Skin. It's important. It's our bodies largest organ (which is kind of crazy when you think about...) and we need to take care of it. Last year, I wrote a post about my skincare regime, which you can read here. However, life changes, skin changes, you get introduced to new products, and your routine changes! So, I wanted to share with you guys my updated skincare routine for 2016.

It's actually kind of cool to read my skincare post last year, as I used a lot more products. Just to warn you, this is going to be a very minimal post, as I have severely cut down on the amount of products I use. In turn, I have found that my skin is actually 10x better. I get complimented on my skin all the time. I think a few things factor into this huge change in skin. There is nothing that can change your skin overnight, no magic pill, and you have to figure out what works best for YOU and YOUR skin. Everyone is different! I only know what helped me.

The biggest changes I made that positively affected my skin:

I adopted healthier coping mechanisms (more yoga, journaling, downtime, relaxing, baths, self care) into my weekly life
I stopped eating (almost) all gluten
I stopped drinking coffee
Reduced the amount of sugar I consume on a daily basis (including fruit, I try to limit that to 1 serving per day)
I do more cardio to relieve stress
I threw away all the extra products that added unnecessary toxins to my face.
Nixing the makeup

It's funny how very little of my changes actually include what products I was using on my face. I am convinced it has more to do with actual lifestyle alterations such as diet, exercise, and stress management. Whatever is going on in the insides, comes out on the outside. In all ways! Feelings, stresses, inflammation. It's just energy transference, it's all got to come out!

Pink clay soap from Herbivore Botanicals

When doing the elimination diet this past spring I learned that gluten inflames our bodies. Some people digest it better than others. For me, it was causing a lot of discomfort in my digestive system. Believe it or not, the health of our gut affects the health of our skin, too! Eliminating gluten (along with reducing sugar) helped me rid of a lot of hormonal acne that was going on in my chin/neck area.

my bathtub ledge. I put all my plants and soaps here. Gotta love that big container of Dr. Bronner's!

skin

The two major facial products I use on a daily basis are:

facial toner at night
Ursa Major's Daily Defense with SPF 18 every morning

For facial toner, I'm not glued to a brand. Of course I'll use something natural, such as Thayer's or SW Basics. both contain really simple ingredients that don't inflame skin. Something light and to clean my skin of any dirt/oil buildup.

I'm pretty religious about facial moisturizing. My skin can get pretty dry, and this summer, I made the switch to a facial moisturizer that already contains SPF in it so I don't have to worry about carrying around additional product to protect my face from the sun. Because I live in LA, where it's sunny most days, I'm really careful to protect my skin; even when I am just driving in my car. I wear a big hat when I can if I am outside for prolonged periods of time, too. But the reason I love Ursa Major's Daily Defense is because it's super lightweight, moisturizing, and the ingredients list is so clean. It is 65% organic and 99.5% natural. It contains squalane, Swiss Apple Stem cells, and no sulphates or parabens. It's also fragrance free so it contains no irritants. I put it on every morning after my shower and don't have to think twice about re-application or having an oily residue left on my skin.

Here is a photo of my current bathroom shelf, in case you wanted to see!

#shelfie. Can you tell I love my magnesium? I take it every night to help control mood, muscle relaxation, and regularity.

hair

When it comes to hair, I rotate my shampoo with a few different brands. Up until last year I was still using crappy brands like Tresemme and Pantene Pro-V for my hair. I know, right? I finally stopped and now I only use really clean brands. Right now, I'm loving Aesop's Nurturing Shampoo and Conditioner. It's delicate enough for my (very easily breakable) tresses, but definitely heavy enough so that I feel like I am actually getting a good wash through my hair. You know when natural shampoos smell great but after you wash, you feel like you never actually shampoo-d? Aesop's is different, you definitely get that awesome suds-y feeling without all the crappy ingredients. Plus, like all Aesop products, it smells amazing.

Major aspects of clear, radiating skin is getting enough sleep each night and drinking plenty of water. Drinking water flushes out toxins and sleep is the GREATEST medicine as it controls our hormones and stress levels each day, so getting plenty of it (but not too much) is imperative to a healthy glow, inside and out!

body

In the shower, I am a simple gal. Give me a loofah and some Dr. Bronner's, and I am good to go! I love using Dr. Meyer's Clean Day hand soap as well- I have their products all over my house. Also, this Shamanuti Activated Charcoal Cleanser is pretty bomb. I use it like once a month. I've had the same bottle for over a year and a half.

TEETH

I'm a dental hygiene freak - but what are you supposed to do when the local pharmacy dental aisles are filled to the brim with toxic ingredients and artificial coloring? That's where David's Toothpaste comes in. It's made in America, comes in a gorgeous bottle, and it tastes great and works even better. I'm officially an addict.

What about you guys? What are your favorite skincare routines?