Having these special kind of nights set aside for myself has become a great treat for me and times that I have come to very much look forward to in my life.  They help break up the monotony and rejuvenate me leaving me feeling like I can tackle anything that’s ahead of me.  I’m sure the ladies or anyone else reading this knows that practicing these kind of special rituals can relate to what I’m saying.  The feeling you get when at the end of a long day or Saturday night alone you get to be all cleaned up and pamper yourself with your favorite products.  The products you use to exfoliate, hydrate, brighten, tighten, strengthen and improve your skin and hair so that they can stand up to the stress and the elements that weaken them in our day to day lives.  I love the feeling after these treatments and the effects they leave in my smooth as a baby’s butt skin and thick luxurious moisturized hair.  I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite products with you that seem to stick around for the most part (keeping around those ever so important “holy grail” products of course) but also are a work in progress and ever changing as new and better products come along as is the beauty industry.

For me personally I like to do a “quick fix” treatment on a shorter week day night and do long intensive treatments on a longer, laid back, crunch free weekend night.  I like to get all squeaky clean and shaven and then do my beauty treatments.  I usually take a hot bath with some kind of softening agent in oil or bubble form (like Lush’s “Rose Jam” bubble bomb or “Floating Island” bath oil bomb) and sometimes, another long time favorite that leaves you with soft silky skin too is Vaseline Intensive Care’s bath beads in a box with all kinds of different scents to choose from) or, a shower using a bath scrub (like Lush’s “Ocean Salt” or Kopari’s Coconut Crush Scrub) and follow that with a body butter or message bar (Like Lush’s “Strawberry Fields Forever” or “Tender Is The Night” message bar) to make my skin extra soft making sure to pat my skin dry using a nice fluffy towel so I don’t wipe off all the moisture (better yet, if you have the time, let your skin air dry and enjoy the feeling of being in the buff!).  If I have a date or a hot night out I’ll use Lush’s “Shimmy Shimmy” bath melt that is vanilla scented with cocoa butter and some sparkle to give my skin an intoxicating glow or Urban Decay’s “Illuminating Body Balm” that gives a bit of tinted coverage with a subtle shimmer (like facial beauty balm but for the body).  Also, it might be discontinued because I didn’t see it on the website recently.  After this I towel dry my hair and apply a hair mask (such as Living Proof’s “Restore Mask” Treatment or Pantene’s “Intense Repair” or “Intense Hydration” Conditioners depending what’s going on with my hair) and wrap it back up in a towel on my head to let it really sink in.

For the face, while in the shower, I use my favorite cleanser (Keel’s Ultra Facial Cleanser for all skin types) and follow that with a facial scrub (like Lancôme’s “Exfoliance Confort” that has fine scrub granules that are not too harsh and cover all of my the skin’s surface unlike some larger granule scrubs that only scrub part of the face, or Bobbi Brown’s “Buffering Grains” that are fine and you can put them in your favorite cleanser).  Then when I’m all wrapped up and dry with a towel wrapped on my head I like to put my face over a steam bath (not too hot or it can burn your face!) covering my head with another towel to “tent” over and steam my face for about 15 minutes to really deep clean and open the pores.  Then I like to apply a face mask that targets my problem areas and issues going on with my face at the time.  I have dry sensitive skin so I like Glamglow’s “Thirstymud” Mask or their “Supermud Clearing Treatment” Mask for when my face needs a deep clean and Lush’s “Mask of Magnaminty” and Truself Organics “Detoxifying” Mask are also my favorites.  After the masks are rinsed off I apply Mabel & Meg’s “Lumilixir Vitamin C Serum with Hyaluronic Acid  and let it dry.  Then I apply an eye cream like Bobbi Brown’s “Hydrating Eye Cream” (the best) or something anti-aging like Loreal’s Revitalift  Anti-wrinkle & Firming Cream.  When I’m extra tired or my eyes have puffiness or dark circles I’ll use Keel’s “Midnight Recovery” Eye Cream.  If I feel my skin needs a boost I use Keel’s “Over Night Biological Peel and leave it on overnight to brighten and freshen my skin surface (which is always a plus and improves makeup application and performance) or I apply Keel’s Powerful-Strength Line-Reducing Concentrate before my moisturizer.  For a moisturizer I like Lancôme’s “High Resolution” Triple Action Anti-Wrinkle Night Cream (for night), or Keel’s “Super Multi”-Correctional Cream (for day).

After this if I’m in need of a DIY mani or pedi,  I’ll go ahead and do this because my cuticles are nice and soft from the bath or shower and I’ll throw one in then.  If not then I just sit back and relax with candles (sometimes put them around the bath to enjoy) and relax and let the treatment sink in.  It also is very relaxing and helps for a great night’s sleep as well as the peace of mind knowing that you’re refueled and regenerated until the next anticipated and wonderful “spa night” to come.