Up until recently, my skincare routine was just some moisturizer, and maybe a bit of whatever cleanser I found in the shower if I remembered. No matter who you are: whether you have problem skin or perfect skin, wear tons or makeup or none at all, almost everyone will benefit from skincare. One misconception and large stereotype is that skincare is “womanly”. This is not only wrong, but since when did having nice skin be feminine? Next thing you know, they will be saying showering is too ladylike too.
My boyfriend actually had a dedicated skincare routine when I met him, which is awesome. He was using products to control his acne while I was going to sleep with mascara still on my eyes. Fortunately, I have found my errors and though I don’t exactly have issues with my skin, I actually have a skincare routine now that makes sure my good skin stays good.
Because my boyfriend and I both have different skincare routines, I wanted to see how he would fare with my skincare routine for a week. I also wanted to defy the stereotype that skincare routines were only for women, even though they are unfortunately marketed that way.
To start, I collected both of our skincare routines, and vowed to perform my boyfriend’s routine exactly as he did; that meant that if he didn’t use and brushes or tools, neither did I. We were then going to compare each other’s routines to see not only how the products worked, but to get a different perspective on skincare.
To begin, our skincare is as follows:
Brandon:
Morning routine:
Wash face with cold water and facecloth
Apply Spectro gel to face and use brush to rub it into skin
Wash face with cold water and a facecloth
Apply Ole Henriksen Truth Serum
Apply Ole Henriksen Sheer Transformation Perfecting Moisturizer
Night routine:
Wash face cold water and facecloth
Apply Spectro gel and rub in with brush
Apply Ole Henriksen Sheer Transformation Perfecting Moisturizer
Apply Clearasil acne treatment cream to blemishes/pimples
Kheyra:
Morning routine:
Wash face with water
Use Biore cleanser with a brush
Apply Ole Henricksen Truth Serum
Apply Nivea moisturizer
Night:
Weekly: use an exfoliator
Weekly: use a sheet mask
Wash face with water
Apply Nivea moisturizer
Apply Ole Henriksen Uplifting Eye Treatment.
It was an interesting week, and both me and my boyfriend had different views on our routines. Here are the verdicts:
Brandon:
“This routine was very different than what I’m used to. It had a lot of things I liked and some things that weren’t my favourite. I enjoyed doing a face mask once a week because it replenishes the skin and made it feel refreshed and smooth. I love using the Ole Henriksen Truth Serum so I would definitely recommend this to anyone. The product I liked most was the Biore cleanser. It felt relaxing to use just before getting into bed and I would really think about switching up my nighttime routine to use this product. The product that I didn’t like the Nivea moisturizer. I’ve been using Ole Henriksen moisturizer for a while now and it’s my favourite. I didn’t enjoy the feel of my skin after using the Nivea moisturizer; my skin felt too wet. I would have to say I like my girlfriends nighttime routine better than mine, I would think about switch out my Spectro gel cleanser for the Biore pore scrub because that is a very good product and I like it a lot. It makes my skin feel so clean right after the first use, and I don’t get that same feeling with my Spectro gel cleanser.”
Kheyra:
“Overall, I liked a lot of Brandon’s products. I introduced him to Ole Henriksen, so it is a brand I already love. Some things I wasn’t a fan of, such as the Spectro gel. My brother used to use it, and when I would try it, I thought it smelled like medicine. I actually did cheat a little, because I don’t have acne and I didn’t want to use up all of his products that he actually needed. I used it once for the purposes of this experiment, and then skipped out on this part for the rest of the week. I was worried that my boyfriend didn’t use a brush to apply his products, but I was thankful that he did, because I don’t like applying products with my hands. I think I prefer my routine better, but I’m glad that my boyfriend uses such great products!”
In conclusion, I learned a lot from this experience. I believe that skincare is for everyone, however the products are so often targeted to women. I was happy to see that my boyfriend was using such good products that not only work for him but worked for me as well. There were things that we both liked and did not like, but I was glad that there not any products that I completely hated.