Morning Skincare Routine

A rule of thumb with skincare (both nighttime and morning) is thin to thick! 

Step 1: Cleanse

I use Glow Recipe Blueberry Bounce Cleanser on the mornings following my recovery nights of my Skin Cycle process (nights 3 and 4). I use Cereve Hydrating Cleanser on the mornings following exfoliation and Retin-A, when the skin can be a little dry/irritated. 

Step 2: Vitamin C

I use Derma-E Vitamin C Serum every single morning. I’ve been using this serum for a a few years now. I absolutely love it and how it makes my face look so bright and fresh— and at a reasonable price tag! Some Vitamin C formulas can be harsh and irritating, but this serum is the perfect amount of Vitamin C, hyaluronic acid, and probiotics. It leaves the skin feeling nourished and ready for the day. Dermatologists recommend Vitamin C for plenty of reasons. This naturally anti-inflammatory antioxidant helps brighten collection, boost collagen production, improve skin tone and texture, hydrate the skin, protect skin from sun damage/eliminate dark spots and wrinkles, promote skin healing, and diminish scars. 

Step 3: Snail Mucin

If you read our Skin Cycling 101 blog post, you know Snail Mucin is a “bonus” hydration-boosting step. In addition to helping hydrate your skin, it also brightens and improves radiance, plumps the skin, and helps minimize fine lines and wrinkles. Overall, we find that this relatively new skin product is one of those “holy grails” that helps give our skin an extra glow. You can also moisturize after this, but I do not in the mornings! I use Snail Mucin in place of my moisturizer in the mornings only. At night, I use both. If your skin is dry or you are experiencing any dryness or irritation from Skin Cycling, using an actual moisturizer in the morning will help! 

Step 4: Brighten Eye Area

Giving some love to your eye area is a must in the morning! If you have time, eye masks are amazing! I use DRMTLGY Brightening Eye Masks and Pixi DetoxifEYE Eye Masks (a great and less expensive alternative from Target). Most mornings, I don’t have time to use eye masks, as they need to sit on the face for a while, so I use the InnBeauty Project Bright & Tight Dark Circle Eye Cream. I apply it under the eye and above the eye. It brightens the entire orbital bone area and makes me look much more awake. If you’re looking for a less expensive option, the Ordinary also makes a great Caffeine Serum that works well too. It is a little more potent and I don’t recommend applying it above the eyes, but only on the under eye area. 

Step 5: SPF 

I am not always the best at this, but you really should apply an SPF every day, especially when using Retin-A! I do this much more consistently in the summer, though the experts say you should use it every day, year round. The best face SPF I’ve found is Everyday Humans Resting Beach Face Sunscreen Serum. It works well under make-up and isn’t greasy/too thick. I use it in the summer and at the beach a lot and it definitely protects my skin and leaves me tan, but not burned! I also use DRMTLGY Universal Tinted Moisturizer a lot in the summer (days at home/at the beach) as an SPF/tinted moisturizer combo, which allows me to use one product instead of both SPF and foundation. Typically, I use Tarte Tinted Moisturizer for my every day foundation. It’s lightweight and has an SPF 20 included. 

Step 6: Conceal Redness

I do get some redness with Retin-A at times, so I use Rescue Balm. I know some people who have rosacea also use it and love it. It’s a great last step before make-up to even skin tone and enable your foundation or tinted moisturizer to better conceal any redness on the face.