#IF ANYONE HAS ANY (UK) SPF RECS LMK

[lotstradamus]

ok I must ask: what is your go-to current skincare/make-up routine? Your skin looks flawless in the last insta pics you posted (I know: filters, but still) help a gal out?

honestly you can thank flash for the most recent one because my chin, as per usual, is rebelling right now (I blame chocolate, but can I stop eating it? no I can the fuck not) buuuttt my skin has improved in leaps and bounds over the past year, so HERE IS WHERE I’M AT: 

morning

Kiehl’s Calendula Foaming Face Wash – sooooo gentle and nice. I used it first thing with tepid water to make me feel fresh and awake (lol, I never feel awake in the morning, who am I kidding) and make me all clean and ready for morning products. if I don’t use it in the morning I feel like an oily mess all day long. I recently recommended it to a friend and she text me to say it’s fixed her skin in two weeks! praises! singing! 

Glossier’s Solution – I didn’t like this when I first started using it because my skin went through a purging phase and I ended up with whiteheads in places where I NEVER get spots, but I decided to persevere with it (all the marketing says that it takes 4 weeks to reach maximum Greatness) and I am noticing a difference for the better! 

Lush’s Eau Roma Water – I like to spritz with this because it makes me feel all nice and damp. it’s super gentle and calming and soothing and I love it. refresh me!!!

Ascorbyl Glucoside Solution 12% from The Ordinary – this is basically just topical vitamin c - brightening and nice. 

La Roche-Posay’s Effaclar Duo on my nose and chin – this is an acne/pore unclogging treatment, which is helping work wonders on my nose and losing the fight with my chin. the chin will always win. 

Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cream – I’ve been using this moisturiser for years now. you’d have to pay me to change. 

make-up

The Ordinary’s Serum Foundation in 1.0NS – THIS IS THE BEST FOUNDATION I HAVE EVER USED AND I WILL NEVER USE ANYTHING ELSE. it’s really, really light, so if you only need a light coverage it’s perfect, but it’s ALSO buildable, so if you don’t use concealer but need bits concealing (see: The Chin) it works really well! they also have a billion shades (THREE different ‘fair’ shades! all with different undertones!), it has a little SPF in it, and because it’s a serum foundation it swipes on so easily. AND THE BEST PART? IT COSTS LESS THAN £6. I AM OBSESSED.

Boy Brow by Glossier – speaking of obsessed, this is the best eyebrow product I have ever used. I’m sure there are a million dupes out there, but I’m still working through my lil tube so I’ll be singing it’s praises until I run out and have to replace it. I tint my eyebrows with an at-home kit because my eyebrows are literally white, but I use this every morning - it shapes them, holds them, and makes them a shade darker for a bit of oomph. and it’s so easy to apply - it’s basically just mascara for your eyebrows. no weird brushes and shades and powders and contouring. 

Lash Slick by Glossier – since I was 14 years old, I’ve been using Max Factor Masterpiece MAX mascara. it’s always on 3-for-2 at Boots, so my mum or auntie would buy three and give the other two to the other two of us. we’ve been loyal for over a decade. not that I haven’t tried other ones – I have. (most recently that one in the pink tube with the green lid, which was dreadful.) Lash Slick is the first new mascara I’ve tried that I haven’t immediately pawned off on someone else. it’s SO GOOD. it doesn’t smudge, it makes your eyelashes look longer, it doesn’t clump. my friend came to visit me recently and said, ‘Ooh, eyelashes freshly tinted?’ she couldn’t believe it was mascara. I mean! that’s what you WANT! 

assorted Glossier makeup – I only wear 3 Makeup makeup things on a day-to-day basis, but when I’m going out I LOVE putting on Glossier’s Lidstar in Moon (a creamy eyeshadow that you can literally apply with your finger and look amazing in, i.e. eyeshadow for useless dummies) and Haloscope in Moon (a creamy highlighter that you just swipe on and dab - again, highlighter for dummies). 

any dusky pink lipstick I can get my grubby little hands on. my fancy favourites are Charlotte Tilbury’s Pillow Talk and YSL Tatouage Couture in 07. my non-fancy favourites are NYX Matte Lip Cream in Cannes (third tube and counting) and The Body Shop Colour Crush Lipstick in a shade I can’t even remember because I’ve had the tube forever. 

night

Johnson’s Baby Lotion – gentlest makeup remover ever. and it works on mascara! my auntie has been using this and only this to remove her full (I mean full) face of makeup every night since she was 16 and she has the poreless, glassy skin of a Korean skincare Instagram guru. I hate her. 

Bioderma Sensibio Micellar Water to get rid of the residue – Baby Lotion is very thick so I like to get it off my face so I’m clean before I cleanse. it works like a nice toner while also destroying any leftover mascara. 

Bioré Deep Pore Charcoal Cleanser – THIS IS MY HOLY GRAIL PRODUCT. my biggest skin woe, other than my prone-to-spots chin, has always been the pores/sebaceous filaments on my nose. NOTHING ever “minimises” them, but this has actually reduced their appearance by half. literally the first time I used it I was pressing my nose against the mirror in shock. I will never ever stop using it ever. 

Lush’s Eau Roma Water – again, I’m a spritz addict. mmm moisture.

The Ordinary’s “Buffet” – I can’t make heads or tails of the site write-up on this, but Real Life People and thousands of internet people have sung its praises so I’m currently giving it a whirl. couldn’t tell you what the long-term benefits are just yet, but it definitely makes me look brighter and smoother. 

Kiehl’s Creamy Eye Treatment – I really don’t know if this does anything but it feels sooooo decadent. I love the ring-finger dab. 

Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cream – it’s just the best. 

extras: 

COSRX Acne Pimple Master Patch – LISTEN. you know when a spot NEEDs to be popped? but then you pop it and you’re left with what is essentially an open wound on your face, which is all leaky and gross and then scabs over and fucks up your foundation coverage and takes ages to heal? NO MORE! wash your hands, pop your spot before bed, stick one of these bad boys over the top, and skip ahead to the The Scab Has Gone And It’s Healing Finally phase. I’m not joking. I’ve gone through a whole pack in under 3 months and I’ve reordered a second. 

Mask of Magnaminty by Lush – skincare people are really against putting mint on your face, but I will stand by this mask. I’ve been using it for years and I always come back to it when I feel like I need to be all purged and cleaned out and sorted. it’s super stimulating and purging but also really moisturising (and antibacterial). I always feel brighter after it. 

Avène Soothing Moisture Mask – when I want to lie down and listen to Sigur Rós and be moisturised and chilled this is what I bang on. you barely know you’re wearing it. 

I’m now running late for work because I sat here writing this instead of getting ready. I will have to skip at least 3 of these morning steps and go to work looking like a hag. c’est la vie. 

p.s. if you want to try anything from Glossier, here’s a link for 10% off.