The 5 Pillars of My No to Low Cost Beauty Routine

Today, I am going to share my own no to low cost beauty routine with you. These days, it seems like there are more beauty products than ever before! Many of them are expensive, too.

The two pillars of my beauty routine are not extra expenses. They are simply part of my lifestyle. 

Pillar One: A Healthy Diet

When I was younger, I did not eat the most nutritious diet and it showed in my skin. I always wanted beautiful skin, but I was only focusing on the surface. I got medications to put on my skin. Sometimes they helped, but only for a while. My skin problems would always return.

Now, I am 52 and am often told I look a decade or more younger. I eat a very clean diet, and I feel this shows in my skin. I’m often told my face glows with health. I am virtually blemish-free. If I do get any blemishes, they heal quickly. This is the key to my low cost beauty routine. If you are interested in learning more about eating healthy on a budget, check out this great Frugalite article! 

Pillar Two: Lots of Sleep

I have always needed eight to nine hours of sleep a night. Sometimes more. I have often wished I was one of those people who only needed six hours of sleep a night. But no, I am one of those people that cannot do without my good night’s sleep. What happens when I do without sleep? Productivity goes DOWN, irritability goes UP, and if this goes on too long, I usually end up catching something. 

There have certainly been times in my life when I got a lot less sleep, like when I was younger. Now, I find a loss of sleep affects me more. By prioritizing my Zzzzzs, I know I will have a better day tomorrow. Good consistent sleep impacts my overall health so much that I am sure it helps keep my skin healthy.  And it doesn’t cost a penny!

Pillar Three: Stop Using Soap!

Many years ago, I met a woman through my landlord. I will call her Elizabeth. She was one of the most beautiful women I had ever seen. She was in her late fifties and looked stunning in a natural way. Her skin glowed, and her hair was a lovely mix of darker grey and silver, undyed.

After visiting her and her partner’s home a few times for meals, I could see that she ate a very healthy diet. I am sure this played a role in her natural beauty. Her example motivated me to improve my diet. 

Curious about her skincare routine, I got up the courage to ask her how she washed her face to keep her skin looking so great. Her response shocked me. She told me that she wiped her face at night with a damp face cloth.

That was it! And yet, look at her skin.

So, from that time onwards, I stopped using soaps and cleansers on my face. These days, the only exception is when I come home from milking the cows because my face is quite dirty from the barn. I use a small amount of gentle natural castile soap on my face cloth to clean my face.

Pillar Four: Why the Microbiome of our Skin Matters

That was many years ago that I stopped using cleaners and soaps on my face morning and night. My skin looks better now than it did when I was in my thirties. Today, science is catching up to Elizabeth’s minimalist skincare routine. We are now learning that our skin is not “just” our skin. 

According to Dr. Ann Meyers: 

“Your skin microbiome is the scientific term for the trillions of microorganisms that live on your skin. When your skin microbiome is healthy, there are 1,000 different species of bacteria and up to 80 different fungi species in your skin microbiome.”  

Wow! Isn’t that something?

We are just beginning to learn about the roles that all of these tiny creatures play in our skin health and immunity.

Dr. Meyers is clear that showering daily or more than once a day can negatively affect our skin’s microbiome. As well, she warns against using soap on our face: “Most people don’t realize that you don’t even have to wash your face with soap unless you wear makeup or sunscreen. We often strip oils off our face and body unnecessarily, drying out our skin microbiome. When your skin microbiome is in ideal balance, you won’t need moisturizer – although that’s a difficult balance to maintain with the modern conveniences of central heating and air conditioning.” [source]

 Amazing to see that science is now supporting Elizabeth’s simple face cloth wash so many years later! What a great reason to save money on skincare!

Probiotics for the Microbiome

One final insight regarding my low to no cost beauty routine and microbiome: I eat a LOT of probiotics. In fact, I have been making my own kefir (cultured milk similar to yogurt) for a few months now. However, kefir is much richer than yogurt when it comes to probiotic power. With over 60 strains of bacteria, yeast, and fungi, it contains “more strains of bacteria than any food on earth!” 

My daily half cup or more of kefir contributes to my healthy glowing skin. While we are just beginning to learn more about this, it appears that taking a probiotic supplement for our gut can support the microbiome on our skin. 

Pillar Five: Jojoba Oil for Moisture

I don’t wear any makeup, but I do moisturize occasionally, but not with some outrageously expensive, chemical-laden product that promises miracles. In my low cost beauty routine, I use a small bottle of Jojoba Oil. This oil is supposed to be the closest oil to our own skin’s oil, called sebum. If I feel the skin around my eyes is a bit dry, I put a small amount on before bed. A while ago, I bought a large jar of raw organic shea butter to add to my homemade lip balm recipe. It was so good that it replaced my lip balm entirely. I only need to apply it once or twice a day. 

Do you have your own low cost beauty routine tips??

I hope you enjoyed learning about my no to low cost beauty routine. Have you learned about anything you would like to try yourself? Do you have a low cost beauty routine tip you can share with our readers? Please post in the comment section below!