Perhaps you have built up a fairly good routine now, but you nevertheless notice little to no improvements despite maintaining your daily routine and using the right products. But did you know that other factors can also play an important role in the effectiveness of a routine such as product storage and the application method.

Do you use a towel to dry your face after cleansing or do you rather use your hands? Do you always wait a while or do you continue directly with the next step? - If you often ask yourself such questions we suggest you to take a look at the list below.

Getting it off

1. Avoid clogged pores: clean your face in the evening before you turn on the shower!
The heat in your bathroom forms a sauna-like effect that will melt the layer of oils together with pollutants and draws into the pores.

If you still prefer to cleanse while in the shower ... make sure that you have already used your makeup remover/oil-based cleanser before the bathroom has been warmed up. Make sure your oil-based cleanser is applied on a dry face with dry hands. Enjoy a facial massage before emulsifying and rinsing off. Remember: water and oil do not mix!

2. Avoid wrinkle formations and irritations: avoid friction on face!
By having the water-based cleanser already foamed up in your hands will prevent you to exercise unnecessary frictions on your face as this can possibly irritate the skin and accelerates wrinkle formations.

If you use a cleansing tool such as a cleansing pad, brush or cloth make sure that it is soft enough for the skin and do not put unnecessary pressure on it. Cleanse and change it regularly!

3. Skip the makeup wipes!
Makeup wipes can be an easy outcome after a long day to refresh and "clean" your face, but let this definitely not be your daily single cleanser!

These wipes are often rough on the skin and through the frictions you will notice that the skin becomes more sensitive and irritated faster. The wipes often do not remove enough dirt and makeup so that you will automatically rub up harder (this will create fine lines).

When using makeup wipes please make sure that you sweep this gently over the face rather than rubbing harshly. Therefore, first put the wipe folded for a short while on the areas with lots of makeup such as eyes and lips to gently sweep it from inside to the outside. However, the best thing is of course to skip these wipes and replace it for a make-up remover / oil-based cleanser which does a much better job at cleansing and is more gentle to the skin!

4. Skip the towel for drying!
Towels often stay behind in a damp bathroom which is a great breeding ground for bacteria and fungi. This is something you do not want to have on you just cleansed face! Therefore using a soft tissue to pat off the water of your face can be more safe. But what's even more ecologic and economic is simply use your clean hands to get the water of your face! By doing so, you won't be spreading bacteria and fungi while preventing frictions and will over dry the skin too much after cleansing.

If you still want to use a towel after cleansing just make sure you to change it daily (in case if you have acne it's better to do this after every use). Use the towel only to pat your face dry, do not rub!

Putting it on

1a. watery toner (refreshing, cleansing)
Is it a very liquid toner (often exfoliating and low pH-toners)? Then you can best apply this in combination with a cotton pad. Wet a few cotton pads with the product and gently sweep in to out to help removing softened dead skin cells - Directly after cleansing on damp skin. | Exception: in case if you have a lot of troubles with clogged pores (acne, blackheads) and an oily skin you can try to apply toners with active acids such as AHA and or BHA on a "dry" face as the acids can work better.

1b. essence toner (hydrating)
Is the toner a bit thicker and more gel-like (often essence toners)? Then is would be best to pour it directly on the palms and to immediately pat it on face for absorption. This improves the inclusion of the hydrating and nourishing properties. You can easily put on a few extra layers of the essence toner to provide your skin with more hydration, do make sure that the toner in this case is free of alcohol (denat.)

Do you wish to use both types at the same time? Then start with the most liquid toner on a cotton pad and then pat in the essence toner so that the skin can "drink".

Make sure to always apply the toner directly after cleansing, preferably within 30 sec., after cleansing on damp skin as this can help to lock in the water molecules. Do not wait until your skin is air dry after cleansing before putting on the toner (essence) as the product won't be able to hydrate your skin anymore and in case if the product's key ingredient is hyaluronic acid it can even make the skin feel more dry.

2. Light textures: Essence / Serum / Ampoule, Emulsion
Take a small amount (1 ~ 2 drops/ pumps) of these liquid products on the palms and apply it to face. Use the your finger tips and palms to pat until it is absorbed.

Often these products come with handy droppers so that you can drip them directly on the 'trouble-areas' for targeted treatment. Please note that the applicator / pipette does not come into contact with the skin, as this can accelerate oxidation.

It is important to not store such products in humid spaces such as the bathroom because this can accelerate the oxidation process of active ingredients. The bathroom is also ideal for bacteria and fungi. As a side note, to prevent letting air into the bottle (this again accelerates oxidation), we recommend you to fill the pipette after each use by pressing it while putting it back into the bottle.

Facial oil
Take a few drops on the hands to heat it up and then massage it on face. Use this moment to give yourself a relaxing facial massage. 

Facial oils can be used before, instead of, or after your moisturizer depending on your preference.
Before moisturizer: this way the oil can go into the skin better but you do need to wait a few minutes (approx. 5 ~ 10 min) to let it absorb before you can continue with your moisturizer.
After moisturizer: by doing this way you can apply the products continuously without waiting in between.

And of course, you can also mix a few drops facial oil with you serum or moisturizer on your hands when applying to your face to make it more occlusive

3. Eye cream
Dot and tap gently with ring finger the eye cream around the eyes on areas such as:
Down - part of the eye socket
Side - Crow's feet
Upper - under the bridge of eyebrows

Apply it gently and make sure you do not exercise unnecessary pressure and avoid rubbing. You can also apply the eye cream on areas where wrinkles are expected such as forehead, laughing lines and neck.

4. Cream-like textures: lotion / cream
These "solid" textures can best be dotted on face (cheeks, forehead, nose) and then pat in for absorption.

5. Sunscreen
Apply in the morning after moisturizer as the last step of your skincare routine, before makeup. Spread the sun protection evenly over your face and neck and apply a second thin layer if necessary, don't rub it in too much. It is recommended to apply 2 thinner layers and to spread them well rather than 1 thick layer. When applying, don't forget about other sensitive areas such as behind your ears and the back of your neck.

To prevent pilling, you can try to lightly dab the product, wait a while between applying skin care products and the sun protection product, and/or apply the product per zone.

Reapplication
Because the protection of UV filters decreased during day (for example, washed away by sweat and frictions) it is recommended to reapply every 2 hours for best protection. Reapplying sunscreen can become more difficult when you wear makeup, but it is certainly not impossible. There are sufficient solutions to reapply SPF on your face while wearing makeup. Think of light textured SPF, powder forms, SPF spray, BB/CC cream with high SPF or use a cushion/sponge to apply. Don't be stopped when it comes to the protection of the sun!