I Detoxed My Skin for a Week and This Is What Happened

As a beauty writer, I’m constantly testing a bunch of different products on my face. From playing with new makeup to slathering on the latest and greatest in skincare every night, my face is rarely bare, and when it is, it still has layers of creams and serums on it #productjunkieproblems. As much as I love my makeup, I understand that I’m not doing my skin any favors by wearing it day in and day out, so I teamed up with Healthy Essentials® to give my skin the detox it needs as I kick off a new year.

Less makeup, more moisture and smart skincare combos were the name of the game — and I was all about it. Plus, the Healthy Essentials® site offers an array of tips, tools and product recs to help get you through your day-to-day beauty and skincare routine — you should definitely check it out.

Beyond my daily makeup routine, I often have to wear super heavy makeup when I do photoshoots for various beauty series that I write. This leaves me wearing a ton of foundation, concealer, blush and bronzer on my face so I don’t look washed out under the bright lights. I also wear a bunch of mascara and always a swipe of waterproof eyeliner so my eyes are defined in photos.

While I like wearing this much makeup for pictures, it’s not healthy for my skin every day, and it’s been starting to show :( wah. The constant heavy makeup paired with the onset of colder temps has been making my skin look seriously dull and feeling super dry, so a skin detox was def in order.

My beauty detox dream team:

DAY 1: CONVERTED TO AVEENO® POSITIVELY RADIANT® CC Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 30

I am super loyal to products I love (especially when it comes to makeup) — so much so that I’ve been wearing the same foundation for over 10 years. It’s a powder, so the thought of wearing a tinted moisturizer for coverage was a bit unnerving. Thankfully, this stuff is truly legit. I dampened my beautyblender and applied it to my face, and almost immediately I became a CC cream convert. This hydrating product gave me a healthy dose of coverage, moisturized my skin and covered up my undereye circles while improving the tone of my skin. I wore just this CC cream during two shoots this week and was blown away at how great it looked on camera and IRL. My skin looked glowy and super healthy, if I do say so myself! Definitely going into the new year with a much lower-key foundation routine in mind, starting with this CC cream.

DAY 2: DE-STRESS BEFORE BED WITH AVEENO® Stress Relief Body Lotion

When I get home from work, I need to fully de-stress. This week, I made it a point to give myself some dedicated “me” time before I went to sleep and began it each night by using AVEENO® Stress Relief Body Lotion. The soothing scent totally relaxed me and made me forget about the stresses of the day, while leaving my skin feeling really smooth and moisturized. After a few days of doing this, I started to legit look forward to this super chill part of my day. This lotion has earned a permanent (highly coveted) spot on my bedside table.

DAY 3: RUN ERRANDS WITH NEUTROGENA® SkinClearing® Liquid Makeup

When I’m running errands on the weekends, I like to keep my makeup pretty low key so my skin can breathe (for once, ha!). That’s why I was stoked to try NEUTROGENA® SkinClearing® Liquid Makeup as I prepped for a day filled with annoying appointments (really, who enjoys going to the bank and the grocery store? Bueller?). This makeup will make you look fresh and flawless while giving your face a dose of good-for-your-skin ingredients — can I hear you say YAS. I loved how this makeup looked really natural while it covered up imperfections — and I didn’t even have to use concealer with it. It looked luminous when I was outside in natural light, which was great for selfies ;)

DAY 4: TAKING THE DAY OFF WITH NEUTROGENA® Ultra Light Cleansing Oil

You guys! I’ve been obsessed with oil cleansing for a few months, and NEUTROGENA® Ultra Light Cleansing Oil quickly became my go-to way to take off my makeup every night. I used to use normal makeup-removing face wash, which worked fine, but this new cleansing method has totally changed my routine. Especially during the winter when my skin is dry, I need as much moisture as I can get, so using this cleanser is a great way to give my skin some extra hydration.

I also wear waterproof eyeliner and hard-to-remove mascara (a LOT of it) every day, and this has been the *only* cleanser that gently removes every single trace of it. Love you 4EAE, NEUTROGENA® Ultra Light Cleansing Oil.

DAY 5: OVERNIGHT HYDRATION WITH AVEENO® POSITIVELY RADIANT® Intensive Night Cream

I have a confession: I’d never used a night cream in my life until AVEENO® POSITIVELY RADIANT® Intensive Night Cream. I’ve gotta say, using this night cream consistently for just seven days has already made a noticeable difference in my skin’s tone, luminosity and overall feel. I’m totally sold on the stuff — it now lives in my bathroom cabinet and isn’t going ANYWHERE — and I can’t wait to continue using it to see the undoubtedly legit long-term results. Night cream FTW!

DAY 6: REMOVE LIP STAINS WITH NEUTROGENA® Naturals Purifying Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes

I have an obsession with lip products and usually sport a different shade every single day, most of which are long-wearing formulas. When it finally comes time to wash my makeup off, I’m often like, WTF am I supposed to do about this lipstick that won’t even rub off with a wet washcloth?! I reached for my NEUTROGENA® Naturals Purifying Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes this week (I kept a pack on my bedside table + one in my purse!) to not only freshen up my face, but also my lips.

Spoiler alert: They worked insanely well and are my new favorite way to remove lipstick (who woulda thought!). Just cover your finger with a towelette, move it over your lips a few times and you’ll be lipstick-free in seconds without having to irritate your lips from scrubbing or dousing them in cleanser. Gross.

DAY 7: TONE CORRECT WITH AVEENO® POSITIVELY RADIANT® Targeted Tone Corrector

During the winter, I am paaaaale. Like, really pale. It makes me sad. This means that my skin isn’t always even in tone, and it’s easy to tell because I don’t have that healthy summer glow anymore. This week, I applied a thin layer of AVEENO® POSITIVELY RADIANT® Targeted Tone Corrector to areas of my face that I wanted to even out. I followed this product up with the night cream, which proved to be a killer combo of products. I was happy when I woke up each morning with noticeably brighter, more even skin thanks to this powerful stuff.

My biggest lesson learned from my week of detoxing my skin? That if I’m more consistent with my skincare routine — and use smart combinations of products that work together — I can wear much less makeup day-to-day and for photoshoots. CC cream is a total lifesaver, night cream is an absolute must-have in the winter and makeup wipes are the lipstick lover’s BFF. Enough said.

Aside from offering insights, answers, savings and more, Healthy Essentials® is running a new promotion starting today to help you get a healthy start this New Year. If you visit HealthyEssentials.com, you can win an assortment of products such as a digital tracker, music downloads or a 12-month magazine subscription, all to help to you stay on top of your 2016 resolutions.

This post is a collaboration with Healthy Essentials®.

Beauty Production + Styling: Beth Wischnia
 Photography: Kurt Andre + Chris Andre