Morning skincare routine - how to care for your skin in the morning?
Every day is worth starting with healthy habits! If you're thinking about drinking a glass of water, a delicious and nutritious meal, a bit of exercise, or airing out the room, that's great. However, that's not all you should remember in the morning. In the morning, take care of your skin too by introducing good skincare habits.
The most important skin needs during the day
A morning skincare routine should be approached individually and tailored to your needs. This news certainly won't surprise you! However, sometimes we are more alike than we think.
Although most of us don't go to sleep with makeup and SPF cream on (but let's see a show of hands for anyone who's never done it!), most of our skin types produce sebum overnight, which can become a breeding ground for bacteria. And our pillowcases, duvets, and sheets are just as popular with dust mites, no matter who we are. And they can like your face just as much. That's why washing it in the morning might not be such a bad idea. Even if you think your skin is clean because you washed it in the evening.
During the day, we are exposed to urban and digital pollution, as well as dust, dirt, and unfavorable weather conditions. To a greater or lesser extent, your complexion can be troubled by dry or very humid air, heating, or air conditioning. And above all, the sun, which can damage facial skin, lead to premature aging, and even cause serious diseases and skin disorders. That's why it's so important to take care of your complexion's protection in the morning and provide it with a dose of antioxidants. This will help it survive the day's challenges more easily.
These skincare aspects are especially important for your complexion to start the day well!
Create your own morning skincare plan
Based on our knowledge, we present a skincare routine scheme that's worth using in the morning. Specifically, the morning skincare routine that we use ourselves. This plan consists of 4 stages. However, nothing stops you from modifying it: shortening it, lengthening it, or reworking it in another way. After all, every scheme is just a scheme. Even the best one! Treat it as a guide that allows you to tailor it to yourself and create an individual skincare plan.
No one knows as much about your skin as you do! That's why we believe you'll do it best. We've prepared alternative solutions for you, which we hope you'll test to choose the ones that work best for you. We've marked what we believe is necessary in morning care and what we think you can skip. We hope that thanks to this post, you'll easily build your own skincare plan that works perfectly for you in the morning.
Morning skincare routine in 4 stages
Your morning skincare routine should especially include gentle cleansing (although there are some exceptions!) and protection against the sun and urban environments. In our opinion, it's always worth taking care of skin hydration to keep it in excellent condition. In the morning, you can also reach for sunscreen and makeup, which can serve as an additional physical protective layer for the skin. Additional treatments, such as a mask or peel, can of course be done in the morning, but we recommend leaving them for your evening routine. End of discussion. Let's move on to the morning skincare routine scheme, and later in the post, we'll talk about each of them in detail:
Stage 1.Cleansing. In the morning, you can forget about double cleansing. In most cases, a face wash gel that reduces excess sebum will work. However, there are some alternative options that will work for some of us in daily care.
Alternative Stage 1. Refreshing. If you avoid detergents in the morning, you can refresh your face with water, a hydrosol, an herbal infusion, or a face toner, which perfectly refreshes the skin.
Stage 2. Toning.A face toner in the form of a gentle mist will help you wake up in the morning like a delicious coffee (we recommend specialty coffee!). If you chose refreshing instead of cleansing, this stage is unnecessary for you.
Stage 3. Care.In the morning, it's worth reaching for a serum tailored to your skin's needs or a light moisturizing cream with anti-pollution properties, which will take care of your complexion and prepare it for cosmetics applied later.
Stage 4. Protection.Urban cream (if you haven't applied it in the previous stage) and/or SPF cream are waiting for you.
Alternative Stage 4. Protection and makeup.First apply SPF cream or urban cream, and let makeup be the icing on the cake - applied last, when all other products have already been absorbed.
Stage 1. Cleansing or refreshing
Morning face washing, or its cleansing using a cleansing product should be gentle. There isn't much dirt on your skin. Mainly sebum, sweat, and old, dead skin cells that you "shed" during sleep. To cleanse the skin, most of us will need a face wash product, although some prefer to skip the cleanser (but do it consciously!).
There's no need for two-step washing in the morning. One wash is enough in the morning. And using just one product! Just reach for your favorite face gel or cleansing oil. Our makeup removal oil will work perfectly as a cleansing oil. Just massage your face with the oil and then rinse it off with water; in this case, you don't need to reach for a face wash gel. Thanks to the emulsifier, the oil will wash off with water.
