Building A Skincare Routine That Works For YOU!

"What products do you recommend?"

We are asked this question every day, and our response is always the same: "What is your skin type, and what are your specific skin concerns?"

There is no product that is ideal for everyone's skin, and your routine needs to be customized to your specific skin's needs. In this post we will help you:

• Determine your skin type
• Consider different skincare concerns
• Build a basic, customizable routine
• Product Combinations

What's my skin type?

In the skincare world, when asked youre skin type, people are generally referring to the four basic types of skin: normal, oily, combination, and dry.

Normal skin is generally well balanced. Normal skin rarely experiences break outs, is not excessively oily or dry, doesn't feel tight after cleansing, and is generally not too sensitive to many products

Oily skin is... well, oily. If you have oily skin, you may experience a sheen at the skin's surface throughout the day. You may experience routine breakouts/acne due to excess oil production and have visibly large pores.

Dry skin describes skin that naturally doesn't produce enough oil. If you have dry skin your skin may be patchy, flaky, appear dull, and have a hard time retaining moisture. Please note that there is a difference between dry skin and dehydrated skin. Dehydrated skin is not a natural occurrence; this happens through environmental stressors and how you care for your skin in your routine. Products can cause your skin to be dehydrated, just like not drinking enough water. If your skin feels tight after cleansing your face but you don't experience any of the other aforementioned symptoms, your skin is probably dehydrated.

Combination skin is a mixture of dry and oily; there may be some parts of the skin that run dry and some parts that produce excess oil. Many people experience excess oil production in their T-zone (the nose and forehead) or on their cheeks.

Knowing your skin type is important because it can better help you select products that work well for your skin. Often times, brands will explicitly list which skin types their products are ideal for in the product description. Glass Skin Co. does this for every product. Most of our products are idea for all skin types, but it's always great to double check.

There are other ways to describe how the skin behaves, such as acne prone or sensitive. These skin types are self explanatory and can be used to describe the skin in conjunction with the 4 basic skin types. Someone can have sensitive dry skin or acne prone combination skin, and so on.

What are your skincare concerns?

Knowing what you wish to accomplish from your routine can help you select products that will allow you to see the results you are looking for. Some common skincare concerns include:

• hyperpigmentation

• pore congestion and size

• texture

• skin dehydration

For the sake of organization and brevity, we will describe how to treat individual skincare concerns in subsequent posts. In the interim, if you have any specific questions, feel free to contact us directly!

Building a Basic Routine

Everyone's routine should include a few basic steps to insure they are doing the BARE MINIMUM to maintain healthy skin:

1. Cleanse
2. Moisturize
3. SPF (morning)

We'd imagine that you're probably interested in having better-than-C+-skin, right? Here are some additional steps to consider:

1. Cleanse
2. Tone/Balance/Hydrate
3. Treat
4. Moisturize
5. SPF

Let's get into it.

Cleansing is an extremely important step because it helps give your skin a clean canvas to receive all of the products that you're about to apply. It removed excess dirt, sebum, product and environmental contaminants that could otherwise weaken your skin's barrier if left on. Cleansing the skin can also help deliver key antioxidants, vitamins, and active ingredients, depending on the cleanser you select. You may also physically exfoliate the skin while cleansing by incorporating a gentle physical exfoliant into your cleanser before applying to the skin (we recommend Buffy Exfoliating Micro Powder) or a gentle cleansing brush.

Double Cleansing? What's that? It's when you use an oil-based cleanser first to remove excess oil, sunscreen, or make up from the skin's pores and follow it directly with a water based cleanser to remove any excess product or additional grime from the skin's surface. We recommend double cleansing in the evenings, especially for oily, acne prone, or combination skin. Double cleansing can actually assist in oil control and balancing the skin. You can double cleanse any time of day, but we suggest double cleansing in the evenings. We also recommend double cleansing and using a water based cleanser with gentle surfactants for people with extremely sensitive skin or dehydrated/dry skin types. Check out our Cleansing Duo Bundle for an awesome oil and water-based cleanser.

