I know it’s April Fools’ but this is not a joke. Today’s Public Service Announcement is nothing new – SkInvesting: Invest in your skin while you’re young!

When I was in my teens, I was lazy with my skincare. To be honest, there were even days that I didn’t wash off my face (I had no makeup on, but still) before going to bed *cue gasp*. Come college, I did the basic thing of using a facial wash and nothing else. My mom always chided me on this. We are only young once, and our skin’s collagen will not be great forever. I was a hundred times more stubborn then and refused to listen. I wish I did.

Unfortunately, unless you have the extra dough to get a stem cell therapy or make bimonthly visits to Belo, aging will mess with your skin (metabolism, aching joints, this list is long because aging isn’t glamorous). I’m halfway through my 25th year on Earth but the fine lines under my eyes from excessive eye scrubbing and working on a shifting schedule (which in turn messed with my sleep) suggest otherwise. I skipped out on sunscreen for so many years, and the most recent development of sun spots on my skin have made me scrambling to get ahold of more intense skincare products. Thanks to freckles being trendy right now that it can pass off as ‘cute’. Ugh. What do I do? I turn to Asian brands of course!

I’m not sure if we have Biore products available locally in stores, but my first encounter with this Japanese brand was during C and I’s trip to Tokyo. You can literally find it everywhere in Japan and Taiwan, but the problem was I didn’t know what it was for. Thankfully, BeautyMNL had English descriptions and I literally bought all the products that were for oily/combination skin that wasn’t sold out at the time.

The demand for Korean beauty products has increased the past years (given the popularity of Korean dramas and KPop), and a lot of Korean brands can already be found locally. However, the markup can be a little crazy which is the case for most foreign brands. ALTHEA Korea ships directly to your doorstep from South Korea, so their items are cheaper and they ship for free if you order beyond a certain amount. You can imagine my surprise when it arrived four days after, which is quite fast considering it says that shipping takes 10-15 days. Their packaging is also A+! If you don’t have an account yet, you can sign up here!

When I opened the parcel, each product was wrapped intensely with bubble wrap, ensuring that nothing gets damaged on its way here.

When I was deciding on what to do with regards to my skin care routine, I went and read other people’s blogs and watched their Youtube videos. Some people even have intensive 10-step routines which as interesting but not something I plan on doing. I probably would fall asleep halfway through it, too! Since cleansing is important, I start off with either the Biore Cleansing Oil Facial Sheets or my VMV Hypoallergenics Oil-Free Quick & Complete Makeup Remover. I like the facial sheets for my liquid lipsticks and when I have heavy makeup on because it really takes it off easily. I skip this step whenever I am not wearing makeup and proceed with cleansing. Right now I’m still using up the last of my Banila Co Clean It Zero Fresh Foam Cleanser before I move on to using the Biore Uru Uru Cleanser. I’ve tried it a couple of times because I couldn’t resist and it was so light on the skin. There was no tightening feeling and it felt like I was just cleaning my face with water. However, my face was smooth and clean after. Win! I chanced upon the Skinfood Black Sugar Mask Wash Off while it was on sale for Php 260. Skinfood is quite pricey when you buy from their local stores, so it was such a steal to buy it. One tub should last me for a while because I only use it once a week but the sibs and chicken boy like to use my skin care products as well.. and I end up having to replenish my stash sooner than I thought I would.

I’m always rotating between different toners, and so far, none aside from Celeteque (their products are just not compatible with my skin) have contributed to a breakout. I have started using the Milky Dress The White Skin as a toner for a week now, and it was a different experience from the other toners I have tried before. There was zero stinging sensation upon application and it did not make my skin feel dry. During day time, I apply the Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery Gel as sunscreen and moisturizer after toning. I don’t like putting on too many products when I know I’m still going to put on makeup because it just feels too heavy and takes a lot of time. My initial impression of this product is that it would be heavy. It was such a pleasant surprise to find that it’s not the case and once my skin absorbed it in a few minutes, it left my skin smooth and soft to touch. So far, I didn’t notice any adverse effect on my makeup even with the sunscreen underneath. I totally would repurchase and stick to it from now on.

I have more skin care steps at night after toning, before I go to sleep (or work from home). I don’t use an eye cream, but now that I find the need for one, I went and bought W-Lab’s Bifida Prestige Eyecream since it had a 5-star review on Althea’s website. I chose to buy the It’s SKIN Power 10 Formula Q10 Effector since I’m new to anti-aging serums and it was the cheapest one I could find with great ratings. I seal it all in with a moisturizer I’ve had for months now which is Avène Hydrance Optimale Aqua Cream-In-Gel. A little goes a long way with this moisturizer because it’s thick and takes a while to get all absorbed by the skin. Waking up with a supple skin us worth the extra 15-20 minutes I spend on taking care of my skin. These things take time so I’m not sure if it’s effective but let’s see!

What’s your skincare routine? I’m interested to know about it. Let me know in the comments below!