Spring Skincare Guide
Introduction to our Spring Skincare Guide
Spring is just around the corner, and with it comes spring cleaning and the opportunity to revitalize some of your old habits. It doesn’t always mean cleaning your home either; instead, it’s an opportunity to look at all of your routines and see where you can perfect them.
In this article, we’re looking at one practice in particular: your spring skincare! As the weather changes and your needs shift with it, you can look at some of your products and see what may need an update, what you can toss, and what might need a more prominent role in your day-to-day life!
We’ll begin by going over the most common types of face products and some of their features. These include cleansers, makeup removers, serums, exfoliants, and moisturizers. After we’ll dive into common skin issues and what products you can use to help manage them.
If you still need help, you can get started on your spring skincare journey using various facial treatments like the ones we offer at Elegance Studio. We can provide a jumpstart to your spring skincare regimen through treatments such as our European facials, microdermabrasion treatments, and hyperpigmentation lightening!
Spring Skincare Essentials
#1 Spring Skincare Item - Cleanser
There are two significant categories of cleansers: makeup remover and face wash. Makeup remover specifically targets your makeup (obviously) but often doesn’t target the dirt and oil build-up on your face. That’s where your face wash will come in.
After removing your makeup, you’ll give your face a thorough clean with a second cleanser. What products you choose is dependent on the needs of your skin. We’ll go through this in more detail in the following sections.
Skin Cleansers
There are several different skin cleansers are available on the market, including gel, foam, cream, and clay-based products. What you choose is dependent on your needs.
If you have sensitive skin or are acne-prone, you should consider a gel or foam-based product that will be easier for your face. If you have dehydrated skin, a cream cleanser will restore hydration rather than strip it completely. Clay and oil-based cleansers are counterintuitive - they benefit oily, acne-prone skin! The oil in the product dissolves sweat and oil in your pores, leaving you feeling fresh and clean.
Makeup Removers
Micellar Water
Micellar water seems like magic the first time you use it on your face. However, it’s actually a combination of purified water, a moisturizing ingredient, and mild surfactants meant to lift the makeup from your face.
This makeup remover has many benefits, especially for those who wear waterproof products or can’t handle an oil-based product. If this sounds like you, micellar water is probably your best bet.
There are a few drawbacks: if your skin is more acne-prone, you may see more breakouts due to the surfactants in the micellar water, which can leave a film on your face.
Oil Cleansers
Oil cleansers go deep into your pores and lift the dirt and grime. Oil dissolves oil, meaning you’ll get a deeper clean than with micellar water. Additionally, they work with almost every skin type! The only exception to this rule is if your oil cleanser lacks an emulsifier or surfactant and you have oily, acne-prone skin as it will only add more oil to your face.
Gel Cleansers
Gel cleansers are the perfect choice for oily, acne-prone skin as they’re super gentle and often contain active ingredients that target problem areas. If you’re unsure if your skin can handle oil or micellar water, this is also the choice for you!
#2 Spring Skincare Item - Serum
There are many serums on the market that do a wide variety of incredible things. The serum you choose will be dependent on what you need from it. Here are a few different types:
1 - Anti-ageing
2 - Skin brightening
3 - Acne fighting
4 - Hydrating
5 - Exfoliating
6 - Repairing
Skin specialists recommend applying this product before your moisturizer so it can lock it in. Additionally, brightening and anti-ageing serums may be hard on the skin during the summer as they usually contain ingredients that make the effects of the sun harsher. Consider using those products at night instead and include an SPF during the day.
#3 Spring Skincare Item - Exfoliant
There are two major types of exfoliants: enzymatic and mechanical. Enzymatic exfoliants contain active ingredients from fruit like pineapple, papaya, and pumpkin to gently remove dead layers of skin from your face. Mechanical peels contain gritty substances like charcoal, seeds, and clay to remove dead skin. With both types of exfoliants, it’s essential to make sure you only use them once or twice a week to prevent irritation and damage to the healthy skin you have.
#4 Spring Skincare Item - Moisturizers
There are many different kinds of moisturizers; here are some of the most common:
BB cream (also known as beauty balm or blemish balm) originated in Korea and is essentially an all-in-one light foundation. Most BB creams contain an active ingredient that targets specific areas, like acne, ageing, or skin repair. It also has an SPF to protect skin from damage and hydrating ingredients to restore moisture.
One crucial piece of advice we have isn’t to rely too heavily on the SPF ingredients, as foundations aren’t typically applied heavily enough to be useful all day. Once BB creams set on your skin, it typically has a dewy look and is the go-to for people looking for a ‘natural’ makeup look.
CC Creams are colour-correcting, meaning they’ll even out your skin tone. It is better than bb creams for acne-prone, oily skin as it tends to sit lighter on the skin. Once CC cream sets on your skin, it will look matte and lighter than the BB cream.
Overnight moisturizers have a formulation that is specific for night use. The primary ingredients that set night creams apart from their day-use counterparts include anti-ageing ingredients like retinol and glycolic acid, which can make your skin more sensitive to light.
Daily moisturizers often contain an SPF to protect your skin and are lighter than overnight products.
