I'm notoriously bad at skincare routines. When I’m tired, I just want to go to bed. No matter how badly I’d like to gua sha, I don’t have the energy for more than a quick cleanse and some face oil. Recently, I’ve gotten into a really good groove of doing my nightly routine while Ozzie is in the bath. I like it so much I thought I would share.
I have a nutrition point to make here too because this routine involves an early dinner. I love an early dinner. This not only means that we can have dinner as a family together (read the benefits of that here), but also that I’m done eating by 6/6:30 and can get a good 12-14 hour nightly fast in (if you missed my intermittent fasting post, here it is). Eating earlier is better for your digestion, sleep, hormone health, and more more more. It also means that I can relax once the kids are in bed. The goal is to get the dishes done and do my nightly routine during the kids bath/bed time routine so I can have an hour or so to watch a show (or write a Substack) before putting myself to bed.
Ok, here’s my ideal nightly schedule. It doesn’t always happen this way but it’s what I’m working towards:
6:30pm: The kitchen is closed
This means dinner is over, the dishwasher is on, lights are down, and we’re going upstairs for bath time. Honestly this is much harder to do when my husband isn’t home, but *most* nights we’re home together and can tag team doing the dishes and getting Ozzie and Freya bathed.
6:30-7: Bath time & baby feed
Freya gets a bath first, then I’ll feed her, and get her down by 7pm (ish). Sometimes we’ll have a little family story time (cute!). Freya is really into ripping the pages of any book, which Ozzie is surprisingly cool with.
7pm (ish): My time!
Ozzie loves to hang in the bath, which gives me about 10-15 minutes to get myself together.
Step 1: Brush and floss. I highly recommend brushing your teeth after dinner. Something about brushing your teeth feels final. The food part of the day is done. I have a Sonicare toothbrush and really like Before toothpaste. I’ve been using it for about a year and I’m hooked.
Step 2: Cleanse. Recently I’ve been using Oak Essentials cleanser. I’ll take my makeup off with their cleansing balm and then I use the gel cleanser. Yes, a double cleanse — it actually comes in a set too! I told you, I’m getting into it.
Step 3: Micro-current. I’m loving this micro-current device from Ziip. Every time I get a facial I’m told to do this, and it only took about 5 years for me to actually do it. Four minutes and my skin feels lifted and firmer. I aim to do this 3x a week, which feels totally manageable to me and is kinda fun. The team at Ziip has generously offered you all a discount code if you want to try: MIA.
Step 4: Lather up. I start with a serum then oil. You know I am a LINNÉ girl through and through. I love the RENEW serum and REPAIR oil, sometimes with a little REVIVE eye cream too.
Step 5: Gua sha. Once I’ve made it this far, I feel like a literal superwoman and I’m into it, so I actually will gua sha my frown lines because they drive me nuts.
Step 6: Red light. Okay this doesn’t happen as often as I’d like, but if I’m not hooked on a show I’ll use my Higher Dose red light mask after Ozzie has gone to bed. Last week we binged Baby Reindeer and I couldn’t concentrate on anything else, so there was no red light masking happening. I’ve been told to do this for 20 minutes a day, but honestly this feels hard. I’ll let you know if I can figure this one out.
Lastly, not part of my nightly routine, but when I wash my hair (2x a week), I will exfoliate while the conditioner sets. I am obsessed with Goop’s GoopGlow Microderm Instant Glow Exfoliator.
I appreciate this tip Mia! My kids are older, we are upstairs around 7:30pm. I am going to try doing my skincare routine while they are showering tonight! Enjoy your weekend❤️ xo Carla
Love it! This is pretty much me - I can’t quite hit 6p for dinner but we often wrap by 7 as that is a huge priority for me (and something that has been greatly aided by the meal prep guidance!)