How to organize facial skin care in stages

Step 1. Determine your skin type

Skin type is an innate characteristic that cannot be changed. From him depends the activity of the sebaceous glands, skin thickness and the likelihood of certain problems such as acne. This means what cosmetic products you will have to use.

How do skin types differ?

There is no bad or good type - it's just an individual characteristic, like eye color or hair.

Fat

Signs of oily skin relate shine on the face and large, clearly visible pores.

This type of skin tends to be thicker and will show age-related changes later, but is also more prone to breakouts.

Dry

Dry skin, on the other hand, tends to be thinner. on her can not be characteristic oily sheen, and the pores are almost invisible.

The owner of this type most likely did not have acne during adolescence, but the first wrinkles will appear earlier.

Normal and combined

Normal skin is matte and uniform. She has May be slight shine. It is believed that this is exactly what skin should be like, but this is still rather rare. More often there is a combination type, in which the skin in the so-called T-zone looks like oily - large pores and shine are visible, but in other parts it is normal.

How to determine your skin type

You can determine your type visually, for example by how visible your pores are or how shiny your skin is, or by using a paper towel test. To do this you need:

1. Wash your face using your regular cleanser.
2. Do not apply any products after washing.
3. Wait half an hour.
4. Take a regular paper napkin and apply it to your face.

Depending on your skin type, you may see a greasy mark of sebum on the napkin. If it is only in places adjacent to the nose and forehead, then you have combination or normal skin. If visible over the entire surface, then the skin is oily. If you can't see it, it's dry.

Step 2. Think about what you would like to improve

If type is an innate characteristic, then the condition of the skin can change greatly throughout life. When choosing care, this must be taken into account.

Most often, we are faced with not one problem, but several, so a cosmetologist can best advise care. He sees the whole picture and has enough knowledge and experience to tell you what to do.

Reduce shine

It's normal for your face to be a little shiny. It is abnormal if there is excess sebum: this Maybe lead to blockage of gland ducts and the development of acne. But fat content can be adjusted.

It is important that fat does not mean moisture. On the contrary, dehydration is often leads to increased sebum production.

You can reduce shine by targeting the sebaceous glands and restoring the protective lipid layer. You can learn more about the needs of oily skin from your cosmetologist or read our article.

Get rid of inflammation and post-acne

If there is a lot of sebum, and the surface cells of the epidermis are poorly exfoliated, they eventually become clogged and appear acne.

Acne worsens your appearance and often leave leaving behind reddish and bluish stagnant spots, scars and pigmentation.

It is not always possible to get rid of rashes with the help of cosmetics. Therefore, to begin with, it is better to go to a dermatologist, who will assess the situation and, perhaps, prescribe medicines. You shouldn’t delay this: otherwise you’ll have to fight post-acne.

Even out facial tone

Usually the skin is colored evenly. But if inflammation occurs inside, then some melanocytes - cells that produce the pigment melanin - begin to work beyond measure. This causes dark spots to appear on the face and beyond.

Exfoliation of unevenly colored cells helps to get rid of pigmentation using peelings and hardware procedures. But only if hyperpigmentation did not cause problems within the body.

Reduce age-related changes

Wrinkles appear due to the fact that the skin produces collagen less well, which is responsible for elasticity. As a result, facial muscles displace areas of the face, and they no longer take their original shape. This is how creases appear on the skin.

Aging is a natural part of life, so reversing it with the help of “rejuvenating apples” will not work. In principle, it can be slowed down if you additionally supply the skin with hyaluronic acid, collagen, peptides and other necessary substances, and also support it with cosmetic procedures.

Get rid of blush and visible blood vessels

A huge number of tiny capillaries pass through the skin of the face. Normally, they easily expand and contract again to their normal size. Due to inflammation, this process violated, so the blush may be constantly present and spider veins may even appear.

Strengthen blood vessels and decrease Inflammation in the skin is helped by skin care ingredients such as vitamin E. You won’t be able to get rid of the stars that have arisen with the help of care - you will need laser treatment in a cosmetologist’s office.

Step 3. Create a basic program

Once you have identified your basic needs, you can move on to creating a program. Despite the countless assortment of jars in the store, there are only three mandatory stages: cleansing, toning and moisturizing.

Cleansing

You need to wash your face in the morning and evening. Choose a cleanser based on your skin type first. For dry skin, creamy products are preferable, but for oily skin, look towards gels, perhaps even with acids.

But overpay for expensive ones components included, such as peptides, gold and other rarities, are not worth it: the product is on the skin too little for them to penetrate inside. The most important thing is that the product does not contain alcohol or hard particles. Squeaky cleansing will not help any skin - as a result, you can disrupt the protective properties and provoke a deterioration of the condition. So, with a dry and normal type, you can get irritation and increased sensitivity, and with an oily type, acne may worsen.

How to know if a washbasin is right for you

You can tell if a product is too soft by how it feels, as well as by a dull complexion and unevenness. This means that the product simply does not do its job.

You will know that the effect is too aggressive by the feeling of dryness and tightness after washing. But don’t rush to throw away the product: just leave it for the evening care, and in the morning buy a softer product.

Toning

Tonics and lotions are needed to equalize the pH of the skin after washing: healthy skin is more acidic than tap water. In addition, toning helps creams and serums penetrate cells better.

Tonics should also not contain alcohol. For oily skin, you can use options with acids.

How to know if a tonic is right for you

There should be no burning or tightness after the tonic. The right product will not dry out the skin.

Hydration

The final stage is applying the cream. It is needed to seal cleansed skin and prevent liquid from evaporating. Creams are often divided into moisturizing and nourishing, but each of them still provides hydration, which is why the stage is called that way.

Cream It stays on the skin the longest, so it needs the most attention. Look at what is included in the composition and where the active components are located in it. If the declared peptides, hyaluronic acid and vitamins are “snugged” closer to the flavors, then there are very few of them inside the jar, so you are unlikely to notice the effect.

It is important that the cream also does not contain comedogenic components such as coconut oil. They clog pores.

How to know if a cream is right for you

First, look at the sensations. Feeling dryness or, on the contrary, a heavy oily layer is a bad sign. In addition, after the cream there should be no burning sensation or red spots, which indicate intolerance to some component.

But you shouldn’t judge the effectiveness earlier than a month after the start of use - approximately during this period the epidermis is renewed, and then you can evaluate the results.

Cream is not a magic wand. No matter what marketers say, it will not give the effect of laser resurfacing and will not remove spider veins. But it can cope with other problems.

Step 4. Strengthen your care with additional products

In addition to the basic set, you can use other tools.

Masks

Masks can be cleansing or nourishing. The former usually contain clay or other components that attract excess sebum. They are needed for oily and problem skin, while the rest will dry out.

Nourishing masks are usually thick and creamy. They are needed to quickly saturate the skin with the necessary components.

Use the mask after cleansing, but before applying cream.

Typically, masks are applied once a week, but in some cases you may want to do this more often. Trust your feelings, but do not overdo it, so as not to encounter excessive dryness or clogged pores.

Serums

These are very light products with a high concentration of active substances. They penetrate the skin more easily, but do not create such a protective layer as creams. The serum should be applied after the toner and be sure to cover it with a moisturizer.

Peelings

Peels usually mean products with acids. They are needed to exfoliate dead surface cells. The oilier the skin, the more concentrated the peeling can be. So, for dry skin it is better to limit yourself to an acidic tonic as needed.

Peels are quite aggressive products, so it is better to apply them once a week to avoid burns.