Find Your Skincare Routine – An Expert Guide To Flawless Skin

Searching for a great skincare routine? We’ve got you covered Welcome to the first of a three part series on skin.

Skin is our largest organ and taking good care of it with a great skincare routine will contribute to your overall health. Though finding a skincare routine that makes a difference can be like finding a needle in a haystack. I started at age twelve with my first real skincare product and always had a passion for both skincare and makeup. I took it as far as getting my Esthetician’s license in both Massachusetts, from The Catherine Hinds Institute, and also in California from Royale College of Beauty, and have been enjoying my work for over twenty years. Working in world class spas with luxury brands has taught me everything I know. These days I spend my time helping clients come up with a new skincare regimen that is packed with results, without spending a fortune. To get started you will need to determine your skin type; is your skin dry and/or sensitive, normal, combination or oily.

Dry and/or Sensitive skin: Does your skin feel tight and dry to the touch, maybe even flaky and/or itchy? Drier skin needs extra care to be sure you are providing enough oils and water so that your skin feels more comfortable. Look for products that have mineral oil, argan oil and shea butter. You may find products with multiple oils in one jar; these oils will help provide your skin with the oil lacking in drier skins. Products for drier skins should also be thicker to the touch and feel comforting.  If you have sensitive skin look for products with Argan oil which is gentler on the skin. For Rosacea look for products that contain oatmeal and redness relief.

Normal skin: Does your skin feel comfortable and you probably do not need a lot of moisturizer? If yes, then how lucky are you! This is the easiest skin category to tend to. Look for products with the phrase “for normal skin types” on the packaging. This skin type is simply working to maintain what you have naturally.

Combination skin: Does your skin feel drier on the cheeks but oily in the T-Zone (the T-Zone is across the forehead and then down the center of your face). Because you have combination skin or two skin categories, we are going to treat the two separately. This means you will use a different moisturizer in the oily areas than in the drier areas. As an example, you will use an oil-free moisturizer in the T-Zone, and perhaps a shea butter moisturizer everywhere else. But no worries we still don’t need to break the bank!

Oily skin: This is my skin type and I have been battling acne well into my adulthood. Does

your skin feel oily? Do you have any shine to your skin as the day progresses? Maybe you are dealing with acne? This skin needs oil free products because you are naturally producing enough oils on your own. One challenge oily skins have is keeping the skin hydrated, but luckily there are great products on the market to give us a hand. A key to choosing a moisturizer for oily-skin readers is avoid mineral oil. Look for “oil-free” on every product from your cleanser to your toner, to your moisturizer. Even your serums should be oil-free. Interesting to note up to 75% of Teens between 15 and 19 are thought to have oily skin.**  Look for products that are also lightweight. Thicker creams just don’t feel very good on an oily skin.  Instead try lotions versus creams and always look for oil-free.

Once you determine your skin type you will be armed to find the right products that provide you with the best possible results.  Our next piece in the skincare series will take a closer look at ingredients and learn how simple it is to look for ingredients your skin craves – based on your skin type of course!