With all the new private label skincare products hitting the market today, it can get confusing on how to take care of your skin. It may seem tricky how to layer products correctly and what steps you need in your routine. Today we are going to breakdown an effective morning skincare routine step-by-step with Licensed Esthetician, Antonina.
It's vital to educate your clientele to take care of their skin beyond the treatment room. Our skin is our largest organ and one of the first things people notice, so we must treat it with care. Using skincare to prevent further issues down the road is a great place to start rather than fixing the problem later on. Doing things like using a proper exfoliant, cleansing the skin well, wearing SPF and the right serums will help prevent getting more invasive treatments down the road.
Step 1: The Double Cleanse Method
A deep cleansing of the skin is the first and most vital step in any skincare routine. More specifically, the double cleansing method. Double cleansing involves using a cleansing oil or balm to break down make-up, SPF, and sebum on the surface of your skin first, then following it with a deeper water-based cleanser. "This will help remove sweat, bacteria, and old skin cells," says Licensed Esthetician Antonina.
The second round of cleansing will clean much deeper into the pores to remove any impurities. For the first round of cleansing, wash your face until there isn't a single trace of make-up visible on the cotton pad. Once you've removed the surface grime, it's time for a water-based cleanser. Be sure to work the water-based cleanser into the skin to help remove make-up, toxins, pollution, and buildup.
Step 2: Toning the Skin
Adding a toner is a great way to take your skincare routine to the next level. Toners provide essential ingredients, hydrate and replenish the skin, and provide additional cleansing. Our skin is naturally acidic, typically with a pH balance of between five and six (on a scale from 0 to 14). But that balance can get out of whack after cleansing due to the alkaline nature of soap. When this happens, your skin needs to work overtime to return to its normal levels (and that may result in oil), but using a toner can help restore this balance quickly. Spay a few pumps of toner on cleansing gauze and apply from face down to the neck.
Step 3: Serums
Serums are typically not as loaded with as many ingredients as a cleanser or moisturizer. Instead, they contain more potent actives that deeply penetrate into the skin. They can deeply seep into the skin due to their small molecular size, and deliver a very high concentration of active ingredients. Your skin will reap the rewards of a concentrated formula that will give your complexion the boost it needs. We like to refer to them as supplements for the skin. You can find a serum to help improve just about any skin complaint. Some serums come as water-based, a gel base, or even as a facial oil, so get creative when finding the right one for you!
Step 4: Hydrate
Maintaining proper moisture levels in the skin is key to a youthful appearance. Hydrating the skin internally by meeting your water intake goals, along with the right topical moisturizers, is key to proper skin hydration. Looking for moisturizers with ingredients like hyaluronic acid and panthenol will help to hydrate the skin on a cellular level. After applying your face moisturizer, it's time for an eye cream. Using an eye cream daily will help keep the under-eye area supple and bright. After applying both a moisturizer and eye cream, we recommend applying a few drops of facial oil to lock everything into the skin to prevent TEWL (Transepidermal Water Loss). The final step to your morning routine should always be an SPF of 30 or more to protect the skin from sun damage and premature aging.
Hopefully, now you are feeling encouraged to do your morning skincare routine and know how to apply skincare in the proper order; double cleanse, toner, serums, moisturizer, facial oil, and SPF. We recommend massaging the skin to wake up the skin s circulatory system. Doing this each day and taking time to create a 10-minute space for yourself each morning is not only self-care but vital for proper results.