My Nightly Skincare Ritual

Greetings, my Friends!

Little Background:

I posted my morning skincare ritual earlier today and thought that I should share my evening ritual with you all as well. If you followed by blog previously, you'll know that I posted my nightly ritual back in December 2012. While the principles haven't changed, my routine/steps have changed a lot.

My evening skincare ritual takes anywhere between 15-40 minutes to complete.

Nightly Skincare Ritual:

As I explained in my morning skincare ritual post, I am using the term "ritual" to describe my skincare routine because after researching Asian skincare practices, I felt that the term I was using - routine - implied a necessary task versus the term ritual which was used to describe something precious and sacred. I spend up to an hour a day taking care my skin (morning and night) - which does not feel like a chore. To me - this is a therapeutic practice, so going forward - I will refer to my skincare practice as a ritual.

My Ritual:

My nightly skincare ritual consists of many steps broken into three skincare principles: Cleanse (steps 1-4), Treat (steps 5-8), and Hydrate (steps 8-11). I do not perform every step every night. Plus some of these steps only take place 1-2 times a week or in the colder months. 

#1. Pre-Cleanse: Oil-Based Cleanser

I explained this step in greater detail in the morning ritual, but unlike in my morning ritual - I consider this an absolutely necessary step at night. Whether I am wearing make-up or not, my skin is exposed to the environment, my dog, circulating air, and other crud. Cleaning this debris off my skin first before I cleanse my face is a must.

When choosing an oil-based cleanser, I look for two things: consistency and whether it effect my eyes. Exempli Gratia (E.G): Can this oil double as a facial massage oil? And after applying the oil over my eye area, do my eyes sting? Is my vision blurry?

#2. Cleanse: Gentle Foaming Cleanser

As with my morning ritual, I choose a gentle cleanser. Prior established guidance for people with oily or combination skin (oily t-zone/normal cheeks) is that we should use a harsh drying cleanser to cleanse our skin. This was terrible guidance and causes more problems than it solves. 

So, when choosing a cleanser for my second cleanse, I only ask myself one thing: is it stripping? Tight or "squeaky clean" results are an instant sign that this is not the right cleanser for me. 

#3. Exfoliation: Gentle Daily Exfoliation

During the last few months, I've gone back to exfoliating everyday with physical and chemical exfoliants. Just as with my cleanser, this too must be gentle. 

When choosing a physical exfoliant, I ask myself one question: does it scratch my skin? Anything that scratches my skin (micro-scratches) or feels rough on my skin is a no go. When choosing a chemical exfoliant, I only ask myself one question: is it too harsh? If my skin turns red or I feel burning or when I'm done my skin is super tight - then I know this was not the right chemical exfoliant for me. 

#4. Clay Masque:

This is an exfoliating treatment. While different than step #3's exfoliants, it performs a similar function. I only treat my skin with a clay masque 1 to 2 times a week, and when I do - the masque replaces any other form of exfoliation for the day.

When I'm choosing a clay masque, I ask myself one thing: does it dry out my skin? Because clay masques are designed to pull gunk and dirt out of pores, it also pulls out oil. The problem with that is that it can leave my skin feeling very dry - which will increase sebum production. So when I'm testing a clay masque - I always check to see whether my face is dry once I wash it off. 

#5. Toning Lotion:

As I said in my morning skincare ritual, my first thought was "WTF is toning lotion?" Unlike typical Western toners (which restores pH balance), toning lotions are the final step to cleansing in the K-Beauty skincare ritual - which are designed to clean your face, tighten pores, prepare your skin to absorb the next product, and hydrate. 

When I use a toning lotion, I am looking for one thing: does my next step absorb faster after I use this? 

#6. Essence:

An essence is a liquid (similar to toner in texture and appearance) that has a high-dose of active ingredients which hydrates, smoothes, and treats wrinkles. It also prepares your skin for your next step - which are treatments. 

When choosing an essence, I look for three things: stickiness, absorption rate, and effect. Why waste money on something sticky (which I hate), or that sits on my skin and doesn't absorb for 20 minutes, or does nothing.

#7. Treatments:

This step varies depending on the day. If I'm noticing hyperpigmentation, then I use spot treatments. If my skin looks dull, then I use skin brighteners. This step requires me to listen to my skin and to go with my gut.

#8. Masques: Hydrating and Treating

Yes, I double masque sometimes. While I may have worn a clay masque earlier in the ritual, I may add a hydrating or firming or brightening masque at this point. I don't do this step everyday - again, I listen to my skin. Sometimes I need it, sometimes I don't. Sometimes I apply a masque, sometimes I use a sheet masque, and other times I just use an eye masque. It's very dependent on the day and how my skin is feeling. I would say I average 4-5 masques a week, particularly in winter.

#9. Moisturizing Oils

I have a love/hate relationship with nightly moisturizing oils. This, for someone with oily skin, has to be done very carefully and is something I typically reserve for the winter months. I tend to use this following my treatment products, but before I put on my eye cream - as I feel like I can use the oil in place of a masque.

When choosing a moisturizing oil, I ask myself one thing - does it cause pilling? Pilling is when you put on a product and you see small balls of product flaking off your face as you wipe the product on. Because this is an oil - it doesn't always work well with creams you've put on before.

#10. Eye Cream:

My eye cream typically changes like my treatments. While I always use an eye cream, sometimes I'm treating different things - hydration, fine lines, dark circles, and on occasion - puffiness. 

When I choosing an eye cream, I look for two things: consistency and the reaction to my skin. E.G. Does my skin burn when I apply it? Do my eyes water? Do I notice a difference to my eyes in the first 2 weeks?

#11. Moisturizer:

A very simple principle here - a nightly moisturizer must hydrate. For this reason, I don't care if the moisturizer makes my skin look greasy or if it is thick. What I want is for my skin to regain any moisture that may have been striped from it during the day. 

When I am choosing a nightly moisturizer, I look for two things: consistency and absorption. 

That's it! I hope you all had a Happy New Years Day! (And got to eat some black-eyed peas for good luck). Please let me know if you have any questions - I'm happy to answer them.

JessiPedia