Thursday, June 30, 2016

My Morning Routine

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Hello there, and welcome to one's morning routine. I know what you're thinking, 'Amy you've done this already you fool'; now, yes, yes I have done it a couple of times, but hear me out. I've been trying some new products out as of late and one must share one's new discoveries. Plus, a morning routine's always fun innit.
First up, teeth. I'm a bit freaky about teeth; they're one part of me I really make sure to look after - well, after my appetite, that's also looked after very well. I fell and hit my head on someone's knee - seriously, only me - when I was around 14 and chipped my tooth and since then have been very aware of how much I don't want any more harm to come to my gnashers. I very much appreciate a good smile - if 10 Years Younger has taught me anything it's that a good smile can transform a face - and, um, good breath, so, combine that with my traumatic childhood event, and you have one anal toothbrusher. Plus my best friend's a dentist so she'd whoop my ass if I got into any bad dental habits.
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I've been using the new Oral B Genius toothbrush and, holy moly, it's the toothbrush of all toothbrushes. Seriously, that thing's smarter than me. Basically, you download the Oral B app to your phone and sync it with your toothbrush. Then you pick which colour you want your smartring to be; you can change it daily, so if you wake up in a sassy mood then you can have it hot pink, or if you wake up feeling all nice and tranquil you can have, say, mint green. The world's your oyster. Now, here's where it gets fun... As you start to brush your teeth, the brush'll use position detection technology (which is basically the motion sensors in the brush working with your phone camera, see the first photo below) to show you exactly how long you should be brushing each area of your mouth for and what pressure you should be applying. This stops you missing any teeth out when you're brushing, we've all been there, as well as making sure you're brushing for the right amount of time. If you apply too much pressure when you're brushing, the smartring will flash red as a warning and your brush head will slow down, meaning that you won't damage your little gums or teeth. Clever, huh? The way the app is set up is pretty much like a game - plaque is the big bad boss (AKA the blue sections of the circle) and you've got to brush until the blue turns white and explodes - and then you can review your performance for the week, month, year etc to see how you're getting on. 

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Another clever little thing you can do is take your phone to the dentist and get them to add notes to the app, ie to select parts of your mouth that need a little more lovin', so that your teeth-brushing programme is tailored exactly to you and your mouth's needs. For example, the top right of my mouth needed a little more care and attention, so my dentist added in a few seconds of brushing to my programme. It's like having a little pocket dentist with you morning and night (and saves you trying to remember what your dentist told you when you get home and you realise you forgot to listen to what they were saying because you were too busy trying not to dribble on yourself). If you have a very short attention span - nothing to be ashamed of, we're all friends here - then you can even read or watch the news in-app to make teeth brushing pass by even quicker. Very, very cool. Honestly, when I got the demonstration of the toothbrush I sat there with a face like this; I've never in my life seen anything like it. It's a strange feeling being intimidated by a toothbrush's intelligence, I'll tell you that. The brush itself is incredibly light, I actually thought the battery of mine was missing (not my proudest moment) and it also comes with it's only little travelcase that charges both the brush and your phone. THIS IS THE FUTURE PEOPLE.
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I've been using it alongside the 3DW toothpaste, which does all the fun stuff like protects against cavities, plaque and gum problems, whitens teeth (winner, I know) by removing surface stains and also protects against painful sensitivity. All of this, whilst giving you a good deep clean at the same time. Magical, huh?

The Little Magpie Morning Skincare Routine
Next up, skincare. As you all know, I'm a big hot cloth cleanser fan, but recently I've switched it up a little and have been using that at night and then the ESPA purifying miscellar lotion in the morning - I just pop a little on a cotton pad and sweep it over my face for a good ole morning refresh. It's packed with all the good stuff like plant actives and essential oils (hello chamomile and witch hazel) and is a really nice, easy-to-use product. Then comes the eye lotion and toner - both Liz Earle - and, after that, my face is feeling a bit more alive and ready for human interaction. My eyebags normally take a little longer to realise that it's time to wake up and go away, but such is life. Moisturising-wise there are a couple I switch between, but right now I've been gravitating towards Liz Earle skin repair moisturiser which is just lovely. Nice and light, which I like for day-to-day use, but still gives your skin a good bit of moisture. Plus it smells pretty heavenly too. 
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Something else I've been using a lot of is E45 cream, which isn't really the prettiest to photograph, is it? Poor thing. However, my skin's been pretty dry (cough scaly cough) with how much I've been travelling, and I still find this one of the best when you're in need of a good deep moisturise. Another little newbie I've worked into my morning routine is the new Diptyque fragrance, Sans Eau Des. I'm pretty hard to please when it comes to fragrances and sprays - I think my nose must be a fussy little shit - but I absolutely love this one. It's got a light, orangey smell and is a really lovely summery fragrance. One thing I would say though is give yourself a good, generous spray as it's quite light. 

And there we have it, a little updated morning routine for you! I hope you enjoyed it, I almost feel like a dentist. If I could give you all a sticker for reading, I would. 

Amy 

Post in collaboration with Oral B; all views and opinions on this magical wonder of a toothbrush are my own (seriously, I wholeheartedly believe it's the best thing I've seen all year)