An affordable skincare routine: best picks from the drugstore

I am constantly on the hunt for affordable skincare products- the main reason being that I can't justify spending a large sum of money when the products get used up so quickly. Don't get me wrong, of course I have the odd luxury product in my collection but, at the moment, there's so many amazing drugstore skincare products out there, many of which I have accumulated over the past couple of months. Due to this, I thought I'd share with you my updated skincare routine using new products I have picked up.

Step one: Deep clean

This step, I only actually carry out around 2-3 times a week and is something I usually see as a 'treat' to pamper myself with. To carry out a deep clean of my pores, I use the The Body Shop Tea Tree '3 in 1 wash, scrub, mask' face mask. As you have probably gathered, I only use the mask aspect of this. Therefore, I apply a small, even layer to my t-zone, chin and any other spot or blemish-prone area of my face and leave for approximately 5 minutes. I know that some people won't consider The Body Shop to be 'drugstore', but it does only retail for £8.50 for 125ml of product- which I think is very reasonable. The mask works wonders and leaves my skin feeling very refreshed and clean. However, due to how well it gets deep into the pores to clean them out, the mask can leave your skin a little dry so make sure to moisture at the end of your skincare routine if you use this product.

Step two: Cleanse/exfoliate:

Depending on the day, this is actually step one of my skincare routine, and is simply what I do to mildly clean my face- nothing extravagant. For this, I use the 'Vitamin C facial wash' by Soap and Glory (£10.50) every day. After receiving this as a gift, I was excited to try it as I'd never tried a Soap and Glory face wash before. The product promises to smooth, cleanse and purify...and it delivered! I always feel very fresh after using this, especially as the facial wash has a very fruity, citrus scent - making it perfect for waking me up in the morning. Also, the product acts as a mild exfoliator- containing small pink beads that burst upon application.

Step three: tone:

As you can tell, I do follow the traditional 'cleanse, tone, moisturise' routine for my skincare- mainly because it's simple and easy. To even out my skin tone, I use The Body Shop 'Tea Tree Anti-imperfection daily solution'. This product is actually in the same range as the face mask mentioned in step one so has the same scent and similar packaging, however the solution retails at £13.00. I pipet this product mainly on my cheeks where I tend to get some redness and blemishes, to try and reduce them. So far, I am noticing a slight reduction in the redness on my cheeks- but nothing drastic.

Step four- moisturise:

My all time favourite part of my skincare routine is moisturising right at the end. Cleaning and toning my skin makes me feel as though someone has zapped all of the moisture out of it, so I feel amazing when I have resorted that moisture. I apply the Tula 'Hydrating Day & Night Cream' all over my face...and it feels great! You may be thinking, huh? Tula isn't drugstore? Yes, you're correct, it is not a drugstore product and in fact retails for a hefty £40. This is the only moisturiser I have left that works well with my skin- but if anyone could recommend a cheap alternative, I'd be grateful. However, prior to purchasing the Tula moisturiser, I did have the 'Simple hydrating light moisturiser' (£2.00), which wasn't the best, but worked fine for the amazingly cheap price.