Beauty Book Editor Aarohi Roy with her mother Kakoli
Have you ever stared at your mom for hours thinking – how on earth am I related to someone with such good skin? I’ve been blessed with her looks as my face mirrors hers, I have her straight, thick hair. But my skin unfortunately decided to pick my dad’s genes instead. Results: acne breakouts, oily skin, bumps, blackheads, and the worst of all – acne marks.
I’ve actually tried a lot of things that my Ma does for her skin over the years. But her current routine is amazing as it’s not too much work and a great deal of good habits that I’d like to continue. She’s coming to visit me for a while, so I’m swapping my routine with hers for a week, while she’s picking up a couple of my skincare habits. Let’s see what happens.
MY MOTHER’S REGIME
Early Morning
She starts her mornings with a tall glass of water with 2 tablespoons of Apple Cider Vinegar. It’s sour, but you get used to it. It’s not just great for your skin and hair, but good for your heart and digestion as well! Cheers to 7 days of this wonder drink.
Morning Shower
She uses L’Occitane products for her shower. Her most cherished set is the L'Occitane Goodness Of Almond Set. What I love about these products is the lingering mild aroma of sweet almonds that stays on your skin and hair for a long time. Ma follows her shower with a light layer of Forest Essentials Advanced Eternal Youth Formula Date & Litchi for her face.
Late Afternoon Refresh
My mom’s a psychologist. She usually sets her calendar with appointments all day, with a break of 2 hours in the afternoon. So after her first set of clients, post lunch, she enjoys a cup of nice hot Tea Treasure Organic’s Pure Chamomile Tea. Right before her next set of clients, she sprays on some Forest Essentials Facial Tonic Mist - Panchpushp.
Evening Routine
One thing she does every night without fail, is wash her face. She uses the Kiehl's Calendula Deep Cleansing Foaming Face Wash. I realized that if I wash my face every night, I actually put in some extra effort to start a night-time regime right after. She’s traditional for nights as she puts on a few drops of cold-pressed coconut oil on her face.
Weekly Clean-up
She doesn’t have the time to go for salon facials often, so she ends up doing her own DIYs. Every Sunday morning, she whips up some besan and haldi with a spoonful of honey and coconut oil into a scrub plus face pack. She also puts up her hair in a dahi mask and let’s these kitchen wonders work their magic while she sips onto some tea. After washing off everything, she uses the L'Occitane Divine Youth Oil.
WHAT SHE PICKED UP FROM MY REGIME
She started using facial oils instead of her everyday morning cream. Her skin’s already so perfect, that it didn’t really make much of a difference. She did fall in love with sleeping masks. She picked up my LANEIGE Water Sleeping Mask - Lavender and took it home.
MY VERDICT AFTER 7 DAYS OF FOLLOWING HER REGIME
Good habits like ACV and chamomile tea and using a definitive routine with established products felt great, honestly. I’m actually loving my skin more. Yes, it's softer and shinier, but the efforts I put in every morning, noon and night made me happier and the process itself is adding more glow to my skin. Who knew that a little extra self-care can make such a difference to your wellbeing!
