I've been taking Roaccutane for seven weeks now and I cannot believe the results I'm seeing already. My skin has always been pretty terrible, and if it's not covered with active breakouts, it's covered with scars. I'm quite a pale human and so it's fair to say I scar fairly easily and visibly... 

The last few weeks I've been on Roaccutane I've been stepping up my skincare routine as my skin is nowhere near as dry, sore, or sensitive as it was when I first started the treatment. I've been gradually adding some of my old staple products back into my routine and I definitely think they're contributing to the accelerated progress I'm seeing with my skin. A few of these products didn't even make it into my Roaccutane Skincare Edit post a few weeks ago, which shows how much things have changed around here in such a short space of time! 

My updated roaccutane skincare routine - a run through of the products I'm loving whilst on isotretinoin.

My Updated Roaccutane Skincare Routine 

Vitamin E Hot Cloth Cleanser

Now, I can't say I've ever tried the cult classic Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish, but this Superdrug offering is, in my opinion, a great hot cloth cleanser. Consistency-wise, it's thick and creamy - almost like a moisturiser - making it perfect for Roaccutane-dried skin. Now, I haven't been wearing a full face of makeup, but, any products I have been wearing this cleanser has been removing thoroughly and gently. It costs just under a fiver and I use it morning and evening as the first step in my skincare routine, bargain. 


Pixi Glow Tonic* 

A product that needs absolutely no introduction nor explanation, an absolute hero within the skincare community. I didn't think I'd ever be able to use this whilst on Roaccutane, but, where I'm still not at the full dose, my skin really has calmed down and is able to tolerate this! Rather than aggressively rub it around my face on a cotton pad like I used to, I now gently press it into the skin and it isn't uncomfortable at all. I apply this as part of my evening skincare routine as I stick to a very simple 3 step routine in the mornings! 


Dermalogica Biolumin-C Serum*

Wow. I like this stuff a lot. But, at £81.50 a bottle, I'm not surprised it's fantastic. It's a super light serum that always leaves my skin feeling fresh and looking bright. Again, I only tend to use this in the evenings, as the third step in my routine. 


Bioderma Sebium Hydra

If you're currently taking Roaccutane and only want to try one of the products from this post, I highly recommend checking this moisturiser out. It's formulated specifically for 'acne-prone skin ultra-dry due to treatments', and err hello? Isn't that perfect... It's a really light, non-sticky consistency but still packs a whole lot of moisture and always leaves my poor dry skin looking glowing. At just over a tenner it's very much purse-friendly, and I may or may not be running out of my first tube and have another two on the way.


Body Shop Skin Defence SPF 50

A product that's had a fair amount of air-time here on becc4, this one is a firm favourite. It's an extremely light, invisible when on, SPF 50 and I love it a lot. I don't know about you, but I am notttt a fan of putting your bog-standard body suncream on my face, it feels horrible and leaves a white cast. This gem does neither of things and also sinks in super quickly. It's important to always wear an SPF when on Roaccutane, regardless of whether it's sunny or cloudy, so this is one I don't mind layering up day to day. 


And there we have it, my updated Roaccutane skincare routine. Have you tried any of these products?


My updated roaccutane skincare routine - a run through of the products I'm loving whilst on isotretinoin.

I've always been someone who's very all or nothing when it comes to fitness and working out. I'm either hitting the gym most days or I'm going months without ever breaking out into a run. Yes, I know it's not ideal, but the last few days I've been trying to break myself back into the exercise scene. I mean, for one, I can't use not having the time as an excuse anymore! Now, I know options are very limited, particularly for those who don't have access to any equipment - like myself - so I thought I'd show you my three favourite at-home workouts I've been doing this lockdown. They are all free and can be done right from your lounge/anywhere with a bit of floor space! 

3 Free At-Home Workouts I'm Loving This Lockdown that require no equipment!


3 Free At-Home Workouts I'm Loving This Lockdown

Yoga by Adriene

If you've ever even considered doing any sort of at-home yoga I'm sure you will already have heard of Adriene. She is the YouTube yoga queen and for very good reason. I find her videos are really easy to follow along with, her voice is super relaxing and she has playlists for all sorts of abilities, workout lengths and yoga goals. 

