For many years my skincare regimen existed of passing out in my kid’s beds with whatever make up I managed to put on that morning. Then when I woke in the AM with the kids frightened at what lay before them, I would scrub myself clean with baby wipes, apply sunblock and start the process all over again. Then every few weeks in desperation, I would play “cleaning catch up” with a weekend full of masks, treatments, lasers, you name it. But with all this sweating I had been doing at the Sweat Shoppe, I knew I had to up my game on a more consistent daily basis.
Based on its stellar and outrageously superior education system, I’m pretty much a sucker for anything Finnish. How can a country that treats its teachers like rock stars and believes children should play, explore and tinker for as many hours a day as possible, not produce the most fantastic scientists around. So, when I came across Lumene Skincare, which combines wild Arctic berries indigenous to Finland coupled with the ingenuity of their scientists, I figured, why not.
My first purchase was Lumene’s Bright Touch and Refreshing Cleansing Foam have to admit that the crazy low price tag of $12.99 gave me pause. Do I really want to wash my face every day with something that cheap? But then I thought, Finland has the BEST educational system in the world and it’s absolutely free. My friends pay nearly $30,000 a year at shitty private schools to have their poor unsuspecting kindergarteners take spelling tests and do bullshit worksheets every night for homework so they can learn how to score well on a test. Maybe you really don’t get what you pay for. So, I gave it a try. Unlike other gentle cleansers I was accustomed to, Lumene’s Bright Touch and Refreshing Cleansing Foam actually cleaned my skin. When I went to dry my face, there wasn’t thick remnants of make up and dirt on my towel. It felt completely clean. Not in a “I just borrowed my preteen’s Noxema and my face may crack open” kind of clean. But soft, supple and clean. Like “I got a facial” clean.
Im not one to waste idle time on under eye cream, but when it is also a concealer that brightens your face and requires nothing else to accompany it, then I’m on board. Lumene’s Bright Now 2 in 1 Eye Cream and concealer really does add just the perfect amount of coverage on a hot sweaty day while throwing some vitamin E on that delicate skin to protect you agains those UV rays. It retails for 24.99, which in quality skin care land is equivalent to “free.”
I would say this combination of effectiveness and thriftiness is the perfect post workout skincare regimen for me. I can schlep the durable plastic packaging from the home to the gym and leave it to fry in my hot dirty car without worry about destroying a 200.00 skin product. Which I have. It works well. And I’m supporting the Finnish. Who I love. So there. Its a win win for everyone. Except for those poor Kindergarteners at that those fancy misguided costly private schools.
Meredith is a mom of three perfectly behaved and always impeccably dressed boys who never cuss or fight. She prefers exercise to the side effects of lithium. You can follow her on Instagram @meredithmorton but don’t expect too much.