If your response is, ‘I just wash my face, it’s super simple’, you’re probably doing it wrong. While yes it is “simple-ish”, it does require a little bit of thought and is actually a very important step. A step that, if done incorrectly, can affect the results of your entire skincare routine. If you don’t properly clean everything off your face, all the sunscreen, the makeup, the oil, dirt, and debris, your beloved lotions and potions won't do what you bought them to do. Consider this, first they can’t penetrate to their maximum depth because they first have to fight through all that dirt. Second, you are trapping a days worth of product and dirt into your skin encouraging reactions and breakouts! You want your skin to be a blank slate after you clean it so all your magic potions can do their job. Over the years, I have perfected this step and found a few common pitfalls. Here are MY TIPS to up your skincare and AVOID harming it.:
WAYS YOU ARE RUINING YOUR SKINCARE ROUTINE:
-Washing your face with just water or worse soap! PLEASE put down the soap. Our facial skin is different from the rest of our body. It needs its own special cleanser and I am sorry water is just not enough!
-Using facial wipes in place of washing your face. This is a huge HELL NO! It’s gross, it’s not doing enough and can strip your skin while still leaving makeup and dirt on your skin and even pushes it further in to your skin. AAAHHH…. it makes my own skin crawl!! However, wipes can have a place in your skincare. IF you are using them to take off eye makeup (I would prefer other ways but if you must wipe so be it) or using them right after a workout to wipe away sweat.
-Using acne face wash when in fact you don’t have acne! This is one of the reasons I can’t stand acne skincare lines, like Proactive. You could be over drying your face while stripping it of all its nutrients. Using an appropriate cleanser for your skin type is HUGE. it’s not a one size fits all!
-Washing your face with hot water. Trust me I love a hot shower but my skin does not! When washing your face use lukewarm water. Hot water will strip your skin of its natural oils.
-Using a Clarisonic daily or at all. Daily exfoliation of this kind is often too harsh for the skin. And, without properly cleaning, storing and replacing the Clarisonic brush-head, you are introducing bacteria and damaging your skin.
-Using a used towel to wash your face. We are trying to clean the face. It only makes sense to use a clean towel to do this. It might sound like overkill, but yes, I want you to use 14 wash clothes a week to clean your face. Trust me you will thank me.
This leads us to-
WAYS TO UP YOUR SKINCARE GAME:
-Use a clean towel EVERY TIME you wash your face. I personally bought a bunch of washcloths in a different color then the rest of my other washcloths and let everyone in the house know these are my face wash clothes and to stay away!! You can take this a step further and purchase baby washcloths. They are way more gentle on your skin and hypoallergenic.
-Do a DOUBLE Cleanse. Sounds silly and expensive to buy 2 different cleansers but trust me it’s a game changer!!!! What is a double cleanse? Double cleanse is when you first wash your face with an oil cleanser (I personally like Cosmedix Nourishing Deep Cleansing Oil) and then perform a second cleanse with a non oil cleanser (I like Obagi Foaming Cleanser for this step.)
Why do this? You want to wash away the day, all the dirt and makeup. As I said before, there is nothing worse than not getting everything off your skin. You need your skin to be a blank canvas before applying all your serums, otherwise, you are just wasting your time and money. An oil cleanser is used first to gently remove the makeup and giving our skin a bit of love as we do it. With the majority of makeup removed by the oil cleanser, you follow with the aggressive cleanser to ensure EVERYTHING is off, the oil cleanser provided mild protection as we preform our second cleanse. A sneaky way you can harm your skin in this step is to perform a double cleanse morning and night. A double cleanse should only be done in the PM.
-Wash your neck. A lot of us are just focusing on our face and forgetting about our poor necks. If you are being good about taking all of your skincare down to your neck, are you properly washing your neck first? This is a HUGE step I see clients missing. Trust me you will want your neck to stay looking young and glowing just like your face. The neck is fastly becoming women's and mens biggest area of concern.
HOW TO KNOW YOU’VE PROPERLY CLEANSED??
-Step two of your skincare routine (toner) can tell you if you are doing this right. If your cotton round after toning has any makeup or dirt on it, you are not cleaning your face correctly. AND, if you're not using a toner or are spraying your toner instead of using a cotton round please read my blog about toner. https://www.bareskinbeautyca.com/post/the-most-underrated-skincare-product-toner
Take the time and care to properly CLEANSE your SKIN!! trust me, you will see and feel the difference.
Comentarios