Skincare Routine Malam Untuk Pemula

Skincare can be very scary for a lot of people. This happened to me too when I first jumped into the bandwagon, researching and reading reviews from every web I could find yet somehow I still ended up confused. Cheap skincare doesn't always mean bad, and so does the expensive one, doesn't always mean that they will do magic to your face. I'm sure a lot of you who has barely started taking good care of your face is struggling with the same simple question: what should I put on my face?

Now now, I'm not here as an expert. I barely know all the verdicts of every product BUT, for the past few months studying my own skin, I have finally come up with a steady routine that I know for sure works for me. My skin type is combination to oily, large pores, comedogenic and PIH. So if you happen to share the same skin problem as I do, feel free to give these products a try!

STEP 1: FIRST CLEANSER

So before I start learning more about skincare, I thought make-up remover was only meant to be used when you use make-up, to get rid of them before you wash your face. But now, I understand how important double cleansing is for everyday use. Even when I don't go anywhere outside, or not wearing any make-up, I will still clean my face first using first cleanser. Now, first cleanser can be anything. Shown here is a micellar water from Garnier, the oil-infused one because it contains oil and actually works wonder to hydrate the face because some micellar water can dry out your skin. I specifically use this when I wear make-up beforehand, otherwise when I don't, I would use a cleansing balm instead. I didn't take a picture of it, but my cleansing balm comes from Innisfree, the Jeju Volcanic Blackhead Out Balm. Other form of first cleanser is cleansing oil. We have Viva Milk Cleanser, and I've also heard great things about Hada Labo Cleansing Oil, the one with the green stripe. I don't use cleansing oil because I feel like they're too heavy for my pores, I'm afraid they will clog them.

STEP 2: SECOND CLEANSER

After you clean your face using the first cleanser, you continue with second cleanser. I haven't seen a lot of people doing triple cleansing, so I will go straight to face wash as my second cleanser in this case. There's only one type of second cleanser, it's the face wash. Whatever face wash that works for you. Mine is COSRX Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanser. I used to use the one from Hada Labo and Senka Perfect Whip, but now I'm sticking with this baby. It's very important for face wash to not dry out the skin even more. It happened to me with my previous face wash. I try to avoid face wash that creates too much foam. This COSRX one doesn't make foam and is infused with tea tree that works well to handle acne. Also, low pH face wash doesn't mess with your skin barrier which is very important.

STEP 3: EXFOLIATING TONER

I didn't know what was the importance of incorporating exfoliating toner into my routine at first, until I won this baby from a giveaway some weeks ago. So exfoliating toner mostly used after you wash your face. When I first tried it, I was shook. The pad turned dirty as if I hadn't cleaned my face at all when in fact, I had. Ever since then it changed my skincare game. I'm not saying that you need exfoliating toner because every skin is different and you know yours better than I do, but looking at the effect of how it keeps my skin smooth, takes out the impurities left even after I do double cleansing, I highly recommend you to get one. Try mild exfoliating toner first and see how your skin reacts to them, such as; Some by Mi's 30 Days Miracle Toner, or COSRX AHA Power Toner. It's important not to exfoliate too much, because as much as it's fun to see impurities go away, this type of toner can draw out the moisture out of your skin. I only use exfoliating toner twice a week, once if my skin is dehydrated. Plus, it helps my PIH to fade quicker. Because when you suffer from PIH, you gotta exfoliate to get rid of the dead skin.

STEP 4: HYDRATING TONER

After you finish with exfoliating toner, it's always important to hydrate the skin. I've learned the key ingredients to hydrating toner which is the Hyaluronic Acid. That acid can be found in a lot of hydrating products. But if you're going to use HA, you must first understand how it actually works. HA will draw out the moisture from around you to hydrate the skin. If you're in a dry or humid surrounding, most likely using HA will instead dry out your skin, no matter what your skin type is, because it can't find source of water and will absorb the moisture of your skin instead, which is why some people experience HA to be very drying for their skin. This one from Hada Labo is my long time favorite. I have used it for a year. What I love most about it is the water-like texture, perfect for my oily skin and I don't have to be worried if it would clog my pores.

STEP 5: MOISTURIZE

I love moisturizer. I love everything that hydrates the skin. People used to think that 'oh, my skin is very oily, I should not add more moisture', when in reality, oily skin does need moisturizer. The oil we produce is caused by the lack of moisture we have on the skin. So it's like our antibody trying to defend our body from virus so we don't get sick. I'm currently trying out the Laneige basic kit moisturize that I also won from another giveaway recently. It does wonder to my skin. So far so good!

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As I've said it before, I'm not an expert. I'm here sharing what I know works best for me. Skincare is a very personal thing. The journey to finding the right products that will work on you is very personal and meaningful. Even when we share the same skin type or the same skin problem, I can guarantee that not all of these products will work good on you as much as they do on me. But I'd love to see if you're interested on trying any of them, so please if in some way I enabled you on buying them, do share! I'd love to hear what you have to say about them!

To anyone wondering about my morning skincare routine, it's nothing complex really. I remove the exfoliating toner, hydrating toner, and add sunscreen as the final step. NEVER SKIP SUNSCREEN YO. It's really important.

I hope you enjoy today's post, and I hope you find this post helpful. Thank you for reading and see you on another post!