How To: Sunday Night Detox Mini-Facial.

REN ClearCalm3 Anti-Blemish Treatment Mask - £30

Clarins Lotus Face Oil - £29 *

Caudalie Beauty Elixir - £32

REN Resurfacing AHA Concentrate - £30

Avene Skin Recovery Cream - £12.50

La Roche Possay Effaclair AI - £9.19

When I arrive back from Glasgow on (almost every) Sunday night, I look horrific. I've spent the last three days ignoring my usual skincare routine, and on top of that, spending a lot of time eating, drinking and having late nights. Combine that with the long, dehydrating train journeys and stress of trying to carry my life across London and you can imagine what we're dealing with here.

Sunday night is always, always my pamper night. I make up for those three days of ignoring my skin with a deep cleanse and I love it, I actually look forward to it!
After seeing this video by Origins of a mini-facial and Annas post (who has the same skin type as me and impeccable taste in products) I thought I'd share my Sunday night routine.

After cleansing, I usually use the Origins Zero Oil cleanser or just Bioderma and cotton pads as I don't usually travel back with makeup on (sorry fellow commuters), I apply the REN Anti-Blemish Treatment mask - I have three REN masks and I love them. I fell in love with REN when I interned at their PR company a year ago and I haven't looked back, REN is my favourite skincare brand and I love all of their products.
This really detoxes my skin and helps to calm blemishes (I always come back with spots!) as well as helping with excess oil and clogged pores. After this has been washed off, I use my Caudalie Beauty Elixir, another product that I've been using religiously for months now. My skin loves this and I love how it soothes redness and blemishes, whilst also helping to give my skin moisture.

Now, you may be wondering why I didn't use an exfoliator. That's because I have discovered chemical exfoliants and I find these to have a much better effect on my skin than abrasive, scrub exfoliators. My skin is a little on the sensitive side after I get back, and it's a bit much to go in with my Clarisonic and Alpha H Liquid Gold (although I adore these both). I have been using the REN AHA Concentrate, which uses fruit acids to remove dead skin cells and leave skin looking healthy, glowing and flawless. This is similar to Liquid Gold but a lot less harsh on my skin. It took me a while to get the hang of the AHA Concentrate (ie when to use it, how often etc.) but I think on my skin it can be used quite often (usually every second night) and leaves great results. My skin has been looking so much better after discovering this.

I absolutely love using facial oils at night, even though my skin is slightly on the oily side I've always seen so many benefits from using oils. I use Clarins Lotus Oil most nights, it's light and leaves my skin glowing and so soft and clear. I spend a few minutes massaging this in to my skin to increase circulation, I see so many good results from doing this so I always try to do it in the evening.

For moisture, I usually go for the Avene Skin Recovery Cream - it's very sensitive, contains few ingredients and really helps to nourish and soothe my skin. I do prefer the results of the REN AHA Concentrate on it's own, but I think if I'm going to use any sort of night cream, then this is the one I reach for. It's a beautiful moisturising product which is light and refreshing on the skin and really helps to calm, I find it's great for blemishes too.

Lastly, I dab on a bit of La Roche Posay's Effaclair AI to blemishes, this is again very soothing so it doesn't irritate blemishes.

This seems very long, but it really only takes a few minutes after the mask has been on. It's all been trial and error to see what my skin loves but this is the Sunday night detox facial my skin is craving at the moment. I find that if I spend a bit longer on my skin once a week, I can cut down on my routine through the week and only do the essentials!

What is your Sunday night routine?