Ghanian Hiatus - June/July/August

Due to the fact that I have been abroad and there are so many factors that change this skincare routine, and everything is a possible element of change, we will be on Hiatus until the first week of September when all that traveling is done and there's been a month of settling.

The food, the water that you aren't supposed to use to brush your teeth, the change in diet, the change in sleep, the change in daily life, your skin wears it all.

Skincare Routine Monthly Check-in: May 1, 2018

Currently in PANIC mode as my COMPLETE forehead has broken out into small tiny clumps of acne. It is terrible, it is horrendous, and I have no idea what brought it on. I was thinking it was something new I introduced, but then my whole face would be reacting, not just my forehead. Then I thought it would be from the boyfriend kissing my forehead too much, but nah, I have a minimalist, but still cleanse, tone, moisturize there at his place. So I don't know, stress? I am stressing out even more, this is a poor way of staying within the stress pimple cycle.

1. Oil Cleanser: None! Got Kose Speedy in the mail, but more for my sister who actually wears make-up. Tried it twice. It's ok, I guess?
2. Water-based Cleanser:  Cosrx Low Ph Good Morning Gel cleanser, finished up Lagom's Gellup Gel to Water Cleanser, seeing if I want to try another one that's in my closet. Maybe from the Club Clio close-out.
3. Hydrating Toner:  Mizon's AHA/BHA toner, not really digging it at all. Miss Missha's Clear Toner instead.
4. Active: Mizon's 8% Peeling Gel AHA/BHA, hardly used it this month, just didn't have time to squeeze it in. Have been doing it nightly since PANIC mode started two days ago.
5. First Essence -  Secret Key's Starting Treatment Essence smells like nail polish remover to me. Not really seeing any results, but rather, feel like I'm patting in nail polish remover smell each even. Miss my SK-II. Have the special year of the dog edition I should start soon.
6. Serum: The Ordinary's Squalane doesn't sink in the same. Just feels greasy. Maybe I'll try rosehip next, but I don't care for squalane as much as I used to with the other brand.
7. Eye Creams: Algenist white in the evening, sometimes. The lines under my eyes feel like permanence and I try to not smile as hard as I usually do, out of fear that I'll make them stronger, deeper, permanent. 
8. Moisturizer: AM: Shangpree's Bitgoa Hue Rich Cream, it's ok. Unremarkable, would not purchase again. PM: Body Merry's Retinol Surge Moisturizer which I got on a lightning deal via Amazon. It makes my face tingle more then the 8% AHA/BHA that I occasionally use.
9. Sleeping Pack: Not really these days.
10. Sunscreen: Peripera Oil Capture Peach Sun Finisher with SPF 50/PA+++, is still hanging out, haven't used it in a while. Lately been using and trying to use up the Neogen Dermalogy Day-Light Protection Sun Screen, never really got used to the Neogen sunscreen. Sure, it applies ok, but it just wasn't for me with that citronella smell. Used it a lot on vacation. STILL LOVE BAE BIORE and have been using that in the morning.

We're transitioning straight from winter into summer. Where is my spring, gosh darnit! I want my spring.

ODE TO BAE BIORE

Honest to GOD, life, and all things good. BAE Biore is really BAE for a reason. No, not a reason, but many reasons.

Every single time I use another sunscreen, or try something new, it is not the same as the love I feel for Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery Essence Sunscreen.

The smell is lovely, a light citrus.
It goes on easy, and dries even lovelier.
It makes my skin feel so, so, so smooth and soft, I can't even deal with how I was this was also a moisturizer.

My face feels so fine that I can't stop touching it. It feels as photoshop looks.

YOU ARE MY BAE, because, even with the way that I like SK-II, that price tag just isn't half as affordable are you.

BAE BIORE, stay with me forever. I miss the 2015 formula, but I will just have to deal. This 2015 light blue tube is the best thing that's happened to me in this entire skincare journey.

Skincare Routine Monthly Check-in: April 4, 2018

I'm off the Whole 30 and gained back five pounds and my face feels bloated and chunky, JOY. Here's an updated list of products, there are a fair amount of new ones since a couple of products just happened to run out at the same time.

