Skincare is such a fun topic for me, and it’s been awhile. I get so many emails and DM’s about helping people fix their skin. From breakouts to wrinkles, I’ve seen them all… However, I’ve noticed a common theme, these problems are solvable by avoiding simple mistakes that I hear over and over again.
Did you know about eight out of ten skin issues can be solved by fixing what you’re currently doing as opposed to adding more products? I bet not. Again, shout out to the ever unreliable YouTube University for supplying all of the craziest, and mostly false, beauty advice in one convent place.
Due to the lack of education on the topic, as well as all of the false information being pushed out in product reviews by glorified Yelpers, I mean Influencers… I decided to pull together a list of a few (of they many) enormous skincare mistakes you could be making every single day.
Expecting Anti-Aging Products To Erase Wrinkles
Anti-aging is a funny thing. While the products that you apply topically to the skin will not fix wrinkles that are already there, they do help to hydrate and plump the skin. This helps fight new wrinkles from forming and gives the illusion that wrinkles have been erased, really they’re just hidden.
The only way to 100% rid yourself of wrinkles is medically. The least evasive option being Botox… Though I haven’t pulled the trigger yet, it is something that I’ll probably be trying in the near future. I have some fine lines on my forehead that I would like to see go away. Obviously when I do, you guys will be the first to know!
Not Removing Makeup Before Washing
Beauty school was what trained me to do this. I would remove my clients makeup and begin to pre-cleanse them, only to still see remnants of makeup still on their skin. Adversely, I’ve noticed that if I just wash my makeup off without wiping it with a makeup wipe first, the towel I dry with has a lot of foundation on it…
What I’m getting at here is that one or the other doesn’t work. You need to both remove your makeup with a wipe or remover and then gently cleanse… sometimes twice depending on how much you have caked on there.
*This doesn’t mean that you should start scrubbing the hell out of your skin to get all of your makeup off in one step.
In all honesty, it should almost always be a three-step method when you’re wearing makeup. It ensures that not only is your skin makeup free and clean, but you’re also not scrubbing it to the point of damaging the skin.
Changing All of Your Skincare Products at Once
This is a big one.
Some important background… it takes around 21 days for your body to adjust to something new. This includes things like diet, sleep schedule and of course adaptation to skincare products.
With that being said, it takes around 3 weeks for our skin to adjust to a new product. Think of it as a trial period…
However, you should only try one new product at a time. If you change your face wash, toner and moisturizer all at once and you being to breakout, you’re not going to know which product is hurting you at the end of your trial period.
I’ve seen this happen time and time again, patience is key! I know you want to try your favorite blogger’s exact skincare regiment, but work into it slowly. I promise you and your skin will thank me in the long run.
Masking 24-48 Hours Before an Event
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen girls “prepping for shoots” or spending their Thursday’s getting their skin ready for the weekend with a nice charcoal, mid or clay mask….
The thing about masks are that they aren’t complete *instant gratification*. Sure, your skin is soft and glowing after you wash it off. You’ve just stripped your face of all oils, dead skin and anything lying at the top of your pores, what else would you expect.
Notice I said “at the top” of your pores… Masks are made to have pull all the gunk and grime out of the deepest pits of our pores, which takes some time… 24 to 48 hours time to be exact. This is why it is recommended that you mask 3-5 days before an event. It really gives your pores time to clear out without presenting you with a large blemish on a Saturday night.
There’s an easy fix! Mask on Sunday’s… I doing recommend skincare Sunday, for two reasons. 1. Give to give your pores time to clear before the weekend. 2. Remove all of the makeup and other things that have gotten into your pores over the weekend.
Treating Something That’s Not There
Everyone is a hypochondriac when it comes to their skin. I’ve seen girls with the tiniest pores and no blemishes tell me that they’re “so oily” and I’ve seen people whose skin is simply “dehydrated” over treat for dryness.
At the end of the day, your skin will take all the TLC you’re willing to give, but some of that can be more harmful than helpful. Treating a problem that isn’t there can often lead to creating a whole new problem. Remember our skin is the largest organ of our body. Like other organs, it knows how to self-sustain and flourish, it is literally like its own computer. Your skin knows what it needs. For example, if you’re applying an oil to your face because it’s dry, you’re telling your skin it doesn’t need to produce oil. Therefore your skin is going to halt production of sebum, your natural oil and become more dried out. On the flip side, it could also tell you’re skin “hey dawg, pick up the slack, we need more sebum!” This is going to create a whole new set of problems because your skin is now super oily and you’re just like “WTF”.
Education is key. If you’re not sure about your skin type, click here or see your local Esthetician for some help.
Not Wearing SPF *All Year Long
Short & sweet, guys.
As we near the end of the Summer sun season, I feel the need to state this. Damaging UV-Rays are around all year long. Just because you can’t get a sun burn, doesn’t mean that you’re immune from other effects of the sun.
Aging and more importantly, skin cancer are often times the results of over exposure to UV-Rays. Protect yourself year round, please….
& don’t forget to reapply throughout the day!
Using Products that Should Stay in Your Kitchen on Your Face.
Things like coconut oil, nutmeg, baking soda and turmeric should all remain in your kitchen pantry where they belong.
We’re going to highlight coconut oil because it’s the worst fad ever. As stated above, adding oils to your skin (and hair) actually confuses the f*ck out of your body. It leads to either over drying OR you’re going to jump-start your sebum production and end up looking like a greased hog. Sure it smells yummy and everyone is doing it, but everyone is also ruining their skin.
If everyone was diving off a 10 story bridge into a pile of rocks would you? I would hope not.
The bottom line here is that if you are doing any of these things, it’s largely why you’re breaking out. Stop it immediately. Don’t believe everything you see on YouTube and Instagram.
& of course, if you have any questions, I’m always here to help….
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