Toner is traditionally used to balance the skin after cleansing. The skin's natural pH is between 4.5 and 5.5, and cleansers can sometimes run at a pH of 6-7, depending on the brand (pro tip: look for a gentle cleanser that is pH balanced, like our Daily Jelly Cleanser). Toner can also be used as an astringent or to treat specific skincare concerns. Toning is obviously an optional step, but it is a great way to incorporate more actives into your routine as well as prep your skin for any treatments you plan to apply. Glass Skin Co. offers two toners: our Hydrating Toner and our Fruit Acid Toner. Our hydrating toner can be used every day, morning or evening. It is formulated at pH 5.5, designed to balance the skin, and contains 2% super low molecular weight hyaluronic acid, glycols, aloe vera, and vitamin B5 to deliver deep hydration to the skin's layers. Hydrating prior to applying actives helps your active ingredients better penetrate the skin and work more effectively. Our Fruit Acid Toner works as a treatment and can be incorporated into the routine 3-4 times a week. At 8% concentration AHA, this toner is great for treating hyperpigmentation and texture concerns. This toner gently exfoliated dead skin cells from the skin's surface by dissolving the protein bond between the dead skin and your normal, healthy skin. Packed with humectants, antioxidants, and vitamins, our Fruit Acid Toner also helps prep the skinfor the next step. Please note that you should not incorporate other AHA or physical exfoliant products (such as our daily gentle resurfacing serum or Buffy Exfoliating Micro Powder) within the same routine as to prevent over-exfoliation or sensitizing the skin.

Treating the skin is entirely customizable for your specific skincare concerns:

• Hyperpigmentation: Morning Glow Serum
• Dehydrated or Dry Skin: Daily Hydro Serum
• Texture: Daily Resurfacing Serum, Evening Clarity Serum
• Pore Congestion: Evening Clarity Serum

Please see the appendix at the end of this article for Combinations To Avoid when selecting your treatments to incorporate into your routine.

Moisturizing the skin is important. Please note that moisturizing is different from hydrating. Hydrators focus on packing the skin with humectants and may not necessarily SEAL in the moisture to prevent moisture loss throughout the day, but moisturizers almost always contain some type of emollient, an ingredient that supports the skin's lipid layer and seals in all of your products. Our Deep Hydration Moisturizing Cream is a great option: gentle, lightweight, and non-greasy with buildable coverage. Containing 5% hyaluronic acid, peptides, vitamins B & E, and fatty acids, this moisturizer hydrates the skin while sealing in all of the moisture at the end of your routine. We use very lightweight, non-comedogenic (does not clog pores or cause acne) emollients in this formula, so acne-prone, sensitive skin, oily, and combination skin types can enjoy. Please note that not every moisturizer is for everyone. Some individuals with very oily or acne prone skin may enjoy gel, oil-free moisturizers that simply focus on hydration and seal with ingredients such as silicones or acrylics. If you have extremely dry skin, we recommend using a very light sealing oil in addition to your normal moisturizer. We offer our amazing, Soothing CBD Facial Oil, ideal for all skin types.

SPF in the morning is critical to your routine; you are wasting your money on skincare if you are not incorporating an effective SPF every day. The sun's UV rays contribute to free radical damage, aging, dark spots/hyperpigmentation, and can cause permenant damage to the skin. You must wear SPF, even if you do not experience sunburn or other conditions that are typically associated with sunscreen use. Your products and treatments will not work effectively without SPF, and some products are photo-sensitive, which means that failing to wear SPF can actually sensitize your skin and may cause a poor reaction. You must wear SPF when it is cloudy, rainy, when you plan to stay inside, when you're flying, EVERYDAY. No negotiations. Please message us for some awesome Black Owned SPF recommendations!

How To Layer My Products

We receive a lot of questions about product layering. If you've gotten this far, you know the order. Now you just need to know how long between applying your next product:

Product absorption time can vary from person to person, but we typically allow 2-3 minutes between steps! You'll know when a product is fully absorbed when you don't feel much (or any) free product on the skin's surface. Please note that some products are not meant to FULLY absorb, as they act at the skin's surface AND within the skin's layers. Knowing what works best for you can take time and practice.

Pro Tips:

• Pat your toner into your face gently with the tips of your fingers and allow to absorb.
• Serums should be applied to a damp/moist face. This is why toning is awesome.
• If you experience product pilling (when the product separates from the skin and forms little balls), this can mean you either used two products that are not compatible with each other (i.e. following a water based serum that hasn't fully absorbed with an oil based product), you aren't allowing the product to absorb fully before applying the next product, or that you're simply using too much product. Sometimes, less it more!

Appendix

Product Combinations to avoid

• Daily Gentle Resurfacing Serum + Fruit Acid Toner
• Buffy Exfoliating Micro Powder + Fruit Acid Toner
• Buffy Exfoliating Micro Powder + Evening Clarity Serum
• Buffy Exfoliating Micro Powder + Daily Gentle Resurfacing Serum
• Fruit Acid Toner + Morning Glow Serum (for very sensitive skin types only)

Please see below for additional resources:

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us through the site or via email at orders@glassskin-co.com!