Morning Face Care Routine + Product Review

Hi, there! I'm still buggered over the fact that the only camera I have is the crappy 3MP phone camera. I reeeally want to post some swatches and reviews about my make up, but how can I provide accurate information with a camera that couldn't even represent the right color, right?

At least for this post, I don't have to show the right swatch color /^0^/ So here it is:

Because I'm lazy as fuck, I use the same edited picture for my instagram and blog post.

And here's the list of the products plus my review and why I use this:

1. Hada Labo Gokujyun Ultimate Moisturizing Cleansing Oil I use this cleansing oil ever since Hada Labo released this in Indonesia. Compare to Korean Brands, and the natural oils for cleansing, this is way cheaper. One bottle for about IDR 60k. Since I'm broke af, I can't afford expensive face cleanser/face wash since it will be finished faster. Moreover, I've been using the face wash from Hada Labo longer and I like the result. This cleansing oil really wash down all my make up. I rub and massage the oil on my dry face, then rinse with water (supposedly lukewarm water but again, I'm a lazy ass), then proceed with face wash. And because it's so effective, I also use this as my eye make up remover (I use cotton to remove the make up) and brush cleanser. So versatile.

Btw, I usually only use cleansing oil to remove make up. But lately I've been using Neem Oil for my acne treatment before sleep, and it SMELL SO BAD and the smell stays long on my skin so now I also use this cleansing oil in the morning to clean the Neem Oil residue.

2. Hada Labo Gokujyun Ultimate Moisturizing Face Wash
I've been using this brand for... a year? More than a year? Can't remember. All I remember is that I've been using this since it's first released. AND I LIKE THE RESULT. Previously I kept changing facial foam. First was because the Pond's variant I used wasn't available in Malaysia, then I changed to Etude, but then that variant (I forgot what) was discontinued. Then I changed to Sebamed, and when I moved back here to Indonesia, turned out it's too expensive for me.

I love its smooth, supple, clean finish. It's tame enough for my troubled acne skin. It has sufficient foam, too (yes although I know that many claims non-foam facial wash with slippery finish is better for your skin, I don't like it).

3. Secret Key Starting Treatment Essence
 SKII dupe (lol) because I can't afford the SKII Essence. I bought that for about IDR 200k from Elevenia. Btw, during my trip to South Korea last January, I couldn't find any Secret Key shop. I guess just like BRTC, they only sell their products online and at some selected vendors like Watson and the like. I assume that's why they can sell way cheaper than SKII and the like. The reviews on the internet for this product is crazy, a lot better than Missha First Treatment Essence (₩42,000, they said it's half the SKII but still WAY TO EXPENSIVE). But... I don't know if it's because I don't use it everyday (there were days where I forgot to even wash my face lol) or I just didn't notice it, I've been using this for about 2 months but there is no considerable change on my skin.

Well smaller scar marks, more supple and dewy skin but that's all.

I guess it needs time lol. Or my acne is too many I couldn't notice any better improvement over other areas. (kreys)

4. It's Skin Clinical Solution AC Spot Essence
Bought this one during my Daejeon trip last January for.... can't remember. Somewhere around ₩ 7,000? or ₩10,000? I CAN'T REMEMBER HELP! But it's not overly expensive I guess, because I remember I need to think over back and forth many times if the products were more expensive than ₩10,000. It's really good, it has gel-like transparent formula, and absorbed fast so we can use it below the make up layer. It dries my acne without burning my skin like benozyl peroxide. Sometimes it's sting when I use it over large cystic acne or open cuts, though. Too bad the growing rate of my acne (I MAKE IT LIKE IT SOUNDS REALLY FANCY BUT ACTUALLY NO IT IS NOT COOL AT ALL) is faster than the healing rate of old ones (sobs). Previously I use this morning and night (minus several nights of overslept so I forgot to apply this lol), and since I use Neem Oil for my night acne treatment, I only use this in the morning. Not to mention it's almost finished, too, (sigh) and I don't know where to find It's Skin product here :(

5. Face Oil (Mixture of Golden Jojoba Carrier Oil, Frankincense Essential Oil and Tea Tree Essential Oil)
I've been using natural oil as face moisturizer/serum since December 2013. Although it's more like maintenance oil rather than healing one, over several months of using, I see many improvement on my skin. The surface isn't dry and scaly anymore (yes my skin is oily but the surface is dry) and I have less acne during my breakout period. I've been trying Chardonnay Grape Seed Oil, Passion Fruit Oil, and Golden Jojoba Oil. From my experience, you have to rotate the oil type for every 1 or 2 months for maximum effects so that your skin won't bee too saturated with the same content.

I guess because I stopped using face oil last year for about 3-4 months (because I have no extra money to buy the new one), my acne are all coming back again.

So Golden Jojoba Oil is good for combination and dehydrated (oily but dry on the surface) skin. So is Chardonnay and Passion Fruit, it's good for oily and acne-troubled skin. Frankincense EO is good to reduce scar marks and black spots, while Tea Tree EO has anti-bacterial properties that fight the acne.

Never, NEVER, EVER, put the essential oil directly to your skin because it's so strong it can burn your skin. Always dilute with carrier oil, 3-5 drops of EO/10 ml of carrier oil. Even Tea Tree and Lavender EO, in which people claims the only EO that can be applied directly as spot treatment for acne, is not for everyone. It's possible that some people is too sensitive to direct application of EO and can only adds more problems. So, always dilute, everyone.

So that's all for my morning routine! You might notice the absent of sunblock here. YES IT'S TRUE I DON'T HAVE SUNBLOCK BECAUSE I'M TOO POOR TO BUY ONE I console myself by saying that my BB Cream has SPF 40. I save other emulsions / creams with richer formula for night usage, because my skin is so oily, and putting anything too rich on my skin has breakout risk. Not to mention it will fasten the make up meltdown (lol) due to oil and sweat buildup.

Except during winter. My South Korea trip was during winter, and the air is so dry, so I put all creams that I have morning and night. Even then, I don't have oil buildup for the whole day. I guess that's the only perk of winter season for people with oily skin like me :))

See you on next post!