How to Put Together an Effective Skincare Routine

Taking care of your skin can feel like a chore because you may not know what products to use, how to use them, in what order to use them and what works best for your individual skin type and issues. But it really doesn’t have to be that difficult. Knowing what products work together, how they benefit your skin and the order to use them is very important when choosing the best skincare routine for you. The information below is a guideline you can follow to select products based on what works best for you and your specific skin concerns.

Tips for Putting Together a Skincare Regimen

If you want your skin to look its best, you have to give it the best possible care. A daily regimen will provide your skin with the essentials that it needs to remain healthy and youthful-looking. It is important that you put together the right regimen for your specific needs. Following these tips will help you select the right products and help to ensure the success of your regimen.

If you have multiple skincare concerns, you may need to add one or more treatments to your daily routine. You may only need to add one targeted treatment product to your routine, or you might need to alternate its use with other products. With a more advanced routine, some experimentation is needed to discover which method and frequency of application works best for your individual skincare type. Customize your regimen with products for your concerns. If you’re not currently using a skincare regimen, I challenge you to take care of your skin. Consistency is key! 

Begin with a Non-Foaming Cleanser

Cleansing is one of the most important steps in a daily routine, as it removes impurities that can irritate your skin and interfere with other skincare products. If a cleanser does what it should, it will pull impurities out of your skin, open up pores and clean the dead skin, dirt and bacteria away from your face. If it’s a cheap wash, it will just push the junk around your skin instead of cleaning it off. Did you know that bubbles and foam are bad when it comes to cleansers? They destroy skin’s delicate lipid barrier and ruin its natural moisture process. Oily skin will become oilier and dry skin will become drier. 

Alcohol-Free Toner

Toner is a skincare product that has often been overlooked, but can do wonders when it comes to improving the appearance of your skin. Skin toners have come a long way. When you keep your skin appropriately pH-balanced with an alcohol-free toner, it is less likely to become too oily or too dry. The benefits to consistently using a toner in your daily routine are they shrink pores, give your skin pH balance, protect it, prepare your skin to better absorb anti-aging serums and moisturizers and help prevent ingrown hairs.

One of the main reasons why alcohol-free toners are recommended is because they help remove excess makeup, oil and other impurities left behind by your cleanser. Once all of the excess impurities are removed, the toner helps any serum or moisturizer you use better absorb into your skin. For best results, and depending on the sensitivity of your skin, a toner should be used at least once a day and up to twice a day, after cleansing and before moisturizing.

Broad Spectrum Sunscreen

I’m still always surprised when people tell me they didn't know that the majority of how our skin ages (90% to be exact) comes from the amount of sun exposure we take in and how often we use proper sun protection. To know if a sunscreen or sunblock helps ward off skin cancer, look for the term "broad spectrum" on the label. This means the product offers protection against both UVA and UVB rays. Make sure to use a broad spectrum sunscreen or sunblock with at least an SPF of 15, an SPF of 20-30 is ideal.

Moisturize

Moisturizing is such an important step in your skincare routine. Normal, dry, oily and combination skin all require hydration, so every skincare regimen should contain a moisturizer. The key is to select a product developed with your skin type in mind. Moisturizers for complexions that are oily or prone to breakouts should be more light weight. Dry skin will benefit from thicker creams, while light weight creams/lotions best serve combination and normal skin. The best time to apply your lotion or cream is after you've dried off after your shower/bath or within 3 minutes after washing your face and applying toner. Seal in the moisture that's already been absorbed into your skin.

Try to keep lips soft, not dry and chapped, by applying a moisturizing lip serum to visibly smooth lip texture and combat dryness. Also, you should use an eye cream daily. The skin around your eyes is the thinnest on your body. So, wrinkles will appear there first. Yet so many people think they can skimp on using eye cream or use their facial moisturizer as an eye cream.

Exfoliate

The first signs of aging are not wrinkles and crow’s feet, but dull skin. Regular exfoliation, 2-3 times a week, is one of the best ways to combat dull skin, refresh your appearance and even out skin tone. Exfoliating the old, dead outermost cells is the quickest, easiest way to make skin look smoother and more vibrant from head to toe. However, never scrub your face too hard with an exfoliator or use it too often. Over-exfoliation can strip away your lipid barrier, making skin more susceptible to irritation and bacterial infection.

Anti-Aging and Targeted Treatments

When it comes to anti-aging products and treatments, look for ingredients such as peptides, hyaluronic acid, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, retinol and alpha-hydroxy acids. Even though many women don't begin to develop noticeable signs of aging until their late 30s and early 40s, the damage that causes fine lines and wrinkles starts occurring way before that. By adding anti-aging skincare products to your routine, you can decrease the chances of those fine lines and wrinkles showing up prematurely.

