My Current Skincare Routine + Tula Review

I receive quite a big of questions about my skincare routine (and about Tula) but before I dive right in and tell you exactly what I use, I want to give you a backstory on my skin.  I’ve always had slightly acne-prone skin.  I never had terrible acne in high school but would have my moments of breakouts and have always had that oily T-zone (no matter how many blotting wipes I used).  I went on birth control in college and it made my skin incredible.  But, it turned out that I had a blood clotting disorder (ask me questions if you want to, it’s a long story but I’ve never had a blood clot) and I had to go off hormonal birth control immediately post-college.  This transition wreaked havoc on my skin; it was the worst my skin had ever been.  I was having daily breakouts and I couldn’t get them under control so I  saw a facialist regularly who really helped me get my skin back.  My skin was overproducing oil, yet completely dehydrated and I was scared of any moisture because I figured it would make me break out even worse.  Now, I embrace my oil, welcome any additional moisture and realize that I might glow like a sweaty beast, but that’s ok.  I really don’t have wrinkles (yet) but I’m starting to notice some lines in my forward and around my eyes.  I haven’t had botox or any sort of non-invasive surgery but I’m definitely intrigued/terrified by it.  Maybe someday, but not now.  For now, I shall take care of my skin the best I can.

Fun fact: I’ve been told NOT to wash your face with cleanser in the morning, but rather just massage and rinse with cold water and I’ve been doing that for the past six months.   The thought there is that you already washed your face the night before and it doesn’t need to be washed again.  I don’t abide by that every morning but I’d say I only wash with water (in the morning only) most of the time.

Day/Night cleansers

I explore and alternate different cleansers but I make sure they don’t strip my skin of oils.  Some of my favorites are:

Sunday Riley ceramic slip – amazing for tightening your pores and keeping skin less slick.

Cerave cleanser – cheap, available everywhere and gets the job done.  Also, gentle but effective.

Aesop amazing face cleanser – smells like actual heaven and works like a charm.  Only use a very small amount and it also lasts forever.

Morning creams/serums

Kat Burki Vitamin C cream – I put this on after I wash my face in the morning and it has seemed to even out my skin tone and brighten up my face a bit.  The price point is tough for me to digest BUT on the plus side, it’s lasted a really long time.

Supergoop CC cream – I absolutely love this stuff.  It’s my daily sunscreen yet provides amazing lightweight coverage (it looks like your skin, but better…and yes, I realize this sounds like a Cover Girl advertisement).  I am on tube #4 – I love it.  (I wear light/medium).

Nighttime creams/serums

Skinceuticals 0.5% Retinol – This is my first foray into retinol and wow.  What have I been waiting for?  It makes my skin so smooth and tight – I love how it feels in the morning.  I use this a few times a week.

Aesop Parsley Seed Antioxidant Oil – I wasn’t sure when to use this so I slapped a little on after my morning cream and it’s worked out great, but I mostly use it at night.  It provides moisture, yet tightens up my skin and makes my makeup look awesome (if I use it in the morning).  Oils just feel luxurious to me and I think I’ll always have one on hand–also, I’ve had this bottle for over a year – a little goes a long way.

Sunday Riley Luna Oil  + Good Genes Serum – These two are amazing and I’ve re-bought them several times (Good Genes is ok to use while pregnant, Luna Oil isn’t) and it gets rid of those pesky fine lines.  I wish I didn’t rifle through it so fast (I use these two in combination and they go so quickly!)

Tula Skincare Review

Just a disclaimer that I received this from Tula (I receive lots of gifted product without strings attached but they are not paying me to promote this) and I had heard a lot of great things about these products and want to share my experience since i’ve been using them consistently for three weeks now.  In short: I love them and WILL rebuy on my own.

Tula Purifying Skin Cleanser – As you can see, I have a solid choice of cleansers that I depend upon but I’d adding this one to the list.  I also have a feeling this tube (which is huge) will last FOREVER.  It’s not harsh, gently cleanses and is a solid choice.  The only downside is that I don’t love the smell.  It’s not offensive, I just am ‘meh’ about it.  I’d rebuy, but honestly the tube is so big that it’ll be awhile.

Tula Illuminating Serum – WTF is in this stuff?  Angel DNA?  I LOVE IT.  It gives you a legitimate glow.  It’s lightweight.  I use it morning and night now and I actually glow.  Like an angel baby.  I am already getting anxiety about running out.  (Even people I work with have noticed the glow, seriously).  I WILL be re-buying.  Like yesterday.

Tula Hydrating Day and Night Cream – I am really picky about basic moisturizers.  I feel like they’re always unnecessarily heavy and I have yet to find one that I really love.  I must say, I really love this one.  It’s light and not heavy in the slightest; I’ve been using it day and night over the past few weeks and it gets the job done.  I’d definitely rebuy.

Tula Multi-Spectrum Eye Renewal Serum – Confession:  I have never found an eye cream that I love.  Really….I’ve never re-purchased an eye cream.  Jury is still out on this one.  I love the cool (like, to the touch) roller applicator but I can’t tell if it’s doing anything yet.  I think I need to use it all before I decide if I love it enough to rebuy.

Tula Exfoliating Mask – I loooove a good mask and ladies, we should all be exfoliating at least a couple times a week.  Keep this stuff in your shower – it’s the bomb (do people still say that?).  I wear it while I shower and it tingles (love that) and then I massage it in.  Again, you must exfoliate to properly care for your skin and it’s gentle yet effective (I was previously using a Kate Somerville exfoliator and this Tula mask is way better and much less expensive).  I’ll definitely re-purchase but I have a feeling this mask will last awhile unless Eric discovers it in the shower.

All in all, I was really pleasantly surprised with how much I loved the Tula products.  They truly do live up to the hype and I can’t wait to see what else the brand offers.  I have no code to offer you (again, we aren’t collaborating but I’m appreciative of the products) but if you go on their website, you can get 15% your first order with the code LABORDAY.  (If you’re still on the fence, try the Discovery Kit – it’s mini sizes of all the products I spoke about)