1. Start your routine with a gentle cleanse
I can’t stress enough how important a good daily cleansing routine - that is both gentle and thorough – is for glowing skin. Purifying the skin of dirt, makeup and dead skin cells helps to prevent pore congestion as well as the formation of imperfections and breakouts. It also prepares the skin to absorb products more efficiently, so it’s worth spending some time on this part of your regimen.
Your skin goes through different processes from day to night, so cleansing your face both morning and evening is also key. The morning cleanse will help to remove any excessive sebum (oil) produced by the sebaceous glands overnight whilst the night-time routine will help to remove makeup and dirt from the day.
A gentle cleansing milk is a great first step in any skincare routine as it will gently cleanse your skin without drying it out. SkinCeuticals Gentle Cleanser has a creamy texture that removes impurities and makeup while leaving the skin feeling soft and comfortable. The light formula is enriched with orange extract and allantoin so that it can remove impurities while being suitable for dry and sensitive skin.
2. Follow with exfoliants to boost your glow
After an initial first gentle cleanse, you can follow with a cleansing gel formulated with liquid exfoliants. This will remove the residue from the first cleansing step whilst softly exfoliating away dead skin cells. SkinCeuticals Simply Clean Gel Cleanser is proven to help smooth the skin with a high-concentration dual-acid formula that accelerates cellular turnover. Suitable for normal to combination skin, it contains botanical extracts and a fruit acid blend to help gently slough away dead skin cells and smooth rough skin. It should leave your complexion feeling fresh and clean but not tight.
If you have oily or blemish-prone skin, SkinCeuticals Blemish + Age Cleanser can help you manage the appearance of blemishes and achieve great results. It does this with a blend of salicylic, glycolic and lipo hydroxy acids that actively reduce the look of the pores, minimise the appearance of blemishes and remove excess oil. Your skin should feel smooth and brightened after use.
Likewise, SkinCeuticals Glycolic Renewal Cleanser is proven to help to boost your glow with a high-concentration dual-acid formula that promotes cellular turnover. This gently exfoliates the surface of the skin while removing impurities and makeup and leaving essential moisture in the skin. It’s perfect for normal to combination skin, and for those looking for a glow!
3. Balance and refresh the skin with a toner
Adding a toner to your skincare routine can help to balance and refresh the skin after cleansing – not to mention help you achieve that glow.
SkinCeuticals Equalizing Toner, for example, helps to restore the skin’s pH mantle while leaving the skin feeling super fresh. It also exfoliates dead skin cells away which allows the brighter skin beneath to be revealed. Add a few drops to a cotton pad and sweep it across your face, avoiding the delicate eye area.
4. Deep clean your skin with a face mask
A face mask makes a lovely addition to every skincare routine so why not incorporate one into a self-care Sunday or relaxing night in? It’s advisable to treat your skin to a deep cleaning clarifying mask one to three times a week, depending on your tolerance. This is especially important if you feel overwhelmed by demanding skin care regimens or aren’t vigilant about daily cleansing. A mask will help to accelerate the skin’s renewal process whilst refining skin texture and balancing your skin tone.
SkinCeuticals Clarifying Clay Masque is a mattifying mask with high quality natural clays and botanical extracts which gently exfoliate dead skin cells whilst helping to decongest pores and remove impurities, improving skin tone and helping to minimize the appearance of pores. Leave it on for ten minutes before thoroughly removing it with a damp cloth followed by a toner.
5. Make your beauty sleep count with glycolic acid
Glycolic acid is one of nature’s wonder ingredients for skin. This mild acid belongs to the family of alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) and its small molecular size makes it excellent at penetrating gently into the upper layers of the skin to help increase cellular turnover. This helps skin form a new, uniform surface that feels velvety soft. Furthermore, it can help to give skin a firmer appearance.
SkinCeuticals Glycolic 10 Renew Overnight is a glycolic acid cream formulated to be used at night. This is because it promotes cellular turnover which improves radiant glowing skin. This lightweight solution helps to refine skin texture and improve the clarity of the complexion with 10% glycolic acid delivered at the optimal pH. In short, it exfoliates the skin and accelerates cellular turnover. Use it after cleansing for improved texture, tone, and glow two to three times a week.
TIP: Please, always apply a sunscreen during the day while using exfoliants such as glycolic acid and retinol.
6. Boosting a glow in sensitive skin
If you have more sensitive skin, you may find glycolic serums and cleansers are too harsh for your skin type and compromise your skin barrier. The good news is that there are still ways to exfoliate your skin. SkinCeuticals Retexturing Activator is a gentle daily formula that hydrates and exfoliates the skin with a formula enriched with refined urea complex, kombuchka (kombucha + black tea ferment). These ingredients are balanced with hyaluronic acid, a very effective hydrator that improves the look of surface lines and wrinkles while keeping the skin barrier protected. This is a great alternative if you find alpha-hydroxy acids and retinol too much for your skin but want to get similar resurfacing results.
7. Call in the professionals
If you want excellent results fast, there’s nothing like a course of professional AHA peels to reveal glowing, more youthful looking skin in a heartbeat. Each peel treatment will reveal instantly fresh, hydrated, soft and dewy looking skin. Furthermore, regular AHA peels will help speed up the benefits of your home care routine to achieve your skin care goals in the shortest period.
If you’ve never had an AHA peel before I’d recommend that you start with a mild peel treatment such as the Gel Peel GL that combines glycolic acid with lactic acid - a mild, moisturising acid that even helps your skin maintain hydration.
A course of 4 to 6 treatments every two weeks is the ideal programme to improve skin quality and texture significantly.
If all this seems like a lot to take on at first, don’t panic. Even taking action on a few of the above suggestions will help you on your way to glowing skin. I suggest upping the ante on your cleansing routine as a first step. Then think about adding glycolic acid after your evening cleanse and before your moisturiser. Still at sea? Book in for a professional treatment at a SkinCeuticals clinic near you and a skin care expert can advise on what is best for your skin.
Featured Product
Simply Clean Cleanser For Rough Skin
Gel Cleanser for Oily Skin
Blemish + Age Cleanser 240ml
Decongests and refines pores, minimises blemishes, and brightens the skin.
Glycolic Renewal Cleanser
Soft-foaming gel cleanser exfoliates with a dual-acid blend while effectively cleansing impurities and long-wear makeup without stripping the skin of moisture.
Equalizing Toner
Balances and refreshes the skin while exfoliating dead skin cells for a softer skin.
Clarifying Clay Masque
Purifying mask which helps to remove impurities and excess of oil.
Glycolic 10 Renew Overnight
Discover the Glycolic 10 Renew Overnight
Retexturing Activator
A non-oily, dual-action hydrating and exfoliating serum, formulated to provide resurfacing and replenishing benefits.
