My non-negotiable *beauty* habits to take into 2024
Happy New Year my angels!!! I’ve been quite disconnected from social media this past holiday week after a pretty weird Christmas and have been in a little bit of a rut emotionally, creatively, all the things. I’m so sorry I haven’t been delivering in terms of content; I find myself really needing the break and along with that even leaving my phone behind at home when I go out, not obsessively scrolling, trying to sort through the accounts and people that aren’t making me feel good right now.
That being said, I woke up feeling inspired and wanting to share the habits I’ve been focusing my time on lately and are helping me set my day up in the best way. A lot of these I’ve started doing this past week in an effort to make me feel happy and driven and more confident throughout my day, and I’ve been enjoying them so much that I felt the need to make them into a whole New Year’s post. I call them non-negotiables because if I skip out on them I definitely see a difference in my motivation and happiness throughout the day. I’ve never been one for resolutions, I feel as though they’re quite deceiving, so this time you’re sticking with me and building yourself a simple little routine at the start of your day. I think it’ll be cool to look back a year from now at the progress we’ve made together!
SPF, always
You read that right, even when staying indoors where you think you won’t be exposed to the sun! I look back at all the times I baked in the South Florida sun, dousing myself in what can only be categorized nowadays as olive oil, or being up in an airplane thinking I didn’t need sun protection, and I cringe. Please don’t be like 19-year-old me. I’m so thankful I matured since then and did my research about skincare, as it led me to figure out that SPF is literally the fountain of youth, in a bottle. I know it may be hard to find a good sun protection cream because some are too mineral-packed, some are too white, too thick, and others are too smelly or pile under your makeup. However, the SPF’s I have found and use now are probably the number 1 reason my skin is the way it is now. Find a good tinted one and use that as your makeup base! Not a day has ever gone by that someone hasn’t complimented my skin when I’m wearing my tinted Supergoop glowscreen.
Journaling
This probably wouldn’t normally fall under “beauty” habits but I think that inner beauty and a healthy mental state really shines through the exterior and happy girls are the prettiest girls :) Journaling is such a good habit to get into to improve your emotional intelligence and understand yourself better.
Journaling is a habit my therapist once told me to get into if I’m ever in an argument with someone, or I’m not feeling confident, I’m trying to get over something… literally basically anything. I’ve just recently started seeing her again and she’s highly encouraged writing everything down to alleviate all the feelings inside of my body. Every morning and every night. I put on a little eye mask and let my pen just mindlessly scribble down, observing my body and heart feel less heavy with every word jotted down. Whether that be a gratitude list, a random prompt I found on Instagram, a love letter to myself, things I’d like to say to someone—let your journal be a safe haven, a place where you write down anything, even the most random thoughts.
Vitamins
I’ve been loving my new vitamin routine lately and am so excited to be able to stick with it into the new year. Please don’t self-prescribe and take some random supplement or vitamin because Tiktok told you to…do your research. Going to see a naturopath is a great way to see what vitamins your body is lacking, and as soon as those levels are replenished, it’s really crazy to see the difference in your skin, body, and even mental health! I’ve taking a good mix each morning to help with my skin, bloating, hair concerns, and anxiety; I’m very happy with the results thus far.
Facial massage
Following my morning skincare routine, I always do some sort of facial lymphatic drainage massage. This is your reminder that you bloat in your face too! The mornings after eating a lot of salt I make sure to just sit in front of my mirror for 5 minutes and depuff. Whether that be with my gua sha, my nuface device, or even my fingers if I’m in a hurry or on the go, I’ve really drastically seen a difference in my facial shape thanks to this.
Athletic Greens
I’ve never led my followers astray when it comes to weird-looking bright green drinks. Matcha, my Joe & the Juice obsession, now AG1. This is of course not sponsored, but I did actually discover it while going through pr boxes that were sent to me right before going away to the Alps. I reco doing your own research (as for everything), but this stuff is packed with nutrients derived from super foods, vitamins, minerals and I’ve been drinking it every morning without fail for almost 3 weeks now. I do it on an empty stomach, mix a scoop with cold water and drink it all in one go.
I won’t lie and tell you that it tastes like a good refreshing green juice, in fact, some mornings when I’ve had bad anxiety this drink was almost my 13th reason. However, beauty is pain and it’s really not that bad with a lot of water and a little bit of determination, and on top of that, I’ve really seen a huge difference in my energy, digestive system, and even notice a different glow about my skin. It’s really changed my morning routine!
Double-cleansing
If you’re a girlie who likes makeup and likes waking up looking refreshed, clean and glowy please please please double cleanse!!! I learned this “trick” by reading articles, aka watching Tiktok videos, and am happy to announce I will never go back. Double cleansing refers to using two different types of facial cleansers to wash all the dirt, gunk, and makeup off your face before proceeding with your night skincare routine. I like for the first cleanser to be a balmy, oil-based formula, and then follow suit with a more substantial facial soap to really get in your pores and clean everything out. Every night, I religiously use the Elemis cleansing balm (this is my all time fave) and either follow with the Panoxyl acne wash or Youth to the People superfood cleanser. Don’t forget to pack on the moisturizer after!
No more vino
I can already practically hear the eye roll—I know, I know, you’re so over the dry January bullshit, as I have been in the past too. But hear me out, we as humans were not meant to constantly be taking in things and substances that impair us, to shift our control, and the way we act or feel. We’re not meant to not be ourselves. I know it’s so easy to go out with friends or to dinner or have an intence Christmas and want to have that one glass of wine or cocktail, but there’s a reason we don’t feel good the next day or want to die with anxiety looking back on what we could’ve said or done the night prior. And look, I’m not saying never drink again…I’m the first girl to admit she loves a cocktail or the taste of wine, and it’s definitely a scary thing as I hate going out and I hate the whole back-to-back events thing, especially sober. This is partially because I was always in a relationship and elated to stay in with my SO, but also because my social battery couldn’t ever take it and I felt like I needed a drink to brave all the interactions and small talk. That’s why I’m so excited to try out the whole month without a drink thing and see how I evolve because of it. Opening my DM’s for any of you that may be wanting some support in starting this journey with me! Let’s chat :)
Retinol, retinol, retinol!
I’ve used different kinds of retinol for over a year now and I really attribute most of my skin’s qualities to it. Retinol is tricky to navigate as there are nuances to it; different types, different names, some are creams, others are serums, it even exists in eye cream form, blah blah blah. It can all be overwhelming, especially as a 25 year old like myself who isn’t exposed to it on the reg. I’ve always thought you had to be prescribed to it, as my first ever dermatologist wrote up a tretinoin for me when I was dealing with bad acne post-covid. But rest assured, retinol can be found almost anywhere sold by your favorite skincare brands, and it’s very easy to start including it in your routine! I’ll list my favorite ones below, as a retinol beginner myself, but encourage you to please educate yourself on it as it is a very powerful ingredient. Wear your SPF, don’t put it on every day, don’t use more than one in your routine, start out by building up your skin’s tolerance to it—just look.it.up!!!!
Very nice article Clem 👍😘