ESP’s Health & Beauty columnist Emily Rawlinson brings us her tips for looking after ourselves through lockdown, beauty during Veganuary and how to deal with face mask causing skin breakouts…
Finally it’s the New Year! 2020 had its hardships for everyone and even though this third lockdown in England may not be the best start to 2021, there’s hope that we’re on the home stretch to returning to some normality this year.
I decided to change the direction of my intended ‘spend vs splurge’ article when we went into lockdown, with my own priorities being different now along with many others and instead here are my tips for your beauty routine while we’re staying at home.
Use up what you’ve got…
Instead of spending it’s a matter of using up what you have and analysing what might be missing from your routine.
Over the years I’ve collected a lot of moisturisers, perfume and makeup which I simply need to use up before buying anymore. After my piece last year on expiry dates for makeup I seriously went through all of my collection and was still left over with a lot of products that were in date and usable. I didn’t add too much to my collection last year and only bought when necessary but I’m still working my way through them, I have five foundations on the go!
A lot of products I can’t use when my eczema is bad so I tend to go through things slowly as I have two different types of moisturisers, deodorant and perfume depending on how my skin condition is.
One of my new year goals is to use up what I have and only have one of each product that I really need and maybe a backup if it’s an all time favourite. This is going to be hard with makeup as I’m hardly wearing it at the moment with lockdown again but I need to spark up my creative side to work on my makeup skills again.
This also goes hand in hand with my low-buy/no-buy year where I’m saving as much as I can at the minute and only buying absolute essentials.
Veganuary
Veganuary happens every January and was created by a UK non profit organisation to promote the vegan lifestyle and sets people the challenge of trying to be vegan for the whole month or at least try vegan things which could potentially be a permanent change.
Personally I am not vegan, however I do try where possible to make simple changes. For example, buying skincare or makeup products that are vegan and trying vegan recipes. This goes hand in hand as well with trying eco-friendly and sustainable products.
Over the last few years demand has become huge and you’ll now often find that most of the large stores sell vegan products.
Superdrug has the largest own brand vegan product range on the UK high street, and in the last few years has grown its vegan beauty category by over a third.
If you’re taking part in Veganuary this month and looking to take a more holistic approach, here are some of their vegan products it’s not hard to find the perfect vegan friendly skincare routine at Superdrug this January, with a huge range of 100% vegan and cruelty free products! Try swapping your usual products to these popular vegan options…
REVOLUTION 5D MASCARA (£6.99 WAS £8.99)
The NEW Revolution 5D Extreme Extension Mascara takes your lashes to the next dimension from 1D to 5D in one swipe. The ultimate lengthening, defining and stretching cruelty free and vegan mascara.
ALL TIGERS MATTE LIPSTICK IN 888 RED £21.80
The timeless pure red that goes well with anything. This 81.7% natural formula has got it all : a matte finish, intense colour, and long lasting wear. This lipstick is bold, vegan and ferociously stylish!
ME + HYALURONIC ACID BOOSTER £5.99 for 30ml
This Me+ Hydrating is infused with 2% Hyaluronic Acid, the solution is a highly effective blend of hydrating ingredients which have a unique capacity to bind and retain water molecules leaving skin feeling plumper and firmer. After four weeks of use fine lines appear reduced and skin looks more youthful.
OPTIMUM RETINOL SERUM £13.99 for 30ml
Formulated with encapsulated Retinyl palmitate to deliver results and reduced chance of irritation, this light textured serum is supercharged with additional Niacinamide (Vitamin B3) to help improve the appearance of skin and uneven skin tone. After two weeks skin looks clearer, smoother and more radiant.
Are you suffering from ‘Maskcne’?
The new phrase ‘maskcne’ relates to your face masks causing breakouts on your skin. With face mask wearing the new norm for those who can, a lot of people have found that wearing them for long periods of time is causing them to have skin breakouts when they normally wouldn’t. Below are my tips for relieving or stopping maskne from happening.
1 – It’s obvious but make sure you’re washing your face masks regularly if you wear reusable ones. Bacteria builds up quickly and therefore washing your face mask is important, however if you’re doing this and still finding your skin is breaking out, try using a sensitive washing detergent. I personally already use a sensitive one so don’t have this issue but anything heavily fragranced can cause your skin to break out as your face is a lot more sensitive and isn’t used to it.
2 – Give your skin a break from makeup. Even though makeup doesn’t always cause acne, with the masks covering at least half of your face anyway, try going out with no makeup on. I do this all the time now as no one can really see me so I don’t even bother with much makeup, just my eyebrows! This may make no difference but could help some. Just remember to always have your SPF moisturiser on.
3 – Spray your mask with a facial mist which includes acne fighting ingredients. I spray my masks with the Mario Badescu Aloe, Cucumber and Green Tea Facial Mist a few minutes before putting it on so that it can dry which means when wearing you have some sort of skincare barrier touching your face. The Boots Tea Tree & Witch Hazel Back Spray has also been found to prevent breakouts and is super affordable.
New Year Goals/Resolutions
I don’t usually set too many goals or resolutions at new year. I just aim to work on the things that I struggled with and better myself as a person.
My priorities have shifted so much from last year and I really want to focus on spending more time with my family and friends and getting out more for walks and spending less time on my phone. I often find that when I’m busy, even though I thrive on it, I end up forgetting to text people back or not feeling like I have time to go for a 30 minute walk to clear my head so I want to work on that.
I hope that we return to some normality this year, I think we all just want to be able to see our family and friends again, spending time with the people that mean most to us.
Emily