I swear by this 5-step night skin care routine

I'll put it like this; if you want healthy, flawless skin, then taking care of your skin just before you go to bed is as essential as taking care of it when you rise. This is because our skin goes into recovery mode at night, allowing the products to absorb better and repair itself faster. And then, of course, there's just something about winding down with a lovely pampering session of night skin care routine steps, after a long day.

So on that note, it's time to get up close and personal with my night skin care routine.

I personally have acne-prone skin, and caring for my stubborn acne has been a rocky road.

It's like we are fighting a long gruelling war. As soon as I'd defeat one pimple, three more would pop out of nowhere. Constantly plagued with whiteheads and stubborn, painful pimples were beginning to lower my self-esteem while leaving me frustrated at the same time. Sounds dramatic, right? But it's all true.

This ever-growing frustration led me to engage in a treasure hunt for the best skincare routine, and a few months ago, I found the perfect night skin care routine along with the ideal products. 

After many trials and errors with different products, facials, DIY home remedies and A LOT OF RESEARCH, there's no better feeling than finding a night time skincare routine and products that actually work. Ah, what a relief!

Nothing too fancy, expensive or extensive, but it has been working well. I could see visible results, and I have been successfully defeating those stubborn zits without worrying about others popping up in place of them. And now I absolutely swear by this night time skin care routine and products, so I'm sharing them with you! 

If your skin just happens to be anything like mine and are looking for some inspo, check out my five-step night skin care routine for glowing skin.

Like I mentioned before, the skin naturally repairs itself at night, so my routine is all about treating it right and giving my skin what it needs. I follow 5 important steps—Cleanse, Hydrate, Protect, Treat, and Moisturize. So let's get to it!

Step 1: Cleanse

To start off with my night routine, I always cleanse my face with a gentle but deep cleaning acne nixing face wash. The key here is to get rid of all the dirt and excess sebum from the skin. Essentially, what I'm doing here is prepping my skin for the next step to let it quickly absorb the products and work well.

This Mamaearth Tea Tree Natural Face Wash for Acne & Pimples has been my all-time favourite, and it really does the job leaving my skin feeling clean and fresh without stripping away any natural moisture and, of course, tackles acne effectively.

This one is specially crafted for oily and acne-prone skin. It is infused with tea tree and contains neem that gently cleanses the skin impurities, reduces acne and relieves itchiness and redness. Honestly, one of the best additions in my night skin care routine! 

Pro Tips I follow 

• Always remember to choose a cleanser that's gentle and doesn't leave my skin feeling stripped (a tight and dry feeling).
• Gently rub my fingertips in upward circular motions.
• Use a soft towel to gently pat off the water from my face instead of rubbing a harsh towel over my face.
   

Not to forget, on the days my skin is all dolled up with makeup products, I work the double cleansing ritual to dissolve the makeup and take it off completely.

For this step, I use The Face Shop Rice Water Cleansing Foam. Enriched with rice water, it eliminates stubborn makeup without leaving behind any residue and makes my skin soft.

Step 2: Tone and Hydrate

In this step, I use a toner to give my skin an extra hydration boost while tackling the acne. At times when my skin is a little dehydrated, it stimulates more oil production, so adding more hydration curbs that extra unwanted oil production in my skin.

I just love this toner! The Plum Green Tea Alcohol-Free toner was the best thing I could ever come across. Brimming with green tea extracts and glycolic acid, it tightens my enlarged pores, fades away blemishes, gently exfoliates dead skin cells and last but not least, it offers my skin the hydration it needs.

Pro Tips I follow: 

• Only and only use a toner once my face is thoroughly cleansed.
• I don’t use cotton pads as I find them harsh, and most of the product gets absorbed into the pad instead of on my face.
• Take 2-3 drops onto my palm, lightly pat it on and use my fingertips to massage it into my skin.
• Swipe the excess toner on my neck and décolletage.

Step 3: Under Eye Care 

Compared to my daily routine, I apply an under-eye gel before applying the serum at night. Aside from addressing dark circles, I use it to protect my under eye area from other products since the skin under our eyes is most delicate.

DermDoc's Dark Circle Under Eye Gel Roll On has done wonders. Formulated with Niacinamide, it has helped my under eye skin in many ways; it treats my dark circles, reduces puffiness, nourishes, and moisturizes my skin. I would highly recommend this product for the best night skin care routine.

Pro Tips I follow 

• Dot the gel on the under-eye area, starting in the innermost corner and moving outward.
• Avoid applying it too close to my bottom eyelashes.
• Gently roll the applicator on the skin.
• Wait for about 2 minutes or so to let the under eye gel fully absorb into the skin.