I tend to wake up, roll out of bed and follow one of her morning yoga videos in my pjs, on my bedroom floor. I don't have a yoga mat, but thankfully the floors in my house are carpeted so it's not too solid to lie on. When I don't feel like jumping around and over-exerting myself, a nice morning yoga sequence is my go-to!


Heather Robertson

Of all of the workout channels I've ever found, I think Heather's is my favourite. She has workouts with no equipment, no repeats and always gets straight into the workout. One of my pet peeves is when a workout video starts with a 7-minute chat about the weather, I mean, I like getting straight into the workout before I get bored and click off and get back into bed! Some of Heather's workouts are less than ten minutes (great for when you can't really be bothered but want to have done something) and she also has a free 12-week fitness plan if you fancy something a little more long-term! 


MadFit

Now, I don't know about you but learning TikTok dances doesn't come very naturally to me (anyone who knows me in real life is probably nodding their head so viciously they might cause some internal damage) but, I do still love a boogie as much as the next person. MadFit has a playlist of videos that are workouts to popular songs including one 15 minute dance party video which is allll of the best songs from the noughties. I don't know about you, but dancing around my room feels like way less of a workout than 100 burpees but is often is just as exhausting! 


And there we have it, three of my favourite at-home workouts... ps I'm by no means saying that you need to be using your free time to work out, this is just something I've been trying to get into as part of my lockdown routine and thought I'd share, just in case anyone else was interested in doing the same!



What are some of your favourite at-home workouts?

3 Free At-Home Workouts I'm Loving This Lockdown that require no equipment!

For this week's lockdown bake I figured we'd try something along the same lines as hot cross buns, as I was pretty pleased with how those turned out... After a quick think and a google, I decided that cinnamon buns were going to be this week's mission.

Now, I cannot take any credit for this particular recipe as I followed this Minimalist Baker one word for word - there was no experimenting here! I did, however, use dairy ingredients rather than vegan ones, opting for semi-skimmed milk and unsalted butter, rather than almond milk and dairy-free spread.

I am very pleased with how these turned out and they're a lot less complicated to make than you'd first think. Overall, these only took a couple of hours to whip up, including an hour of proving, so could absolutely be a weekend brunch bake if you're up early and fancy homemade baked goods.

Also, side note, the more and more baking I'm doing, the more I'm starting to wonder whether I should drop the whole marketing career and get a job in a bakery... I'm thoroughly enjoying making all of these recipes and eating the results.

A simple Cinnamon Bun recipe to make this weekend.
A simple Cinnamon Bun recipe to make this weekend.
A simple Cinnamon Bun recipe to make this weekend.

The Cinnamon Bun Recipe 

INGREDIENTS

For the dough: 

400g Bread Flour
250ml Milk 
45g Butter 
1 Sachet Yeast
1 tbsp Sugar
Pinch of Salt

For the filling: 

45g Butter (Melted)
30g Sugar 
2 tbsp Cinnamon 

METHOD

1. Place the butter and milk in a mixing bowl and microwave until melted. 
2.  Once cooled down to a warm (not hot) temperature, add the yeast to the bowl and leave for 10 minutes. 
3. Add the sugar and salt.
4. Gradually add the flour, stirring gently. 
5. Once it's a thick consistency, tip the dough onto a floured surface and gently knead for a minute until it forms a ball. 
6. Place in an oil-coated bowl and cover with oiled cling film, and leave in a warm place for an hour. 
7. Roll out the dough into a rectangle shape. 
8. Mix the melted butter, sugar and cinnamon, and brush onto the dough. 
9. Tightly roll up the dough, and cut into 1-inch pieces. 
10. Grease a tin with butter, add the buns and bake at 180 degrees C for about 20 minutes.


