My Skincare Routine

For those who have been following my blog for a while you’ll know I’ve had very troublesome skin and a long journey to find what works relatively well for me, and quite frankly, I’ve tried various products and methods which was recommended or sponsored to me which either worked for only a short amount of time or have fallen flat without any help. However, throughout this journey I’ve learnt that there is such a thing as using too many products and over doing it.

If you’ve read my last skincare routine post you would have seen how I raved about the RégimA products, which I definitely still stand by! However, once I had completed the course of my treatment with that brand I decided to find something slightly more affordable so I thought I’d share an update on what has been working for me lately.

Firstly, I want to be clear, I am not a dermatologist, or anything of that sort but this method has worked for me. If your skin has been acting up and is feeling irritated, it’s probably because you have a “product overload”. I recommend hitting the reset button and starting from scratch. That means cleanse, moisturizer and sunscreen (during the day), using basic products like Cetapil for example and nothing else until your skin resets. Once your skin begins to settle you can slowly introduce one product at a time and use it for about 6 weeks before adding another. That way, you can tell which products do and don’t work for you. It is a process, but once you’ve figured it out, your skin will look and feel better.

I began using Cetapil Oil Control face wash and face cream around end of January/ beginning of February because I began getting another horrible breakout. Along with that I stopped using makeup for a few weeks until my skin began to clear up and Alhamdulillah it has been doing a lot better thus far. Around end of March I was given a range of Sukin products to test out, of course I was very skeptical because of my very sensitive skin condition but I decided to give it a try.

Here’s what I received and my thoughts on it:

Sukin Intensive Firming Serum (299.99)

This serum contains a number of natural products used to reduce wrinkles and refine complexion, leaving the skin feeling soft and moisturized. Personally I would stay clear of serums because I found that it leaves my skin feeling more oily and would clog my pores resulting in a breakout, however this serum has been working quite nicely for me without leaving a feeling of excessive oil or greasiness. My skin feels a lot more firmer and I’ve been noticing a difference in my pores (which has been bothering me a lot lately!). The serum can be used day and night and it smells amazing.

Sukin Rejuvenating Day Cream (R299)

The day cream is also used to tighten the skin and keep it deeply hydrated, yet it’s not oily at all, but rather super creamy. I haven’t experienced any clogged pores and my skin feels smooth. In my previous post I mentioned using an Ilotycin Aspen ointment that I apply on my acne, which I still do but after using 2-3 times (consecutively) it dries the area quite a bit leaving it flaky. The Sukin rejuvenating cream has definitely helped reduce the flakiness and leaves my face feeling plump and soft.

Sukin Restorative Night Cream (R249.99)

Honestly speaking, I have never seen the point of having a day AND night cream because I mean don’t they all do the same thing? Well, the answer is no, they don’t. Night creams usually have different ingredients which nourish and rejuvenate your skin while you sleep. So I decided to give the Sukin night cream a shot, however when I left for Johannesburg before the lockdown I accidentally forgot my night cream in CT (clearly the pandemic got to me lol) so I only managed to use it for a couple of days therefore I cannot give a full review. All I can say for now is that it didn’t seem to affect my skin in any negative way during the few days that I managed to use it.

Also, since I haven’t had the night cream I’ve been using the facial moisturizer which can be used at anytime of the day and it’s been working effectively during the night. I don’t wake up to excessively oily or extremely dry skin in the morning so I find it a good replacement for now.

I still tend to use the Cetapil face cream if I know I’ll be going out into the sun because it contains sunscreen which is extremely important to have in your skincare routine and that’s the only disadvantage to the Sukin products because it doesn’t already contain sunscreen.

My finally thoughts on both Cetapil and Sukin is that they are definitely worth every cent and I recommend both if you have similar skin issues as I do because they have been working great thus far (& I hope it stays that way). Yes, I do get small pimples here and there but it has been under control so I’m really happy.

Both sets of products can be found at Clicks and Cetapil might be available at Dischem too if I’m not mistaken. Sukin has a range of other products as well which accommodate different skin types so if you are interested in changing to a more natural product be sure to have a look at their other products on offer.

I also try to exfoliate and use a face mask for blackheads about twice a month to keep my skin looking and feeling great.

Remember, if you have good skin, any makeup you apply would look amazing. Good skin is the key to flawless makeup application but getting that clear skin is the hard part and takes time. You have to be willing to continue the process for up to 6 weeks until you begin seeing the results.

Also, don’t forget to drink a lot of water :).