After a long long day, you may be feel tired and drained and there is not much energy left for “ME TIME”, but you should not and you MUST NOT go to sleep without proper cleaning your skin. When it’s becoming a routine and you have all your products set together in proper order and reachable the whole process takes less time and it’s becoming automatic. I think I maybe slept with makeup on twice in my life, other than that for me it’s a must to clean my face at night, no matter how tired or without will I feel. And the skin is grateful for this. Since the morning it has unnecessary oils, dust, products. We have to let the skin breathe for a few hours and give it the treatment that it needs.
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The nighttime skincare routine can have a few extra steps than the morning one, as we are not that in a hurry to get out the door and also we can address more a specific issue the skin has. Plus we can have some pampering, put some face masks or maybe a massage.
Today I will stick strictly to the routine, minimum steps for achieving a clean and hydrated skin before going to sleep.
I have left here down a short video showing the main steps in the routine and you can add according to your skin needs more if you would like to.
My PM skincare routine starts with double cleansing, I will have a separate post about the process, as it is the one thing that changed my skin for the better in a very drastic way. I can’t believe I didn’t do this before. As I use makeup almost on a daily basis, plus I live in an urban area and my skin is Combination type( oily on the T-zone, dry on the sides in the winter and normal in the summer), I need a first step cleaning the worst and the second cleanser is gentle but still removing the leftovers of oils and makeup and dust. After we go on with rebalancing the PH of the skin , moisturizing it and applying pimple treatment or any other kind of treatment the skin needs at the time.
So lets get into it.
Step 1 in the PM skincare routine- part 1 of the double cleansing
For the last 2 years or so, I prefer to use balm cleanser to the micellar water which is the other option for first step double cleansing the skin. That is because the micellar water dries a little bit the skin. If you don’t have issues with the dry skin, it’s a perfect choice.
The Clinique Take the day off cleansing balm is an OG product that can remove the most resistant makeup you can think of, basically dissolving the long-wear makeup. The key ingredient is the safflower oil, which breaks up the other oils you have on your skin and dissolves the makeup. It’s rich in linoleic acid, which leaves the skin feeling soft.
The product is quite potent so you only need a pea sized amount, which you smear all over the face, massage gentle, also can be used around the eyes(dissolves waterproof mascara and long-wear eyeliner like magic). You rinse it off with lukewarm water.
Step 2- part 2 of the double cleansing
After most of the makeup and oils went away, we need to clean the leftovers of the oil cleanser on our face and together with it what is left of makeup/dirt/sunscreen.Â
If the morning cleanser is a gentle one, the PM one has to clean good the skin, but not strip it from it’s natural oils, so still gentle, but more powerful. The MISSHA Super Aqua Ultra Hyalron Cleansing Foam is the perfect choice. Coming from the experience of K-beauty, which puts so much effort and love in the skincare, this cleanser is smooth , but strong, makes foam which is so nice to lather on the skin, it makes the washing a pleasant moment, contains 10 types of hyaluronic acid to penetrate the top layer of the skin and keep it hydrated. It is recommended for sensitive skin that needs proper deep cleaning. To use it , you need a dime sized amount of product which you need to spread all over the face, massage for at least one minute(I know, sometimes it’s hard as we are so tired, but so worthy) and rinse with lukewarm water and pat dry with a clean towel or paper towel.
Step 3: Applying toner
I cannot emphasize more this step, it’s importance in reestablishing the PH of the skin after washing it with soap basically, no matter how gentle it is, it has chemicals that mess with the PH. This step helped so much my skin, I couldn’t see how it can be skipped. There are plenty of toners on the market to address different skin issues, I have some more options in my last post, under the same toner category, so READ HERE.
The one shown here has Witch Hazel Extract, one of the key ingredients for soothing the skin. It’s from HUMPHREYS – Clarify Witch Hazel Organic Toner. It is good, for me if feels a little bit drying, so if you suffer from dry skin, maybe choose another one from this brand or hydrate more with your serum and moisturizer.
Step 4: Applying serum
The serum is a product that contains 1-2 active ingredients in a concentrated form targeted for a specific need. The serum does NOT REPLACE THE MOISTURIZER, it helps the later one do it’s magic.
There are serums with vitamin C for brightness, with Retinol to minimize fine lines, with Hyaluronic acid for plumping and hydrating the skin, with peptides to improve the skin texture.
