#FaceFlawlessFacial: At-home Facial Featuring Green Skincare Brands from Luxurious Wellniss
This is week 10 of the #faceflawlessfacial. When we started on that faithful Friday, we were asked about a "Green Facial." This week, with the help of our new favorite curator of green and small-batch skincare products, Luxurious Wellniss, we are giving you a very green at-home facial. We also got you another 15% off discount code for the entire Luxurious Wellniss site!
CHRISTENE’S AT-HOME FACIAL ROUTINE AND PRODUCTS USED
I started my facial with the Bee's Moon Cosmic Cleansing Oil, — it is 100% organic blend of oils the feels terrific on the skin. It's essential to apply Cleansing Oils, to dry skin to loosen the makeup dirt, and grime before adding water. With Cleansing Oils like Bees Moon that doesn't contain an emulsifier, it's best to remove it with a damp, warm sponge, or washcloth. If you rinse, you may end up with too much oil left on the skin. Once the oil is wiped away, you can opt for a toner to remove the excess oil or follow with another cleanser, which is what I did.
My second cleanse was the Rosen Super Smoothie Cleanser. I like this cleanser because it smells just like a smoothie (I love smoothies), it has a light lather, and it has tiny granules in it that give the skin a gentle exfoliation. With products that contain manual exfoliants, it's crucial to be gentle on the skin — slow, gentle, circular motions work best.
Image from Luxurious Wellniss
This week's steam was extra special because I added the Selia & Co Jasmine Tea Facial Steam. It is a 100% organic blend of teas that releases an incredible aroma when added to hot water. This aroma contains natural antioxidants and helps to soothe and detoxify skin. It's also great aromatherapy and helps to create that spa-like feeling at home. Since I was sitting at my desk, I used a washcloth in my facial steaming water -- it's hot enough to see steam rise from the towel but not so hot as to burn your hand. Place the towel over your face while inhaling deeply, and once the towel has cooled, you can repeat the process a couple more times to open pores and detox skin.
This next step boosts the effectiveness of products, which I think is fantastic, especially when you are only focused on using natural products. A skin scrubber, as the name suggests, works by scrubbing the skin. It uses sonic vibrations to gently dislodge superficial whiteheads and blackheads that are present on the skin. You must keep your skin wet as you're using the skin scrubber, that way it can slide across the skin. Once it's turned on, apply gentle pressure and keep the skin taught as you glide it across the skin. You will notice the gunk from your pores on the tip of the scrubber. I used water from my steam to keep my face wet, and that helped to release the debris and the sebum from my pores.
The next step included a product that you may have in your pantry — Raw Honey. Honey is rich in antioxidants and has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. It soothes, exfoliates, and moisturizes the skin. I applied honey as a mask and massaged (ate😁) and pressed it into my skin with the ELF Mask Brush. It was so much fun, I felt like a kid doing something I wasn't supposed to do. You can keep it on for 10 minutes or more. When shopping for honey, look for raw honey that has a dark color. You can also use Manuka Honey.
Image Showing 3M — Number of months to keep product after opening.
I followed my sweet honey mask with the salty Rosen Golden Tides Toner. It contains sea salt, willow bark extract, and tea tree oil — ingredients proven to deep clean pores and detox skin.
SIDEBAR on Natural Skincare Products: One thing to note with (some) natural/green products that contain water is that some tend not to have broad-spectrum preservatives. That means the formula is not protected against bacteria, yeast, and fungus. With no preservative system, products have a much shorter shelf life than a product that contains something like Phenoxyethanol and Disodium EDTA, a popular preservative and chelating agent combo. Always check the shelf life and expiration date of your products, especially your natural products. Also, be mindful not to add water or any other substance to the product and store in a cool place away from direct light. You should check the back of the packaging for the image of an open jar with a number and a letter in it — 3M, 6M 12M, 24M. The M is for months, and the number tells you how many months the product is good for after you've opened it.
Anyway, back to the facial. I followed the Rosen Golden Tides Toner with the Rosen Bright Citrus Serum — It contains 20% L-ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) to help brighten skin and even skin tone. The serum has the consistency of toner or essence. It is preservative-free and needs to be used or discarded after being open for 3 months.
My final step featured one of my own unique skincare blends. It's a face oil I formulated for my combination-oily skin. It contains several oils, including hemp and raspberry seed oil that are high in linoleic acid, rich in antioxidants, and has low comedogenic ratings (won’t clog pores.) Fingers crossed -- coming soon to Luxurious Wellniss! 😆
FELICIA’S AT-HOME FACIAL ROUTINE AND PRODUCTS USED
This feel like this facial was the most wholesome facial ever....or at least since Quarantine Life started. I bathed my skin is so much good, clean, green-ness. I typically shy away from totally green products because, without proper/ effective preservatives, my skin tends to react. So, some of what I've used for this facial, I wouldn't recommend for skin like mine. I'll flag the items that you need to be mindful of if your skin is similar to mine.
I started with Bee's Moon Cosmic Cleansing Oil, which felt so yummy I didn't want to stop rubbing. I find this organic blend of fruit and seed oils incredibly comforting on my skin.
For my second step: Rosen Super Smoothie Cleanser. I loved the result, but it took me a few tries to warm up to the texture. True to the product name, this feels like a smoothie for your face -- a physical experience I don't totally enjoy...but I love how bright, and vibrant my skin looks and feel after using. This sort of reminds me of the beloved Biologique Recherche P50 -- everyone hates the scent but loves the result.
Le Edge. Image from Luxurious Wellniss
Le Edge, where have you been my whole life? This is the best manual exfoliating tool I have ever used. Whew, this stainless steel edge did some serious work without making me feel like I was going to slice my face in half. If dermaplaning makes you a wee bit nervous, try this! (PS: I have to start using Le Edge on my body, too!
Selia & Co Jasmine Tea Facial Steam is such a divine experience. A heaping helping at the bottom of a big bowl of hot water, and I forget (momentarily) that I'm safely sheltering in place at home. The organic tea herbal blend is such a wonderfully civilized way to purge and purify the pores. Ahh!
Pumpkin Enzyme is my JAM for resurfacing the skin, so Jaipur Enzyme Mask is my logical next step. After 3-5 minutes, this fruit enzyme and glycolic acid powerhouse treatment reveal super radiant skin. The glow is addictive -- thankfully, you can do this mask 2-3 times a week!
My next step, Rosen Golden Tides Toner, felt incredible on my skin, but this isn't the right choice for my skin long term. The formulation is too green (dare I say?) for my skin -- I need the preservatives! Particularly in products that contain water...or else, my skin will trigger all sorts of fungus. Yup! That's my truth.
Bees Moon Night Healer Botanical Emollient has a way of bringing my skin back to the center. I love this thick, cushiony face balm forever. It's rich in vitamins, fruit, seeds, and trees that work to soothe and heal the skin.