Ta-daaaaaa, how simple is that?! In my head, I always imagined Cinnamon Buns were going to be a really complicated thing to bake with lots of intricate steps, but they're really not. I highly recommend!


Have you ever made Cinnamon Buns?

A simple Cinnamon Bun recipe to make this weekend.

Judging by the number of clicks I've had on my most recent blogging related post - 15 Lockdown Blog Post Ideas for Lifestyle Bloggers - it appears that people are very much interested in working on their blogs during this bizarre time. So, to continue this, I thought I'd compile a little list of other miscellaneous things you can do for your blog during lockdown... Shall we jump straight into it?

5 Things To Do For Your Blog During Lockdown including Google Analytics Training, SEO and Broken Link Checking.


5 Things To Do For Your Blog During Lockdown 


01 / Learn How to Use Google Analytics Properly 

I mean, fair enough if you're already a whizz and know the ins and outs of behaviour flow funnels, the difference between a property and a view, and can create your own dashboards in your sleep but I certainly didn't. So, I recently spent some of my free time doing one of Google's free training courses.

For anyone that's interested this Google Analytics for Beginners Course is the one I did and it took a few hours to complete. It was so useful and I genuinely learnt so much. Watch out, data kweeen coming through. But in all seriousness, understanding your reader's demographics, what pages they reach your site from, how long they spend on your blog and where they exit from is really useful to know for both creating future content and edits to current posts!


02 / Reply to All Comments 

I am SO guilty of reading through my blog comments as they come through but forgetting to go back to them and actually reply. I find Blogger doesn't work brilliantly on mobile which makes sitting down and getting back to people on my desktop more of a task, hence why it often gets overlooked... I know I'm just making excuses but replying to blog comments is one easy thing to be doing during these long days to help foster those online friendships and communities.


03 / Check for Broken Links 

When isn't there a good time to check for broken links? Every time you think you've made some good headway with clearing them, a quick check later and bam, another 80 to sort through. This is the Broken Link Checker that I use, but they're all much of a much. Clear those broken links, people! 


04 / Revisit Old Posts and Make Them More SEO Friendly 

I don't know about you but I'm alwaaays learning more and more about SEO and how to improve the content on my blog. When I first started writing these posts I had no idea about meta descriptions or the importance of file names, so it's fair to say a large chunk of the content here on Becc4 isn't search engine optimized. Now, going through and editing loads of old posts may not sound like the best way to spend an afternoon, but considering some of us have more free time than we know what to do with, now's the time to get to it!


05 / Start Pinning All of Your Blog Posts 

And when I say pinning, I mean properly pinning. Pinning your blog posts with optimised creative and copy, and onto relevant boards. Pinterest is my second biggest source of referral traffic so it's definitely worth getting into! I recently made pins for lots of my older, but popular, posts to help drive traffic to those. If you're still a bit lost with the whole Pinterest thing, I've written a whole blog post on How I Hit 3 Million Monthly Unique Viewers on Pinterest which is a great place to start, if I do say so myself!


And there we have it, 5 Things To Do For Your Blog During Lockdown... Which of these will you be making a start on first?

5 Things To Do For Your Blog During Lockdown including Google Analytics Training, SEO and Broken Link Checking.

Whilst some of us are furloughed, and others are still going to work as usual, there are quite a number of people who have suddenly found themselves working from home for the first time ever.

Now, besides studying for what feels like a lifetime, I only really have 3 months' experience of officially working from home. Last summer, I interned for my supervisor at University, working on one of his research projects. This internship was full-time - Monday- Friday - paid, and based from home.

During these three months we actually picked up Murph, so I was always trying to juggle being productive and getting things done, with having puppy cuddles, not being distracted by the beautiful weather and going to the beach, and scrolling on my phone for hours on end. Over the course of the three months, I picked up some tips and tricks that made staying on task that little bit easier so I thought I'd share them with you today in light of the current situation...

How To Stay Productive When Working From Home - four tips to help with productivity during lockdown.


