Skincare Tips: 11 Skincare Mistakes You’re Making Without Knowing It

In the journey of achieving a perfect looking-skin, some efforts must be put in place which involves consistency and patience. But, it’s no doubt that some of us makes some terrible mistakes prior and while applying skincare topicals which may be one of the reasons you’re probably breaking out or not getting desired results.

That being said, we thought we should detail out some skincare mistakes you make on daily basis without even realizing it. We’ve put up this skincare tips to correct your mistakes, so to make things right to avoid possible occurrence of breakouts and boost skincare product’s effectiveness.

Skincare Tip 1: Not Packing Your Hair Backwards.

If you’ve got long hair, you really need to pack it backwards, this is to prevent introduction of bacteria to your face. As we go about our daily activities our hair is vulnerable to environmental pollutions, bacteria and germs which can also be passed on when it comes in contact with the skin on the face, therefore, packing it backwards will definitely curtail possible transmission and relatively makes it very convenient for you to properly apply your skincare topicals.

Skincare Tip 2: Not Washing Your Hands.

You don’t wash your hands prior to applying your skincare topicals? That’s gross!!.
Washing your hands properly is a sign of a good hygiene and a very important step when to comes to skincare routines. Ensure you wash your hands under a running water with a cleanser or soap to get rid of bacteria and germs.
This is to literally avoid introducing germs and bacteria to your skin.
Washing your hands eliminates bacteria build-ups sticking on your palms–you wouldn’t want to apply your skincare products with a bacteria-laden palm would you? Yuck!!.

While watching your hands ensure to pay more attention to your finger nails and don’t forget to wash in-between your fingers.

Skincare Tip 3: Sleeping With Your Make-Up On.

Yuck!. Seriously?, If you’re one of those that sleeps with make-up on, then you’re doing yourself more harm than good. Not only will you mess up your pillow case and bed sheet but literally inviting the occurrence of acne breakouts.
Sleeping with your makeup on can clog the pores while you sleep, resulting in the development of acne. Not to mention you’re depriving your skin pores of its breathing-peace and its ability to repair itself while you sleep.

According to Dr. Dr. Jessie Cheung, Board-certified dermatologist, “Sleeping in make-up is a terrible idea. Our skin is bombarded with dust and dirt throughout the day, and much of it sticks to the make-up and sebum in our skin. Leaving all that on overnight will damage the skin. It has been linked to skin discoloration and the breakdown of collagen. Also, if you’re prone to acne, sleeping in make-up will only cause more clogged pores, irritation, and pimples.

The double whammy is that when you sleep in your make-up, you’re also robbing your skin of the precious time it needs overnight to recover and regenerate from the daytime. So, the end result is dull, dry, wrinkly skin.”

Therefore, no matter how tired you maybe please and please endeavor to wipe off your make-up using a make-up wipe or cleansing oil to break down make-up, then follow up with a facial cleanser to remove all traces of make-up residue and other impurities.

Skincare Tip 4: Not Washing Your Face Properly.

Your face is vulnerable to dirt and dust during your daily activities, coupled with the make-up applied — which makes it very important to wash your face properly and also ensure you double cleanse to ensure you totally get out all the dirts and make-up residue. Infact, if you aren’t double cleansing you aren’t cleansing your face properly.

Double cleansing is a method of cleansing your face twice: First, with an oil-based cleanser and again with a water-based cleanser. This is to get rid of stubborn pore-clogging impurities and excessive oil.
Board certified dermatologist David Lortscher, M.D. said “The benefit of double cleansing is that the first cleanser will break down any makeup, remove dirt and excess oils from the day and clean your skin. The second cleanser will address your particular skin type or concern and should have ingredients to hydrate, smooth or exfoliate and treat acne”

You can use a facial cleansing brush alongside your facial cleanser to ensure a deep cleanse.

ALSO READ: See The Best Facial Cleansers Worthy For The Job.

Skincare Tip 5: Wiping Your Face With Dirty Towel.

You may think or assume that your towel is clean, therefore you’re good to go, but dear, if your towel was to be shown to you under a microscope, you’ll throw up. Your towel which has been hanging in your bathroom is often dirty and harboring acne-causing bacteria not visible to naked eye.

Using the same towel often to clean your face after double cleansing isn’t a good idea as you’re introducing germs and bacteria into your pores which may cause havoc.

Hygienically it’s advised to wash your towels thrice a week, but when it comes to wiping your face (which is the most sensitive area of the skin and prone to breakouts) we recommend using a paper towel or disposable face towel.

Rubbing your face with a towel is a no-no. Gently patting your face with a clean towel is OK. Don’t pat your face dry (making it look like a dry bone). Rather, pat gently, leaving it damp or moist, that way, your skincare topicals will absorb better into the skin.

