MELISSA'S 2022 MORNING ROUTINE
You really can’t go wrong when you decide to dedicate a little moment to yourself every morning. Mornings can be hectic and busy for a lot of us, from business babes to mamas, I know the feeling. Indulging in more of a lengthy, slow & relaxing ritual is what I save for my evening routine, when I have the luxury! So I love to make my morning ritual pretty quick, simple & to the point yet super effective, utilizing really potent products that showcase results & give me a glow. When I look good, I feel good. So setting the day by taking some simple yet effective acts of self love can really elevate your entire day ahead!
Let’s get right into it! If you know me, you know this is one of my top beauty hacks that I can’t go a morning without. Morning masking. Yep, I pop on a face mask every single morning while I do some of my other self care such as preparing my holi(mane) matcha, grounding & meditating. One thing I really love to do to get the ambiance going is turn on my Campo Ultrasonic Essential Oil Diffuser. Lately, I have been absolutely loving the Manifest Essential Oil Blend. It’s super elevating and I love the combination of lime & mandarine orange, it feels so refreshing, energizing & uplifting so this has been something I do to get myself in alignment mind, body & spirit.
I always love to rotate between a few masks, usually two masks kind of take the center stage in my life for periods of time. Right now it’s the Ayuna Balm [K], my absolute favorite new mask & then the Agent Nateur Holi(Bright). The Balm has been my go to for a few months now, since I got my hands on it & I can’t say enough good things about this creamy, luxurious clay mask. This does wonders for an irritated complexion as it contains Tasmanian Pepper which acts as a natural lidocaine, immediately taking away any inflammation & redness.
Loaded with a ton of nourishing potassium from Broccoli Sprouts, I can really feel my skin just soaking up the hydration & nutrients. Yes, this is a clay mask that does dry out the skin, not even a bit, which I do find clay masks can often do. This clay also stays very soft on the skin, never hardening & it actually contains mimetic Sapphire which gives the skin that bright, luminous glow and helps to take away dark spots & age spots over time. Honestly, this is the best in the business, guys! I also love that I can see instant results & it gives me a flawless airbrushed look.
AYUNA
BALM [K]
The Agent Nateur Holi(Bright) is also a mask that gives me instantaneous results. I love this mask for a resurfacing pick me up. This is also a mask that can be used when you’re shorter on time and want that quick, refined radiance. For me, this mask works to combat any dry, dull texture issues or even if I feel that my skin is congested or finicky. This is one of Agent Nature's best selling products & for a reason, it really delivers. It makes your skin visibly brighter & more refined. It gives you this beautiful glass skin-glow
AGENT NATEUR
HOLI(BRIGHT)
Next up, I go straight into hydration. As I recently went over in my “Skincare Picks For Your 40s & Beyond”... hydration. Is. queen. You cannot go wrong with really keeping your skin fully moisturized & utilizing proper products that retain that moisture & lock it in. Dehydration in the skin does lead to fine lines & wrinkles, so to avoid that, which we so gracefully & thankfully can, I opt for staying ultra-hydrated… inside & out. From a topical standpoint, I always go in with the Agent Nateur holi(water) & holi(c) combination. This gives me that blast of protective antioxidants on top of really toning the skin and the C helps with firmness, stimulating collagen & increasing elasticity. The rare, efficacious form of C is unlike anything else on the market, and in combination with the natural complex molecule, calcium ketogluconate works to heal hyperpigmentation & scaring. How to use these two products in tandem is simple… first, tap a few sprinkles of the holi(c) into your palm, then spritz the holi(water) directly in, combine & pat onto the skin. Voila! You have plump, tight, refined pores & are ready to take on the world.
After I nourish & plump my skin with antioxidants & hydration, I go in with a serum to really elevate & enhance the results. I have been swapping between the Kypris Antioxidant Dew, my iconic holy grail serum and then as of lately, the Tata Harper Elixir Vitae. This is a really groundbreaking product that really targets wrinkles… so having just turned 40, I don’t feel that I have much damage to repair yet, thank goddess. However, I do love to focus on preventative skincare, to really boost the skin with as many nourishing & plumping actives as possible to set the stage for the next decades ahead! If you are in your 40s or beyond and suffering from any kind of loss of elasticity, wrinkles or just a pronounced aging of the skin (first, do not stress, you are beyond beautiful) & second, I really recommend investing in this product as it’s one of the gold standards in the industry to target the aging process.
As I mentioned, I am really the Queen of Hydration lately and I can’t get enough of it. Something that has really changed my morning ritual is that now, while I do tend to run a bit dry naturally, it’s also summer and the desert climate has been really getting to me. So to combat this, I have been incorporating more face creams, namely, the Ayuna Cream III. I used to do a lot of oils on my skin and would sometimes do a thin layer of a cream over the top, but instead, I have been getting way more into facial creams during the day for that super dose of moisture. Ayuna Cream III first, which is the newest & most rich cream that Ayuna carries, it’s a pretty robust product with Cannabis stem cells & even gives you a mini mood boost due to the incredibly innovative beauty technology Ayuna utilizes. So I love this product! I then go in and add a few drops of their Cellular Oil over the top and this just gives me the most luxe, hydrated & nourished complexion. This combo sits really beautifully underneath makeup as well!
For my eyes, during the day I alternate between the Tata Harper Elixir Vitae Eye Serum and the holi(glow). Both amazing eye treatment products but I do find that your skin benefits the most when you switch things up from day to day. I reach for the holi(glow) on the days where I feel I need a bit more hydration around the eye because of it’s really dewy, fresh gel texture, you get that instant plump, glow which I love. Otherwise, I will always opt for the Elixir Vitae Eye Serum because of the really intensive list of nourishing & repairing active ingredients that I know are working overtime to give me amazing results.
If I have the luxury of time, I have lately been loving my Skin Gym Facial Cupping Set. I save the facial rolling and the Gua Sha massage for evening because those tools require a bit more time than I have. The facial cupping set is incredible because it’s a super quick & easy way to move stagnant life force energy through the skin, detoxifying & ridding the lymphatic system of any build up which is going to reduce puffiness, inflammation & really contour & sculpt the face! A fun & simple way to give yourself that extra little boost of attention & added benefit to start off your day!
