It’s the age-old question (second in importance to “what’s the purpose of life”): how can I get clear skin?
Now, if you have always had clear skin and don’t think you need to keep reading, just know this: I don’t know if we can be friends. Just kidding. Of course, I love you and you’re annoyingly good skin. But, seriously, keep reading. Maybe one day you’ll need to know some of these tips. You might be able to share my golden nuggets and knowledge with someone who needs it. Or, you may want to try some of these tips or products for fun because we all like to get pampered even if it isn’t really needed. I mean, why else would ladies paint their nails and get their hair colored and wear makeup?
The advice that I am about to give you is not dermatologist approved. It is also important to remember that it isn’t always as easy as following these tips. Skin problems can very likely be an outer manifestation of an inner body health issue such as: hormone imbalances, stress, food allergies, etc. And, please be advised, I am not claiming to have perfect skin. I still struggle with my problem areas. My skin is, however, SIGINIFICANTLY better than it was a few years ago, and seems to be perfect (I think) under the following 2 conditions: 1. It’s not being examined close up in a magnified mirror, and 2. I haven’t been obsessively messing with it.
So, here it goes. The tips I would like to share with you to help you achieve that flawless glowing skin you so desire are all things I have been practicing for the last 5 years which have given me the beautiful skin I never thought I would have.
1. I wash my face at night and maybe in the morning.
Confession: I do try to wash my face every night. And, some mornings. But, I honestly like to give my face a break from washing in the mornings. I figure, unless I had an especially sweaty night and as long as I didn’t go cow tipping and fall in the mud in my sleep, then I’m probably okay to let my skin keep its oils that it’s produced to balance itself out and just go on with my day. I do, however, like to splash my face with cool water in the morning for two reasons. First of all, it helps me feel invigorated in starting the day and, secondly, the cool water is good for the pores.
I used to wash my face every night and every morning, without fail. However, when we first moved to Black Cap Farm, we didn’t have running water and that wasn’t always so easy. Hence, my routine became more flexible, and I honestly think my skin appreciates it. In fact, I truly believe that cutting back on the washing in the mornings is a huge reason why my skin get less oily throughout the day. It’s like my skin used to say when I would wash in the morning, “hey. I just worked really hard to give you that glowing skin with your natural oils and now you just stripped it all away. It’s like you don’t even appreciate everything I do for you anymore. You think you can just replace me with that fake crap? She will never give you the love I can.” And, in vengeance my once loving skin would load me up on extra oil all day long. It was unbearable. Infuriating. Like when I’m lacking attention from my husband and so I become needy and annoying and clingy and… you get the picture.
Confession: I do try to wash my face every night. And, some mornings. But, I honestly like to give my face a break from washing in the mornings. I figure, unless I had an especially sweaty night and as long as I didn’t go cow tipping and fall in the mud in my sleep, then I’m probably okay to let my skin keep its oils that it’s produced to balance itself out and just go on with my day. I do, however, like to splash my face with cool water in the morning for two reasons. First of all, it helps me feel invigorated in starting the day and, secondly, the cool water is good for the pores.
I used to wash my face every night and every morning, without fail. However, when we first moved to Black Cap Farm, we didn’t have running water and that wasn’t always so easy. Hence, my routine became more flexible, and I honestly think my skin appreciates it. In fact, I truly believe that cutting back on the washing in the mornings is a huge reason why my skin get less oily throughout the day. It’s like my skin used to say when I would wash in the morning, “hey. I just worked really hard to give you that glowing skin with your natural oils and now you just stripped it all away. It’s like you don’t even appreciate everything I do for you anymore. You think you can just replace me with that fake crap? She will never give you the love I can.” And, in vengeance my once loving skin would load me up on extra oil all day long. It was unbearable. Infuriating. Like when I’m lacking attention from my husband and so I become needy and annoying and clingy and… you get the picture.
2. There are 3 products I use to wash my face:
1. I use just a generic gentle face cleanser. The one I am currently using is the Equate brand comparable to Cetaphil daily face cleanser.
2. I use St. Ives Blackhead Cleaning Green Tea Scrub. Take a look, here. It is supposed to clear blackheads and calm redness. It says it’s 100% natural exfoliants, sulfate free, and paraben free. It does, however, have fragrance and coloring additives in it (which is just absurd to me). So, if you’re sensitive to those things, you may want to find another exfoliating product.