Step 4: Treatment

For this step, I add a serum. Since serums are products concentrated with focused ingredients to penetrate the skin, directly targeting a particular skin concern, they work magically at night. I personally love trying out different serums; however, I stay mindful of what my skin really needs at night.

For the days when my skin feels too oily or if I spot any pimple popping out, I use the Good Vibes Tea Tree & Papaya Oil Control Serum. Enriched with tea tree and papaya, this serum regulates the excess oil production in my skin, shrinks enlarged pores, fights acne and fades away blemishes.

Then on the days when my skin feels dehydrated, the Green Tea Seed Serum from Innisfree comes to my rescue. It is a nourishing serum that replenishes my skin and adds a radiant glow. Blended with Jeju green tea extract and green tea seed oil, it balances and retains moisture.

Pro Tips I follow: 

• Pay attention to what my skin needs.
• Use only a pea-size amount since serums are highly concentrated.
• I give it time to see the results. This will differ depending on how badly one's skin is affected.
• Avoid serums with colour or fragrance, they cause skin irritation.
• I give it about 5 minutes to fully absorb into my skin before moving onto the next  product.
   

Step 5: Beauty sleep

Now, this is one of my favourite night skin care routine steps that I adopted from the Korean skincare routine. Their sleepy secret to that gorgeous morning glow that helps them to get going. If you know me by now, you know I had to slip it in my routine. In this step, I swap my moisturizer with a sleeping mask. I essentially use a sleeping mask three times a week to give my nighttime regimen a boost, brighten my skin and seal in the goodness that comes from the other products I've slathered on before.

I use the Innisfree Jeju Orchid Sleeping Mask. This overnight mask infused with Jeju Orchid and relaxing lavender oil forms a moisture barrier throughout the night to give my skin a dose of nourishment. It also imparts brightness, strengthens and smoothens it for softer, glowing skin the following morning.

Pro Tips I follow: 

• Make sure to use it only thrice a week and not more.
• Clean my palms again.
• Scoop out a dollop of the mask and spread it all over my face.
• Head straight to bed.
   

So, there you go. That's the nightly routine that saved my skin!

As you may have noticed, not all the products I use in my routine specifically target acne. I have thrown in a lot of hydration too. What I learned from my extensive research is that when it comes to acne, hydration plays a humongous role in dealing with it.

Dehydrated skin contributes to the majority of skin problems out there, and in my case, it is probably one of the prime suspects of the never-ending acne. What I am saying here is that without hydration, it is impossible to have a balanced skin.

To remain healthy, our skin needs a balance of water and oil, and when it doesn't get enough water, it reacts by pushing out more oil to make up for the lack of water. Hydrating your skin helps fight against congestion, blackheads, whiteheads and breakouts.

My Experience

I have to say the first few nights felt like a task; but once I got used to the idea of pampering my skin with these useful products every night, the rest began to fall in place. I knew each step and which product would follow next, by heart.

Fast-forwarding to a few nights later, when my skin went on a full breakout spree, I was super confused as to why this happened and thought that these products weren't working out once again. What a bummer, right? But then, all hail to the master of knowledge-THE INTERNET. I know, I KNOW! We shouldn’t believe in everything the internet says.

I began to do a little research on why this was happening. After reading multiple informative articles, I came to understand what was happening. The phenomenon is called "SKIN PURGING".

Skin purging? What's that? Well, it is a sign that the products are working. Simply put, it's our skin's reaction to specific active ingredients that trigger cell turnover. This essentially exfoliates the skin, bringing all the dead skin cells, oil, bacteria, and dirt beneath the skin to the surface before it can get rid of it all. Thus the crazy spurt of breakouts. This whole skin purging phase lasted for about roughly three weeks until it slowly began to clear up. Again, this can differ from person to person. Typically, skin purging lasts anywhere between a few weeks to a few months.

All in all, it was a wonderful experience. I really came to appreciate every part of this routine and fell in love with every product. The texture and smell of the products were so soft and pleasant; they never felt sticky and worked quite well on my skin. I saw my acne, blemishes and dark circles fade away, leaving me with clear, softer, and smoother skin. My acne hasn't completely cleared up, but most of it has and is still in the process of clearing up. I never thought I'd be able to get rid of this horrible acne problem, but damn, that wasn't the case! Waking up to fewer pimples and skin that didn't feel greasy or sticky like it used to was such a blessing. It rebuilt my confidence and I began to start feeling comfortable in my own skin.

That being said, skincare is a very personal process and can be different for everyone. I hope my night skin care routine can help you the way it turned out to be useful for me and that you enjoy the process and reap the benefits.