Skincare Routine: Possessing quality skin care products is insufficient. Applying your items in the right order is also essential for maximum effectiveness. Your skin type, the components and formulas of your products, and the time of day will all affect your regimen. Though thinner products won’t be able to penetrate thicker ones, it’s a good idea to apply in textural order, thinnest to thickest.
The Ideal Nine-Step Skincare Routine
Applying products in the proper order is the one thing that anyone can do to improve their skincare routine, regardless of whether they follow a three- or nine-step regimen. Whatever your skin concerns, you should start with a toned and clean base, work your way up to concentrated active ingredients, and lock in moisture (and SPF, of course, during the day). The steps to a proper skincare routine are as follows:
Give yourself a facial wash
Rinse your face with water in the morning and evening, then gently massage a tiny amount of cleanser between your clean palms. Apply light pressure while massaging face wash over your entire face. Rinse your hands and massage your face with water until all of the dirt and cleanser has been removed. Using a gentle towel, gently pat dry your face. You might need to cleanse your skin twice a night if you use makeup. Use micellar water or washing oil to first remove your makeup. To make it easier to remove makeup and prevent rubbing your eyes, try using specialized eye makeup removers for a few minutes. Do a gentle full-face cleansing afterward.
Use a toner
Use toner (if using) only after washing your face and before doing anything else. Using a cotton pad or your hands, lightly swipe a few drops of toner onto your face. Use your toner exclusively at night if it contains glycolic acid or other exfoliating chemicals that exfoliate dead skin cells. You can apply hydrating solutions twice a day. Retinoids or other exfoliators should not be used in conjunction with exfoliating toner.
Use a serum
Antioxidant serums, such as vitamin C serums that brighten skin, are excellent to use in the morning since they shield your skin from free radical damage that occurs during the day. If you use anti-aging or acne treatments that can irritate and dry up your skin, now is a good time to use a moisturizing serum with hyaluronic acid to prevent your skin from drying out at night. Additionally, exfoliants like lactic acid or alpha-hydroxy acids (AHA) can be found in serums. Whatever you use, never forget this: oil-based serums should be applied after moisturizer, and water-based serums should be applied underneath.
Use an eye cream
Your under-eye area can be moisturized with regular moisturizer. Still, if you choose to use an eye cream, you should usually layer it underneath moisturizer because eye creams are typically thinner than face moisturizers. To combat puffiness in the morning, try putting an eye cream with a metal roller-ball applicator in the refrigerator. Hydrating eye cream used at night may result in fluid retention, giving the appearance of puffy eyes in the morning.
Apply localized care
Applying spot treatments for acne at night, when your body is repairing itself, is a smart option for your skincare routine. Retinol can irritate the skin, so use caution when combining acne-fighting substances like salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide with it. Instead, be sure you’re taking all the necessary steps to maintain moisturized and tranquil skin.
Moisturize
Apply moisture in addition to hydrating skin; moisturizer seals in all the other product layers you’ve put on. For morning use, look for a light-textured lotion with an SPF of 30 or above. In the evening, you might use a thicker night cream. Dry skin types might wish to apply a cream both at night and in the morning.
Use retinoid
By accelerating skin-cell turnover, retinoids—vitamin A derivatives that include retinol—may minimize fine wrinkles, dark spots, and breakouts. However, they can also irritate the skin, particularly sensitive skin. If you take retinoids, use them exclusively at night because they degrade in the sun. Additionally, they increase your skin’s sensitivity to the sun; therefore, sunscreen is essential.
Use oil on your face
If you use a facial oil, apply it last because nothing else will be able to get through the oil and affect your skin in your skincare routine.
Put on some sunblock
Although it may come last, almost all dermatologists will agree that the most crucial element of any skincare routine is protecting your skin from the sun. Aging and skin cancer can be avoided by shielding your skin from UV radiation. You must wear sunscreen, even if the SPF in your moisturizer is absent. To ensure that chemical sunscreen is still effective, wait 20 minutes before venturing outside. Seek a sunscreen with broad-spectrum SPF, which offers protection against UVA and UVB rays.