How To Stay Productive When Working From Home 


Write To-Do Lists 

It's no secret I'm an absolute list-lover. I'm always making lists upon lists at work and, since lockdown, have even made an Instagram Story template for daily to-do lists. Whilst they don't help with actually getting the work done, they're great for setting up smaller tasks and working out what the fook you need to do each day and being a visual reminder of how much you do/don't have left to do. 

Take More Frequent Breaks 

These aren't normal times. We're in the middle of a pandemic for goodness sake. Working straight through from 9 til 5 with minimal human interaction and the same wall to stare at is hardly going to help with the ol' motivation levels. Get up, wander around, scroll your phone, get some fresh air! Doing this regularly, and working solidly in between, is a far more efficient use of your time. The Pomodoro Technique is a great one to check out if you've never worked like this before.

Set Up A Work Station 

We don't all have ergonomic chairs, multiple screens, and open-plan offices at home, but having a designated workspace definitely helps separate work from play, especially if you use your laptop for fun too. Clear a sideboard, your dressing table, a corner of the dining table and just set it up as your workspace. Do all of your work here and try and keep it as clutter-free as possible! 

Stick to Normal Working Hours

Now that a commute is out of the question it's often tempting to change up your working hours or spread your time unevenly throughout the week, and change it when you feel like it. Not only is a routine good for keeping you on track but it also means that your colleagues are also working at the same time as you, making it far easier to collaborate on projects, share ideas and ask questions. 


I can't say I massively thrive on working from home, I really enjoy having colleagues and people to chat to all day, but, in this weird time, I hope these four tips are helpful! 



How do you stay productive when working from home?

How To Stay Productive When Working From Home - four tips to help with productivity during lockdown.

The UK is currently facing a flour shortage. These are words I didn't think I'd ever find myself typing, let alone during a global pandemic, but here we are. Seeing as the world and his wife is unable to get their hands on any flour, for this weeks' bake I thought we could test out this flourless cookie recipe. Yep, no flour needed here, baby! Coincidentally, this recipe also doesn't need any butter so these beauties were made entirely from things that we have laying around in the cupboards! 

Whilst they're called cookies and very much look like cookies, I'd actually say that they're more like meringues than cookies. They're light, but gooey and chewy, and pretty damn tasty if you ask me. Now, they taste even better after being warmed in the microwave for ten seconds - mmm mmmmmmm. 

Of all the recipes I've posted here on Becc4, these flourless chocolate chip cookies are by far the easiest to make and can be made, baked and tasted in twenty minutes, can I hear a hooray? No more slaving away in the kitchen for hours, I'm looking at you Biscoff Cheesecake

A flourless chocolate chip cookie recipe using all store cupboard ingredients.
A flourless chocolate chip cookie recipe using all store cupboard ingredients.
A flourless chocolate chip cookie recipe using all store cupboard ingredients.

Flourless Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe 

INGREDIENTS:

180g Icing Sugar
35g Cocoa powder
1 egg (you only need the white)
2tsp Vanilla Extract
100g Chocolate (chopped into chunks)
Pinch of salt

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. 
2. Combine the icing sugar, cocoa powder and salt in a mixing bowl. 
3. Add the vanilla extract and egg white. 
4. Stir until a thick liquid is formed.
5. Add the chocolate chunks
6. Dollop onto a paper-lined baking tray, leaving space between each cookie.
7. Bake for 10 minutes and leave to cool on the tray. 


And there we have it, a suuuuuper simple, flourless chocolate chip cookie recipe! 

A flourless chocolate chip cookie recipe using all store cupboard ingredients.

Last week I compiled a list of 15 Lockdown Blog Post Ideas for Lifestyle Bloggers and today I thought we could cross another one of those off that list. I have been furloughed by my employer, so it's fair to say my weekdays are a little different to usual.

I'm trying to stick to a somewhat normal routine in the hope that it'll make the transition back to 'normal life' a little easier when the time comes. But, rather being an hour by hour strict schedule, think of these as things I'm trying to squeeze into each day alongside the Netflix bingeing and the endless phone scrolling...

