I think I’ve been working on skincare long enough, and also old enough, to reflect on the journey. Here are some lessons, amongst quite a few, that I’ve picked out

#1: Skincare is as expensive or as affordable as you need it to be

One of the reasons why I love Asian skincare/beauty is only it’s what I’ve grown up using them, but also because of how great some of the price points are for very decent products.

There are a lot of brands in skincare, it’s so saturated, and we’re provided with loads of choices and influences everyday and the one thing to remember in life is of course to know how to spend money wisely; which means you choose how much you want to spend on skincare - it can be as expensive as you want it to be, or as affordable as you need it to be.

I’d happily spend more on serums (NIOD), but high functioning products don’t also need to come with a high price point, e.g. The Ordinary being a prime example. There are also plenty of k-beauty products that utilise better technology, producing better products for a lower price point.

So shop around, don’t get too influenced by all the content you see online, and make good decisions on where you want to spend your money on in skincare.

#2: Trending products are not necessarily the right products for your skin

There was a time where The Ordinary AHA BHA solution (you know, the red one) was trending major. But improper use of the product or using it when you don’t need it, amongst other things, are only the few reasons why the product isn’t for you. I love the product, it’s a great exfoliant, but with how my skin has changed and its state, I honestly rarely use it these days and opt for a gommage type exfoliant for my skin.

Chase trends all the time and you’ll just get more products piling up which may or may not be suitable for your skin.

Don’t get me wrong, there are certain brands, like Corx and Purito, that I am excited about new launches, but it definitely does not mean I’ll be charging out to get them because of the amount of content these brands will generate. Or in the case of sunscreen, if I need it.

#3 You don’t need to double cleanse all the time, well, I don’t

Only just about 2-3 years ago I was still religiously double-cleansing every night. For good reasons: 1: I was wearing make up and sunscreen everyday to go into work; 2: my skin was filthy being outside. Since the pandemic, I got lazy and because there was no real need for makeup (I guess I’ve given up?), so I stopped double cleansing and just balm cleansed.

And then later on I realised even with makeup and sunscreen, I could actually get away with just a balm cleanse that not only does not strip my skin, but also reduced 1 product in my evening routine.

If you’re someone who needs to double cleanse, but by all means do so, just know that it’s not a golden rule. You probably already know this though, maybe it’s just me - I took double cleansing very seriously especially with my acne.

#4 Your routine is as long as you need it to be, the key is consistency

The skin you take care of today is the skin you have tomorrow. No product is necessarily going to deliver miracle to give you clear amazing perfect skin the next day, and there will be some products that need time to really work, e.g. vitamin C. And there will be some products where you need consistency as a preventative measure, e.g. sunscreen.

Your routine can be as long or as short as you need it to be. Do you need 3-4 serums like I do? No. Do you need to have toner in the morning? No. As long as that’s what your skin is telling you. But what you need is a routine that you’re happy with and one that you will stick with. Everyday. To build the beautiful skin you want tomorrow. Yes, you need to build a habit that you know you’re going to keep

#5 Wear SPF

The sun is a pretty big factor to skin cancer, hyper pigmentation etc. You don’t want to be un-doing your great skincare routine and that great skin you’ve achieved by not wearing SPF. There are so many options out there today, my favourites being in K-Beauty but western beauty like La Roche Posay, do some pretty decent sunscreen for a reasonable price.

I try to wear sunscreen everyday, including indoors, with the exception that I know it’s likely that I will be spending most of the day in the dark (i.e. not open any of my blackout curtains). Do I get lazy/naughty sometimes? Absolutely, but that’s going to be less damage than just not wearing it.

I am still lazy in re-applying my sunscreen so that’s something I am going to work on. K-Beauty SPF product have come a long way so I have less excuse to not reapplying!

That’s it for now, there are plenty of things over the years in skincare lessons, what are yours?