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Create your own skincare routine!

Creating a skincare routine is a crucial step, but one that's not always easy to implement. It's important not to mix certain ingredients, to know the best combinations for your skin type, to choose the right products for your skin type (dry, normal, combination or oily) and, last but not least, to know the right order in which to apply these products. It may seem complicated at first, but it's not, because after reading this guide, you'll know my simple and effective method for creating a skincare routine.

Morning skincare routine

1 Cleaning

Let's start with the steps of the morning skincare routine. The first basic step in any routine is cleansing. However, in the morning, it depends on your skin type. For dry skin, a simple rinse with water will suffice. The aim is to preserve the skin's natural moisture and not to remove the lipids that dry skin sorely needs. The same applies to normal skin, which is not prone to imperfections. Combination and oily skins, on the other hand, require special attention when cleansing, and the use of a cleanser is essential to eliminate excess sebum accumulated overnight.

2 Application of lotion (optional)

In Asia, it's an integral part of the skincare routine, but to be honest, this step is not at all compulsory, as it lengthens the skincare routine, and I'm more of a fan of minimalist routines. What I like about Korean lotions is that they often contain plant extracts of rice, ginseng or tea, which are quite complementary to the active ingredients found in serums. And above all, depending on their formulation, they can greatly improve hydration and the microbiome.

3 Choosing a serum

Serums target specific skin problems. It's advisable to select the serum according to your needs: anti-aging, anti-imperfection or anti-hyperpigmentation. And I'll tell you about the best combinations of active ingredients later in this guide.

4 Eye contour (optional)

Then you can use an eye contour, which is also optional. And the choice of eye contour also depends on your problem: puffiness, fine lines, dark circles or blue circles, and I think I'm going to do another specific video on eye contours.

5 Moisturizing cream

In my opinion, moisturizing cream is optional for combination and oily skin, but essential for dry skin. In fact, it all depends on the weather we have at our disposal, the climate we live in, and above all on how our skin is changing. If you feel that your skin is becoming sensitive, a little drier in winter, or because you use active ingredients that dry out your skin, I advise you to apply a moisturizing cream in the morning. But in midsummer, moisturizing isn't always necessary.

6 Sun cream

The essential step is to apply sun cream, whatever your skin type, to protect yourself from UV rays, even if it's raining and even in winter.

Minimalist or complex routine? Focus

So, to sum up, cleansing, lotion, serum, eye contour, moisturizer and sunscreen! 6 steps may sound like a lot to most of us, but on purpose, I'll give you all the steps and then you make your choice. A minimalist routine can be summed up as cleansing, then applying a lotion or serum, followed by sunscreen. That's 3 steps! It's important to understand that everyone does things the way they want and feel; there's no right or wrong way to do things. To help you, you can make a skincare consultation.

The evening skincare routine

1 Double cleaning

When it comes to evening cleansing, I recommend double cleansing, especially if you're wearing water-resistant sunscreen or make-up, or if you live in a polluted environment. Double cleansing involves first using a cleansing oil or balm, to help get rid of any residues of pollution, make-up or sunscreen, as an oily cleanser is better at eliminating grease. Then, in a second step, use a gentle cleanser to remove the rest of the impurities and sometimes the rest of the greasy cleanser that has trouble leaving.

The advantage of this process is that it's highly effective at removing all impurities without damaging your skin, as two gentle cleansers are used instead of just one overly aggressive one. If you wear a water-resistant sunscreen, a single powerful cleanser will have difficulty removing all residues, but will be very effective in damaging your skin barrier.

The other option, if you don't wear make-up and don't use water-resistant sunscreen, is to use a medium-strength cleanser. The important thing is always to adapt your cleanser to your skin's reactions.

At the end of cleansing, if you feel tightness, it's probably because your cleanser is too powerful, and your skin is at risk of becoming sensitized and dehydrated, as it will become permeable. The other possibility is that your cleanser isn't powerful enough. If you can't remove the residues of pollution, make-up or sun creams, your complexion will become dull and imperfections will appear.

2 Application of lotion (optional)

In the evening, as in the morning, the application of a lotion remains optional and depends on individual preferences.

3 Choosing a serum

The choice of serum is very important, and just like in the morning, it must be chosen according to your skin's specific problems. If your evening serum is a retinoid and you use it every other evening, don't hesitate to replace it with your morning serum on the evenings you don't use it.

4 Eye contour (optional)

Applying an eye contour cream is optional, but its use can make a significant contribution to moisturizing the delicate eye area.

5 Moisturizing cream

And to complete the evening routine, the use of a moisturizing cream is essential. This keeps the skin hydrated throughout the night, promoting cell regeneration and a more radiant appearance when you wake up in the morning. As for the morning, everyone is free to choose the number of steps in their routine. To sum up, a longer routine will hydrate your skin better, but the risk of having a reaction to an ingredient is increased. So, from my point of view, when you're new to facial skincare, you always start with a minimalist routine.

How do you customize facial treatments to suit your specific needs?

Now I'll tell you about the asset associations I recommend to address specific concerns:

Ingredients that improve the appearance of spots?

There are many effective ingredients for spot reduction, including azelaic acid, tranexamic acid, thiamidol, kojic acid, vitamin C, arbutin, retinol, niacinamide, licorice root extract and many others. You shouldn't use them all at once, but choose them according to the cause of your hyperpigmentation. Do you have hyperpigmentation as a result of acne pimples, hyperpigmentation caused by melasma or sun spots?

Ingredients that improve the appearance of wrinkles?

Anti-aging: As part of an anti-aging routine, you can use a serum containing niacinamide, vitamin C, retinol or peptides, all of which are very good options for reducing the appearance of wrinkles. In addition to these classic, effective ingredients, you can add plant extracts known to have an anti-aging action if you use a lotion in addition to a serum.

Ingredients that improve blemishes?

Blemishes: To combat imperfections, you can use a combination of azelaic acid, salicylic acid, zinc, niacinamide or retinol to promote clearer, more balanced skin.

When should you exfoliate your skin as part of your skincare routine?

And finally, you can add exfoliants from time to time. AHA exfoliants such as glycolic acid or lactic acid can be used once or twice a week, preferably in the evening. But of course, the frequency of use can vary from person to person. They are particularly useful for improving skin texture and texture. The classic mistake with exfoliants is to overdo it. Remember, the key to any effective skincare routine is consistency, and there's no point in exfoliating too often.

If you use salicylic acid-based exfoliants, you can use them more frequently as their concentration is limited to 2% in cosmetic products and they are therefore generally less irritating than glycolic acid or lactic acid.