Although a skincare routine needs to be personalized and designed based on specific needs and conditions, some essential steps should be noted and emphasized in any routine. Besides specialized solutions, choosing the right basic skincare products will also help accelerate the time and enhance the effectiveness of improving existing skin problems. Let's review the important steps in designing an at-home skincare routine!

1. Determine your skin type and needs

This is a mandatory step before starting to design an at-home skincare routine. With the diversity and personal specificity of cosmetics and cosmeceuticals, you need to identify your skin's characteristics, condition, and needs to easily find and choose suitable products.

1.1 Skin type

Here's how skin types are classified based on their physiological characteristics. Generally, skin is divided into 5 groups:

• Normal skin: Skin in this group has ideal balance, no excessive sebaceous gland activity, and no signs of dryness. It feels soft and clean.

• Dry skin: The stratum corneum has an optimal moisture content of about 10%. When this water content drops, the skin appears dry, lacks elasticity, and peels. Some cases of dry skin are side effects of using certain skincare products or consequences of weather changes, lifestyle, medication, etc. However, some are characteristic of an individual. Without appropriate care products, dry skin can increase the risk of problems such as inflammation, bacterial invasion, irritation, etc.

• Oily skin: Sebaceous glands are overactive due to genetic factors or hormonal influences. Therefore, those with oily skin often face accompanying issues such as hidden acne, acne vulgaris, and enlarged pores.

• Combination skin: This can be considered a "fussy" skin group due to an imbalance of oil and water, where the T-zone (forehead, nose, and chin) tends to be oily, while the cheekbones exhibit characteristics of dry skin. This makes the skin prone to conditions like whiteheads, blackheads, inflammatory acne, etc.

• Sensitive skin: This skin type frequently experiences irritation, burning, redness, and even Rosacea or seborrheic dermatitis due to changes in weather, environment, or skincare products. The sensitivity of the skin to minor external changes makes it particularly challenging to care for and manage the lifestyle of individuals with this skin type. What's even more unfortunate is that the prevalence of sensitive skin syndrome is gradually increasing in the population; a recent report shows that this rate accounts for 38.4% of the global population and is rapidly increasing.

In reality, for an organ as complex as the skin, influenced by many different factors, from the basic skin types above, other smaller subgroups arise corresponding to different individuals.

1.2 Skin condition and corresponding active ingredients

As mentioned in a recent article, each condition is a signal that the skin is experiencing a nutrient deficiency or dysfunction in one or more specific activities. Therefore, make sure that the products and nutrients you choose for your skin are beneficial for these conditions.

>> See detailed article Skin conditions and corresponding active ingredients

Additionally, it's important to note that one of the crucial requirements when designing a skincare routine is simplicity. This not only helps you stick to your skincare routine but also helps avoid "conflicts" between products and active ingredients in the routine, as well as preventing your skin from being exposed to too many active ingredients at once. Therefore, prioritize choosing versatile active ingredients such as Niacinamide, Hyaluronic acid, retinoids, etc.

1.3 Other considerations

1.3.1. Order of product application in a routine

One of the biggest concerns when designing a skincare routine is the order of product application. Basically, the order will be: Cleansing >> Toning >> Specialized serum >> Moisturizer / Sunscreen. In some cases, each step may include multiple products, in which case you can refer to the following principles:

1.3.2. Individual factors and time to see results

One thing to note when choosing skincare products is the individual factor. Different individuals may respond differently to the same product. Therefore, when following a specific skincare routine, if you find that the results are slower than expected, talk to your expert or consultant to comprehensively review your routine and be patient in this beauty enhancement process.

2. Important skincare steps in your routine

2.1 Cleansing

“Double cleansing” is one of the skincare concepts that has gained recent attention and positive changes in the skin have been observed when applying this 2-step deep cleansing routine.

This result confirms the role of the cleansing step in the entire skincare routine. Skin needs to be properly cleansed to remove dirt, makeup residue, excess oil, dead skin cells, etc., to prevent accumulation that causes acne and create favorable conditions for the absorption of nutrients into the skin.