Alternatively, you can refresh your complexion. In some cases (especially with extremely dry and mature skin), skipping a classic cleansing product in the morning can work. If you don't want to use cleansers in the morning, even those based on mild detergents or water-soluble oils, rinse your face with water alone. However, be careful if your tap water is hard. In that case, it may harm your skin, and it will be wiser to use filtered water. You can also use an herbal infusion (mint, chamomile, sage) or a hydrosol. A more moisturizing and nourishing solution will be to wipe your face with a toner. A good toner will help you cleanse the skin of sebum and sweat, as well as minor impurities that may have accumulated on your skin during sleep.
Stage 2. Toning
This is the foundation for cosmetics applied to the skin later. After washing the skin, it's worth reaching for a toner that will soothe and balance your skin, restoring its pH balance (which can be disturbed even by water itself!). A face toner will take care of its hydrolipid barrier and saturate your skin with good nutrients. It will provide your skin with a dose of soothing, hydration, and radiance. If you followed the alternative path and only refreshed your skin in the morning, this stage will be unnecessary for you. However, if you still need refreshing and a boost of hydration and additional active ingredients, you can confidently spray your face with a face toner.
Stage 3. Care
At this point, it's worth reaching for a serum or a light moisturizing cream, which will take care of your complexion and prepare it for SPF cream or makeup applied later.
Choose a cosmetic that responds to your skin's current needs and problems or provides the benefits you need (such as illuminating and giving the skin a glow). If your skin is oily and/or you struggle with skin problems, choose a regulating, exfoliating, or blemish-fighting serum; if your skin is red and flushed, choose a soothing, calming, and capillary-strengthening one; if you're struggling with dryness, reach for the properties of a moisturizing cream that will sealthe skin barrier, and if you're fighting discoloration, reach for something that evens out skin tone. Look for active ingredients aimed at achieving your desired effect. It's also worth ensuring that your chosen product contains antioxidants and active ingredients with anti-pollution and anti-blue light effects. This will also help you survive the challenges of urban life.
When should you not skip this stage? When you intend to reach for sunscreen or apply makeup: then protect and moisturize your skin first. This will make your makeup look better and the SPF cream more comfortable to wear! Also, if you haven't used a face toner. Then an additional dose of hydration and care will be highly recommended.
When can you skip this stage? On warm summer and spring days, toner alone might be enough! If your skin is super hydrated and soothed overnight and doesn't cause major problems, it might not need an additional dose of care. Over-hydrated, puffy skin is also not a good thing.
Stage 4. Protection, i.e., urban cream, sunscreen
In the morning, it's worth taking care of skin protection, which we divide into protection against urban and digital pollution (which you might have already taken care of in the previous skincare stage) and protection against solar radiation. Since we've already written about protecting skin living in big and small cities, we'll now focus on UV protection.
A broad-spectrum sunscreen will help you maintain healthy skin and avoid sun damage and discoloration. It's also the best anti-wrinkle cream with the best preventive action! After all, prevention is better than cure. Apply SPF cream over a serum, a light natural moisturizing cream, or even alone. Remember to apply it to your ears, neck, and chest area, and any leftover cream can be spread on your hands, which are often exposed, even in cooler months.
When should you not skip this stage? All year round, if you are outdoors and exposed to UV radiation. Sun rays can harm your skin not only in summer but also in winter. If you know you'll be exposing your skin to the sun for much of the day, remember adequate sun protection. Furthermore, never forget to apply sunscreen if you're using retinoids or strong exfoliating treatments. Your skin is then exposed, delicate, and more vulnerable to threats, even on cloudy days.
When can you skip this skincare stage? If you spend the day at home and are not exposed to solar radiation. If your skin reacts poorly to sunscreens (though if you struggle with acne from filters, check if it's not a matter of not properly washing off the filter in the evening!).
Alternative Stage 4.Protection through makeup
This is the most optional stage. At the very end, when your skin is already hydrated (thanks to toner, serum, urban cream, or one of these products) and protected against the harmful effects of solar radiation, you can apply makeup. We recommend avoiding applying makeup to "bare," only cleansed skin. BB cream, foundation, and powder, even if they have an SPF factor, will not replace proper sun protection, but they will be an additional physical barrier protecting your complexion. Makeup washed off in the evening shouldn't harm your skin, especially if your skin has been previously prepared for it.
4 stages to improve your morning routine
We hope our guide on morning skincare will be helpful to you and that you'll try out our tips when preparing your skin for the upcoming day! We wish for your skin to look great all day long and for a good mood to stay with you every step of the way!
