Zen for your skin: why a good skin care routine matters

2020 was a stressful year. Let’s kick it to the curb and embrace more zen in 2021. Living a zen life can mean different things for all of us- maybe its setting a daily time to practice self-care, taking on a new fitness activity, doing yoga at home or having a clearer mindset to live every moment to its fullest.  Most importantly, let’s not forget your skin, our body's largest organ! Providing your skin with a state of zen should be on top of all of our lists.

Why does a good skin care routine matter?

Keeping your skin healthy and happy is so important. Our skin works very hard every day to protect our body from harmful external influences, which is why taking care of our skin and creating a good routine for it is so important. The better we take care of our skin, the longer it will have a beautiful and healthy appearance. We understand it can feel overwhelming at times, especially when there are so many choices of products. Including a skin care routine in your healthy daily habits makes for an overall “zen life” and when you look good, you feel good!

What steps are important in a skin care routine?

7 steps, 10 steps- what are the most important steps? The truth is, if you do anything for your skin, it should be to cleanse, moisturize and apply sunscreen. There’s that saying that less is more, and this can apply to your skin care routine. However, we’ll give you some good advice if you are ready to boost your routine and in which order:

Step #1: Cleanse your skin: Cleansing is the #1 most important step in your skincare routine to remove impurities, such as dead skin cells, makeup and excess oil- a clean canvas to then feed your skin with all products that follow. Use a cleanser that you love (or 2 different cleansers morning/night), twice daily both AM & PM.

Step #2: Use a toner: A toner applied directly after cleansing removes any excess debris left behind and restores the skin’s natural pH level.

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Step #3: Apply a serum: Serums feed the skin on a deeper level then a moisturizer and target specific concerns where you need more care.

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Step #4: Target the eye contours: Apply an eye cream twice daily every AM & PM to keep your gaze youthful

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Step #5: Moisturize: Moisturizers are the key to overall skin-health and keep it hydrated, nourished and happy. Apply your moisturizer twice daily, every AM & PM.

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Step #6: Always apply a SPF: in the daytime always follow with a SPF to protect your skin from the sun if your moisturizer doesn’t already include a level of SPF.

Weekly treatment(s):

In addition, the secret to smooth, healthy and glowing skin is exfoliation! It's an important weekly (or at most 2x per weekly) solution to effectively but gently shed dead skin, unclog the pores and prep skin so the following products can penetrate better. There are many forms of exfoliants available, our favorite mechanical exfoliant is the Seeds & Flowers Exfoliant from Cinq Mondes with organic Turmeric and Diatomaceous Earth. A best-selling AHA-based (glycolic acid) exfoliant are the Skin Resurfacing Multi-Acid Pads from Elemental Herbology- just swipe 1 pad over the skin 1-2x per week.

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You can also enhance your skin goals with a weekly face mask. Whether you need to hydrate, prevent pre-mature skin aging or clear up breakouts, face masks come in many variations. Our favorite for oily or ancne prone skin (or generally a good skin detox) is the Kaolin & Flowers Mask from Cinq Mondes. If you need a quick surge of hydration with a 15-min mask, the Facial Soufflé  from Elemental Herbology promises nurturing hydration fast.

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Wishing you all a zen New Year!! We welcome you to reach out at any time for personalized skin advice so we can help you start your year off right.