Skincare : Skin Type : Skincare Routines Next » Skincare Routines: Part 2
Hammering Out a Good Skincare Routine
Part 1: What is a good skincare routine?
Part 2: How to get a good skincare routine
Part 1: What is a good skincare routine?
I have spent so much money and so much time trying to figure out a good skincare routine that if I had invested that amount of money in savings and spent that amount of time reading books, I would probably be thousands of dollars richer and have a book collection far more reaching than simply Dr. Seuss. Hey, but I really enjoyed There's a Wocket in My Pocket and Fox in Socks!
Anyway, back to skin. Everyone should follow a good skincare routine. You want to take care of your skin, whether or not you have acne, because your skin is the largest organ on your body that protects you from the sun, wind, and rain. Not only that, a good regimen will help prevent premature aging and suspicious cancerous lesions.
A basic skincare routine has four steps, performed twice a day (once in the morning and once at night, minus the sunscreen):
1) Cleanse:
Keeping your skin clean will help it stay blemish-free. A light cleanse in the morning will remove any sweat, oily build-up, dead skin cells, and pillow grunge from the night before. It’ll also give you a fresh palette for makeup application the next day. Cleansing in the evening is even more important because it removes makeup, sunscreen, pollution, and other grime you’ve accumulated from the day so your skin can “breathe” and stay fresh while you sleep. Personal hygiene aside, it’s also essential to wash your face because most treatment products penetrate the best when applied to clean, bare skin.
2) Treat:
Treatments products are used to “treat” certain conditions of your skin. For example, if you get acne, then you’ll want to include a BHA or other acne treatment of some sort. If wrinkles are your main concern, you may want to include Vitamin C products or retinoids. Treatment products vary according to what “problem” you want to fix. They should also be the first thing applied to clean skin in order to ensure maximum effectiveness.
3) Moisturize:
Using moisturizers can help boost your skin’s overall performance. Moisturizers seal in your skin’s natural moisture, while adding extra hydration so your skin can function at its best. Moisturizers also ease the discomfort of dry or taut skin and can be an additional layer of protection against everyday wear and tear.
4) Protect (sunscreen):
Sun protection is a must. The sun emits harmful UV rays that cause photoaging (wrinkles, hyperpigmentation) and even skin cancer. It’s been said that 80% of sun damage is accumulated before the age of 20, so children need to wear sunscreen too! Wearing a photostable, broad-spectrum sunscreen will help prevent premature aging and guard you against other dangers of the sun.
However, these four steps are just a general guideline. If your skin is oily and moisturizer makes it even oilier, then you can skip that part of your routine. If you don’t use any treatment products, then it’s okay to just follow cleansing with moisturizer. Does that make sense? There are no strict rules for a good skincare routine. It all depends on your skin type and what your skin likes.
Often, people like to include toners, scrubs, or masks in their daily regimen. In my opinion, these steps are optional because your routine will be fine without them. While toners can help remove anything your cleanser didn’t remove, they are just an extra dent in my wallet.
I also tend to think of masks as just something fun to use but lots of people like using them to keep their skin balanced. Scrubs, on the other hand, can usually be skipped because treatment products often contain acids and other chemical exfoliants that do the job. With that being said, exfoliating your skin can make it look better because you are scrubbing away the surface layer (which is mostly sebum and dead skin cells). However, if you do it too much or too harshly, you could end up making things much worse. And you don’t want a skin care routine that makes your skin worse, but better!
Therefore, although all skin care routines are customized to individual needs, I think cleansing, treating (if you have anything to treat), and protecting are the crucial steps you should not leave out. Figuring out how to get your perfect skincare routine is the next step.
Next » Skincare Routines: Part 2