THE BEST WAY TO GET YOUR MAKEUP LOOKING FLAWLESS.

Some would say it's easy as 1,2,3 but I think it's a tad harder than that. The best way to know your makeup will turn out flawless is having an excellent skincare routine. It's about knowing if you have oily skin, dry skin, combination skin, oily to combination skin, dry to combination skin, acne prone skin, and the other hundreds of skin types there are out there. 

I have yet to perfect my skincare regimen but it's just about nearly there. Here are my guidelines to making your makeup look and feel flawless.

1. Drink water. Lot's of it, this will help your skin hydrate. I've gone through a period of time when i did not drink lots of water and within a week my skin looked dull and dehydrated. So, drinks lots of water. They say you should drink 2 litres of water per day. I sometimes don't follow this rule and forget to drink that much but always making sure to have a glass full of water in the morning, during the day and at night will help you get to that goal.
2. Removing makeup before you go to bed is HUGE. It is definitely unhygienic and can cause a lot of bacteria to build up if you leave your makeup on when you go to bed. That can lead to acne and we don't want that.
3. Eating habits. Your skin can become unbalanced or change if you start a diet, loose & gain weight, or eat lots of junk food. Now, it's okay to do these things your skin will get used to it eventually but changing your eating habits will change your skin slightly. 
4. Sun protection. I'll admit i'm not the best at keeping up with my SPF but sometimes having them in the products you use like moisturiser, foundation or primers can help. But don't just sunscreen your face, your body needs to be protected too. 
5. Primer. Your primer can either make your face or break it. Finding a great primer that works with your skin and foundation will help in the process of flawless skin.
6. Masks. I don't use masks everyday but I can tell this definitely makes your skin & makeup look flawless throughout the day. If I have an event coming up, on the day before my skincare and makeup routine I will apply a mask to my face to help absorb my skincare products and have a flawless looking face throughout the day.

Now that I've spoken about what will help you with your skin, it's now time to talk about my day routine and night routine. I should probably tell you I have oily to combination skin. I produce a lot of oil throughout the day and sometimes can get dry spots under my eyes and around my acne.

DAY ROUTINE.

1. Cleanse. In the morning, I will always cleanse my face. It's also an important step to getting your makeup looking flawless. This will make your face feel smooth and unclog those pores. 
2. Exfoliate. Sometimes, I might exfoliate before my cleanse just to get my pores opening and dead skin out of the way. But I don't always do this step because if I do this and cleanse, my oils tend to go into overdrive and produce too much throughout the day and I'm trying to balance that out. I recommend at least exfoliating once a week. At least that's what works best for me.
3. Moisturise. It is soooo hard finding the perfect day moisturiser for my skin. I've tried so many different ones that have either worked for me or haven't. But I'm on the search for the PERFECT one. Moisturising is a definite because after you cleanse and/or exfoliate your skin tends to dry out quickly and it will be looking for moisture in the skin. If you don't use moisturiser your skin will produce more oils then it has to and then your skin will become an oily mess not to mention your foundation will slide off your face. 
4. Lip Balm. Moisturise your lips & exfoliate them. If you don't have a lip scrub don't worry because they can sometimes be expensive. Use your cleanser or exfoliate when you're washing your face it will definitely help. Don't forget to moisturise after this. The result will be smooth lips for your lipstick. 
5. Mist Spray. Sometimes throughout the day my skin needs a refresher. I use a spray that not only refreshes my face but also acts as a primer for my makeup. 

NIGHT ROUTINE.

1. Makeup Remover. I begin with taking my makeup off my face. I actually do this step twice. Firstly, I remove my cake with a milk cleanser specifically for makeup removing and then I go in with my makeup wipes (I know these aren't the best for the skin, but I still do it). I use the wipes to take any makeup off my eyes and any place I have missed on my face.
2. Cleanse. I cleanse my face once again. This gets rid of any bacteria left on my skin. 
3. Toner. I don't use toners because i've found that the ones I did use didn't work out for me. But toning preps your skin with hydration to better absorb the rest of your skincare. I just need to find the best one for me.
4. Serum. I don't always put a serum on at night but if I see my skin needing a little bit of help I do put it on.
5. Eye Cream. I've read somewhere that your eyes are the driest parts on your face but it just doesn't feel that way. I don't think your moisturiser hydrates your eye area well, so using an eye cream will hydrate the eyes. 
6. Moisturise. Once again, we moisturise. Usually at night I will use a night moisturiser. Fun fact: Your skin repairs, restores and regenerates itself at night while you sleep. Of course using a day moisturiser will still help your skin but a night moisturiser is usually thicker and have various ingredients compared to a day moisturiser.  
7. Spot treatment. Everybody gets acne. It's natural and unpredictable. There are products out there that help to prevent acne or stop it from growing into a mountain on your forehead. 

Let me state a fact about myself. I don't always follow these steps. Sometimes I might forget the sunscreen or serum or my eating habits aren't always the same. So, it's okay if you don't follow this step by step. I sometimes just cleanse and moisturise and it works for me. But it's best to have somewhat of a skincare routine to protect your skin, hydrate your skin and be clear of any acne. Everybody's skin is DIFFERENT. It's supposed to be that way so that's why sometimes using what your sister uses might not work out for you. 

Tell me about what has helped your skin & some products you use in the comments. I'm still trying to figure out what works best for me.

mich xx