1. Oil Cleanser: None!
2. Water-based Cleanser:  I realize that I really do like my Cosrx Low Ph Good Morning Gel cleanser.over Lagom's Gellup Gel to Water Cleanser, and hardly use the Lagom Cleanser even though I have an extra tube in the closet from the Peach and Lily Sample sale.
3. Hydrating Toner:  Mizon's AHA/BHA toner, I feel meh about this, similar to how I felt with Park and Son's Beauty Water as a toner
4. Active: Mizon's 8% Peeling Gel AHA/BHA, sometimes I get that tingle, most time I forget this step because I am tired and just want to go to bed and not wait for anything to dry.
5. First Essence - The little SK-II bottle I got in a set from Sephora ran out, and I wanted to cry. My little 3 oz, $76 dollared glass bottle. I keep it in the cabinet next to the current dupe I'm using that I just don't like enough at all.  Secret Key's Starting Treatment Essence is/was supposed to be a really good dupe. So when the price dropped on Amazon, I took it and held it captive in my closet. This was before my break-through with using SK-II and I wasn't settled on SK-II.
6. Serum: The Ordinary's Squalane! The dropper drips WAY TOO EASY and I get product everywhere. I miss the other dropper, which was more consistent and contained. 
7. Eye Creams: Algenist white in the evening. I slop the stuff on, don't mind it, but don't know if it does much.
8. Moisturizer: A Peach and Lily Sample Sale find: Shangpree's Bitgoa Hue Rich Cream, which I think I got for $20? It retails for $85, and right now I cannot understand why. It's pretty thick, goes on well, reminds me a bit of a cream geared towards an older generation.
9. Sleeping Pack: Often find myself trying to use up my old Missha Snail Sleeping pack. It's just a sealant of a moisturizer, too heavily fragranced, I think.
10. Sunscreen: Peripera Oil Capture Peach Sun Finisher with SPF 50/PA+++, and I opened my Amazon bought Neogen Dermalogy Day-Light Protection Sun Screen, which smells like Citronella candle and makes me think if I bought another bad product off Amazon. It only cost me $15, which is like half price from Sephora (but that's normal), but this smell? I don't know how I feel about that.... 

THREE NEW PRODUCTS! Will my face go crazy?!

The Secret Key SK-II dupe... well, it's not doing well with me. Not that the product has made me break out or anything, it just.... isn't SK-II. Also, it smells like nail polish remover and then it makes me think... did I buy a bad product or an imitation product off of Amazon? I haven't had any negative experiences yet. However, this nail polish remover smell is TERRIBLE. Honestly, even if it did work (which I'm skeptical) I am not into the smell.

Then there's The Ordinary's Squalane, and well, the dropper is a problem, it feels greasier than the last one...takes a little longer to "soak in" and I guess I just miss my Peach and Lily Sample Sale find.

Shangpree's Bitgoa Hue Rich Cream is cream.... for older people. It's this murky peach that reminds me of a grandma's hosiery or cold cream. It's nothing special, and doesn't make my skin feel like anything more than what it's supposed to. Biore BAE has more of an affect on me than anything.

And don't get me started on the citronella candle sunscreen again. This is not bug repellent, so I don't get what's going on....Wonder how much longer I can tolerate this smell. I almost miss the greasiness of the Peripera Oil Capture Peach Sun Finisher better.

Skincare Routine Monthly Check-in: March 16, 2018

I accidentally overwrote this entry. It's a blah entry. I was on a Whole30 and my skin was amazing and I forgot to update until halfway through the month.

1. Oil Cleanser: None!
2. Water-based Cleanser:  Cosrx Low Ph Good Morning Gel cleanser Lagom's Gellup Gel to Water Cleanser, 
3. Hydrating Toner:  Mizon's AHA/BHA toner, I feel meh about this, similar to how I felt with Park and Son's Beauty Water as a toner
4. Active: Mizon's 8% Peeling Gel AHA/BHA, it tingles
5. First Essence - SK-II
6. Serum: Olivarrier's Fluid Oil Squalane is almost done. I like it, but I am ready to try The Ordinary's version. 
7. Eye Creams: Algenist white in the evening. I slop the stuff on, don't mind it, but don't know if it does much.
8. Moisturizer: Beauty of Joseon Dynasty cream is on it's last day(s). Really, maybe one use left, I'll miss you!! Totally going to repurchase. It's on Amazon for $18 right now, should I snag another jar?
9. Sleeping Pack: Whoops, haven't been using one.... But I use a coconut moisturizer that is really thick at night instead.
10. Sunscreen: Peripera Oil Capture Peach Sun Finisher with SPF 50/PA+++, it's nice, but I am hoping to finish it soon.

Skincare Routine Monthly Check-in: February 5, 2018

Second month of the new year and what's this? I love my skin? Oh wow, wait, what is going on?!