You can use a unique trick (which most Korean skincare-lovers does). Instead of using a clean towel, paper towel or disposal tissue, skip the process, rather after double cleansing your face, gently wrap your hands around your cheeks and move up along your jawline and ears to shake off excess water. If you face is still dripping wet, repeat the process till excess water is taken-off before commencing your skincare routine.

The whole essence is to take off excessive water off your face, without literally drying it out, leaving it moist or damp and ready to receive your skincare topical-treatments.

Note: while taking off excess water off your face with your clean hands, please be gentle. Apply gentle motion, don’t be harsh, treat your face like an egg.

Skincare Tip 6: Not Exfoliating.

Exfoliation plays a major role in your skincare routine.
Not introducing exfoliating skincare products into your skincare routine what do you think you’re doing? You’re literally wasting your time.
Exfoliating your skin helps get rid of dead skin cells sitting on the top layer of your skin and unclog the pores of impurities and nasties thereby granting a free passage for your skincare topicals to penetrate deeper into your skin dermis to do their respective job.

Exfoliation can also brighten your skin tone and stimulate collagen production which in turn promotes skin elasticity and minimizes the appearance of wrinkles, fine lines and sagging.
But don’t overdo it, as over-exfoliation can cause Irritations such as dryness, redness, burning, or peeling. Chemicals peeling solutions such as AHAs and BHA should be used once or twice weekly. AHA facial cleansers should be used every other day. As your skin gets used to them, you can then start applying AHAs every day while BHA can be used everyday.

Skincare Tip 7: Not Moisturizing.

Like seriously? How can you not moisturize your skin? Oh, come-on you can’t possibly deny your skin its drink. Your skin needs moisture to stay healthy, looking plump and hydrated. Some folks tends to use more of exfoliating products such as chemicals peels, exfoliating cleansers, soaps and scrubs without using a moisture-rich moisturizer which is very wrong.

When looking for moisturizer check for humectant ingredients such as glycerin, hyaluronic acid and propylene glycol which are known to pull moisture from the atmosphere into the skin.
Board certified dermatologist Craig Kraffert says “First of all, you’ll want to start with a cream that really moisturizes. And hydration starts with ingredients known as humectants.
Humectants are important for longer lasting moisturization, Humectants to look for include glycerin, hyaluronic acid, and propylene glycol.” Check the ingredients list before you buy any moisturizer — face or body — and make sure it contains at least one humectant”

RELATED: These Oil-Free Moisturizers Will Keep Your Skin Optimally Hydrated.

Skincare Tip 8: Letting The Dropper Touch Your Skin.

If you’re a serum-lover, then you should be familiar with bottles with a dropper right? Most serums comes with glass droppers to make application convenient for users. The mistake most people do is letting the dropper touch your skin while trying to squeeze out the liquid on your skin. This will literally expose the dropper to bacteria and when sticked back into the serum bottle could cause bacteria growth which will definitely contaminate your serum and render it ineffective.

Skincare Tip 9: Neglecting Your Neck.

Your neck is part of your face, infact, your neck is an extension of your face, therefore it shouldn’t be neglected. It’s really unfortunate many people don’t show much love to their neck while applying their skincare topicals. Stop it.
Ensure to show same love to your neck while administering skincare treatments.

Skincare Tip 10: Using Too Many Skincare Products.

There is this saying that says “too much of everything is bad”. Using or layering too many skincare products is a no no, as It can be harsh on the skin, resulting in more breakouts and clogged pores, — this can be too much for the skin to handle.

Dr Pamela Benito an aesthetic doctor and skincare expert explains that layering too many skincare products can lead to congested skin. “Your skin could be oily and quite sticky because your skincare is just sitting on the surface.
Overloading your skin can also cause dryness, irritation and redness. You may also notice worsened breakouts and blocked pores (blackheads and comedones) where the skin looks generally clogged” Dr Benito further added
“The skin can’t handle all these ingredients at once and can get red and sensitised with an itchy rash effect”

Skincare Tip 11: Excluding Sunscreen.

Let’s face the fact: The sun is no friend to anyone. When the UV rays hits the skin, it stimulates massive production of melanin which can cause pigmentations such as dark patches, sun spots or even worse cause sunburn due to the fact some people apply skincare topicals that increases their skin’s sensitivity to the sun, which makes it vulnerable to sun damages.

Sunscreen shields your skin from UV rays, it blocks direct sun light from hitting your skin by forming a barrier to keep your skin protected from the dangerous UV rays of the sun. The sun is the devil, you wouldn’t want to ruin your skincare-efforts would you? So do the necessary. Don’t ever exempt using sunscreen during the day before stepping out under the sun. According to dermatologists “sunscreen is a must in every skincare routine”.

Dermatologists recommend using a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30, which blocks 97 percent of the sun’s UVB rays. Higher-number SPFs block slightly more of the sun’s UVB rays, but no sunscreen can block 100 percent of the sun’s UVB rays. It also advised to reapply your sunscreen after 2 hours.

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