My Lockdown Routine - how I'm spending my days in self-isolation.


My Lockdown Routine 

I've been waking up at my usual work wake-up time, thank you body clock, and have been getting up, going downstairs and letting the dog out into the garden. I've then been fannying around downstairs for a while, before having some breakfast and a cup of tea, then doing some sort of exercise.

Recently, I've been really vibing Yoga as Roaccutane is giving me real muscle soreness and ain't nobody got time for that. I've been following a lot of Yoga with Adriene's videos and spend 40 mins max prancing around my room attempting some sort of stretching. If you're a total newbie like me, defo check her videos out, there are videos suitable for all sorts of abilities and can be done anywhere. (I'm normally found in my pjs, doing the warrior pose, on my bedroom floor.)

I've been getting dressed as usual - okay maybe not quite usual I've been avoiding jeans - but I've been trying to wear normal day to day outfits. I've been carrying out my full skincare routine but not wearing any makeup in the hope it'll help my skin, but occasionally I'll put a whole face of slap on if I'm feeling faaancy.

Then, throughout my day I'm doing a combination of any of the following things;

  • Reading some of my book
  • Writing up blog posts
  • Shooting content
  • Baking (this Biscoff Cheesecake took a long ol' while to make)
  • Tidying my room
  • Playing with Murph

In the evenings we'll have dinner, I'll take the dog out, and my Mum and I will watch another episode of The Crown, which can I just say, we are loving! It has been on my Netflix Watch List for the longest time and I'm so glad I've finally gotten round to watching it.

And there we have it, my lockdown routine. By no means is it anything wildly exciting nor is it anything life-changing, but it's how I've been spending my days in lockdown nonetheless...



What is your lockdown routine?
Do you have one?

My Lockdown Routine - how I'm spending my days in self-isolation.

After last weeks' delightful Biscoff Cheesecake Recipe - that even Mary Berry would be proud of - I decided to set myself a little task of making and documenting one bake a week. Now, please don't hold me to this, but I thought it might be a nice way to a) pass some time and b) inspire you to get your pinny on and get baking. As I said in my last post, I'm by no means a baking extraordinaire nor do I have all of the fancy equipment, so if I can do it, you certainly can too!

Considering Easter is literally just around the corner, Hot Cross Buns were of course the only suitable bake for this week. I used this BBC Good Food Recipe and slightly adapted it, and am so happy with how they turned out! Honestly, by the end of lockdown I think I'll be considering a career change because who knew I could make things that taste this good...

Before I start, I'm just gonna be honest and say that these are a bit of a faff to make. The dough needs to rise three separate times for an hour and there are all sorts of other little fiddly steps, so, if you're tight on time or patience I'd head down to your local Asda and pick a packet up for a quid. That being said, I can 100% guarantee they won't be quite as good as these!

The tastiest hot cross bun recipe to make this Easter weekend.
The tastiest hot cross bun recipe to make this Easter weekend.

The Tastiest Hot Cross Bun Recipe

INGREDIENTS 

For the Buns:

300ml milk
50g butter 
500g strong bread flour 
1 tsp salt 
75g caster sugar 
7g sachet yeast
1 egg
75g sultanas 
50g mixed peel 
1 orange
1 tsp mixed spice 
½ tsp ground cinnamon 
½ tsp ground ginger

For the Cross 

75g plain flour

For the glaze 

3 tbsp apricot jam

METHOD

1. Bring the milk to the boil, then remove from the heat and add the butter. 

2. Leave to cool until lukewarm. 

3. Put the bread flour, salt, caster sugar, and yeast into a bowl and make a well in the center. 

4. Pour in the warm milk and butter, then add the beaten egg. 

5. Mix with a wooden spoon, then bring everything together with your hands until you have a sticky dough.

6. Tip on to a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 mins until smooth. 

7. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with oiled cling film and leave to rise in a warm place for an hour. 

8. With the dough still in the bowl, tip in the sultanas, mixed peel, zest of the orange, cinnamon, ginger, and mixed spice.

