Prenatal Skincare: My Pregnancy-Safe Clean Skincare Routine

As a follow up, and part two of a three-part skincare for pregnancy series, I’m (finally) sharing my pregnancy skincare routine. I’m sorry because, (1) I kinda left you hanging after the last post in and (2) I had my baby 16 months ago and could have totally posted this earlier! But, mom-life happens (Where does the time go?!) and I honestly hope it’s helpful and will reach those who need it (now).

In my last post, I carefully spelled out what I learned not to do, and which products to avoid, but didn’t get into how, exactly, I cared for my skin day-to-day, during pregnancy.  It took me some time and experimentation to figure out a solid daily routine for my ever-changing pregnant-lady skin but, once I found a routine that worked, it stuck. I curated my pregnancy-safe skincare routine by replacing my regular go-to’s with clean, non-toxic versions of the types of products that worked best for my skin type pre-pregnancy (sensitive, combination).

Brooke’s Pregnancy-Safe Clean Skincare Routine

CLEANSE

Pregnancy skin, for me, was “glowy” but super sensitive. My already sensitive skin became more prone to irritation, especially under the strong rays of the LA sun. To keep my skin hydrated and gently clean, I cleansed, daily, with a gentle, clean micellar water, instead of washing with soap and water (Sukin Micellar Cleansing Water, $10). When I felt I needed a deeper cleanse, I used a gentle cream-to-foam cleanser (Acure Seriously Soothing Cleansing Cream, $10). The key was to gently cleanse my skin while adding moisture.

TONE

Pre-pregnancy, I used many dual-action products, my toner being one of them. My favorites were brightening and exfoliating toners like Caudalie Brightening Essence and Pixi Beauty Glow Tonic but most of these were formulated with acids and chemicals that were too harsh for my prenatal skin. So, I switched to a simple, tried & true toner: witch hazel (Thayers Witch Hazel Astringent, $11). I swiped this on my skin everyday after cleansing to prep for treatments and/or moisturizing.

TREAT

Many of my skin treatments were tossed when clearing my skincare collection of unsafe products. So many of the ingredients in skin treatments are pregnancy no-no’s: glycolic acids, AHAs, BHAs and more. During pregnancy, I swapped many of my serums and treatments for oils and other natural options. Brightening serums were replaced with rose hip oil, hyaluronic acid was replaced with squalane oil and exfoliating serums were replaced with all natural scrubs like Kora Organic’s Turmeric Brightening Exfoliating Mask.

MASK

Pre-pregnancy, I masked 2-3x per week. I would be sure to do 1 detox mask, 1 moisturizing mask and 1 brightening mask per week. During pregnancy, my “glowy” skin didn’t need as much masking maintenance, especially with all of the oil-based care. I masked rarely during pregnancy, with the exception of the occasional sheet mask or moisturizing mask.

MOISTURIZE

Since my skin was pretty sensitive during pregnancy, it loved calming & moisturizing products. I made it a point to use clean moisturizing products with natural calming ingredients like chamomile and aloe. My go-to daily moisturizer was (and still is) Caudalie’s moisturizing sorbet in the pink tube. It’s formulated with chamomile and helps my skin stay calm and moisturized. 

Mamas, what were your go-tos for skincare during pregnancy? Mamas-to-be, what skin changes have you experienced during your pregnancy? Let’s continue the convo in the comments!