What is a minimalist makeup and skincare routine?
It means you use the minimum amount of make up and skincare products and processes.
When you are using the bare minimum, you are intentionally avoiding the unnecessary, keeping it simple, smart, and efficient.
Importance of simplicity
Simplicity in your beauty routine can actually start out by being complicated. Yes, in order to simplify, you need to assess your entire make up and skincare routine.
Your makeup and skincare routine isn’t limited to the moments where you’re spreading moisturizer or dabbing concealer.
Your beauty routine begins the moment you start researching your skin type and your skin needs.
This includes seeing a physician, dermatologist, or aesthetician to get their professional insights and treatments.
Researching your skin also includes experimenting and testing a variety of make up and skincare products, until you find what does and doesn’t harmonize with your skin.
Benefits of a minimalist approach to make up and skincare
Healthier and smarter decisions are the main benefits of a minimalist approach to make up and skincare
The better your understand your skin’s reactions to the environment, chemicals, and to your emotions, the more thoughtful you will be about your makeup and skincare shopping.
You might realize that investing in an expensive facial treatment a few times of year will strengthen your skin, making you less reliant on heavy, acne inducing make up and skincare products.
My Minimalist Makeup Routine
Make up primer: Water and oil based primers are the most common. find out which one goes better with your skin type AND with your foundation.
Foundation: Your foundation has to be compatible with your primer or the products might have a chemical opposition that makes your foundation resist and peel. Foundation can also act as protective barrier between your skin, the sun, and other environmental pollutants.
Eyeliner: Eyeliner is a must. Depending on your eyeshape, your eyebrows and your skin tone, you have to find out if cat eyeliner works for you or if an inner waterline eyeliner works best for you.
Concealer: Concealer should be at least shades lighter than your foundation. Concealer has so many wonderful uses such as lifting, brightening, highlighting, and concealing.
Blush: I love rosy cheeks! Blush gives such a youthful and playful touch to your smile.
Mascara: Flirty long lashes also help with the youthful and playful vibe. Test a few mascaras to make sure you use one that doesn’t run or smear easily.
Lips: Don’t walk around with chapped dry lips. Put some gloss, lipstick, or some petroleum jelly at the bare minimum.
Setting Powder: This is a must for oily skin, especially when the weather is prone to make your t-zones shiny.
Beauty Blenders: Since I have textured oily skin, beauty blenders are the best tool to apply my foundation and concealer.
As you can tell, the essential makeup products mentioned above should conserve and enrich your natural features. I don’t see make-up as a method of hiding or altering your skin, but it’s really a creative process where you accentuate your unique features.
Minimalist Skincare Routine
Evening Essentials
Pre-cleanser: The pre-cleanser I use helps quickly melt away all of the makeup and build up on my skin. This is gentle but heavy duty product that ensures your skin will be clear.
Cleanser: I recommend a gel cleanser after you pre-cleanse to make sure you wash off all residue from your face and neck.
Toner: I suggest natural toners that contain ingredients like witch hazel and rose water that have multi-functions like anti-septic and healing properties.
Oil: My skin is combination/oily so a light layer of grapeseed oil normalizes my excessive sebum production.
Morning Essentials
Gentle Cleanser: After waking from your slumber, you probably tossed and flipped and got some hair product on your face. Make sure to use a gentle cleanser to refresh your face in the morning.
Serum: While your face is wet and clean, dab on some Vitamin C serum or any serum that brightens your skin. Vitamin C is my fave because it smells like orange.
Light weight moisturizer: My skin is combination/oily type so it needs light moisture that it can easily aborb.
Water based cream: The moisturizer isn’t quite enough especially during dry weather so a light water based cream goes well to provide the right amount of hydration.
Mineral Sunscreen: Mineral suncreens work best for my skin care because it protects my skin from sun damage and mineral is most compatible with my primer and foundation.
Practical Makeup & Skincare Tips
- Watch skincare and makeup videos that focus on your skin type
- Consult dermatologist and aestheticians to understand what negatively triggers and impacts your skin. For my skin, dairy is the largest perpetuator of acne.
- Invest in quality products.
- Not all quality products need to cost a fortune.
- Prioritize skincare and skin health over make up. This gap will make it so easy to reduce make up.
- Don’t be afraid to experiment with professional facials or new products.
- Observe what triggers bad skin reactions. Might be dairy, might be the dry air, might be the heavy foundation.
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