9. Knead into the dough, making sure everything is well distributed. 

10. Leave to rise for another hour covered by well-oiled cling film.

11. Divide the dough into 12 even pieces and roll each into a smooth ball.

12. Place on baking trays lined with parchment, leaving enough space for the dough to expand. 

13. Cover with more oiled cling film and set aside for another hour.

14. Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. 

15. Mix plain flour with about 5 tbsp water to make the paste for the cross – add the water gradually. 

16. Spoon into a piping bag with a small nozzle - I used a sandwich bag with the corner snipped off - and pipe a cross on each bun. 

17. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown.

18. Gently heat the apricot jam to melt it, then brush over the top of the warm buns and leave to cool.



Will you be trying out this Hot Cross Bun Recipe?
What was the last thing you baked?


The tastiest hot cross bun recipe to make this Easter weekend.
Before I start, I'd just like to say that people are free to spend this unprecedented time however they like. Whether you want to bake 17 banana breads (if there's any flour left in the supermarkets, that is) and write a novel, or spend the next few days/weeks/months doing nothing other than playing Animal Crossing, you do you. Be productive. Don't be productive. Just do whatever you fancy, I'm not here to tell you what you should and shouldn't be doing, and nor should anyone else on social media.

That being said, if you fancy spending some time putting together some content for your blog, I thought I'd compile a list of 15 lockdown blog post ideas to make getting started that little bit easier. If you do decide to write any of these, please do send them to me, I'd love to read them! This gal does have a little more time on her hands, after all... 

A list of 15 lockdown blog post ideas to write on your lifestyle blog during self-isolation.

15 Lockdown Blog Post Ideas

01 // Tips for Productivity 

It's fair to say that none of us are working at 100% at the moment (understandably) but any tips and tricks to help get things done would be more than welcomed, I'm sure. It's important not to forget that there are still lots of people working as usual, just from home! 


02 // Your Lockdown Routine 

I asked over on Instagram whether my followers were interested in reading a post on my 'lockdown routine' and the overwhelming response was yes! By no means is it a regimented hour by hour timetable but more a list of things I'm trying to do each day to keep some sort of structure and normality.


03 // A Room Tour 

We're all spending far more time at home, why not show it off? I wanna see what the four walls you're staring at each day look like and compare them to the ones I'm staring at. 


04 // Lists of Positive Things 

It's easy to forget that it's not all doom and gloom, good things are still happening and there are positives in every day. List them. Shout about them. Write a whole blog post about them. Positivity breeds positivity and all that. 


05 // Your Plans For When This Is All Over 

It's probably fair to assume that we've all spent a considerable amount of time thinking about the things we're going to do when this lockdown is over and normality is restored. I'm going to see pals, go out for every meal and have a browse of all of the shops, just because I can. What about you?


06 // Shows You're Currently Bingeing 

We all need a bit of inspiration when it comes to choosing something to watch. I'm yet to meet anyone who's watched even 80% of the stuff that's currently on Netflix, so there's always room for recommendations. 


07 // At Home Workout Ideas

If you've come across an at-home workout that's really good, or even devised your own, write it up. For me, finding a good workout plan always ends up taking more time than the actual workout, so having a list of good workouts all in one place would be really handy! 


08 // Book Reviews 

Lockdown has got those of us who don't normally read very often reading. I'm not very au fait with book blogging and didn't know what 'TBR' stood for until recently, but reading some book reviews really wouldn't go amiss right now.


09 // Recipes 

Baking a cake is a good way to pass a few hours. Baking and photographing a cake, and writing up the recipe, is a good way to pass more than a few hours. My Biscoff Cheesecake Recipe post took over a day to put together and I don't know about you, but I'd wholeheartedly say it was SO worth it. It's the tastiest thing ever and has had a fantastic response! 


10 // Self-Care Tips 

Looking after ourselves is now more important than ever. There has never been a better time to compile a list of self-care tips for your followers! 


