Originally posted on https://www.whatlauralovesuk.com/secrets-of-women-with-radiant-skin/

How our skin looks and feels is so intrinsically linked to how we feel about ourselves.  I don’t think I’d be too wrong in saying that the greater majority of us would love lovely healthy looking skin, even if makeup and placing an importance on your appearence isn’t usually for you.  Equally, you could be the most confidence person ever that really doesn’t care what others think and dresses for yourself but if you had a really bad breakout on your skin it could still knock you, albeit briefly.

When our skin looks radiant, we feel better.  We’re more confident, we smile more, we hold our heads high, and we know that we look great.  Healthy skin is whatever it means for you and depending on genetics, hormones and how your skin is naturally, your measure of it will change.  That might be that there are no dry flakey patches or sore spots, less chance of an acne breakout or a flakey nose; either way, life is more comfortable when your skin is the healthiest and happiest it can be.  When our skin isn’t looking as good as we want it to, we feel less confident and less sure of ourselves, and our skin is uncomfortable and irritated.  Your skin might not seem like that big a deal to you, but if you’ve been living with skin troubles for a long time, it can start to have a really detrimental effect on your self esteem day to day.

Skincare can seem complicated.  There’s so much advice out there, telling you that near enough anything will improve your skins appearence, boost your circulation and keep your pores clear.  There are countless products and new brands appearing on the market every day, and you can easily be told that something is a miracle cure one day, only to find out that it doesn’t work the next and a lot comes down to clever marketing.  However it doesn’t need to be difficult.  While everyone has their own routines and faces their own skin issues, there are a few things that the people that always have fantastically radiant and youthful skin have in common. Let’s take a look at some of them.

THEY KNOW THEIR SKIN TYPE

Do you find that you always buy products that are for “combination skin” because honestly, you aren’t entirely sure whether yours is oily, dry, normal or anything else in the middle?  Combination is a safe bet, right?

The people with great skin, understand it. They know it’s strengths and weaknesses; they know that it can become dehydrated easily and that they need to protect it in the sun.  They know that they need to moisturise more if they’ve been swimming, and they know which shade of foundation matches their skin tone perfectly.  They never just guess at how their skin needs to be treated or what products it needs.

They also understand that things change.  Just because you’ve got dry and dehydrated skin now, doesn’t mean that you always will.  Hormones, age, diet, weather, quality of sleep, humidity and other environmental factors can have an impact on the health of your skin, and you might occasionally need to make changes to your skincare routine to compensate.  The products that you’re using can have a big impact on this too as if you’re following a routine, you’ll be able to address your skin concerns such as dehydration.  If you don’t know what kind of skin you’ve got or need help identifying its condition, speak to a professional, or even take a trip to your favourite beauty counter for some advice.

THEY UNDERSTAND SKIN

Theres a difference between a skin type and a skin condition or concern.  For example dry, oily, combination and normal are skin types but dehydrated, acne and sensitivity are concerns.  Someone could easily have oily skin that’s dehydrated (in fact the majority of people have some form of dehydration on their skin!) or dry skin that’s sensitive.

THEY STICK TO QUALITY BRANDS

They find a brand with products that they love, for example those from Korean Skin Care UK, and they stick with them to see the results.  Skincare products take time to work and see results so it doesn’t make any sense to buy one product, use it for two weeks and then switch it out for something else.  My advice would be to try a sample first if you can to see how it suits your skin and then use it consistently as directed.

You don’t need to stick to the same brand when it comes to your skincare as it isn’t always 100% possible to find everything that you love from one company or everything that is right for your skin but it is important that you stick to quality brands with plenty of years of research, clinical trials and proven results.

THEY ALWAYS TAKE THEIR MAKEUP OFF

Do you ever go up to bed at the end of the day too tired to take off your makeup?  On these nights, it seems easier just to throw yourself into bed and take your face off in the morning, I know but this is SO bad for your skin and should be avoided at all costs.  When you wake up, your pillow is covered in foundation and mascara, your face feels greasy, and your pores are blocked.  It’s common to find that even if you cleanse as soon as you wake up, in the coming days, you face spot outbreaks and a build-up of blackheads around your nose and chin.  That one night can hurt, and do it more often and your skin will soon become unhealthy.

People with great skin always take the time to take their makeup off, no matter how tired they are, how late it is, or what time they need to get up.  Even on the days where they haven’t worn any makeup, they take the time to cleanse, tone and moisturise before bed, to clear their pores, remove dirt, pollution and impurities, to restore the pH balance of their skin and rehydrate the skin while they sleep.

THEY HAVE A ROUTINE

As an absolute minimum, we should all be cleansing (twice at night), toning and moisturising morning and night and exfoliating once (oily, combination or normal skin) or twice (dry skin) a week.

THEY DON’T USE WIPES

Face wipes are not an effective way to clean your skin. End of story.

THEY REGULARLY WASH THEIR MAKEUP BRUSHES

Using makeup brushes can give you the most beautiful result when you apply your makeup but if you don’t clean them properly and regularly or clean your hands before putting your makeup on you are spreading dirt and bacteria around your face every time you put makeup on.  Make sure you wash your brushes regularly; give them a deep clean with Fairy liquid each week and lie them flat on a towel to dry overnight.  Not only will your skin thank you for it but your makeup application will look better too.