Are you looking for an easy guide to creating a skincare routine? Look no further!

In this post, we'll walk you through the five easy steps to creating your own skincare routine. By following these simple steps, you'll be on your way to vibrant, healthy skin!

 

Step 1 - Cleanse

An ideal cleanser should remove impurities, excess oil and dead skin cells without damaging the skin.

Personally, I like to use an exfoliating cleanser for a smoother and brighter complexion.

They’re great multitaskers removing dirt, hydrating and soothing while removing dead skin cells all at once.

 

What Is An Exfoliating Cleanser?

An exfoliating face wash is a two-in-one product that sloughs off dead cells while gently cleansing the skin.

Chemical exfoliators such as alpha-hydroxy or beta-hydroxy acids unglue and dissolve the bonds holding dead skin cells to the surface of your skin.

The type of chemical exfoliator you choose is determined by your skin concern and skin type.

 

Benefits Of Exfoliating Daily:

An exfoliant aids to restore the natural process of skin turnover.

In gently removing dead skin cells it can unclog pores helping to prevent breakouts,  encourage collagen production and rehydrate the skin resulting in healthy rejuvenated skin.

- Minimising the appearance of fine lines and wrinkle

- Improving skin tone and texture

- Increasing hydration

-  de-clogging, refining and reducing enlarged pores

 

For normal skin types, I would always go for a glycolic acid-based exfoliator.

The Jan Marini bioglycolic cleanser, is a very popular glycolic acid cleanser.

This resurfacing product encourages a soft, smoother and more refined skin texture.

Helping reduce wrinkles, pores, improve skin tone & texture by stimulating the production of collagen.

This cleanser is hands down a staff favorite here at Dermacare! 

What’s The Best Exfoliating Cleanser For Blemish-Prone Skin?

Salicylic acid is the only exfoliating acid oily, congested, acne-prone skin needs.

An exfoliating daily wash such as a salicylic acid cleanser sloughs away the dead surface skin to help prevent grease glands clogging, reduce inflammation, decrease bacteria and prevent new acne eruptions.

We love 

The award-winning DermaTx Clarify Salicylic Acid Cleanser 

 

What’s The Best Exfoliating Cleanser For Dry Skin?

For a drier skin type, a cream cleanser is needed, preferably with a moisturising formula to gently cleanse the skin and leave it smoothly textured. 

DermaTx Rejuvenate Cleanser contains Lactic acid which is great for exfoliation, moisturising & anti-ageing. Lactic acid is ideal for those with dry, slightly sensitive, dull skin, lack of suppleness, uneven pigmentation, and fine lines and wrinkles.

 

What’s The Best Exfoliating Cleanser For Sensitive Skin?

If your skin is sensitive to AHAs, consider a product containing Polyhydroxy acids.

PHA's are a gentle chemical exfoliant, less irritating and better for sensitive skin. They also have a hydrating quality, so in addition to exfoliating, they will help with hydration which is especially important with sensitive skin.

We Love 

PHA NeoStrata cleanser that uses a mild yet effective cleanser that moisturises while it gently exfoliates the skin without stripping essential oils, in combination with botanical extracts which have proven anti-inflammatory, soothing and moisturising properties. 

The key to using chemical exfoliates for the first time is to start with low concentrations, whether you use AHA'S, BHA's or PHA's and increase slowly to avoid any adverse side effects.

 

 

 

Step 2- PREVENT - Antioxidant treatment

Antioxidants are chemicals produced naturally that can help to prevent and repair damage to your body's tissue. There are many factors that can affect your skin in harmful ways. Elements such as air pollution, cigarette smoke and sunshine are culprits that act against the skin by damaging it. Antioxidants help by slowing or preventing the effect of these free radicals, which start oxidation -- a process that causes damage from oxygen that can lead to cell dysfunction. If you've seen a peeled apple turn brown, you've seen oxidation in action. As antioxidants block the effects of free radicals, they end up being oxidized. This is why it's important to constantly replenish your supply of antioxidants. In addition to helping fortify cells against free radicals, antioxidants also encourage cell and tissue growth, by helping to produce collagen to fight fine lines and wrinkles.

Otherwise, you get premature aging, a compromised immune system leading to a higher risk for certain diseases, hyperpigmentation and loss of skin elasticity.

Topical Vitamin C is the most popular antioxidant.

It's crucial for collagen production which is destroyed by oxidative stress. Taking a pill isn't the answer either, topical application is needed. The body limits the amount of orally ingested antioxidants able to benefit the skin. 

SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic is one of our best-selling vitamin c serums, neutralising free radicals, helping build collagen, and providing antioxidant protection.  Containing 15% pure L-ascorbic acid and 1% alpha-tocopherol, the addition of ferulic acid doubles the already synergistic benefits of our original high-potency formula, C+E, transforming it into an unrivaled super-antioxidant combination.

If you are prone to redness or suffer from Rosacea then I would choose IS CLINICAL Pro-Heal Serum Advance+, as it delivers antioxidant protection and offers exceptional healing properties.

Antioxidants for acne/oily skin blemish-prone skin I would recommend SkinCeuticals SilyMarin CF. This antioxidant provides environmental protection for oily, blemish-prone skin and fights against visible skin aging.

Other Vitamin C Serum recommendations suitable for all skin types –  Jan Marini C-ESTA Face Serum &  PCA Skin C & E.

 

Step 3 - Correct/Treat

Skin concerns like pigmentation, sun damage, acne, rosacea etc can be treated with products that contain active ingredients.

