How I Use My Clarisonic Mia2

I was recommended a Clarisonic by a Sephora sales associate when I told her one of my big skin concerns was uneven skin texture. I do want to say that I have oily skin in the summer and normal to dry skin in the winter with some dry patches all year round when my skin just feels like pissing me off. I also have fairly non-reactive skin. By that I mean, that I cannot remember a time when a product - makeup or skincare - has broken me out or clogged my pores any more than they normally are (which is pretty clogged to begin with). I'm lucky with my skin in that way. I know a lot of people have very sensitive skin, but I have resilient skin that will let me do just about anything to it. I didn't even get the typical "purging" breakouts that one is supposed to get when starting to use a Clarisonic. I tell you this because many people cannot tolerate regular use of a one. So I would not recommend a Clarisonic for people with sensitive skin, nor would I for people with active breakouts. This, I feel, will just irritate the skin more than it already is and probably cause redness and possibly more acne. I am not trying to tell you to buy one, I'm just saying what works for me based on my skin.

That being said, I do use my Clarisonic twice a day. I've gotten to the point where my face doesn't feel clean without having used it. That being said, I can't really say the texture of my skin has dramatically improved, but I also tend to use my Clarisonic in fits and starts. I do use the delicate brush head because when I use it, I use it twice a day. I feel that any "stronger" bristles would be too much, even for my skin. Oh, and I have the Mia2 model. It has 2 speed settings (I really can't tell the difference between them) and a timer that tells you how long to scrub each part of your face. I like that feature, because I'm too lazy to count.

So in the morning I use my Mia2 with the Algenist Gentle Rejuvenating Cleanser to get my skin as smooth as possible for makeup application. Holy Crap I love this stuff. No other cleanser, even when used without the Clarisonic, has ever left my skin so soft. If I'm taking a shower that morning I will do one 1 minute cycle on my face and another 1 minute cycle on my neck, chest and shoulders.

At night I use my Mia2 after I oil cleanse to really get the rest of the dirt and makeup off from the day. This time I use the Michael Todd True Organics Honey and Oat Cleanser because it's a gel formula and I feel that that formulation of cleanser gives you a bit deeper of a clean, which I want at night.

And that is about it. Nothing fancy, just cream cleanser in the morning and gel cleanser at night. Didn't need that big long post now, did I?

Recent Collective Haul and a Few Mini Reviews

Michael Todd True Organics
*jumps on Michael Todd bandwagon* (albeit a little late) So I made my first purchase from MTTO, the Honey and Oat Cleanser. I got this to use as my nighttime cleanser to use with my Clarisonic Mia2 after my oil cleanse. Expect a review on this soon.

Amazon
So I've had my Clarisonic Mia2 for several...serveral months now and I know the brush head is supposed to be changed every three months, but I just have not been able to bring myself to shell out $25 for one brush head (or $40 for 2). Lately, my skin has been breaking out in zits, which I rarely get. Among other things like a dirty pillowcase, using up random bottles of skincare and that time of the month, I decided it was time to bite the bullet and get a new brush head. Looking at the Sephora site, I learned that there is a brush head even gentler than the Sensitive one that the Mia2 came with. They call this one "Delicate". I thought I'd give these a shot since I've been using my Mia2 morning and night. I don't know what possessed me (because I never shop on Amazon), but I hopped online to see if I could find a brush head any cheaper than $25. Lo and behold, I found a 2 pack for $13.99 after shipping. Jackpot! I'll let you know if I like the Delicate heads any better than the Sensitive ones once I've used one for a bit.

Sephora
I've been trying to keep my beauty obsession a little more under control lately, and that means avoiding Sephora like the plague. However, since I've run out of nighttime, creamy cleanser for my Mia2, I thought I'd allow myself to venture in to pick up the Algenist Gentle Rejuvenating Cleanser AND NOTHING ELSE. Well, I did get the cleanser (see Products I've Used Up and Will Repurchase post for mini review), but I also slipped and got the Caudalie Beauty Elixir which everyone online seems to love. It smells divine, like an upscale spa, and feels great on the skin. The reason it does these things is because it contains alcohol and fragrance, both extremely irritating to skin. Boo. So that's going back. Should have done more research before shelling out $18 for a perfumey water spray.

Walmart
I went to a different Walmart the other day than my usual haunt, which was a risk because not all Walmarts carry the same thing and I know what my Walmart carries. However, I went to the brand-spanking new store in the city my boyfriend lives in and not only was I satisfied with their selection of products, I was pretty impressed. Along with all the typical drugstore beauty brands (i.e. Revlon, Covergirl, Neutrogena...) they also stocked Flower Beauty by Drew Berrymore and Real Techniques! It was difficult to restrain myself, but I went in for a few essentials I was low on and pretty much stuck to my list.

First, I needed a backup of the Got2B Guardian Angel Flat Iron Balm as I'm low and know I'm going to run out this week. This is a hair care staple for me and at least the 4th bottle I've purchased.

Next I got some cotton pads and I ended up with the Equate large round cotton pads. These don't disintegrate when you put a watery product on them and are large enough that I can use one pad to remove the makeup from both eyes and use another to tone my face and neck. Really happy with these.

