I’ve always been a makeup girl.
It was not until I was in my mid-20s that I started to appreciate skincare. I’d obsess over reading Origani reviews, in search of products that would improve my skin texture and complexion. I’d be diligent in scouring the skin care aisle of my local drugstore, to look for products that would form my skincare kit.
If you would look at my skincare-obsessed self now, it’s difficult to imagine that at one point in my life, I’d choose foundation powder over a face mask any day.
Let me share with you my journey from being a makeup freak to a skin care junkie.
Let’s Go Back a Few Steps
My foray into makeup started early, when I was, I guess, thirteen. I’d steal my sister’s Maybelline foundation (which is about two shade darker than my skin tone) from her makeup bag and bring it with me to school. I made sure I used it sparingly – just enough to improve my complexion, and not too much to warrant reprimanding (IDK if it was just my high school, but back then, young girls got in trouble for wearing makeup to school.)
When I was young, my mom, my older friends, and eventually my dermatologist consistently told me that acne is hormone-related. That my acne-ridden face is a phase, and someday it will stop. But let’s face it, we’re all little drama queens, and during adolescence, even the littlest flaw could send your self-esteem careening into an abyss. A tiny zit, a few freckles on the nose, dark circles under the eyes – these are seemingly tiny things your adult self wouldn’t sweat, but back then they were enough to make teenager you feel totally disfigured.
And of course, at the time applying ~*inches* of concealer and foundation seemed to be the best way to solve the problem. The goal is to cover the wreck otherwise known as my face.
But girls, hear me out: choosing makeup over skincare will eventually leave you with regrets. Here’s why.
Makeup: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
If makeup has been my go-to when I was younger and concealer was my weapon of choice against zits and acne scars, vitamin serums and moisturizers have become my best friend when I got older.
Don’t get me wrong, though. I still love makeup and I still don’t leave the house without lining my brows or at least applying a layer of foundation. But I have also come to realize that makeup looks SO MUCH BETTER when applied on a clean canvas.
Come to think of it: to hide dark spots, you turn to concealer and full-coverage foundation. Then again, these tend to crack and cake, and consequently, give an unnatural finish. Don’t even get me started on how sticky makeup feels on humid days. And in a tropical country such as the Philippines, every day is Humid Day.
What’s more, as I got older, I began to have less time to obsess over my face. Adulting is real and it takes away your time to get your winged eyeliners straight in favor of getting at least 30 more minutes of sleep or grabbing your coffee fix in preparation for a long workday. Sometimes, life can get so busy that when you come home feeling totally depleted after a day’s work, you prop onto the bed sleep, forgetting you still have makeup on (read: makeup and dirt and grime from the commute and walking in the streets of Metro Manila).
And what happens when you sleep in your makeup? You disrupt your skin’s collagen production process. Makeup cakes and it gets into the creases and lines in your face, which turn into wrinkles. It deepens your laugh lines and gives you crow’s feet, ultimately making you look older than your age.
Why the change of heart?
And I have been told, so many times throughout the course of my adult life, that I should just start investing in skincare rather than makeup. Friends who are skincare junkies would share with me the routines they swear by, and while I’m grateful for the effort, a lot of times I just swept these suggestions under the rug because “I didn’t have the time for a complicated skincare routine.”
For so long, I lived under the impression that skincare products never worked for me. If they ever do, it would just be for a few days, and then it would stop working – my skin would again lose its natural luster, my under eyes would again appear sallow, my pimple marks would refuse to get any lighter.
The truth is, I was just never patient when I was young. So many times, instead of following a skincare routine religiously to see results, I would do it every other day, only to abandon after a few days because it was too much work.
But one day, I just woke up and said, you know what? Okay. I can maybe adopt a low-maintenance skincare routine. I’m tired of hiding under makeup.
I stared with chemical peels. Now, I did this out of ignorance, and I was just lucky I got the results I wanted. The best first step, still, is to consult a dermatologist, especially if you have been dealing with skin issues such as acne. Your dermatologist would be able to provide the appropriate treatments, and then recommend a skincare routine that can help you maintain the healthy state of your skin.
These days, I’m obsessed with Dead Sea salt and gold-infused products. Origani has been my recent go-to product because it offers exactly those and more. They also make plant-based products and claim to be cruelty-free. Their Manuka Honey Peel is my ultimate fave because it sloughs off all of my dead skin cells to encourage the growth of new ones. The result? Youthful, naturally glowing skin (that no amount of highlighter could replicate.)
Now, we all have different skin types, so it pays to do your research and find products that suit your skin best. But my main takeaway is: invest in skincare. Makeup is definitely amazing, but nothing beats the feeling of waking up bare-faced and liking what you see when you look at the mirror.