11 // Your Current Playlist 

What are you listening to at the moment? Now that I've got more free time on my hand I've added creating a huge playlist to my April To-Do List and could do with all of the inspiration I can get. I don't know about you but I always find myself listening to the same couple of albums on repeat ALL THE TIME and need to change things up. 


12 // Local Businesses to Support in Your Area 

It's incredible to see all of the amazing things local businesses are doing to support people during these chaotic times. From florists handing out free bouquets to NHS workers to restaurants producing DIY meal kits to make at home. Why not collate a list of all the local businesses working hard at this time and support them in what they're doing?


13 // Your Meal Plan For The Week 

Now that we've been advised to only go shopping for essentials, and as infrequently as possible, getting organised with meals has suddenly become way more important. Write a list of all of the meals you're planning on making in the coming week and link to any recipes you've previously written!


14 // Lockdown Favourites 

A twist on the standard monthly favourites, why not round up all of the things you've been loving whilst in Lockdown. The books you've loved, shows you've watched, skincare products you've been reaching for or clothes that have had the most wear. Compile them all into one bumper post of recommendations perfect for this uncertain time!


15 // A Roundup of Great Blog Posts You've Read Recently

Shoutout your blogger pals, tell your followers about all of the other fab posts you've been reading recently and send your readers their way!



Want to spend even more time working on your blog? I've written a whole series of posts on blogging that will give you all sorts of ideas for your content and other things you can get started on today. Fancy just watching some Netflix instead? I don't blame you. Here's my Netflix Watch List to give you some inspiration...



What blog posts would you like to read during lockdown?
Have I missed any lockdown blog post ideas?



It feels like only yesterday I was being referred to see a dermatologist and here we are, one month into my Roaccutane treatment... Where has the time gone? In case you were interested, I've written up my Roaccutane Skincare Routine now that I've found a bunch of products that are working brilliantly for me!

One month on roaccutane - my experience taking isotretinoin.


~ Quick recap in case you're new around here: I've had acne in varying severities for over 6 years and have tried a whole range of treatments. I was on lots of different antibiotics for the majority of that time (yeppppp, probably not the best move) and tried pretty much all of the topical treatments under the sun. Nothing worked and I was eventually referred to see a dermatologist. ~

When I met him for the first time he advised that Roaccutane was probably the only thing that would make a significant improvement to my skin. This didn't come as any shock at alllllll, and if anything, I'd been wanting to go on Roaccutane to finally *hopefully* see the back of the acne, the antibiotics, and all the other lotions and potions I'd been trying. 

I was initially put on a 40mg dose - or two tablets - taken daily with a look to review it after the first month. I've since had this check-up and the dermatologist decided against upping the dose on account of the eczema I'd developed on my hands. Now, what with all of the extra corona handwashing etc we can't be certain it's entirely due to the Roaccutane but for the time being it definitely made the most sense not to up it again. I was advised that this might make the total length of treatment longer, but, I think I'd much rather that than try and tackle acne and eczema at the same time, especially as someone who's never had any sort of dry skin in their life.

Now, the thing you're probably all here for, the before and one-month-in photos:

One month on roaccutane - my experience taking isotretinoin.

As for the side effects, I, fortunately, haven't had anything too serious and everything has been more than manageable. I've had the expected dry skin, in particular, my lips and around my mouth, and have seen a massive reduction in oil production. Do you know what, it's great not to have a huge glistening forehead by lunchtime every day...

One thing I have noticed is just how dry the inside of my nose is. If I move my nose it constantly feels like its full of dry crusty bogeys... Sexy. Fortunately, I haven't had any nosebleeds yet, as I know they can be fairly common whilst on Roaccutane, and I can more than cope with a dry nose.

I've definitely been experiencing muscle soreness, particularly after any sort of vigorous exercise. Whilst this used to only last a day or two at most, whilst on Roaccutane this is lingering around for a lot longer. I've since decided to stop doing anything too high-impact and opt for walking/yoga to keep active. (The perfect excuse not to have to go out for a run, eh?)

