The Exact Order You Should Apply Your Skincare: AM vs PM
The order you apply your skincare products 100 million percent DOES matter!
If you don’t apply your skincare in the proper order, your skin won’t reap the intended benefits. This means you won’t see results + your product is basically wasted.
Seems a little crazy huh, so why does this happen? Well, your skin is a barrier. It’s job is to keep things OUT. So even though we want our skincare products to penetrate deep into our skin, only a few key ingredients (per product) will actually do so. Therefore, if you mix up the application order, other key ingredients will start blocking on the skin’s surface, which means anything you apply after these ‘blockers’ won’t penetrate at all. They’re double blocked — from your skin + those other products.
So, rule of thumb for application: GO THIN TO THICK.
You start with products that are most important to penetrate the skin (like antioxidants: thin) + end with products that need to sit on top of your skin (like emollients or humectants in moisturizer: thick).
Seem a little confusing? Well that’s why I made you this little chart. Save it to your phone so you can reference whenever you need it!
Cliff Notes:
Morning is all about hydrating + protecting your skin from the elements. i.e. sun rays + pollution.
At nighttime, we need to focus on healing from the day + giving our skin exactly what it needs to repair + rejuvenate itself. Now, this really depends on what your skin is feeling that night. You don’t want to base your nighttime routine on what’s in your medicine cabinet. We need to cater to our skin’s needs, at the moment.
So if your skin is dull, exfoliate! If you’re exfoliating, you would do this during your ‘cleanser’ step: remove your makeup with a cleansing balm or oil, then use your exfoliator. Then follow up with a hydrating mask as your ‘treatment’.
If your skin is irritated or dry that night, focus on hydration with hyaluronic acid, peptides or growth factor serums in the ‘treatments’ step.
If your skin is in need of a detox, use a clay mask in the ‘treatments’ step.
To make a long story short, your treatments at night will always vary, depending on what your skin needs. Everything else stays the same, with the exception of adding an exfoliation step after you cleanse from time to time.
Side note: ‘treatments’ also include anti-aging products, like retinol or overnight peels.
How I streamline my 'treatments':
Every other night I focus on anti-aging treatments, like retinol. The other nights, I focus on hydration + plumpness!
Skin Tip: Never exfoliate + use anti-aging treatments on the same night. It would be way too irritating for your skin. Also, narrow down detoxing to once a week.
This routine is really quite easy once you get the hang of it + can start communicating with your skin about what it needs each night.
My fave 'treatments':
✕ For an extra dose of hydration: Beautycounter Intense Moisture Serum — so much hyaluronic acid!
✕ For a hydrating mask: Beautycounter Recovery Sleeping Cream
✕ For non-retinol anti-aging: Beautycounter Overnight Resurfacing Peel
✕ For retinol anti-aging: Sanitas Skincare RejuenA
✕ For an all-over acne treatment: Beautycounter Acne Treatment — instead of just spot treating!
✕ For a detox: Beautycounter Balancing Facial Mask
I hope this helps babes! Honestly, keep this chart handy for easy access. You’ll have your whole regimen down in a snap. And your skin will definitely be THANKING you. X