Micro-needling: After the age of 30, our collagen production slows down by 1% each year. The good news is that you can still get the most out of your skincare regimen by adding the AMP MD roller system to it. The AMP MD roller has little needles that "injure" skin and help build back collagen loss. When done daily or 3-5 times a week at home, your skin responds to the contact of the micro-needle tips, improving tone, texture and firmness. Used in conjunction with retinol and peptides, the result is firmer skin. Micro-needling is also great for acne scarring, pitting of the skin and post-surgical procedures to diminish scar tissue marks.

Macro Exfoliator: An advanced exfoliation skincare tool to consider that can give you microdermabrasion-like results at home is the Macro Exfoliator. It’s diamond head tip and internal vacuum exfoliates and pulls a week’s worth of dead skin away from the surface of your skin. It features DOC-SMART technology to vary the degree and duration of exfoliation based on facial areas such as cheeks, nose, chin, forehead, outer eye area, neck and décolletage. Once a week for 5 minutes is all it takes to do your own microdermabrasion facial in the comfort of your own home.

Acne Treatments

Acne is a common skin condition that happens when oil and dead skin cells clog your pores. It can be caused by many things: heredity, hormones, stress and oil production. Make sure to practice good skincare techniques, improve your diet and get your acne under control ASAP. Use products targeted at oily or acne-prone skin and look for moisturizers, sunblocks and makeup that are non-comedogenic and don’t block your pores. Over-the-counter spot creams and gels with ingredients such as benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid are extremely effective for clearing acne.

However, there are some instances when over-the-counter products just aren’t working. That’s when it is best to see a dermatologist first in order to keep acne scarring to a minimum. Then once the dermatologist helps get your acne under control, regularly using a regimen such as UNBLEMISH will help keep acne under control.

Skin Lightening Treatments

Exposure to the sun and environment can leave you with dull-looking skin…premature aging, including brown spots, dullness, discoloration, melasma, age spots and fine lines. Look for products with ingredients such as Vitamin C, alpha-hydroxy acid, kojic acid, salicylic acid, licorice, retinol and antioxidants to help reduce free radical damage. For people with melasma and stubborn dark marks, it is recommended you use something containing hydroquinone (2% is recommended).

Your Basic Daily Routine

This simple routine is for basic daily skincare. These steps apply unless you have sensitive skin, then you don't need to use a toner. Also, use caution when it comes to exfoliating very sensitive skin.

MORNING ROUTINE

1. Cleanser
2. Toner (no need to tone if you have sensitive skin)
3. Eye Cream
4. Broad Spectrum Sunscreen/Sunblock

EVENING ROUTINE

1. Cleanser or Exfoliator (2-3 times a week only - replaces cleanser)
2. Toner (no need to tone if you have sensitive skin)
3. Eye Cream
4. Moisturizer
5. Lip Serum/Moisturizer

Your Advanced Routine

An advanced skincare routine includes targeted treatments you can add to your basic daily routine to treat special skincare concerns such as wrinkles, melasma, acne or sagging skin.

MORNING ROUTINE

1. Cleanser
2. Toner (no need to tone if you have sensitive skin)
3. Eye Cream
4. Broad Spectrum Sunscreen/Sunblock

EVENING ROUTINE

1. Cleanser or Exfoliator (2-3 times a week only - replaces cleanser)
2. Toner (no need to tone if you have sensitive skin)
3. Targeted Treatment #1 (i.e. AMP MD roller)
4. Optional Targeted Treatment #2 (i.e. Retinol serum)
5. Eye Cream
6. Moisturizer
7. Lip Serum/Moisturizer

While everyday skin conditions can be complex, the solutions don’t have to be. If you're looking for new skincare products to try, Rodan + Fields offers simple, clinically proven regimens that produce real results. The products are based on a multi-med therapy philosophy - using the right ingredients and active cosmetics, in the right formulations, in the right order.

Rodan + Fields is a skincare line for all skin. SOOTHE is for sensitive and irritated skin, facial redness, rosacea, psoriasis or eczema. REVERSE is for sun damaged, hyperpigmented, dull skin or even melasma. UNBLEMISH is for adult and teen acne. REDEFINE helps diminish and/or prevent fine lines, wrinkles, crow’s feet, large pores and firm up your skin.

It’s great to be able to go to one company for your different skincare needs and issues. Depending on the time of year, skin changes. Most people probably don’t even realize that they need to switch up their routine to address changes throughout the year. R+F takes care of all this for you.

Looking for an effective skincare routine specific to your skin type, issues and concerns? Learn how multi-med therapy products can help transform your skin to become more healthy and youthful-looking!