Money Can't Buy You Classy Skin

Elegance is learned, and we are here to remind you to forget the fancy products and facial treatments if you aren't doing a few of our favorite fundamentals. In no specific order…

Know your skin 

Knowing what kind of skin you have will enable you to treat it. Facial treatments are a great way to get insight, and just a couple a year can suffice if you don't have major skin concerns. A good A good aesthetician is really a skin therapist is really a skin therapist. Listen to them closely, and you will slowly learn what your skin needs. Are you acne-prone, dry, or oil-rich? Stop only listening to buzzwords and go deeper with a professional to get the ultimate insight on the skin you want. There's more to skin than meets the eye; the more you know what it needs, the healthier you can get it. You'll also understand why you should never pick your own skin products.

Be healthy to have healthy skin 

For your skin to look healthy, you need to be healthy! Once you get past your 20s, good genetics aren't enough to stay plump and glowing. Serums and creams are great starts, but collagen and true glow come from health in the deeper layers. The sun has always been identified as a significant contributor to skin damage, but studies show that eating junk food can break down healthy collagen, too. Read more about your collagen and how to support it here.

Seek shade as much as possible

Sunscreen is not a license to be in the sun! We want you to enjoy the outdoors; it's healthy. But there is no excuse for skipping a hat or sunglasses and seeking shade. The sun brings two types of rays, UVA and UVB. Sunscreen protects against UVB rays (AKA the burning rays) really well. But it's hard to tell how much UVA protection you are getting because damage from exposure to those rays takes longer to show – which is why UVA is often referred to as "the aging rays." If you feel the sun beating on you, don't assume your sunscreen will save you. And when you sweat it off, don't forget to reapply. Try to become a shade lover, or you must live with the consequences. Remember, you can have safer sun exposure before 10am and after 4pm when UV exposure is lowest, and take our advice from last summer on how to sun responsibly.

Be gentle to your skin and avoid hot water 

Don't rub your eyes if they are feeling dry and itchy. Instead, use the right skin products to relieve them. Start with using micellar water or oil to take off eye makeup. As for the rest of your face, don't use washcloths often – but if you do, be gentle. You can use bamboo or baby soft options once in a while to remove a mask or heavier makeup days. Think of your skin as a grape, and aim to treat it that way. Hot showers directly running for long periods on our face is a quick way to dehydrate your skin and make it red and blotchy. Stick with lukewarm water to keep your skin safe.

Wash your face 

You'd think this was obvious, but still, many people aren't washing their face, which means hundreds of dollars of serums are sitting to expire, or they are going on skin that's not clean enough to absorb them. Not washing makeup off your skin is icky – please don't sleep in your makeup! If you don't wear makeup, that isn't quite as bad – but not washing your face is still a missed opportunity. The only way to make serious changes in the skin topically is with professional serums, which need to go on clean skin nearly every day for results to happen. If you aren't getting results, whether you admit it or not, you are probably not washing your face twice or even once daily. Brush up on the best way to cleanse your face.

Everyone struggles with being classy and kind to their skin 100% of the time. We all know what to do to be healthier and happier, yet we look for quick fixes in a cream or treatment. Creams and treatments are great, and they can help fix things you can't commit to during challenging stretches in your life. But remember, money can't buy you everything. Skin doesn't care about your tax bracket; classy skin directly results from how you treat yourself. Just like anything, money can be a tool to give you the upper hand, but you can't buy good skin – you can only earn it.