Honestly, one of my favorite ways to exfoliate is simply using cornmeal. I like to keep a tiny little reusable container in my shower fill with cornmeal so I can just pour a teeny bit into my hand and start rubbing it gently on my wet face. I’m not all that fond of the smell of cornmeal but it’s all natural, and works great. Just don’t premix it with water and let it sit in your shower to be used over a long period of time. I’ve tried that… it’s goes bad.
I try to exfoliate 2 or 3 times per week.
3. The third cleansing product I use is our Black Cap Farm Detoxifying Ginger Mint Face Mask. I like to use the face mask 1 or 2 times per week. If you haven’t tried our face mask yet, you will love it. It’s smooth, cooling, refreshing, detoxifying, cleansing and, of course, all natural and made with essential oils. It is made with bentonite clay, apple cider vinegar, and ginger and peppermint essential oils. It really is simple and brings great results. Your skin will feel so smooth after using it and it will give you noticeable results in clearing up your skin if you use it regularly (But not too often. Remember, you don’t want to over tax your face… like scrubbing the dirt off the walls till the paint comes off). I like to wash mine off with mildly cool water. I follow up immediately with face lotion.
You can buy our face mask on our website or on amazon.com here
1. I use just a generic gentle face cleanser. The one I am currently using is the Equate brand comparable to Cetaphil daily face cleanser.
2. I use St. Ives Blackhead Cleaning Green Tea Scrub. Take a look, here. It is supposed to clear blackheads and calm redness. It says it’s 100% natural exfoliants, sulfate free, and paraben free. It does, however, have fragrance and coloring additives in it (which is just absurd to me). So, if you’re sensitive to those things, you may want to find another exfoliating product.
Honestly, one of my favorite ways to exfoliate is simply using cornmeal. I like to keep a tiny little reusable container in my shower fill with cornmeal so I can just pour a teeny bit into my hand and start rubbing it gently on my wet face. I’m not all that fond of the smell of cornmeal but it’s all natural, and works great. Just don’t premix it with water and let it sit in your shower to be used over a long period of time. I’ve tried that… it’s goes bad.
I try to exfoliate 2 or 3 times per week.
3. The third cleansing product I use is our Black Cap Farm Detoxifying Ginger Mint Face Mask. I like to use the face mask 1 or 2 times per week. If you haven’t tried our face mask yet, you will love it. It’s smooth, cooling, refreshing, detoxifying, cleansing and, of course, all natural and made with essential oils. It is made with bentonite clay, apple cider vinegar, and ginger and peppermint essential oils. It really is simple and brings great results. Your skin will feel so smooth after using it and it will give you noticeable results in clearing up your skin if you use it regularly (But not too often. Remember, you don’t want to over tax your face… like scrubbing the dirt off the walls till the paint comes off). I like to wash mine off with mildly cool water. I follow up immediately with face lotion.
You can buy our face mask on our website or on amazon.com here
3. Ok, this one is harder. Why? Because it’s a habit, not a product. Here it is: KEEP YOUR HAND OFF. Stop touching your face. Try to catch yourself in the act, and mentally note when you touch your face and where. Is it correlating with your problem areas? If so, I would strongly strongly, strongly urge you to STOP!!! I can’t stress how important this is.
Stop touching your face when you’re concentrating.
Stop touching your face when you’re sad.
Stop touching your face when you’re stressed.
Stop touching your face when you’re nervous.
Stop touching your face when you’re staring in the mirror as close as you can and you’re looking for some flawed and clogged up pore to pinch because you think that if you pinch your face you’ll be relieving your stress, avoiding your chores, or cleaning yourself up because your inner flaws are too daunting to change. (What?! No, these are not reasons known to me from experience… of course I’m basically perfect and don’t have any flaws that are overwhelming and make me want to fix something easy like my skin…)
Anyways, I know this is a hard habit to change. I know it’s hard because I still struggle with it. But, I promise, when I have a long stretch on time when I haven’t messed with my face or touched it mindlessly, my skin is clear and beautiful. When I touch it mindlessly, I get black heads and little problems. Then, I want to mess with it. And, when I mess with it, those little problems become big problems.
Stop touching your face when you’re concentrating.
Stop touching your face when you’re sad.
Stop touching your face when you’re stressed.
Stop touching your face when you’re nervous.
