Rachel's Second Week With The Summer Box

Rachel has normal to oily skin with a tendency for clogged pores and acne. She lives in sunny Singapore, where temperatures average 30-35°C/85-95°F, and humidity ranges between 70-90%.

General Impressions

This week, I incorporated all the Summer Box Products into my routine, and have been trying to use them exclusively (with most exceptions happening in my evening routine). The lovely summery smells of all the different products put such a huge smile on my face as I’m going through my routines, and help prepare me for the day / evening.

Each product in the box works great on its own, but when you put them together? Holy mackerel. It’s like a powerhouse explosion of goodness for your skin!

Changes I’ve seen

The biggest change I’ve seen this week is definitely on my cheeks. They’ve been clearing up incredibly well – my left cheek in particular is a lot less inflamed, and no new spots are coming up. The right cheek is slowly getting there too. I can definitely feel a few big pimples waiting to pop up, but I’m confident that the summer box products (particularly the Strawberry Exfoliating Toner and Coconut Serum) will help me sort those out.

My skin tone is also much more even – I generally don’t really pay much attention to my skin tone, but I do know my cheeks are often redder than the rest of my face. I haven’t noticed this problem at all over the past week! I can’t quite figure out which product in particular is responsible for this, but I’m not complaining!

Overall, my skin is so much softer and smoother (apart from the bumpier apples of my cheeks), and there have been no new spots which is always great.

AM Routine & PM routine

I am incredibly boring and pretty much always have the same AM and PM routines; some days I might add another serum or two depending on what my skin needs, but for the most part I’m not really that adventurous.

AM Routine:

1. Peppermint Beauty Water (removes sleeping pack)
2. Oatmeal & Rice Cleansing Grains (coming soon!)
3. Bamboo Foaming Cleanser (coming soon!)
4. Jannah’s Strawberry Exfoliating Toner (coming soon!)
5. Cucumber & Aloe Mist (coming soon!)
6. Piper’s Peat Serum
7. Coconut Serum
8. Red Wine Pressed Serum
9. Sunscreen

PM Routine:

1. Vacuum Cleaner Cleansing Oil
2. Mask (current favourites:Detox,Dorothy,Bethany)
3. Bamboo Foaming Cleanser (coming soon!)
4. Maple Essence Toner
5. Piper’s Peat Serum
6. Coconut Serum
7. Marine Serum
8. Moar Honey II Serum
9. Donkey Milk Gel Sleeping Pack
10. Sleeping Beauty Oil

Any changes I’ve made

With my AM Routine, I started using less Strawberry Toner (one overturn on a cotton pad rather than two). When I was using too much, it felt like there was a layer of it sitting on top of my skin, rather than working its way into my skin. Now that I’m using half the amount, my face feels much more refreshed after I use it. My skin is used to the acids now, so there isn’t much of a burn any more, but I can definitely still feel the toner ~doing its thing~.

I’ve also tried to work on myRed Wine Pressed Serum application. I’m not sure if I’ve got the perfect amount down pat yet, but it certainly absorbs quickly and doesn’t feel sticky so I must be on the right track.

With my PM routine, the biggest change I’ve made doesn’t actually involve the summer box products. Following fellow SBee Hayne’s advice, I’ve switched the order of theDonkey Milk Gel Sleeping Pack andSleeping Beauty Oil. I’ve noticed that this makes you glow like crazy the next day, and it makes the sleeping pack much less sticky, so it’s way easier to sleep with it on!

Overall thoughts

I’ve learned many new things this week! First, I realised that doing a triple cleanse in the morning is not as unnecessary as I’d imagined, and gets my skin nice and prepped for all the other products. The new method of following a sleeping pack with a facial oil was also a pretty cool game-changer, as was getting myself to remember that sometimes less is more.

Thanks to the summer box, I’m getting back into the groove of masking more frequently too – I’ve been neglecting this step over the past couple of weeks, and it’s really nice to take some time off for self-care!

Overall, I’m really happy with every product in the Summer Box – they all work together so beautifully to give you everything your skin could need to face the onslaught that is summer.