I can’t write about the skincare routine enough! Add to that the fact that most of us are quarantined at home right now (I originally wrote this blog in 2020), and no better time than the present to refresh our at-home skincare routine.

What’s your routine? Are you sticking to it with being home so much more right now? Do we need to still go through the whole thing twice a day if we never leave the house or see sunlight? And what about SPF!?

So many questions, but for starters, let’s make sure we are all on the same page as far as what that routine looks like.

The Routines:

Morning:

• Cleanse skin for 90 seconds
• Tone skin, either mist or apply with a cotton ball
• Apply serums, I recommend a hydrating serum or Vitamin C serum in the morning
• Moisturize, one with SPF (please do not use body lotion on your face) and one without for the evening.
• If you have it, an eye cream with SPF for the delicate skin around your eyes. Any eye cream or eye serum is encouraged, it doesn't have to have SPF in it.

Night:

• Cleanse skin twice this time. Once with a creamy or oil-based cleanser to lift off makeup, moisturizer, SPF, etc. The second cleanse is for your skin type, so use a skin-type-appropriate cleanser.
• Exfoliate, this will vary depending on the type of exfoliant you use. If is a daily exfoliant, then you will always follow your nightly cleanser with exfoliating. If it is a 2-3x weekly exfoliant, then choose what nights you want to use it on and stick to that. If it is like mine which is a once-a-week pumpkin exfoliating mask, then you will use it once a week, leave it on for 5-7 minutes and remove it.
• Tone either using a spray toner or wipe gently over the skin with a cotton ball. This helps reset the pH of your skin and remove any excess debris. Also can help you follow products absorbed into the skin.
• Apply facial serum, you might use more than one. There are also exfoliating serums, like those with Retinol or other AHA, you will skip the exfoliation step, tone, and then apply the exfoliating serum. If you are not sure what the heck a serum is, click on over to my Back to Basics blog and learn what they are and which ones might be best for you.
• Eye cream is an often underused product, which is a shame when you think about how that is one of the first things we tend to freak out about as we age. Apply with the tip of your ring finger on either hand to the delicate skin around your eye. You should use the size of an uncooked kernel of rice for both eyes, not one kernel of rice for each eye. A little bit goes a really long way!
• Moisturize your skin last, this seals in all that goodness you just did. You shouldn’t need a glob to feel hydrated, if you do then you are using the wrong weight of moisturizer and potentially just the wrong product altogether. A little shy of a nickel should cover your face and neck with luxurious hydration.

There are a lot of additional tools and products that you can use, I won’t go into  them all, but here are a few you might not know when is best to add to your home routine:

Masks

These are amazing when you get the right one for your skin type! Use a hydrating mask weekly during your night routine, before the serum step. If you are using a clay-based mask, make sure to use it in the areas that are producing oil, this might not be your whole face. Always use a fresh washcloth to remove or a disposable facial sponge.

Serums

I mentioned that Back to Basics blog about serums and definitely want you to check that out for a deeper understanding. The reason I put this here is that you can have some serums that you don’t use every day. These are treatment products, and even though I think every person needs a hydrating serum, not everyone is going to use them in their home care routine. If you are adding one in, try using it at night first as that is when we recommend using your more active skin care products.

Clarisonic/Exfoliating Cleansing Brush

You can use this either morning or night with your first cleanser. Try to not use this with any exfoliating cleansers as they don’t need any extra help doing their job. You also don’t need to use pressure with this, just let the bristles glide over your cleanser helping to lift off dirt and debris. If you use it in the morning, maybe don’t use it at night especially if you also are using a nightly exfoliant.

Jade Facial Roller

This little gem is great to use especially right now as it can aid in lymphatic drainage. Use this last in your routine, you can either use it on top of your serum or on top of facial oil. If you mix your facial oil into your moisturizer, then just use your facial roller over your moisturizer. More about this guy later, or you can check out my Pinterest Board here

Check out my Back to Basics Blog series to get a refresher on what each step really means for your skin. Take care and stay healthy out there!

Till next time, be good to your skin and even better to yourself,

xx eri