Sleeping is one of my favourite past times and I know, for sure, I'm not alone. Like me, you probably get excited about coming home from work and sleeping before you've even left your bed in the morning.
The best thing about sleep - aside from how fucking great it feels - is that it does wonders for your skin and hair. So this concept of 'beauty sleep' isn't some fairytale bullshit girls, it's the real deal. Skin has increased mitosis during sleep and mitosis is a cell process that renews and repairs the skin. Blood flow is also boosted by the body while you sleep, helping to give you a healthy and radiant complexion. This boosted blood flow also helps the hair, as it supplies the hair follicles with nutrients, vitamins and minerals.
In order to boost the many natural benefits of sleep, beauty brands across the world have created effective products designed for use at night and I use several of them. One of my favourites is the Dr. Hauschka Night Serum (£39.00 M&S / $60.00 dr.hauschka.com). This water-based serum absorbs into the skin super quickly - a necessity when your head is about to hit the pillow. It is designed to revitalise and balance the skin, as well as support its natural night-time renewal process. It contains apple fruit hydrosol, apple blossom extract, malic acid and witch hazel extract, which work together to leave skin brighter, clearer and more even in texture.
When I'm looking for something a little more powerful, I apply the Rodial Super Acids Sleep Serum (£78.00 rodial.co.uk / $98.00 rodial.com), a gentle resurfacing treatment that treats pigmentation, brightens skin and helps keep my face problem-free.
As I'm now in my - sigh - late twenties, looking after the eye area is crucial. So to give my peepers the best skincare support during the night, I've been using the Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Eye (£25.50 kiehls.co.uk / $37.00 Nordstrom) and - like the famous Midnight Recovery Oil - this product is pretty impressive. It is a thin, lightweight cream that feels gentle on the eye area. It absorbs quickly leaving the skin feeling instantly hydrated - a result of the large amount of squalane included, I'm sure. While you sleep, the Midnight Recovery Eye gets to work on depuffing, smoothing and brightening the eye area, making it a hero anti-ager. I've seen a reduction in fine lines since using this bad boy so can't recommend it enough.
Another area that gets a lot of my attention is the lips, especially during the cold winter months. I always apply a crazy amount of lip balm before bed and the one treatment that gives me pout perfection is the Sisley Lip Balm (£39.60 John Lewis / $74.00 sisley-paris.com). This thick, ultra-nourishing balm keeps my lips super soft and free of painful cracking or flaking.
Now as much as I love and recommend all of the above products, it's important to stress that using any good skincare or haircare product before bed is better than nothing. Applying result-focused products at night will do nothing but boost the body's natural skin-benefiting processes while you snooze!