Evening Routine

One question I am asked fairly frequently on both Instagram and Facebook is to share my personal morning and evening routines. I thought I would start with my personal evening routine to hopefully give you some inspiration as you shut down for the night. 

My personal routine starts once the baby has been put down to sleep, bottles have been prepared, the kitchen is clean (#cleankitchenatnight anyone?) and everything is in its proper place in the house. My routine usually takes 15 minutes and is one of my main forms of self care.

It's taken me about a year to refine my routine and have it be as efficent as possible, both in the time it takes to complete and the products that I use. Over time my routine may change, the products that I use may need to be updated for the changing season, I will find new tasks to add to it and some will no longer be necessary. 

Products

Neutrogena - Triple age repair night moisturizer

Vichy Aqualia Thermal - Night cream

Vichy Purete Thermale - One step cleansing solution

Lumene - Bright now vitamin C hyaluronic essence

Cake - Milk made velveteen hand cream

Evening Routine

Have I gotten too indepth with my evening routine? Probably. However there is a reason I do each step in each particular order. Breaking up the skin care with dental care gives each layer of cream or serum time to absorb into the skin.

1. Apply Vichy Purete Thermale onto a cotton pad and wipe down face - I love this product because it cleanses and tones at the same time. One thing to note - I rarely wear makeup daily, so I don't need much cleansing at night. When I do wear makeup, I use Noxema to remove all traces and then continue on with this routine. 
2. Floss teeth - Oral B Glide in mint. Possibly beyond to much information, but I love the mint flavor of this floss. It reminds me of my grandparents. They used to give me mints when I was a kid and every time I floss now I spend the time remembering them and our times together. 
3. Apply Lumene - Bright now vitamin C hyaluronic essence - I only use about two drops of this serum on my face and one drop on my neck. A little goes a long way, and this product is relatively expensive. 
4. Brush teeth - I use an electric toothbrush.
5. Apply Neutrogena - Triple age repair night moisturizer - I love this moisturizer and again, a little goes a long way. I apply a couple of dots to my face and massage in, as well as a dot or two for my neck.
   1. On Sunday's I use Vichy Aqualia Thermal - Night cream as a special 'treat'. This night cream is super rich and makes my skin feel amazing. Also a bit pricy, using it only once, or maybe twice a week, will ensure it lasts a bit longer.
6. Mouthwash
7. Wash hands with COLD water - Just the act of running my hands under cold water makes me feel refreshed and energized. 
   1. Lavender Sugar Scrub - Occasionally I will use a sugar scrub when washing my hands with cold water. Usually I do this when I've had a longer day then normal and need a bit of extra love.
8. Brush hair - My hair is usually in a ponytail or bun all day, so it feels lovely to be able to let it "breath" and brush it thoroughly. 
9. Apply Cake - Milk made velveteen hand cream - I love this hand cream. It smells incredible and is so rich. 
10. Sit silently for about 5 - 10 minutes, depending on how busy my day was. I use this time to reflect on the day, go over the triumphs and failures and let my mind wander.
11. Spend 2 or 3 minutes jotting down any to-do's that I've thought of on my to do list. I keep my to do list on Google Docs, that way it's accessible on any device that I'm working on at the moment. It's just a list of the days of the week, with bullets for each task. Incredibly simple and easy to add to. When a task is complete I simply do a strikethrough and move on (I will go into more depth with this in a later post!) 

There you have it! A fairly straight forward routine that always leaves me feeling human again at the end of each day. How do you practice self care at the end of the day? Do you have an evening routine that you stick to? I'm always looking for things to add to mine, so please let me know in the comments below!

Sleepily yours,

Lauren