Stop touching your face when you’re staring in the mirror as close as you can and you’re looking for some flawed and clogged up pore to pinch because you think that if you pinch your face you’ll be relieving your stress, avoiding your chores, or cleaning yourself up because your inner flaws are too daunting to change. (What?! No, these are not reasons known to me from experience… of course I’m basically perfect and don’t have any flaws that are overwhelming and make me want to fix something easy like my skin…)
Anyways, I know this is a hard habit to change. I know it’s hard because I still struggle with it. But, I promise, when I have a long stretch on time when I haven’t messed with my face or touched it mindlessly, my skin is clear and beautiful. When I touch it mindlessly, I get black heads and little problems. Then, I want to mess with it. And, when I mess with it, those little problems become big problems.
4. Next in my tip jar is to use Black Cap Farm’s Clear Skin Healing Toner (coming soon). It’s super easy to use because it’s in a convenient spray bottle. You don’t have to pour it onto a dry, yucky feeling cotton ball and then try to somehow transfer it to your skin even though most of it would still be absorbed in the dang cotton ball. Plus, it’s a nice refreshing mist (just close your eyes and mouth when you do it).
I spray my face with the Healing Toner every night and every morning (and in between on days when I’m not wearing makeup). HOWEVER, I do NOT use it immediately after I exfoliate or use a face mask. My skin is too sensitive afterwards and the toner then gives an uncomfortable burning instead of the usual nice cleansing feeling. On days when I do exfoliate or mask, I usually just wait a half hour or so or whenever I think of it next. Trust me, I’ve learned this the hard way.
The toner really is wonderful, though. It is, of course, all natural ingredients, including essential oils and witch hazel. In case you need to know, the essential oils in the Healing Toner are: lavender, clary sage, frankincense, geranium, and melaleuca (also known a tea tree).
5. If you can, try to pick one day a week to go makeup free. I am always in awe of the lovely ladies who actually never wear makeup and they are so naturally beautiful that when you see them you think everyone in the world should stop wearing makeup and you’re instantly convinced that it’s the higher law and you will become a legendary model if you stop wearing makeup and then you go home and tell your husband you think you should stop wearing makeup and he smiles and nods, and then you try to and realize you’re not one of those people… just me? Yea…
But, I do try to have a makeup free day when I can. It’s kinda sorta easy for me because I live in the mountains and I never see anyone except my own family unless I’m actually driving into town which is 35 minutes away… So, for those of you who go to a job every day or live in suburbia, are you brave enough? Are you confident enough? Bold enough? That’s ok if you’re not. I get it. I don’t know if I would be or would have been when I was in public more often. But, in that case, maybe a weekend day would be good. Or even half of a day. The point is, sometimes our skin needs a break. If you can, please try it. It’s actually empowering once you get used to it. I remember my first time having a makeup free day around my husband when we were first married (back when my skin was out of control). I was so embarrassed, and I hated it. Now, I love it. And, looking back, I now know that he didn’t even care. He already knew where all of the halfway hidden zits under the makeup were anyways. I also remember the first time I had ever even heard of having a makeup free day from a fellow dorm hall girl. She told me she was having her makeup free day and I thought “woah. That’s weird… “ It literally blew my mind. I couldn’t comprehend it. You go girl.
I spray my face with the Healing Toner every night and every morning (and in between on days when I’m not wearing makeup). HOWEVER, I do NOT use it immediately after I exfoliate or use a face mask. My skin is too sensitive afterwards and the toner then gives an uncomfortable burning instead of the usual nice cleansing feeling. On days when I do exfoliate or mask, I usually just wait a half hour or so or whenever I think of it next. Trust me, I’ve learned this the hard way.
The toner really is wonderful, though. It is, of course, all natural ingredients, including essential oils and witch hazel. In case you need to know, the essential oils in the Healing Toner are: lavender, clary sage, frankincense, geranium, and melaleuca (also known a tea tree).
5. If you can, try to pick one day a week to go makeup free. I am always in awe of the lovely ladies who actually never wear makeup and they are so naturally beautiful that when you see them you think everyone in the world should stop wearing makeup and you’re instantly convinced that it’s the higher law and you will become a legendary model if you stop wearing makeup and then you go home and tell your husband you think you should stop wearing makeup and he smiles and nods, and then you try to and realize you’re not one of those people… just me? Yea…
But, I do try to have a makeup free day when I can. It’s kinda sorta easy for me because I live in the mountains and I never see anyone except my own family unless I’m actually driving into town which is 35 minutes away… So, for those of you who go to a job every day or live in suburbia, are you brave enough? Are you confident enough? Bold enough? That’s ok if you’re not. I get it. I don’t know if I would be or would have been when I was in public more often. But, in that case, maybe a weekend day would be good. Or even half of a day. The point is, sometimes our skin needs a break. If you can, please try it. It’s actually empowering once you get used to it. I remember my first time having a makeup free day around my husband when we were first married (back when my skin was out of control). I was so embarrassed, and I hated it. Now, I love it. And, looking back, I now know that he didn’t even care. He already knew where all of the halfway hidden zits under the makeup were anyways. I also remember the first time I had ever even heard of having a makeup free day from a fellow dorm hall girl. She told me she was having her makeup free day and I thought “woah. That’s weird… “ It literally blew my mind. I couldn’t comprehend it. You go girl.
