Have an hour of free time? Let's do this.
1. Cleanse your skin in a basic way. Cetaphil is still a great cleanser.
2. Steam to open pores. Boil a pot of water and steam your face with a towel over your head. 10 minutes.
3. Apply a baking soda/water paste. This will dissolve the sebum in your pores and loosen dead cells.
4. Cleanse in a serious way with the Clarisonic, or massage with your fingertips to release old matter, and rinse with warm water.
5. You can extract blackheads at this point, or leave them to emerge and resolve naturally. They will be easy to extract at this stage, but you must still take care not to injure your skin. Be gentle, always.
6. Choose your treatment mask. See my previous post on DIY treatment masks for ideas. Dry or rough skin should always choose a moisturizing mask with hyaluronic acid. If preparing for a night out, use the aspirin/egg white mask for its tightening and tone-correcting effects. Acneic skin can use a clay mask mixed with apple cider vinegar.
7. Re-establish acid balance. Use witch hazel, Chrysalis Water, or diluted apple cider vinegar to reestablish the acid mantle.
8. Moisturize. No matter what kind of skin you have, moisturize it deeply with a pure plant oil or Chrysalis Oil. Moisture doesn't cause blemishes--clogged pores cause blemishes, and you don't have clogged pores anymore.
Final thought: your skin may be more than one thing at once, and you can adapt this outline to work with your unique needs. I may do a clay-based drawing mask before I do a skin-plumping mask, for instance. The options are designed to adapt to you. Please feel free to ask questions! I am here to help.
xoChrysalis