Something I'm kind of excited I found is the Swisspers Blotting Paper. They were just over $2 for 100 sheets - about a quarter of the price of the Clean and Clear version which I don't really like because they're plastic and not actually paper. Excited to try these out.

I've run out of my mini size of the Josie Maran Argan Oil Daily Moisturizer with SPF 40+ and have also just learned that a moisturizer with an SPF doesn't give you enough protection anyway, so I decided to browse the sunscreen aisle. I ended up with the Nuetrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock Cream SPF 30. I didn't go higher with the SPF (Neutrogena went all the way up to SPF 100!!) because anything higher than 30 gives you hardly any more protection that the 30 itself, so I saved a buck or so sticking with the lower SPF. I've tried this out and I'm not sure what I think of it. It stung my face when applying it, which I can't be good. Upon reading the ingredients, I discovered that benzyl alcohol (a "bad" alcohol) is pretty high up there on the ingredients list. This might be getting exchanged if I can find something else from Walmart without alcohol in it. Oh, and as far as where I'm getting my info on fragrance, how much of an SPF product to use and good/bad alcohols, check out this channel by Veronica Gorgeois. She used to be an esthetician, so she knows her shit.

Lastly from Wallyworld, I got something not on my list. Shame on me. I picked up the Vaseline Spray & Go Total Moisture Moisturizer. I got the one in the yellow can. I gave this a go, and it's pretty cool. I sprayed this on after my shower, brushed my teeth and let the product soak in and then rubbed the rest in after. It was nice not to feel like a greasy mess putting clothes on. It's lightly fragranced, but I really couldn't smell it on my skin once it was all rubbed in. That's fine by me because I never want my lotion's scent to interfere with my perfume. Heaven forbid. Only thing is, I'm not sure this will cut it once it gets really dry and cold outside. Maybe with continued use, it could be moisturizing enough, but not with just one application for sure.

Products I've Used Up and Will Repurchase

I've been hoarding empty product containers lately, as I planned two "Products I've Used Up"-type posts. This one is obviously going to be positive reviews of its I'm either planning to repurchase, or already have restocked. A subsequent post will follow, detailing products I used up only so I didn't feel I was wasting money by throwing them out. This post will have a decidedly smaller collection of goodies because, honestly, I try out more products I dislike than ones I like enough to buy again.

We'll start off kind of boring with Suave Natural Mineral Eucalyptus Blossom Antiperspirant/ Deodorant.

Now, I'm weird about deodorant. When I sweat, as I inevitably will, I don't want deodorant smell to emanate from my body. I want it to do it's job and keep me from smelling foul, but I don't want any other "fragrance" to come from my body either. This stuff is what I was looking for. It smells nice when applied, but you aren't reminded throughout the day that you put deodorant on in the a.m. This is probably my 4th tube (stick?) of this formulation and scent I've purchased and I've already started a new one.

Next is the One 'n Only Argan Oil Restorative Mask.

  

This was at least tube #2 of this hair mask, if not #3. I was platinum blonde for the better part of 2013 and my hair was a wreck. So bad, in fact, that I used this mask daily as a conditioned and it didn't make my hair greasy. It smells wonderful and helped keep my hair from looking like straw. The only reason I'm not running out to replace this is because my hair has gotten even drier and I've gone to using a cleansing conditioner and a deep repair mask (I'll do a post on those soon). If my hair heals a bit and I don't need as much moisture as those two newer products give me, I will definitely buy this mask again.

Sephora Triple Action Cleansing Water

Love this stuff. I initially got it as an alternative to Bioderma micellaire water that everyone online raves about. The Bioderma is a French product and hard to get ahold of in the US. I use this Sephora version it to remove my eye makeup before going in with Boscia Makeup Breakup cleansing oil to remove all traces of makeup. I'm not sure why I prefer this to relying on the oil to remove my eye makeup, but it works great and I've just bought and started using a new one.

Algenist Gentle Rejuvenating Cleanser (mini 1.5 oz size)

Holy soft skin, Batman! I bought this to use with my Clarisonic Mia2 and they really are a perfect pair. This lathers up nicely and leaves my skin feeling silky when I rinse it away. I haven't repurchased this yet because I want to jump on the Michael Todd True Organics bandwagon and give some of their cleansers a shot. If those fail me, however, it's comforting to know I have this gem to fall back on.

Last is a mascara, Jordana Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara to be exact.

The formula is what I really love about this mascara. It builds nice volume as the name would suggest, but I also find it to be lengthening as well. The color 301 Black is a super dark black, which I look for in a mascara. Now, the brush is not my favorite part of this product. I found it to clump product on my lashes. Boo. A mascara brush that is just amazing is that of the Cover Girl Clump Crusher - just not a fan of the formula on this one. So, genius that I am, I cleaned off the Cover Girl wand and stuck it in the Jordana tube. This is one of my prouder makeup moments. I'm not saying this hasn't been done before, but I'm glad I gave it a shot. The Cover Girl brush works great with the Jordana's thicker formula for beautiful, defined lashes. I can pile on layers of the mascara with this brush without fear of clumps. A match made in makeup heaven. Here's a pic of that Cover Girl wand.