getting wedding ready: skin care edition.

with my wedding date closing in at warp speed (115 days & counting!), i've kicked my beauty routines up into over-drive. i thought i'd feature a little series in the coming weeks, titled getting wedding ready. not only will this documentation coerce me to keep the good habits up, but perhaps

everyone would benefit in being reminded to take a little bit of extra special care of ourselves,

whether nuptials are in your near future or not. [goodness knows, i always need a reminder!]

with that intro out of the way, it's time to dive in to this week's theme: skin care.

the arsenal:

as you may have gathered from the above depiction, there are certain products i use in the morning, certain products i use at night, & then a little gathering of products i use either/or.

now, let's start with the early risers. these products only come out in the a.m. i use my neutrogena oil free acne wash pink grapefruit cream cleanser every morning when i wake up. why? because it smells absolutely delicious, has citrusy scents that do their darndest to perk me up in the morning, & gives me a fresh canvas for moisturizer. then, following moisturizer, which i'll discuss in the swingers category, comes sunscreen. i slather a pea-sized dollop of my aveeno active naturals continuous protection sunblock lotion, spf 30, onto my face, ears, & down my neck. this formula is specifically designed for the face. it smells like the beach & keeps my skin protected from the sun. what more could you ask for?

next up, the night owls. these products only come out - you guessed it - at night time, before bed. my night time routine begins with makeup removal. these trusty equate micro dermabrasion exfoliating cleansing towelettes are perfect for taking the day off. bonus? they are a terrific value. my two current favorite exfoliators - aveeno active naturals skin brightening daily scrub & proactiv solution renewing cleanser - fall into this category because it's better to exfoliate your skin at night. don't believe me? watch this video. that was all the coercion i needed to move these products into the nocturnal range. it's no surprise that my olay regenerist micro-sculpting cream is p.m.-only - its rich, creamy formula needs time to sink into the skin. to top my night time routine off, i pat a small amount of my yes to cucumbers soothing eye gel under each eye. gotta keep those peepers looking fresh!

and finally, let's discuss the swingers. these products easily transition between day & night time. some of them show up in both routines, such as my proactiv solution revitalizing toner. i squirt a generous amount of this onto a cotton ball & spread it across my face, after cleanser & before moisturizer. speaking of moisturizer, my go-to day time hydrator - clean & clear advantage acne control moisturizer - is perfect for keeping your skin spot-free. both my noxema the original deep cleansing cream, as well as my queen helene mint julep masque, are included in this category because they are used sparingly. and, last but not least, my cetaphil gentle skin cleanser is a swinger because it lives in my shower, & i use it absolutely all the time. 

into watching vlogs?

check out my corresponding getting wedding ready: 

skin care edition video here, or simply click below to watch.

so there you have it! that's my current method for working toward clear, glowy skin! i hope this helps anyone who is searching for the motivation to revamp their routine.

link-up: wedding wednesday \ something charming