What Skincare Routine Is Best?

Best Skin Care Routine in Fort Collins & Loveland, CO

Does caring for your skin sometimes feel confusing? There are so many products on the market, and everywhere you turn, an influencer is trying to, well, influence you to try something new. It can start to feel like skincare is a mysterious process, hard to understand and easy to get wrong. Don’t worry! It’s actually pretty simple.

Would it surprise you to know that a good skincare routine comes down to four basic steps? All you really need to do is cleanse, treat, moisturize, and protect. The trick is to find products that work for you in each category, and your choices depend largely on whether you’re trying to create a skincare routine for oily skin or dry skin. Of course, there are also differences in morning vs night skincare routine steps, but there is no need to overcomplicate things. Just determine what skin issues you’d like to address, choose products that fit your skin type and your goals, set a routine, and stick with it. Sticking with it is the most important part, because skincare products don’t work overnight. You’ll need to give your skincare routine at least three to four months to determine if it’s working or it needs to be adjusted. Now, let’s look more closely at the steps of a successful routine.

• The first step is cleansing, and how you cleanse depends on your skin. In the morning, you’ll want to remove excess oil and impurities. At night, you want to be sure to remove your makeup before you sleep, so use makeup remover as part of your skincare routine before or after shower, but certainly before you wash your face. Choose a cleanser that’s pH balanced and gentle, so that you can clean off the dirt without breaking down the skin’s natural barrier or stripping it of healthy oils. If you have very sensitive skin or you’re trying to set up a skincare routine for dry skin, you might want to use cleanser only at night, simply washing the face with water in the morning. Here’s a breakdown of the types of cleanser that are best for each skin type:
  • Oily skin needs a foaming or gel cleanser. You want to remove excess dirt and oil from your skin, so look for ingredients like niacinamide and salicylic acid.
  • If your skin is acne-prone, use a gentle foaming cleanser with acne-fighting components. Ingredients like salicylic acid, glycolic acid, benzoyl peroxide, and sulfur are all helpful in keeping your skin clear.
  • For dry skin, clean with a cream or balm formula. To keep your skin looking its best, look for hydrating ingredients like ceramides, glycerin, hyaluronic acid, and botanical oils.
  • Sensitive skin requires a gentle touch. Micellar water is a great option, because this ultra-gentle cleanser includes tiny particles known as micelles, which help to trap impurities and carry them away from your skin without drying it in the process.
• Toning is optional, but it does help to get your face really clean. Applied to dry skin after skin cleansing, using fingers, a cloth, or a cotton ball, toner should be used before serums or moisturizers. Modern toners won’t dry your skin out, and they can be a good way to refresh skin and balance pH while purifying and brightening. Look for a toner that fits your skin type, choosing one with hydroxy acids if you’re acne-prone. If your skin is dry or sensitive, look for a hydrating toner without alcohol, containing soothing ingredients like glycerin and hyaluronic acid. For combination skin, choose ingredients like antioxidants, exfoliants, and hydration boosters, including vitamin C and E and green tea. If your skin is oily, you may want to stick with a pore-tightening astringent like witch hazel. If you use an exfoliating toner, don’t use it at the same time that you use retinoids or other exfoliants.
• Treating your face is a highly subjective part of the skincare routine. Choose products that treat your specific trouble spots, whether you’re trying to combat acne or the signs of aging.
  • Serums are available in formulas that treat many different types of skin. An antioxidant serum is an excellent option, and vitamin C is a very effective antioxidant. It can help reverse damage from sun and pollution, as well as addressing hyperpigmentation. Hyaluronic acid serums help the skin to retain moisture, giving it a plumper, more youthful look, and serums with niacinamide, a type of vitamin B3, can brighten skin, even skin tone, stimulate collagen production and soothe inflammation. To stimulate cell turnover and diminish wrinkles and hyperpigmentation, use a retinoid serum at night, and if you’re trying to erase fine lines and firm your skin, try a serum with peptides, which are made of amino acids. If you’re using a water based serum, apply it before your moisturizer; oil based serums should go on after moisturizer.
  • Spot treatment is a good way to address acne. It’s best to use acne-fighting products at night because your body repairs itself while you sleep. Be careful not to use ingredients like benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid if you are using retinoids, because the combination can irritate your skin.
• Moisturizing, in and of itself, can seem confusing. There’s eye cream, day cream, and night cream, along with facial oils. How do you pick? Should you layer products?
  • Put your eye cream on before you moisturize. You can use your regular moisturizer under your eyes, but eye creams are specially formulated to treat issues like puffiness, dark circles, wrinkles, and sagging around the eyes. If you want to treat dark circles, niacinamide, vitamin C, and vitamin K can help, and if your eyes are puffy in the morning, look for a cream that contains caffeine. For signs of aging, find a formula with peptides and retinol, and use hyaluronic acid for hydration. Be aware that if you apply a hydrating eye cream at night, though, you may end up with puffy eyes in the morning. When you apply eye cream, use your ring finger, which applies less pressure to the delicate skin around your eyes.
  • Moisturizer provides your skin with hydration and helps your other products work more effectively. Even oily skin needs moisturizer to keep skin soft and supple while also strengthening its barrier. In the morning, choose a light lotion or gel labeled non-comedogenic or oil-free if you have oily skin, and save heavier moisturizer to use as night cream. For dry skin, look for a moisturizer that has emollients, humectants, ceramides and occlusives, to drench your skin in hydrating ingredients. If your skin is sensitive, look for a hypoallergenic formula, free from alcohol and fragrance. At night, use a night cream to provide anti-aging benefits as well as moisture.
  • If you use facial oil, apply it after everything else. You don’t need to use facial oil, but if your skin feels dry, especially at night, it’s a great way to soften and hydrate. You’ll want to apply it last, since none of your other products will be able to penetrate it. Pat oil on your face; don’t rub.
• Protect your skin before you ever leave the house. Sunscreen should be an automatic step every morning; it helps prevent the signs of aging and protect you against skin cancer. If you don’t want to slather on sunscreen as the last step of your routine, choose a moisturizer that provides SPF 30 or higher.
• One last thing: design your diet to improve your skin. Eating a diet packed with nutrient-dense foods like fruits, vegetables, health oils, and lean proteins can help your skin to thrive, just as it protects the health of every other system in your body. Remember to drink plenty of water, to keep your skin hydrated and to flush out toxins.

When you need skincare help or advice, trust Divine Dermatology and Surgical Institute, Fort Collins’ best name in dermatology. At Divine Dermatology, we provide the highest quality care and the most advanced techniques available, in a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere. By tailoring treatment plans to meet each patient’s unique needs, and providing personalized attention, we’re able to provide effective care for a wide range of conditions. Our expert skin cancer care includes diagnosis and tumor removal using standard surgical techniques and Mohs micrographic surgery, and we treat both common and rare skin conditions, as well as offering a wide array of cosmetic and aesthetic procedures. Reach out to us to schedule an appointment, call us at 970-399-7744 or contact us through our website.