Beauty with Lucia

Lucia Musau, fashion and lifestyle blogger and PR consultant of African Elite Group Ltd lets us in on her homemade beauty recipes and why she stopped getting facial treatments.

What’s your daily skincare routine like?

Every morning, I wash my face then apply Clinique moisture surge. I like it as it gives enough hydration even compensating for those days I don’t take enough water. I top it off with Clarins sunscreen SPF 50+ to protect my skin given that I am always on the move and experience varied weather conditions.

I sometimes use Clarins eye contour gel for my under eyes, though I need to start using it consistently.

How does your night time routine differ from your day routine?

My night time routine depends on how tired I am, but as a rule, I never sleep with makeup on for the simple reason that it clogs your pores and could actually age your skin. If I feel I’ll be too tired to remove it, I don’t wear it.

I always start by removing makeup from my eyes, using the Clarins eye makeup remover. I like taking my time with my eyes to remove all that waterproof eye makeup which tends to stay on.

Once I am done removing my makeup, I wash my face then apply Clarins night cream. However, on days when I have travelled and my skin has been exposed to the elements, I add the Clarins night serum. The serum is relaxing and it feels good on my skin. It soaks into the skin well and in the morning I can feel myself glow.

Do you have any homemade skincare routine you swear by?

During weekends, I deep clean by thoroughly scrubbing my face with brown sugar and olive oil. On top of the scrub, I apply lemon juice and some olive oil then steam my face. After steaming, I take a spatula or scraper and remove the excess of the scrub. I don’t use my hands because I risk transferring bacteria on my face.

After that, I make a mask from turmeric, natural yoghurt, honey and a dash of lemon because my skin tends to be problematic. On my eyes, I put fresh slices of cucumber and let it sit just as one would in a spa. The cucumber keeps my eyes looking younger and my skin feeling supple.

How has your skin care routine changed over the years?

I spend much less on beauty products now because I know what works for my skin. I don’t have to buy expensive products thinking that because they are pricy they must be the best. I also don’t go trying out every new product in the market anymore.

I was also a facial spa junkie, but nowadays, I prefer doing my facials at home. When I go to the spa to have facials done, I carry my own products – sugar and olive oil. But when I get my hands on the CLINIQUE Sonic System Purifying Cleansing Brush, facials in spas will be history.

Any beauty tricks you use?

I used to use toothpaste to dry out my pimples until I found Clinique Acne Solutions clearing gel that does the same job even better. I also tend to stick to specific brands. That way, there’s consistency in the ingredients I am using on my skin. Also, when you buy certain brands, they add you free samples of other products to try on. This introduces you to other products on that brand.