WHAT’S IN YOUR NEW YEAR, NEW SKINCARE ROUTINE?
How to have clear skin in your roaring 20s!
I know what you’re thinking, New Year, new skincare routine, right?! If you are anything like the skincare product junkies here at Masktini clear, smooth, radiant skin is at the top of your list on this year’s vision board! A vision board… what’s that? That is a topic for another day, sweetheart. Let’s just focus on how you plan to look your best in the new decade starting with a revamped skincare routine.
To be clear (pun intended), skincare routines vary. Whether you have dry skin, oily skin, or what is considered normal or combination skin, there is no one-size-fits-all solution to all of your skin’s problems. Skin issues vary by skin tone or complexion. Seriously. As a semi-friendly black hottie, I can tell you that women with darker skin tones are more likely to suffer from hyperpigmentation compared to women with fair to medium toned complexions. Don’t believe me? Everyone’s favorite online doctor, WebMD, says that while skin problems are color-blind, there are certain skin conditions that “seem to affect dark skin more frequently or with more severity”. They listed hyperpigmentation as one of those conditions. So there you have it, that’s like science, duh.
The point is we want you to accomplish your New Year goals and have all the information you need to make informed decisions when deciding which products to use. Research and good old trial and error are the best ways to learn what works best for your skin. Keep scrolling to find out what will work for you in your 20s, try Woke Bae Whenever Moisture Spritzer to wake your face up a bit, and follow these skincare tips for healthy skin well into your 30s and 40s.
4 Tips for Skincare in Your 20s
Oh, the roaring 20s! It’s a time when you get to live life fully unhinged not necessarily knowing what will come next. If you’re lucky, you didn’t suffer from adolescent acne and still have clear, supple skin. For those of you who suffered from acne all through high school, let me just say, I’m very sorry! The bright side to teenage acne is that if you got a handle on it early you won’t have to worry about it as much in adulthood which is far more important.
If you’re still in college or freshly graduated and new in your career, you may fall prey to these common adult habits and activities: late nights (less than 7 hours of sleep each night), binge drinking (alcohol), excessive caffeine, tanning sans sunscreen, poor diet (sugary, oily, fatty processed foods), and not enough water. When you’re young, you feel invincible and your body’s agility through the many happy hours, random trips to Cabo, and last-minute projects will make you feel like you don’t have anything to worry about. Don't be fooled by your body's agility though! If you want to have good skin in your 30s and beyond this is prime time to get a handle on a good skincare routine that actually works! Here are a few tips:
1. Drink more water (and mind your business)
Just in case you haven’t heard, generous water intake daily is the basis of a good skincare routine in your 20s and beyond. Besides the fact that our bodies are over 60% water, it keeps you hydrated. Why is hydration important? Well, a dehydrated body means that your skin is dehydrated. Dehydrated skin is a breeding ground for skin issues including premature wrinkling, sagging, and all of the things that make you appear older than you are. If you want to maintain a youthful, cherubic appeal take a sip and repeat after me: water is my friend.
2. Monitor your caffeine intake
Yes, we know. There are many coffee-based skincare products on the market. I would be lying if I said that I never used a coffee scrub to exfoliate my body. While there are many benefits of using ground coffee beans on your skin, drinking too much coffee or caffeine-based products has its drawbacks. Coffee is a diuretic. A diuretic is a fancy term for something that makes you want to do the number one often. Every time you pee your body loses hydration. When your body loses hydration it dries out your skin. If your skin is dry constantly because you drink too much coffee… refer to my first point. You’re welcome.
3. Please don’t forget to wear sunscreen
The sun is fun but it is not water - it is not your friend! If you don’t want your skincare routine in your 30s to cost more than it needs to remember that fact. Skincancer.org says that “when it comes to skin cancer, a major risk factor is prolonged exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation.” Please note that they did not say that this is isolated to people with more fair complexions. It is a common misconception that people with increased melanin (i.e. darker complexions) are immune to the effects of the sun’s harmful rays. I know many people with darker complexions who go outside without some form of sunscreen! As someone with a darker complexion, I skipped sunscreen and used tanning agents (to make my skin darker) until that fateful day during a routine visit to my esthetician three years ago. When she told me that I had sun damage on my forehead I was devastated! I vowed to never go a day without wearing sunscreen that has an SPF of at least 30. Increased sun exposure doesn’t just darken your complexion - it dries it out, causes it to lose its elasticity, makes the texture rubbery, and promotes wrinkles. These are all things that make you look older than you are, hun. So the next time you plan to spend some time outdoors please remember to apply sunscreen first!
4. Go to sleep, love
We live in an age where sleepless nights are glorified. There’s nothing wrong with pulling a late-night every so often to catch up on work, binge-watch a show on Netflix, or mourn a breakup. However, it is problematic as a lifestyle. Outside of the physiological and psychological effects of no sleep, your skin suffers. Puffy eyes, dark circles, and a sagging face are all signs that you’re lacking sleep. The most important reason for sleeping is that it gives our bodies time to reset and recalibrate. A lack of sleep releases the stress hormone cortisol which leads to skin inflammation that triggers acne, psoriasis, and other skin conditions. Did I mention that increased cortisol leads to stress eating? Have you ever stress-eaten a healthy meal or do you prefer something sugary, salty, and fatty when you’re stressed? Probably the latter! What happens when you constantly eat sugary, salty, fatty foods? Well, your skin lives to tell a very unattractive tale and depending on your genetics, you pack on the pounds.
If you made it to the bottom of this article, you’re probably wondering: where are the product recommendations? Well, if you follow these four simple steps consistently, you probably won’t suffer from the typical skincare issues that affect 20-year-olds. There’s no secret that beauty starts from within; what you put into your body - from food to content on Instagram - is what it will put out. By taking care of yourself from the inside/out, you may be able to save yourself a few bucks at Sephora, Ulta, or your beauty supply store of choice.
Follow these four tips and your skincare routine may become as simple as using an oil-free, water-based face wash and complimenting oil-free moisturizer, zinc-oxide mineral sunscreen, and the occasional eye-cream to prevent wrinkles. If you do all of these, yet still have skin issues, and really just want to know what works, we currently have four products that will go well with your day-to-night skincare routine. Check them out here and let us know what you think by leaving an honest review. Shameless plug: Metal Head Gold Brightening Mask is my fave!