1. Oil Cleanser: None!
2. Water-based Cleanser:  Switch between Cosrx Low Ph Good Morning Gel cleanser.and Lagom's Gellup Gel to Water Cleanser. Depending on how I feel. Usually use Cosrx when I wear some make-up.
3. Hydrating Toner:  Missha Clear Toner, which I have been using since September 25, 2017, is on it's very last legs. Mizon's AHA/BHA toner is next, and I wonder if it's going to hydrating enough to use alone.
4. SK-II - LOVING IT, even though I still imagine myself pasting a dollar bill to my face each time I slap some on. Maybe two dollars if I go back for another shake. It's just that expensive, and cost over 1/3 of my overall trip. If I splurge on anything, I think this will be it.
5. Serum: Still using Olivarrier's Fluid Oil Squalane and I have praised it for when it was the only one that didn't hurt my skin when I chemically burned myself. My The Ordinary order is at my FRONT DOOR. I am super excited and I am going have to hold myself back from opening it because I am trying to get used to all these new products. (Moisturizer, and soon, toner!)
6. Eye Creams: Algenist white in the morning, Algenist slate in the evening. Using them because I have samples, so why not? Actually have a full tube of something eye cream that I'm not going to use until my other eye cream are gone. I have until 4/19 when the tube expires.
7. Moisturizer: Beauty of Joseon Dynasty cream which is only 50 ml, but feels like so much less. I used a dab and it goes so quickly. But smells so good and absorbs so much. It's great, but it's going too fast.
8. Sleeping Pack: Too Cool for School's Pumpkin Sleeping Pack, forever!! It's pratically done, but I haven't been using it as much.
9. Sunscreen: BAE Biore is ready to be cut up, but while I'm lazy I stick to Peripera Oil Capture Peach Sun Finisher with SPF 50/PA+++. 

Haven't been late to work, latest I've been is 9:02 or 9:03, I forget. But this is besides the point. The point is sometimes I still mess with my strawberry dotted nose and I pick and pick and squeeze out sebum, watching the little tubers come out of my already enlarged pores.

HOWEVER, my strawberry dots... they're not as dark as they used to be. In fact, even the ones that start to spread to my cheeks that reminds me more of little dirty peach fuzz than sebum... are clearer. My pores and their enlarged size are still there.... but it just looks cleaner! I am not sure what is going on, but I like it.

Let my strawberry nose be something of the past.... pore minimizing is impossibly, but I really need to stop picking at my skin.

Also noticed that it looks like I'm going to get pimples, but instead they just turn into dark spots that are flat and unnoticeable when I brush over my mouth/jawline area. It's like my hormonal acne wanted to come out, but all they got was a shadow and then POOF they're gone.

I don't know what combination of products this is, but I'm loving it!! Imagine if I started eating right and doing the Whole 30 again and now much more perfect my skin would be.

My The Ordinary Order

The Ordinary 100% Plant-Derived Squalane - 30ml	7.90	x 1	7.90
The Ordinary “Buffet” - 30ml	14.80	x 1	14.80
The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% - 30ml	5.90	x 1	5.90

This simple order makes me smile. Though I originally wanted the Rosehip Seed Oil, it was sold out, so I opted for Niacinamide instead. (Free shipping starts at $25, so might as well try something else!)

Ever since my lovely time healing from when I chemically burned my face (that's really must have been what I had done, there's no other explanation for it), I have been very thankful for Squalane. The ONLY item in my routine that did not leave my face stinging upon application.

However, it is important to not discount the fact that I had also incorporated two newer items into my routine: SK-II and Beauty of Joseon Dynasty cream. SK-II stung my skin when I was going through my reaction, and the Beauty of Joseon Dynasty was applied at the tail end, so I cannot actually assess if it was helpful or not.

Squalane, precious plant-derived squalane. Though the one I am using now was bought for $10 during the Peach and Lily, the original price is $42 and I am not willing to pay that much for 1 ounce of facial oil. The price that The Ordinary offers is cheaper than what I originally paid and I am going to compare it when I get the chance. DECIEM notes that they can take up to ten business days to process and order, nevermind actual shipment and deliver of these products.

There is no rush, I have an abundance of skincare products that I need to get through before they expire.

Maybe this is the time where I should introduce an eyecream... after using SK-II for a month to see how my skin stabilizes. (Ah, but sometimes I just get so excited about products that I want to use them all at once!)