Body lotions help restore moisture to the rest of you, but you shouldn’t use it on your face! Your face has a thinner layer of skin and is more prone to clogging, while your body is built tougher and can handle a thicker cream.
If you’re noticing dry skin on your legs, elbows, and other areas, you may need to step up your moisturizing game. Some of our favourite body lotions contain no scent and have gentle enough ingredients for even the most sensitive skin. Scent-free creams are also excellent for the workplace, as your coworkers may react to perfumes, and body lotion can leave a strong odour on the skin.
Spring Skincare Goals
We’ve looked at individual products, but it’s often overwhelming to pick a routine! We compiled a few tips based on some common skincare goals that will make choosing your regimen a lot easier.
#1. Tackling ‘Maskne’
Maskne is a new phenomenon that has come from our need to wear masks to protect the community. It results from wearing a cloth covering close to the skin for long periods, trapping oil, moisture, and bacteria on the surface of our skin. Wearing a mask is incredibly important (and often required!), so how do we take care of our skin in the process?
A New York Times article broke down some advice from dermatologists on this new phenomenon, which they acknowledge isn’t marketing hype:
1 - Washing your mask may seem like a given, but you’re likely not washing it enough. One of the most common recommendations is to treat your mask like underwear and clean it daily!
2 - Choose a breathable material - in the article, dermatologists recommended cotton to compromise between protecting others and airflow for your face.
3 - Take a break from makeup! It may seem challenging to part with products, but you’ll notice more breakouts when you use makeup in your daily routine. If you need to do a video call at home, remove the product before you head out. Additionally, you can still put mascara on and do your eyebrows as that part of your face can breathe!
4 - Finally, avoid overwashing your face as it can add fuel to the fire. Remember that trend where we finally stopped washing our hair daily? Stripping the oils from hair by repeated scrubbing resulted in its overproduction down the road.
The adjustment period between washing daily and once or twice per week became a nightmare due to this phenomenon. The same is true for the skin - overwashing can result in more acne problems! Dermatologists recommend using a quick micellar water wash after removing your mask to remove the excess sweat from your face.
#2. Recovering from Dry, Winter Skin
When the weather starts to warm up, we shed our layers and appreciate the sunshine. However, as we step into cute spring dresses, we begin to see the damage the cold air had on our skin. The question is, how do you restore moisture to severely dry skin?
There are many skincare options listed in the sections above, but it can be tricky to decide where to start! If you want to take your first step, consider investing in an excellent hydrating serum to boost your moisturizer. If you master this part of the routine, add a masque every couple of nights to give your face some extra love.
You’ll want to avoid exfoliants or use them minimally, as they have the potential to strip the moisture from your skin and irritate it further.
If you have dry skin on other parts of your body, invest in a scent-free heavy-duty moisturizer and use it twice daily: as you’re stepping out of the shower in the morning and before you head to bed!
#3. Anti-Ageing Efforts
Your anti-ageing skin routine can start anytime, and there are many options available depending on your level of investment. One of the best investments for beginning anti-ageing efforts is a good sunscreen that you wear daily. It may not look like it’s doing a lot now, but you’ll thank yourself later!
#4. Preventative
Do you have perfect skin? Lucky you! It’s essential to have a routine to make sure you maintain moisture levels, reduce signs of ageing and keep pimples at bay.
If you’re worried about any issues related to ageing, acne, sun spots, or dryness, you can follow the recommended guidelines in the other sections as a preventative measure.
#5. Sensitive Skin
We all feel the strong desire to bust out the self-care routine - creams, exfoliants, masks, and bath bombs that make us slow down and take a breath. When your skin is sensitive, you have to be more mindful about your routine, as you’re more prone to reactions.
You’re going to look for products with fewer ingredients and are dermatologist recommended, as they’ll work better on your skin. Additionally, ditch the perfume! The exception to this rule is using a naturally scented product (example: a mask that contains berries and herbs) as it isn’t a synthetic perfume.
Your spring skincare routine is going to emphasize ‘less is more,’ and you’ll need to use your products less often.
Finally, most products will have a recommended use, and exfoliants are typically one to two times per week. However, with sensitive skin, you’ll want to space it out even further based on your body’s reaction. Start with once every other week, and see how you do. If you find your skin tolerates it well, feel free to increase usage, but only a little!
Conclusion to our Spring Skincare Guide
In this article, we looked at several different products that you can incorporate into your spring skincare regimen. From moisturizers to serums, we’ve gone over how they can help revitalize your face! We then took a look at some essential things that can cause problems for your face, including breakouts from wearing masks, sensitive skin, and hyperpigmentation, as well as some of the ways you can tailor your regimen to address them.
We’ve tackled some large topics in this article, but we think they’re essential to getting ready for the spring! Having an effective spring skincare regimen is critical to feeling confident and putting your best face forward. If you still have questions about incorporating products for your regimen or want to jumpstart your daily routine, we can help!
Elegance studio offers a full range of facial treatments that target various skin issues and caters to each client’s needs. We can tackle acne, fine lines, and wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and scarring, treating some of these significant problems in a big way!