And the big one, my mood. I haven't experienced any changes in my mood (despite everything going on) which I'm very very grateful for. I'm a very upbeat person and rarely get upset or down, and thankfully Roaccutane hasn't changed that. That being said, we're only a month in so let's not jinx anything... 

So far the treatment is absolutely working and all of the side effects are more than manageable, so far so good!


p.s. I've even got a smooth chin for the first time in probably about 10 years - can I get a hooray?
I'm just going to cut to the chase, this Biscoff Cheesecake Recipe is hands down the sexiest thing I've ever made. Look at it! The base is buttery but crunchy, the filling is light and creamy, and the topping? Well, it's pure Biscoff so I'm sure you don't need me to tell you it's pretty god damn good too. 
I think this could well be the first cheesecake I've ever made from scratch, and lemme tell you, it's a gooden. I loosely followed a few different recipes but ultimately sort of just made my own up as I went along... I did, however, write it all down so that I could share it with you. If you only do one thing this lockdown, I think it should be making this Biscoff Cheesecake, it's phenomenal. 

The best biscoff cheesecake recipe. An easy, delicious bake using little equipment and the infamous Biscuit spread.

How long does this Biscoff Cheesecake take to make?

For the best results, you ideally need this cheesecake to set overnight in the fridge, so I’d highly recommend making this cheesecake the day before you’d like to serve it. That being said, if you can’t wait to eat it, I’d leave it for a good 4 hours in the fridge to set before digging in. 

The best biscoff cheesecake recipe. An easy, delicious bake using little equipment and the infamous Biscuit spread.

Do I need Smooth or Crunchy Biscoff?

I personally used a mix of the two, but would definitely recommend smooth if you’d like that shiny, sleek topping! 

The best biscoff cheesecake recipe. An easy, delicious bake using little equipment and the infamous Biscuit spread.

What baking equipment do I need for this Biscoff Cheesecake?

For this cheesecake, I used an electric hand whisk, two mixing bowls and a springform tin. Whilst the latter isn’t necessarily essential, if you want to serve the cheesecake on a plate, it makes getting it out a whole lot easier! 

The best biscoff cheesecake recipe. An easy, delicious bake using little equipment and the infamous Biscuit spread.

Is this Biscoff Cheesecake easy to make?

Yes! Everything is sort of mixed together and then just chucked in the fridge for the magic to happen, it couldn’t be easier!

The Best Biscoff Cheesecake Recipe 

INGREDIENTS 

For the base:

300g Digestive Biscuits 
150g Unsalted Butter 

For the filling: 

400g Soft Cream Cheese
300ml Whipping Cream 
250g Biscoff 
75g Icing Sugar 
Pinch of Salt 

For the topping: 

Remaining Biscoff in Jar  


METHOD 

For the base:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius, and grease and line your springform tin

2. Crush the digestive biscuits in a bag using a rolling pin 

3. Place the unsalted butter in a pan over a low heat and stir until fully melted

4. Add in the digestive biscuit crumbs until the mixture is fully combined

5. Pour the mixture into the lined tin, press down until flat, and bake for 10 minutes. 

6. Wait for the base to cool. 


For the filling: 

7. Whip the whipping cream using an electric mixer until stiff peaks form and refrigerate until you are ready to use it 

8. Mix together the soft cream cheese, biscoff, icing sugar and salt 

9. Gently fold in the whipping cream being careful not to overmix
10. Pour the filling on top of the cooled base and smooth with the back of a spoon
11. Place in the fridge (ideally overnight) to set 


For the topping: 

12. Melt the remaining Biscoff in a small bowl in the microwave 

13. Pour on top of the cheesecake, spreading it evenly across the top. (FYI: It sets pretty fast, so you need to move quickly!)

14. Place back in the fridge to set for a further hour or so, and voila! One Biscoff Cheesecake ready to serve. 


If you make this cheesecake, I’d LOVE to see some photos and hear what you think! 



What other Biscoff recipes would you like me to try?


The best biscoff cheesecake recipe. An easy, delicious bake using little equipment and the infamous Biscuit spread.