Another factor that needs to be considered when choosing a cleanser is its impact on the skin's protective barrier. Some unsuitable products can damage the lipid layer, leading to dry or irritated skin.

2.2 Moisturizing

Even if you have oily skin, moisturizing is always an essential skincare step. Skin needs to maintain optimal moisture (~10% in the stratum corneum) to perform its vital functions well. Moreover, dehydration in skin cells leads to cell degeneration, degradation of skin structure, and accelerated skin aging.

Additionally, some skincare routines that include active ingredients like BHA, retinoids, etc., can lead to dry skin and require truly effective moisturizing solutions.

2.3 Sun protection

Most skin problems are the cumulative manifestation of UV damage from sunlight. Therefore, make sure you use sunscreen before engaging in outdoor activities. Additionally, it is important to enhance protection with antioxidants. A skincare routine or any skin treatment will not yield desired results if you do not have a solution to protect your skin from the attack of harmful external agents.

3. Some products that should be added to your skincare routine

3.1 oh!oh! Xylica Micellar Cleansing Water for Deep Cleansing and Lipid Barrier Restoration

Applying the "double cleansing rule," makeup remover has become an indispensable step in any skincare routine. In addition to its cleansing ability, makeup removers containing ingredients like the 1% Cica complex (Centella Asiatica extract + Pentacyclic Triterpenoid Saponins) in Xylica Micellar Cleansing Water will help restore the lipid barrier, reduce irritation and dryness, and address common drawbacks of conventional cleansers.

>> See product details here

3.2 oh!oh! HA & Proteoglycans Amber Serum

Hyaluronic acid (HA) not only affects the immediate plumpness and smoothness of the skin but also plays a crucial role in the skin's aging process. As one of the four main components of the extracellular matrix, HA not only functions to attract and provide moisture but also acts as a signaling molecule for cell proliferation and differentiation, stimulates collagen production, and is essential for the skin's wound healing process.

However, you need to pay attention to another special aspect: the size of the Hyaluronic Acid molecules in the product. This will affect the molecule's activity site after application, as Hyaluronic Acid will exert corresponding effects at different skin layers. This is also one of the prominent differences of oh!oh! HA & Proteoglycans Amber Serum on the market.

With an impressive formula and light, fast-absorbing texture that doesn't leave a greasy residue on the skin, suitable for all skin types, oh!oh! HA & Proteoglycans Amber Serum should be a priority choice in any at-home skincare routine.

>> See product details here

3.3 oh!oh! Oatmere Serum Cream

Performing its function of protecting the body, skin daily faces harmful environmental factors such as UV rays, pollution, and dust. Additionally, some specialized skincare treatments for issues like acne, melasma, and wrinkles can affect the skin's functional activity. Although the body naturally equips itself with a mechanism for repairing damage at cellular and molecular levels, under increasing pressure from these factors, this mechanism becomes overloaded, reducing its efficiency and making the skin increasingly sensitive. Reports on the rising incidence of sensitive skin in the population have also mentioned this situation. Therefore, skin recovery needs more attention and emphasis.

With 9.9 ppm EGF (epidermal growth factor) and 4.5% Oat Extract in its formula, oh!oh! Oatmere Serum helps stimulate epidermal cell division and promotes additional elastin production, restructuring the skin, activating wound healing mechanisms, and scar healing, making it suitable for sensitive skin care routines and skin using therapeutic active ingredients, post-treatment, or cosmetic interventions.

>> See product details here

REFERENCES

1. Ong, R., Goh, C. Niacinamide: a review on dermal delivery strategies and clinical evidence. Drug Deliv. and Transl. Res. (2024)
2. Oliveira, R.; Ferreira, J.; Azevedo, L.F.; Almeida, I.F. An Overview of Methods to Characterize Skin Type: Focus on Visual Rating Scales and Self-Report Instruments. Cosmetics 2023, 10, 14
3. Duarte I, Silveira JEPS, Hafner MFS, Toyota R, Pedroso DMM. Sensitive skin: review of an ascending concept. An Bras Dermatol. 2017 Jul-Aug;92(4):521-525