While you are sleeping, your skin is hard at work. Cell mitosis (the process your skin uses to repair and renew itself) is at its peak during the night… get your night-time skincare ritual right and your skin will have everything it needs to effectively recover from the day’s environmental and lifestyle stressors.
If you have already read my blog on Layered Up Morning Rituals, you would know that the skin is made up of different layers, each with its own unique set of attributes and cellular functions. Some skincare ingredients need to penetrate deep into the skin to target cellular activity in the dermis (like promoting collagen production and targeting pigmentation) while other ingredients are more beneficial to the surface of the skin (epidermis), like cleansers and hydrators. The consistency of the products together with the order in which you layer each of them is crucial to a successful skincare ritual.
Here are 3 steps to creating your perfectly layered ASI skincare ritual for the nighttime:
Step 1: Always cleanse first!
Like in the mornings, a good cleanse is a non-negotiable first step of any good night time skin ritual. Being sure to thoroughly remove any make-up, sweat, oil and numerous pollutants that have settled on your skin throughout the day is crucial if you want your skin care to work.
Radiant Cream Cleanser: A potent cosmeceutical cleanser with nourishing vitamin E, Rose Otto, and calming Essential Oils. This is the perfect cleanser for dissolving and removing make-up on any skin type. For a mature, dry or sensitive skin the creamy consistency will remove excess oils without over stripping the skin and is recommended as a ‘double cleanse’. For other skin types, such as normal, combination and oily/acne use the Radian Cream Cleanser as a first cleanse if wearing make-up, then follow up with the Rejuvenating Foaming Cleanser as a second cleanse to leave your skin feeling fresh, hydrated and ready to follow up with your next step.
Rejuvenating Foaming Cleanser: Full of restorative vitamin C, calming Chamomile, and stimulating Citric Acid. The Rejuvenating Foaming Cleanser is perfect for all skin types, especially oily/acne and combinations skins. Its foamy consistency perfectly breaks down excess oil and dead skin build up while being thin enough to flush in and out of pores to remove impurities and combat bacteria. If you haven’t been wearing make-up throughout the day then go ahead and use the Rejuvenating Foaming Cleanser straight up.
Step 2: Give your skin a treat.
If your skin is due for a boosting treatment then this step is the time to do it. Whether it be an exfoliating peel with the AHA Power Exfoliant, a Dermal Roller sesh or hydrating treatment mask like the Purifying Hydration Mask or Dermal Facelift Mask … working on perfectly clean skin will ensure the active ingredients will penetrate unhindered by any oil or product residue on the surface of the skin. Basically don’t try and exfoliate or pop a mask on after you have already applied your moisturiser or serums!
You can also use this step to apply the ASI Vita-A Professional At-Home Peel. An advanced treatment designed to improve the overall condition of the skin and to produce a healthy and more vibrant complexion, the Vita-A peel will smooth out uneven skin texture and lighten pigmentation… but be warned… the professional strength of this treatment may cause some skin flaking a few days after application. Be sure to book an online consultation with an ASI Professional Skin Therapist before putting this on your skin.
Step 3: Go from thin to thick.
An easy rule to remember when trying to work out which order to use your ASI cosmeceuticles is to apply your products from thinnest to thickest consistency. This includes vitamins and serums as well… use the ones with a more fluid consistency first, then follow with gel-like, then balm-like and finally creamy textured last.
Thinnest: On clean dry skin, start with ASI’s Hydralift Eye Gel first, apply it around and over the eye area then complete the entire face with Multi Peptide Serum (for mature skins) or Pure Hydration Concentrate for all other skin types. Each of these serums contain Hyaluronic Acid, a molecule that has the ability to hold 1000 times its weight in water; drenching your skin with hydration and making it more absorbent, meaning that what ever you put on your skin next will penetrate quickly and effectively.
Medium: This is when you apply your vitamins. ASI formulates its skincare using unique nanotechnology (super tiny molecules); and a Transdermal Delivery System that wraps active ingredients in EFAs; essential fatty acids naturally found in the skin. Sourced from Macadamia and Avocado oil, your skin recognises these EFAs’s as ‘friendly’ and will eagerly absorb them down into the deeper layers of your skin to deliver a higher concentration of active ingredients.
At night, layer vitamin C and vitamin A, in that order to enhance skin clarity, cellular function and boosts collagen and elastin production.
On a side note: Vitamin C acts like a vehicle that helps drive vitamin A deep into the skin so be sure to layer that on first and remember never use Vitamin A in the mornings… this is strictly a nighttime only product due to its adverse reactions to sun exposure.
Thickest: Last but not least, finish off your nighttime skin ritual with a good layer of moisturiser. If you have a sensitised skin or a skin that is recovering from a sensitising treatment or sunburn, try ASI R3 Cream for its anti-inflammatory and restorative properties. Otherwise, the Rejuvenating Night Treatment is the perfect nighttime all-rounder.
This ‘hero product’ has been formulated with the most potent vitamins designed to change the structure of the skin to improve dehydration, congestion and acne. Scientifically proven to reverse the natural signs of ageing, highly active Retinol and vitamin C will refresh and refine the skin from the inside out.
Some Pro-tip takeaways:
And remember… take an extra couple of minutes to ensure you are allowing your skincare products to have the time they need to effectively absorb into the skin. Wait a minute between layering to ensure each has penetrated before moving on to the next and don’t forget your neck, décolletage and back of hands!