6. Drink plenty of water. My skin is not only clearer when I’m hydrated, it heals faster as well. The following water tips are some things I learned from the Chalene Show (a podcast station by Chalene Johnson). I drink about 75 oz of water each day. I used to struggle to get the recommended 64 oz per day. Now, I’m loving the 75. I actually look forward to it, and here’s why:
I have pretty stainless-steel water bottles that I enjoy looking at and therefor enjoy drinking out of. (I recently bought stainless steel ones because my plastic one broke and I’ve been wanting to get away from plastics).
I fill them up either the night before if I can so they’re ready to go for the next day.
I add in a couple of drops of lemon essential oil (although you could use lemon juice) and a touch of ginger powder (Chalene has a recipe on her website for using fresh ginger but that sounded too complicated for me). It tastes delicious, clean, and refreshing, and it is detoxifying, calming, and cleansing.
I track my water intake by knowing that I’ve drank my prefilled water bottles and also by using an app called HydroCoach. It’s free, and easy to use, and it reminds me if I’m lagging behind in my drinking.
I have pretty stainless-steel water bottles that I enjoy looking at and therefor enjoy drinking out of. (I recently bought stainless steel ones because my plastic one broke and I’ve been wanting to get away from plastics).
I fill them up either the night before if I can so they’re ready to go for the next day.
I add in a couple of drops of lemon essential oil (although you could use lemon juice) and a touch of ginger powder (Chalene has a recipe on her website for using fresh ginger but that sounded too complicated for me). It tastes delicious, clean, and refreshing, and it is detoxifying, calming, and cleansing.
I track my water intake by knowing that I’ve drank my prefilled water bottles and also by using an app called HydroCoach. It’s free, and easy to use, and it reminds me if I’m lagging behind in my drinking.
7. Decrease your stress level. If you can’t decrease your stress, try learning some stress management techniques. Stress releases chemicals into our body that will inevitable affect our face. Plus, it will help if you touch or pick at your face when you’re stressed.
8. Try changing your makeup. A higher quality makeup with less toxins is a great thing to look into. There are budget breaking brands of makeup that are just as bad for you as the cheap drug store kinds and there are budget breaking brands that are toxin free. I like to look for the makeup that is still cheaper and toxin free, or at least lower on the toxin rating. Right now, I’m using Bare Minerals powder foundation, Maybelline Fit Me coverup, and my bronzer, blush, eye shadow, and mascara are E.L.F. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than a lot of stuff out there.
There’s a really cool website (and they have a free app), www.ewg.org/skindeep, where you can look up a product to see its toxicity rating. It’s really cool. I believe you can scan products in the app to get a faster look up.
9. Wash you makeup brushes
10. Change your pillow case
There’s a really cool website (and they have a free app), www.ewg.org/skindeep, where you can look up a product to see its toxicity rating. It’s really cool. I believe you can scan products in the app to get a faster look up.
9. Wash you makeup brushes
10. Change your pillow case
All right folks, if you made it through that long post, good job! Hopefully, you didn’t just skip to the bottom to check out the giveaway! But, if you did, I’ll forgive you.
So, the products I’m giving away right now are…. Drum roll…
1 Black Cap Farm Ginger Mint Face Mask and 1 Black Cap Farm Clear Skin Healing Toner. There will be 2 winners! The 1st winner will win the face mask and the 2nd winner will win the toner!
In order to be entered into the drawing, you will need to do is:
1. Subscribe to my blog email list!
2. Either follow our page on Instagram or Facebook
The winner will be announced Thursday, April 11, 2019 at 8 pm!
(And I'll message the winners directly as well)
1. Subscribe to my blog email list!
2. Either follow our page on Instagram or Facebook
The winner will be announced Thursday, April 11, 2019 at 8 pm!
(And I'll message the winners directly as well)
Thanks for being my friend! Here’s to clear skin!
❤Amy
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