Happy Holidays!
Having said that, this box is actually the start of a reinvention of our 2021 skincare regime and I am SO excited!
When we were younger it was cleanse, tone, moisturise, but as we hit midlife, this just won't do. The truth is that our skin is saying one thing to us in midlife and that word is dehydration. As we age, as we go through the menopause (and not withstanding acne outbreaks in midlife, oh yes, another treat we get) skin becoming less hydrated is the key theme.
There's also something called the skin's "biome" that we're starting to all understand a bit more which is like an invisible eco-system where your skin's balancing flora and fauna live. In short, we want to keep this intact so from now on we want to use products that protect the biome rather than out and out interfere with it.
So, we are on a mission to hydrate and nurture in midlife.
The second thing we are now going to do is actually look at our skin on a daily basis and really see which products we think we should use.
In the past most of us have stuck to one range and had one cleanser, one serum, one night cream etc. That's not how we're going to work with our skin in 2021. We are going to have a selection of 2-3 of each product, each with different benefits that we are going to choose on a daily basis, depending on what our skin is saying to us. It's conversation time with our faces.
First, I want you to download these charts HERE for your morning an evening skincare routines.
Now, let's talk Elemis. How excited are we to have Elemis in this box? It's like Christmas - oh, look, it IS Christmas! Honestly, I'm so thrilled to have these products as they are perfect to get us going.
First is Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm (20g / RRP £9.50). We want this because it removes like a balm and hydrates like a cleansing milk. We also know that midlife skin wants collagen so this is perfect for our new regime. Now, don't think I'm dissing the Jane Scrivner Cleansing Balm you got in October because that is also amazing, but we want choices and some of you will prefer one and some of you the other. The whole point of 2021 skincare is to choose what works for you.
Next is Elemis Neck and Decollete Balm (15ml/ RRP £18.30). Now, see the theme? We're collagen-ing up which is what midlife skin needs - hydration, collagen, vitamins ACE and peptides. Your neck and decollete needs a different product to your face. Also, I want you to get used to taking product onto your neck and decollete because these areas are likely sun damaged from where you didn't do this in your twenties and thirties. Take a look - that could be how your face looks so let's try to stop further damage and ensure sunscreen and moisturiser now reach these parts.
We then have the Elemis iconic, award-winning, legendary Pro-Collagen Marine Cream (15ml / RRP £30.00). This is a super moisturising, yet ultra-light gel cream that quenches thirsty skin and "increases hydration by up to 248% in 1 hour**". This study was only done on 15 people which is a bit lean on numbers, but there's no question that this is a great product. Light, yet moisturising is what we have gone for and I think you will love the results.
Gatineau Floracil Gentle Eye Make Up Remover (200ml / RRP £22.00)
You can't take off eye make up with your facial cleanser. Well, you can, but don't. This amazing product is exactly the same PH as tears so it won't sting as you gently remover mascara et al. Soak a cotton wool pad and press it against your eye for around 20-30 seconds. Do not rub, you're just going to make more lines and wrinkles. Press and then gently take the residue off the eye area. Non oily, it won't "puff" your eyes up and it doesn't dry the skin out because what do we want? Hydration!
See? it's much, much kinder than many other eye make up removers.
This final beauty is Gatineau's Alkessence IonActive Alkaline Mist (200ml / RRP £39.00). It's an expensive spray, but what it isn't is a water spray. Well, not quite true. It is a water spray, but it's not like the Evian one that you use in the summer to keep cool. This spray is very intelligent and is all about hydration and absorption of your serum, which is the expensive part of any skincare regime.
First, this spray is alkaline, so it's going to be kind to that biome of yours. Second, it is packed with negative ions which reduce inflammation (skin redness) and detoxifies the epidermal build-up from environmental aggressors ie pollution.
Third, the high levels of replenishing minerals kick-starts skin repair and stimulates regeneration.
Fourth, this spray is clinically proven to reduce water loss through your skin, meaning that you will have less visible fine lines and wrinkles as the day goes on.
Facial sprays are something that we are now going to use every day, after cleansing, before serum, morning and night. Again, we'll need more than one (bear with, we've another coming in 2021), but this is a soft, gentle spray that should suit most of us. Spray, leave for ten seconds, pat in with fingertips and then serum up.
See what I mean? You need to have this in your regime.
So, your daytime regime should look like this:
1. Cleanse
2. Gentle AHA acid to exfoliate (no one uses anything wtih bits in to exfoiate these days, it's done by a facial, gentle acid).
3. Spray
4. Eye cream - yes, before serum
5. Serum
6. Light Moisturiser
7. Sunscreen
Night looks like this:
1. Eye make up Remover
2. Facial cleanse number 1
3. Facial cleanse number 2
4. Acid
5. Spray
6. Eye Cream
7. Serum
8. Moisturiser
It could be a few more steps than you wanted, but we are after amazing skin, so clean it, feed it and really look at it to ensure you are giving it what you want to achieve skin that glows with beauty!
Finally, I'm not sure what Christmas looks like for you but I would like to thank you for all your support in 2020, from reading the blogs, entering the competitions or subscribing to the box, a huge, heartfelt thank you from me and I wish you health, peace and happiness over the coming season. You stay safe now.
Karen
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** This is the findings of an Elemis independent Clinical Trials 2014. Moisturisation Study. Results based on 15 people over 24 hours.
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