Retinol

Vitamin A should be a very important part of night skincare as it improves skin texture and helps with rejuvenation. It treats a variety of skin problems including acne, acne scarring, sun damage, hyperpigmentation and wrinkles. The retinoids used in cosmeceuticals are the alcohol and ester forms of retinoic acid (retinol, retinyl acetate, retinyl palmitate) and less irritating effect than prescription retinoic acid.

Benefits of using Retinol (Vitamin A):

1. Stimulates epidermal turnover through increased mitosis, replacing damaged cells with new cells and reducing melanin production.
2. Stimulates collagen and elastin fibre production slowing down thinning of the skin.
3. Increase blood flow in the dermis.
4. Reduces collagen breakdown.
5. Suitable for all skin types.

I would recommend Dermaceutic Activ Retinol & Jan Marini Age Intervention Retinol Plus  & SkinCeuticals Retinol 0.3

For sensitive skin types try Medik8 Retinol 3 TR™ Serum. 

Medik8 Bakuchiol Peptides is a great natural alternative for those who can't use traditional Retinol.

 

Hyperpigmentation

For hyperpigmentation I would recommend SkinCeuticals Discoloration Defense Serum, which brightens and refines the uneven appearance of photodamaged skin. Other recommended products for the correction of pigmentation and photodamaged skin include Dermaceutic Yellow Cream and Medik8 Oxy-R Peptides

Acne

For acne prone skin I would recommend the iS Clinical Active Serum or Jan Marini Bioclear Lotion which consists of salicylic acid and glycolic acid to remove impurities, decongest pores and resurface. Also dioic acid and azelaic acid helps clear blemishes while reducing redness, chronic inflammation and associated hyperpigmentation. Another good anti-acne product is the Medik8 Blemish SOS Gel, a gel that contains azelaic acid, salicylic acid and niacinamide (also known as vitamin B3) and can be used on all skin types.

 

Redness

For skin redness secondary to sun exposure, acne, rosacea or cosmetic procedures (peels, microdermabrasion) I recommend SkinCeuticals Redness Neutralizer which contains a proprietary bioactive ingredient that addresses visible redness. For skin hypersensitivity Medik8 Calmwise Serum provides intensive, calming relief for redness and flare-ups caused by skin hypersensitivity.

Other anti-ageing ingredients peptides, growth factors

In addition to retinoids, antioxidants and AHAs, peptides show efficacy in preventing and treating premature skin aging.

Functions of peptides in skincare can include:

1. Stimulating collagen
2. Promoting glycosaminoglycan synthesis
3. Stimulating capillary formation and repair
4. Enhancing natural antioxidant defence mechanisms.

HydroPeptide range contains high concentrations of peptides in their skincare products.

Anti-aging Serums: HydroPeptide Power Serum & HydroPeptide HydroStem

Topical growth factors are the latest trend in skincare.

Growth factors when applied topically to aging skin they can speed cell turnover, increase skin thickness, and restore luminosity. Growth factors can stimulate stem cells to damaged areas to reproduce and provide the necessary boost to repair the damaged cells, which results in new tissue and a decrease in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

We Love

AQ Skin Solutions Active Serum

Daily use of Active Serum will produce a firmer, smoother complexion with brighter, more even skin tone diminished fine lines and wrinkles, and reduced or eliminated sun/age spots and hyperpigmentation.

Step 4 – Moisturise

The most effective moisturising formulae should combine moisture binding agents like hyaluronic acid.

Hyaluronic Acid boosts the ability to hold up to one thousand times its weight in water which makes it incredibly moisturising. When used in skincare serums and creams, it plumps and nourishes to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and to give skin back a dewy glow. 

Recommended product: Jan Marini Transformation Face Cream which helps rebuild and repair damaged skin cells.

View other products with Hyaluronic Acid.

 

Step 5 – Protect (UV protection & sunscreens)

Ultraviolet radiation is composed of three wavelengths: UVA, UVB and UVC.  UVA is long wavelength (320-400 nm) UV and accounts for up to 95 per cent of the solar UV radiation reaching the Earth's surface. It can penetrate into the deeper layers of the skin and has for years been thought to play a major part in skin aging and wrinkling. UVA rays are present during all daylight hours and throughout the winter months. UVB is the middle-range of UV with wavelengths between 290-320 nm. It is responsible for burning, tanning, acceleration of skin aging and plays a very key role in the development of skin cancer. UVC  is the shortest and highest-energy UV with wavelengths less than 290 nm. However, since it is filtered by the ozone, these wavelengths do not reach the Earth's surface and do not contribute to skin damage in humans.

The most important issue to understand about an SPF rating is that it mainly indicates relative protection from erythema produced by UVB. In order to get adequate protection against both UVA and UVB, you should select a sunscreen that provides broad-spectrum protection or UVA/UVB protection.

The use of sunscreens for skin photoprotection prevents the penetration of harmful UV rays into the skin and should be part of everyone’s daily skincare regimes.

Recommended sunscreen brands:  Heliocare, Jan Marini and SkinCeuticals 

Antioxidants work from within the skin and because they stimulate cellular defence mechanisms, remain active for several days. Since sunscreens and antioxidants work by different mechanisms, they should be used in combination.

 

Having a comprehensive skincare routine is one of the best ways to take good care of your skin. In order to have healthy, glowing skin you need to follow these 5 easy steps each day to ensure results.