I hope you guys are all caught up on my recent posts for the new year. We’ve been tackling a decent amount of beauty and fashion related things outside of our usual equine discussions. If you’re behind no worries, todays post won’t carry over, but as always I do recommend you flipping back and reacquainting yourself with G2B.

That being said, I have started a few new routines. As life goes on I realize I need to be supporting myself in all aspects of life not just what’s convenient or on tap at the moment. I have always been a huge equestrian so riding comes naturally to me no need to twist my arm to get me in the saddle, but cross conditioning and strength training have always been harder for me to initiate. I love looking flawless, but as a young 24 year old I haven’t really established a face care routine.

Todays post covers the new habits I’ve started forming in the late parts of 2022 to care for, support and help my face look flawless without makeup.

I grew up in Los Angeles one of the modeling hubs of the United States and it rubbed off on me. I was drawn to that lifestyle and always being “on” or “ready”. There wasn’t a time when you could go out and potentially not get seen by someone you knew. In specific parts of LA you’d see celebrities out and about which means you could even get papped in the background. This was a very rare occurrence, but it could happen on a whim. Needless to say I was always prepared. I even gave myself a rule of never leaving the house without my face on.

Along with that, Brentwood seemed to establish specific things, trends, labels, etc that made up a “Brentwood girl” and I struggled for years with the concept of not being a “Brentwood girl”, when I’m reality I was one by default. I literally went to Brentwood, I was a Brentwood Girl ™️.

On a retreat in 7th grade I dragged Tereza into my cabin with a bunch of other “true” Brentwood girls so I wasn’t alone. During one of our shower shifts where we all allocated time in and out of the bathroom, I learned I should be using lotion after I shave my legs. What a concept then, but I say this to indicate how low priority skincare was to me at that time.

From that time on I went out and found a tolerable lotion I would use after every shave. I hate the feeling of sticky tacky lotion, but obviously Victoria’s Secret saved the day.

I fluctuate between these two lotions above. Usually I opt for the VS Coconut Milk lotion because it is so hydrating. The other lotion, Tease, brings out the sexy parts of me. It’s got a sweet warm vanilla scent like the perfume, and it makes me exude confidence. Because it’s more scented I try not to use it after shaving when my pores are most open. I am prone to razor burn, shaving irritations, ingrowns etc so I try to avoid it at that time.

To help with that issue I intermittently use a boar bristle dry brush. I saw one of the Victoria’s Secret models use a dry brush one day, and I immediately went out to Marshall’s, Ross, TJ Maxx to search for a dry brush of my own. While usually I would say following in a celebrity’s footsteps isn’t wise, this has been a great addition to my self care routine.

Dry brushing helps with lymphatic drainage, cellulite, general blood flow and it helps tighten the skin I think. I use this from my feet up and from my hands in to my core, circular motions or not. I take my time and work through the skin, the sore spots and slowly wake my skin up. I use that as my first step before shaving.

Once in the shower I use an exfoliating wash cloth to scrub the horse poop and dirt of the day off of me. I got these two packs for $11 at Ross and they’ve been amazing. I pair them with French soap, or some kind of floral, vanilla or holiday scented soap. Right now I’m enjoying a very nice Jasmine soap from England, but we’ll see what’s after that.

I use a good razor, usually the BIC Soleil razors from Target. They’re usually a 5-6 pack and they come in pretty colors which makes shaving more fun. However, I did discover some coconut scented razors which were great too. They made my coconut loving self very happy this summer.

Hair care will be a separate post, but know I have a whole routine for that too. After my shower is done and I have toweled off my head so it’s done dripping on me I slide my towel headband on to do my skincare.

To start I make sure I don’t have any stray hairs, mustache, beard or eyebrow. I use my Tweezerman tweezers for that. They are hands down the best for this task. Other brands seem to break down with constant use, and I am lucky to find them on sale in places like Ross, Marshall’s and TJ Maxx. I have my eyes on their anniversary edition tweezers since they have the New York skyline on them. After that’s all done I reach for my go to moisturizer or serum of the season.

This is super important. Sometimes the product I’m using for one season doesn’t work for another so be sure to evaluate what works for you. Having combination skin has been a curse for me and my bank account when it comes to skin care I think. I tend to gravitate to my Fourth Ray beauty & Tatcha products, with a few other sprinkled in.

I will be doing a product empty post, but my go tos for summer are these Avocado + Aloe serum & the White Tea face milk. The Avocado + Aloe is a nice melting formula that gives my skin a radiant glow with little effort. It doesn’t have a heavy scent, but it does need to be shaken each use. The White Tea was a face milk heavy in hyaluronic acid to bring moisture from the air to my skin even after hours of application. These are reasonably priced face products and they last a long time because a little goes a long way.

I use this time while applying the serums to massage my face and push any swelling out and down my neck. If I have a decent amount of swelling and puffiness I will use my face roller. I can chill it if I want to and use the steady consistent rolling motion to move the puffiness out.

If I opt for a one step option I gravitate to my Bare Minerals Skinlongevity serum. Made with niacinamide, California poppy extract and more hydrating ingredients to make my skin look and feel perfect. Priced at $62 normally, I got my bottle for $25 at Marshall’s.

Depending on if I want a quick cooling and massaging action done, I will reach for my MILK Makeup Cooling Stick and work my face out that way.

If I felt like I needed an extra boost or glow, I would’ve grabbed my Tatcha Luminous Dewy Skin Mist.

This is a high end product I discovered from my time watching beauty influencers on YouTube, and man do I recommend it year round . Priced at $48 per full size mist, this stuff is straight from the gods. Made with Okinawa red clay and other sea made goods like algae, this mist traps moisture in the best ways at the surface of your skin. I have never felt as pampered as I do when this hits my face. There’s a slight scent to it, but it mostly gives a refreshing feeling versus an overwhelming perfume.

If I feel like my makeup needs a good set I have two good setting sprays by Morphe. One is the old Jeffree Star x Morphe setting spray in Starberry, and I have their new Coconut scent too.

While I know Jeffree Star has been heavily canceled, I highly recommend their lip scrubs. They are the only ones I’ll ever use, and I have enough to last me a lifetime. They have quite a chunky sugar texture, but they have the best flavor ever. It’s a major bonus they are edible.

After tackling my lips with a heavy duty scrub, I top my mouth off with a chapstick. I use the Spearmint, Peppermint or Medicated flavors only.

And finally the other thing that I think is really important about skincare is being able to clean all of that product off at the end of the day and to support your skin with a good diet.

I use a Makeup Eraser daily to scrub off the days dirt and makeup, and sometimes I pair it with the Neutrogena Foaming Cleanser as needed to get the stubborn bits off. I love using a reusable wipe as opposed to creating bulky waste with makeup wipes from the drugstore.

I hope this give you some ideas on what to use on your own face and things to try!!