Congrats! You’ve found your favorite go-to products for your skin (and if you haven’t, check out St. Ives Face Care products)! Now, the next step to glowing skin is figuring out your daily and weekly skincare routine order. This means exactly when and in what order to use each one of your products. Sound confusing? We’ve got you covered, every step of the way, day and night – literally! Let’s get started…
Why Does Face Care Routine Order Matter?
Now that you’ve spent the time and money to get the right products for your skin, don’t you want to maximize their benefits? Of course you do. That’s exactly why it matters when you use each one. As we go through the right daily and weekly face care routine order, it will totally start to make sense. Like you would never put on an acne treatment before cleansing. Or do a mask after putting on your moisturizer.
Daily Skin Care Routine
There are some skin care products you should use every day like cleansers and moisturizers, and others that should be applied just a few times a week. Here’s the right way to use your daily face care prodcuts in the a.m and p.m:
Daytime Skin Care Routine Order
Morning! You went to bed with a clean, moisturized face so you can probably skip skin care products this a.m., right? Actually, no!
Experts recommend moisturizing your face twice a day (and using sunscreen every day). Each and every day, you’ll need to take your routine from the top:
Step 1: Cleanser
Get rid of oil produced overnight and uncover your inner glow with new St. Ives Daily Face Cleansers. Made with 100% natural extracts, choose from Calming Chamomile, Hydrating Watermelon, or Acne Control Tea Tree.
Step 2: Eye Cream
News flash: Delicate eye area skin needs its own moisturizer. If you use one, now’s the time to apply it.
Tip: if you’re looking to refresh those under-eyes further, try our new St. Ives Hydrogel Eye Masks.
Step 3: Breakouts
Spot treatments work best when applied before anything else. So make sure to dab your acne-fighting product on before adding moisturizer or sunscreen.
Step 4: Moisturizer & Sunscreen
The last step in your morning skin care routine is all about hydration and sun protection. If you’re using two products, apply the moisturizer first! For a daily dose of hydration, plus protection from skin-dulling artificial blue light (aka the light from your screens and phone), check out new St. Ives Daily Face Moisturizers. Made with 100% natural watermelon juice, St. Ives Watermelon Glowing Face Moisturizer offers lightweight hydration for combo to oily skin. For deeper moisture, go for St. Ives Avocado Hydrating Face Moisturizer, a creamy formula made with 100% natural avocado oil.
Nighttime Skincare Routine Order
Step 1: Makeup Remover & Cleanser
Nighttime cleansing is actually a 2 part thing: First remove makeup, then refresh skin. If you’re looking to combine steps, and get some gentle exfoliation too, you’ve got to try St. Ives Exfoliate & Nourish Coconut Oil Scrub. Just as the name suggests, this smoother/soother blends pure grapeseed oil with 100% natural coconut shell powder to melt away makeup, cleanse pores, and leave your skin oh so soft.
Step 2: Face Mask
Most masks without exfoliating properties don’t strip skin, so they’re generally ok for everyday use. Whether you have the time to do one every night is another story! Whenever you choose to mask, this is the point in your routine to do it – when your skin is freshly clean.
For a major boost of hydration, we’re loving St. Ives Hydrating Cactus Water & Hibiscus Sheet Mask. Just place the mess-free sheet over clean, dry skin, leave it on for 10 minutes, and you’re done. No rinsing necessary!
Step 3: Eye Cream
Just like in the a.m., always apply nighttime eye cream before applying moisturizer over your entire face.
Pro tip: Tap eye cream on gently, never pulling or tugging on your skin.
Step 4: Moisturizer
If you don’t have a dedicated nighttime moisturizer you should! Our favorite heavy-duty hydrator is St. Ives Renewing Collagen & Elastin Moisturizer. While you can totally use it in the morning too, it’s great to apply to your face before bed. Waiting a bit before hitting the sheets gives all those good ingredients enough time to sink into your skin.
Weekly Skin Care Routine
So you’ve got your daily routine down, now let’s talk about weekly face care. Skin care buffs (no pun intended!) say you should exfoliate no more than 3-4x a week to remove dull skin cells and avoid irritation. When it comes to eye or sheet masks, it’s technically ok to use them whenever you want but many mask mavens say all you need is 3x a week.
When Should You Exfoliate?
Now that you’re clear on how often to scrub, should you wash your face before using a face scrub? When do you apply moisturizer? All good questions and have no fear – we’ve got the answers.
In general, we recommend you remove any makeup before using our St. Ives Scrubs. For effective yet gentle skin buffing, check out St. Ives Energizing Coffee Face Scrub. It gets its polishing powers from 100% natural walnut shell powder and wakes you right up with the energizing scent of coffee. Yum…and perfect for a morning perk up! Once your skin is clean and exfoliated, then it’s time to apply your moisturizer and sunscreen.
There are so many “a-peeling” things about physical exfoliation, and we love the power it has to make your skin feel refreshed. Our St. Ives Board-Certified Dermatologist partner, Dr. Claire Wolinsky loves the benefits of physical exfoliation as much as we do, so we asked her to share the advantages of this important step in your skincare routine, all year round!
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