We get it, sometimes life gets in the way and generally the first thing that falls to the wayside is our self-care! When our mental health is impacted, our desire to look after ourselves can wane. Today we are going to help you begin your new buildable skincare routine.
Buildable Skincare Routine?
Yes! What we are going to do is begin with the three most essential items for your skin. This is going to be your basic skincare routine and for the next few weeks that is all you need to worry about. Then once you have gotten used to the routine and are ready to, we will slowly build on the basics. We will create a wonderful skincare regime that will not only leave your skin feeling healthy, protected, looking clear and being deeply nourished, but will be second nature to perform.
This will boost your motivation for self care and have a positive impact on your mental health. When you feel good, it shows.
The Basic Routine – Where to Start
It is daunting, looking at all of the different products with a myriad of uses and reasons to use. Do you need this ingredient or that one, maybe both? Should you spend £5 or £50? Buy from a well known brand or little unknown one? These are just a few of the questions I have asked myself through the years, every time I start a new routine I go into panic mode. Half of the time I walk out of the shop and let my anxieties win.
It’s that panic that can make the whole issue of skincare anxiety ridden. It doesn’t have to be though, remember that self care really does matter. Your brand of self care might be reading a good book for an hour a day, tending to plants, eating healthily or any one of a million other things and combinations of them too! Skincare can be an incredibly rewarding part of self care, you can see the results, feel the results and eventually notice the shift in your mood when thinking about yourself.
Don’t go into this thinking you are going to suddenly be a super model, look 20 years younger or drop a dress size. I’m not saying that can’t happen, I’m saying that is not the aim of self care in this instance, this routine is about caring for your skin and learning to love yourself for who you are.
Step 1 – Clean
Irrefutably, cleansing the face both morning and night is the best and most important part of keeping your skin healthy.
There are a whole host of products for cleaning your face – soap, liquid cleansers, some treat specific ailments, others are for different skin types, some are moisturising, whilst other have niche ingredients that will help your skin one way or another.
The best advice I can give here is pick something suitable for your skin. You know your skin better than anyone. Is it sensitive? Does your skin get dry or is it oily? Do you suffer with acne? It honestly does not need to be anything fancy. So long as when you clean your skin it’s not irritating or abrasive and leaves it feeling better than before it was cleaned!
I personally use Simple Moisturising Facewash and have a body wash by Simple, My skin is extremely sensitive and using any amount of water on my skin dries it out instantly, so this is a double whammy for me.
Step 2 – Moisturise
Next up is giving your skin some moisture. As we age our skin needs a little more help to keep that refreshed and nourished feel. Whenever I moisturise it really makes me feel a bit brighter, I can feel the goodness absorbing into my skin and that gives me a little boost.
Moisturisers come in so many forms, it can be overwhelming choosing. Not only that, but you can get so many benefits from your moisturiser, it’s worth thinking about what you need. For the basic routine, we are want to look at your everyday moisturiser that you can apply day and night.
Again, this about knowing your skin and what you want out of a moisturiser. You can get ones that actively work against signs of ageing, ones that reduce redness and puffiness, some have antioxidants, ones that have SPF in them and so on. But what do YOU need it to do?
Understanding the three types of moisturiser may help here.
- humectants – they take water from deep within the skin and take it to the surface slowing down the rate of dehydration the skin suffers.. Some humectants to look for in the ingredients are hyaluronic acid and glycerin.
- emollients – Fantastic for oily skin, working to keep the humectants in place, emollients also fill gaps between the skin cells with lipids and oils, leaving skin feeling nourished and smooth. Keep an eye out for things like coconut oil, jojoba oil and vitamin E.
- occlusives – If you have super dry skin then occlusives are what to look for. The help to seal the moisture in This tends to be a better option for night creams (we will come on to that at a later stage). Some examples are shea butter and beeswax.
I have two daily moisturisers Boots Everyday Cucumber Moisturising Cream, which not only smells amazing but feels just as good on, and Nivea Q10 Energy which is packed with goodness such as antioxidants Vitamin C & E, Q10 and has SPF 15.
For my body this depends on my mood, as well as the factors above. Currently I am enjoying Sanctuary Spa Green Lemon & Orange Blossom Body Butter. It’s like sunshine in a tub and makes both my skin and me feel happily hydrated!
Step 3 – Protect
We all need to protect our skin, and in the summer months this couldn’t be more vital. UV rays are so damaging to our skin causing signs of aging, wrinkles and a leathery skin texture to name a few. Whilst having a summer tan is a tremendous boost to our mental health, making us feel as if we look healthier, we need to get those tans in the right way!
As you saw in Step 2, you can get a moisturiser that contains SPF and covers this step for my face, which is what I do. Alternatively, you can get sunscreen and add that to your daily skincare routine, not just for your face, but your body also.
In addition to this I have Garnier Ombre Solaire Invisible Protect Mist (Face & Body) which is SPF50 and contains Vitamin E and Aloe Vera. Simply spray and go.
There you have it, the beginnings of your new buildable skincare routine. To give you time to get what you need for this and get used to using them everyday, the next part of this exciting series will be in two weeks, so keep an eye on our Wellness & Self-Care section. Why not check out our series on creating skincare products from the items you have at home?
Let us know how you get on over on our TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! What products did you chose?
