Why is the Order of My Skincare Routine Important?
The sequence of your routine may seem arbitrary at first glance, but there’s actually a scientific method to layering skincare products and light therapy that gives you the best results. If you don’t apply products in the correct order, you could be at risk of the following scenarios:
- Skincare products may not fully penetrate: If you put on richer, creamier, thicker products before thin, fluid or water-based products, they may not be effective because the richer products can form a barrier that prevents anything else from getting through.
- Skincare products may be less effective: If the products are unable to penetrate the skin properly, you won’t be able to get the full benefits. And, active ingredients can mix in different ways that can nullify their intended effect.
- Skincare products may be harmful: Incorrect layering of products can potentially cause harm to your skin. For example, applying serums on top of oils can leave your skin dry and dehydrated. And, applying thicker products on top of sunscreen can cause your sunscreen coverage to become less effective, thus leaving your skin vulnerable to sunburn.
Putting Your Skincare Routine in Order
While certain steps are common knowledge, such as cleansing before you moisturize, other steps are trickier. For example, is it better to apply moisturizer or serum first? Should your morning and evening routines look the same or should they each have unique characteristics? When should you use your light therapy device to maximize results, and do certain types of lights work better depending on the time of day?
It’s easy to overthink your skincare routine, but if you follow these simple guidelines, you’ll be a skincare expert in no time.
What Type of Light Therapy Works Best in the Mornings vs. the Evenings?
Good news — the time of day has no bearing on light therapy performance. That means that the type of light therapy treatment you use in the mornings and evenings ultimately boils down to your skincare goals. For example, if you really want to focus on wrinkle reduction and prevention, then you may want to use red light therapy in the morning and in the evening — and the same goes for blue light if you mainly want to tackle acne concerns.
If you want to combat both acne and anti-aging concerns, you may consider using blue light in the morning and red light in the evening, or vice versa. Or, you could even do a blue light and red light treatment in the mornings and evenings, which can be easily achieved with a device that administers both forms of light.
Whether you choose to use blue light or red light therapy, or a combination of the two, we have you covered when it comes to layering light therapy with other skincare products for the ideal morning and evening routine.
The Best Skincare Routine Order: A Step-by-Step Guide
When you build out your skincare routine, the three main steps are to:
- Cleanse: Remove impurities.
- Tone: Balance the skin.
- Moisturize: Hydrate the skin.
Seems easy, right? What can complicate things is that some products don’t necessarily fall into one of these categories. Or, you may use two products that have similar benefits but don’t behave the same way on your skin. Take serums, face oils and moisturizers, for example. They often tackle similar concerns, but which order should you apply them in?
Below is a handy graphic that you can screenshot, or save on Instagram or Pinterest, as a reference that covers the ideal step-by-step skincare routine for both mornings and evenings.