Currently I am testing for over three weeks this one from Missha-Time Revolution Night repair Ampoule 5X which is supposed to be a dupe for Estee Lauder -Advanced Night Repair. It is not quite the dupe, but it’s still a very nourishing serum, that provides intense hydration, clears complexion, improves the aspect of fine lines and gives elasticity to the skin. Coming from the K-beauty market, it is really a great serum that makes my skin feel great and I simply adore it. The skin feels silky and I use it morning and night to really see the results.Â
Once the skin is dried from the toner, I do like to spray some thermal water, but it’s me because I am an addict of the thermal sprays and only then I massage on the entire face/neck plus eye area the amount that I pick in one time with the dropper. I wait for 2 minutes and proceed with the next step.
Step 5: Applying eye-cream
The next step for me is a must, there are persons that can manage to use their moisturizer as an eye-cream, but my skin around the eyes needs hydration that lasts for hours.
Now every person has it’s own needs for the eye area. There is different products to use when you are 20 something and when you are 50. And PLEASE, 11-12 YEARS OLD GIRLS, YOU DON’T NEED ANTI-WRINKLE EYE-CREAM. Please stop with this non-sense. It is useless.
For the nighttime, I like to use a more rich cream than can nourish my undereye and I also prefer this specific one from COSRX Snail Peptide Eye Cream for its effect but also for the fact that it takes more time for it to be absorbed in the skin and in the morning I do not have much time to wait before I apply my makeup. Other than that, it has peptides, snail mucin and niacinamide and it’s a K-beauty must-have product meant to brighten, hydrate and help with fine lines and dark circles. It is a winner product, if you have time to spare, you can use it also in the morning routine.
Step 6: Spot Treatment
Occasionally I do get pimples and spots. I have combination type of skin, my T-zone has enlarged pores and it’s oily. Mostly my pimples come out on the chin area, related to hormonal imbalance (caused by stress, by sometimes not eating right or even just eating right but having too many nuts, for example). Anyway, I do not have acne prone skin, just there and there some monsters coming out. For years and years I have my magic solution, which even my husband swears by. It’s the hero everybody knows La Roche Posay – Effaclar Duo+ (now I use the M version). It’s a dual action spot treatment that targets acne, pimples and blemishes that is non-drying and gentle on the skin. 3 days of night and day applying a dot on the DOT, will dry out the monster pimple and reduce the inflammation. For the daytime use, MUST APPLY SPF ON TOP.
The second product I have discovered in the last year is the Avene Cleanance Comedomed Anti-blemish concentrate moisturizer for acne-prone skin. I will make a separate article about these 2 products , a comparison, pros and cons. This one is a little bit more potent, I use it for mini areas on the face for 7 days, it’s a blemish targeting moisturizer that mattifies and clears skin. The skin gets clearer and improves the aspect of the skin(you know, when you get left with red marks from the pimples and texture). Has to be used with a moisturizer as it was stingy for me sometimes, it’s pretty powerful, but it’s working. It’s formulated with Comedoclastin, a plant extract from the seeds of the Milk Thistle.
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Step 7: Moisturizing
Next step and one that is the most important for me is moisturizing, according to what my skin needs in that time and according to it’s type. For combination sensitive skin, I will use on the T-zone what is left after I have applied 1-2 pumps all over the face and neck. I need a cream that is targeted towards sensitive skin, so no perfume, no parabens, no oils. For your skin type, go towards the exact type of moisturizer, there are so many on the market and so good. For dry skin, hydrating ones, for young skins with no major issues, light creams, for aging skin, more complex anti-aging vitamin packed creams, for acne-prone skin, ONLY the ones targeted towards this, for oily skin, mattifying ones.
In the winter time, my skin feels dry and dull, so I tend to reach at night for a very moisturizing cream. This specific one from the K-beauty market Missha -Super Aqua Ultra Hyalron has hyaluronic acid, as you can tell from the name. 10 types of hyaluronic acid to be more precise. Formulated for sensitive skin, the cream restores hydro-lipid balance and prevents transdermal moisture loss. PS. I feel it’s like a dupe for Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face base. The real deal, this cream is really a good purchase.
As I have learned from the “Atomic Habits” book, the positive result of an objective comes from the sum of little successful steps and little habits. The nighttime routine has changed the aspect of my skin in a good way. Pay attention to what your skin needs, and change the product inside of the routine, but keep this routine as your skin will look so much alive and healthy. It is not easy doing this late at night or when you’re exhausted, but try to keep all your products in one place, to make it easy to reach for, in 5 minutes you will be over and done with it and you will look good for the next day.
If you liked this article and you can recommend products according to your skin type and age, please feel free to leave a nice comment here down.
Thanks for the tips and reminders! I often fall foul of leaving it until the very last minute – and can’t face a PM face routine! Bad habit, I need to get into the habit of doing it after the dinner dishes!
This is super helpful for someone like me who has recently realised washing the face at night after removing make up and applying just a moisturiser isn’t enough! Thanks for the detailed tips