#SkinGoals - 5 Simple Skincare Tweaks To Up Your Glow in 2022
New year, new habits. When we think of New Year resolutions, the idea of having to change overnight to see the results we desire could be daunting. Luckily, if one of your goals this year is to improve your skin health, there are 5 minor tweaks you can start doing now that are guaranteed to help speed up the process.
1. Wearing SPF daily, no matter the time of year - You knew this was coming. If you are not consistently wearing sunscreen, you are tremendously slowing down the progress your skincare journey. All those amazing products you picked up can’t do their job in clearing your acne, hyperpigmentation, dry skin, sensitive skin, etc. if your skin is getting damaged by the sun everyday. It only takes about 20 minutes of unprotected sun exposure before the skin starts to burn. Sunburn is not always redness and peeling, it commonly presents itself as relentless hyperpigmentation/dark spots, uneven skin tone, acne that is slow to/won’t heal, and dull skin. You need SPF every single day, no matter if it’s hot or cold outside, because the UVA and UVB rays are still coming through no matter the temperature. SPF is a moisturizer by nature. If you don’t want to add steps to your skincare routine to incorporate SPF, swap your daytime moisturizer out for SPF. It’s important to make sure you’re using the proper amount of SPF for full coverage on your face, neck, and behind your ears. Innisfree Daily UV Defense Sunscreen SPF 36 ($15), COSRX Aloe Soothing Sun Cream SPF 50 ($15), and Paula’s Choice Youth-Extending Daily Hydrating Fluid SPF 50 ($35) are sunscreens that I love that dry completely sheer and pair well under makeup.
Two fingers full of sunscreen is the general amount of how much you need for full sun protection.
2. Swapping makeup wipes for a cleansing balm/oil - Makeup girls, hear me out - it’s time. Makeup wipes are often made with material that is too abrasive on the skin, it’s like physically exfoliating your skin with every use. When you’re using makeup wipes up to 4/5 nights a week to take down makeup … you can do the math on how much over exfoliation and skin barrier irritation that is. Also, makeup wipes are usually made with drying ingredients. I haven’t seen one that I felt left the skin feeling as nourished as it started. What is the solution? Switching to a cleansing balm or cleansing oil. Cleansing balms/oils remove makeup more effectively, formulated with oils meant to attract the oil in your makeup to totally dissolve it off your face (great for waterproof makeup). Cleansing balms/oils also attract the excess oil and dirt your skin produces and clears it away. A lot of them are formulated with additional skin nourishing ingredients to not only remove makeup and cleanse the skin, but also support a healthy skin barrier. Products like I Dew Care’s Berry Melting Balm ($23), Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Balm ($28, $23.50 when you shop my affiliate page), and Inkey List’s Oat Cleansing Balm ($9.99) do a great job at removing makeup with added skin benefits. After you remove your makeup with a 60 second cleansing balm/oil cleanse, you can wash your face again with your regular cleanser. I remove cleansing balms with a warm, damp, Clean Skin Club disposable biodegradable towel ($15, 20% with the code “COKA”). Clean Skin Club towels are ultra soft, made with eucalyptus and helps cleansing balms take all the makeup off in one pass. Switch from makeup wipes to a cleansing balm for a month and tell me your face doesn’t feel noticeably softer, smoother, and more hydrated.
3. Adding antioxidants - If you suffer from dry skin, uneven/dull skin, hyperpigmentation, acne, skin sensitivity, or just want to promote healthy skin in general - antioxidants are your best friend. Antioxidants are ingredients that protect the skin from damage caused by free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules caused by external factors like UV rays (see why you need to wear sunscreen?), pollution, smoke (tobacco and weed), and other toxins. The skin cell damage these free radicals cause results in your skin’s collagen breaking down, leaving you with dull and sagging skin. In addition, it causes acne, premature signs of aging, uneven skin tone, and wrinkles. This is where antioxidants come to save the day. Antioxidants neutralize the free radicals before it can attach to the skin cell and damage it. As a result, antioxidants combat acne, inflammation, redness, dull and uneven skin, and premature signs of aging. Antioxidants can be found in skincare ingredients like niacinamide, vitamin C, green tea, resveratrol, coenzyme Q10, and retinol. My favorite antioxidant rich skincare that’s safe to use daily includes IMAGE Skincare’s Vital C Hydrating Face Cleanser ($34), Krave Beauty Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser ($16), Indie Lee Coq-10 Toner, Paula’s Choice Advanced Replenishing Toner ($25, $21.25 when you shop my affiliate page), Naturium Niacinamide 12% Plus Zinc 2% ($16), Paula’s Choice Antioxidant Pore Purifier ($33, $26.40 when you shop my affiliate page), Youth to the People Superberry Hydrate and Glow Dream Mask ($48), and Peach and Lily Matcha Pudding Antioxidant Cream ($40). Try adding a daily antioxidant to your skin care regimen to help repair your skin. Think of it like your skin’s daily vitamin to help reach your skin goals.
4. Washing your face in the sink, not the shower - Most of us try to cut down time by washing your face while you’re in the shower. But most of us shower with water that’s too hot to use to wash your face without causing dryness and skin irritation, especially when you’re using an exfoliating cleanser (yes, that means your acne cleanser). Instead, wash your face at night for 60 seconds after you shower, when the oil and dirt are loosened up thanks to the steam from your shower, with cold water instead of warm water. Cold water helps heal acne, calm inflammation and redness, and prevent skin dryness. Making this tiny switch can save you a lot of money in products to calm red and dry skin for no reason.
5. Quitting pimple popping and acne picking for pimple patches - I know trying not to pop and pick at your pimples sounds impossible, but remember you are causing more harm to your skin than good when you do that. Even though popping pimples may seem oddly satisfying when you push the pus out, you’re likely not extracting the pimple the correct way which spreads the infection below the surface of the skin and leaves behind scarring. Leave the extractions to the skincare professionals. Instead, put a pimple patch over your pickable and poppable pimples. They’re completely sheer and stay on your face all day like a medicated bandaid to treat the pimple and serve as a protective layer. This way if you touch your face, you won’t be adding more bacteria and irritation to the pimple and when the day is over you’ll see a nice white dot on the pimple patch where all the pus from the pimple was. Hero Cosmetics makes my favorite pimple patch ($12.99). By pimple patching instead of pimple popping, you’re preventing future scarring and giving your acne a chance to heal quicker.
These simple switches will help accelerate the results you see from your skincare while promoting healthy skin so you can step into 2022 as your best self.
Cheers,
Kahina