At home Skincare Routine

Give your skin routine a boost 

Written by elénzia's Brand Manager, Elizabeth Court

The trend of self-care is huge at the moment – already a big trend throughout 2019, it has truly gained momentum in the past month since the start of the COVID-19 lockdown. The Self Care Forums definition of self-care is “The actions that individuals take for themselves, on behalf of and with others in order to develop, protect, maintain and improve their health, wellbeing or wellness.”, and an important part of that is spending time to take care of yourself. Whether that is going for a run, having a bubble bath, or sitting down with a glass of wine and a good book – it doesn’t matter what you do as long as it makes you feel good and you are looking after your physical and/or mental health.

Enjoying a moment of me-time from the comfort of home

Spending time on your facial skincare routine is also a big part of self-care. Especially in the evening, it’s when you begin to wind down before bed, wash off the day, feel cleansed and take the time to look after your skin. Your facial skincare routine can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be, but there are 5 key stages that we would advise you to include to make sure you are getting the best results possible from your efforts, and never has your skincare been more important than now in this stressful, scary time we find ourselves living in.

There is a lot of debate from skincare professionals, brands, and bloggers as to what a good skincare routine should include. We have condensed all of this debate into 5 key stages:

1. Double Cleanse¹  

Cleansing your face twice in order to actually clean it. That first cleanse removes make-up and SPF, the second cleanse cleans your skin from any remaining dirt and impurities.

2. Acid Toners 

Exfoliate your face using your favourite acid toner – from AHAs (glycolic acid, lactic acid) to BHAs (salicylic acid) - exfoliation is key in order to remove dead skin cells to allow other products to really get to work. It is also important that exfoliation is done with acid toners instead of abrasive microbead style exfoliators that can cause damage, redness and irritation to the skin.

3. Eye Cream

Once your acid toner has dried, it’s time to focus on the delicate skin around your eyes to help remove fine lines and dark circles. Try Anti-aging Eye Contour Cream. Try Endor Technologies Anti-aging Eye Contour Cream.  

4. Serums/Active Ingredients 

Now for the powerhouse ingredients! Serums tend to have a higher potency of active ingredients in them meaning that they can really make a change to your skin, which is why this is the perfect time to focus on any skin concerns that you have. Whether it is wrinkle reduction, skin tightening, discolouration, or acne, you can layer different serums to target different concerns – just remember to use the serum with the lightest weight first! Try Endor Technologies Anti-Aging Serum.

5. Moiturise 

The final step to ensure silky, smooth, hydrated skin! It is important that you use the right moisturiser for your skin type, if you have oily skin, using a heavy moisturiser that will potentially clog up your pores. Try Endor Technologies Anti-Aging Face Cream for Normal/Oily skin and Endor Technologies Anti-Aging Nutritive Cream for Dry skin

So, this is the basic 5 step routine to follow every day, but there is nothing stopping you from adding additional steps in. Why not throw on a face mask once a week or slowly introduce a more potent product like Retinol? Another key step to add in for your morning skincare routine is SPF. You might not be going sunbathing – and probably won’t be until this lockdown is over – but it is important to keep your skin protected from UVA and UVB rays on a daily basis to not only prevent advanced ageing caused by the sun’s rays, but to also protected against skin cancer.

An article by Daniel Whitby in the Personal Care Europe magazine², looks at a study called Biological Rhythms in the Skin³ which outlines the different skin barrier functions during the day and night. It explains that during the day the highest skin barrier functions are skin protection and skin thickness, and during the night some of the highest functions are the skin barrier permeability and penetration. This research poses the question, is the skincare that I am applying to my face in my morning routine having an effect? We suggest that the best thing to do is use this research to look at your AM and PM skincare routines differently. Your AM skincare routine is your protective routine, using products that are going to help boost the skins barrier, i.e. SPF and anti-oxidants, whereas your PM skincare routine should include more potent serums that are going to help repair and regenerate the skin from any daily external stressors that may have a negative impact on your skin health.

Another factor to bear in mind is how often you change up your skincare routine. It’s great to add in new products and switch it up from day to day, especially with stronger ingredients such as retinol that don’t necessarily need to be used on a daily basis. However, a lot of results from clinical trials for skincare products are based on 28 days use of the product both morning and night, so when you are interchanging the products you use it would be our advice to use each product as per the clinical trials in order to get the best possible results.

So, why is a skincare routine so important now during the COVID-19 lockdown? 

Firstly, it gives you a structure and something to focus on. It might not be the most important part of your day, but it allows you to have a routine in the morning and night to focus on energising and calming – both of which can have a positive impact on your day and sleep quality. Secondly, with many of us working from home and all of us not being able to have the active social life we once did, we have more time on our hands. Therefore, there is no excuse to skip taking off your make-up before bed (if you’re wearing any in the first place!), and all of the time in the world to spend a minimum of 10 minutes in the morning and evening looking after your skin to make a positive impact on your skin health. And finally, some of you may not realise the effect that lifestyle changes have on our skin, and right now everyone in the UK, and the world, is going through a massive lifestyle change. Whether it’s a change for the better – for example, less exposure to pollution and sun damage – or for the worse – stress, eating and sleeping habits – we need to be mindful of our skin now more than ever to reduce the potential negative impact that the change of routine will have on our skin health. And one small change we can make, is focusing on our skincare routine.

References:

1. Hirons, C., (2015) Cheat Sheet Double Cleansing, www.carolinehirons.com/2015/03/cheat-sheet-double-cleansing.html
2. Whitby, D. (September 2018), Personal Care Europe Magazine, Skincare Section, pages 1-3
3. Matsui, M.S., Pelle, E., Dong, K. and Pernodet, N., (2016) Skin processes during the day and night, Biological Rhythms in the Skin. Baron E, ed. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2016;17(6):80