand so far.

This glow serum — 6/10
Nice to have but certainly not essential.

This foaming cleanser — 7/10
Lasted ages, maybe like four months? Only need a pea sized amount and left the skin feeling really nice. Worth the spend when you factor in how long it lasts.

This cleansing balm — 9/10
Love this product. Also lasted four or so months. Need to repurchase!

These eye patches — 10/10
Sorry to be the bearer of bad news (for your wallet) but AB products really are exceptional. These eye patches are remarkable. Deeply hydrating and visibly plump fine lines. (Your ‘wrinkles’ are often just dehydration lines.. did you know!?) Give them a big drink!

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The Unexpected Life Update..