When it comes to skincare and beauty products, less is more. This includes the number of chemicals used in skincare products to the number of products you use in your everyday skincare routine. But what’s the reason behind this? We’ve been seeing 10 steps Korean beauty skincare routines everywhere - why is the “less is more” option popular now?

We’ve got the answers right here:

• Our skin knows how to moisturize and balance out oils naturally.
• We want products with ingredients that enhance or mimic what our body does biologically (like the amino acid in our gel cleanser, Purify).
• Some ingredients work great on your skin, but can be too strong for everyday use.
• Applying too many products all at once can suffocate your skin - layering up prevents ingredients from sinking into your skin.

What happens when you do too much?

Over Moisturizing

It can make your skin lazy - just like how you can get a bit 🙄when someone tells you to do stuff that you’re already doing. By over-moisturizing your skin, your water reservoirs receive signals that bring the hydration function to a halt. But to us, what we see on our skin surface is our skin dehydrating and wanting more moisture. So we apply more moisturizers, falling into this spiral of “I need more moisture” when what your skin actually needs - is less moisturizing.

Over Exfoliating

If your skin is getting excessively dry, irritated, red, sensitive, or oily and shiny - it’s a sign to stop using too much exfoliator. We get it - it’s really satisfying to see our skin looking fresh without all the old, nasty dead skin cells just chilling on our skin surface. But it’s important for you to take a step back and rethink if this is what your skin actually needs - it’s like fighting with your inner ego to decide whether you should make a bad decision and get another glass of wine when you’ve already had two 😏 . In the long run, it’s better if you try to control the desire to pursue your satisfaction - such as exfoliating.

Over Cleansing

This can also make your natural moisture barrier disappear. If you are using face wash as a part of your skincare routine, choose one that does not contain any ingredients or chemicals that could destroy your skin’s natural moisture barrier. If your skin is feeling tight and adult acne starts to make an appearance, that’s a sign that your skin is telling you to stop over-cleansing.

Excessive Rubbing

Friction can leave unwanted dark marks. When your skin is rubbed too much, your skin gets darker and thicker as a mechanism to protect your skin from damage. Instead of rubbing skincare products into your skin, it’s recommended to gently massage, press and lightly pat with your fingers.

Here are the steps you can take to prevent from going over board:

• Review your skincare routine. Is your skin feeling dull, dry or oily? Could that be because of the number of products - or the frequency you're using them at?
• Know your skin type. Using skincare products that are not compatible with your skin type can cause problems, which can result in excessive moisturizing, exfoliating, cleansing etc.
• Choose your skincare products wisely 😌. Do some research (such as reading our blog posts!) and look for ingredients that enhances natural functions of your skin.
• Keep it minimal. You wouldn’t want to stress out your skin unnecessarily by using excessive amount of powerful ingredients and products.

Thanks for tuning in! Let us know how you avoid overdoing skincare routines in the comment below 🤗