Commit To A Routine

The best skincare routine is the one you actually use, and stick with. Like a workout regimen, you won’t see results unless you actively participate–both dumbbells and serums don’t do a whole lot just sitting on a shelf. But (also like exercise, coincidentally) skincare routines are not one-size-fits-all. Your perfect routine is right for your skin, your lifestyle, and the amount of time you want to spend engaging with your products. Don’t worry, you don’t have to design this yourself, that's what experts are for. To extend the metaphor–consider VIOLET GREY your personal skincare trainer who has created three perfect morning and evening routines to cater to every level of dedication. All you have to do is pick one—and commit.

 

THE ROUTINE: THE REDUCTIONIST 

You’re a true “skinimalist”–you might experience sensitivity, value the uncomplicated, and appreciate bang for your buck. For you, we’ve designed a simple, easy-to-stick-to program that delivers healthy, balanced, glowing skin. No extras. No irritation. 

MORNING

Start with a gentle wash like Beauty Stat’s Microbiome Cleanser , which preserves skin’s delicate balance and defends against environmental aggressors. Also, the creamy foam texture is to die for. Follow with a do-it-all treatment serum; we recommend iS Clinical’s Pro-Heal Serum Advance+ which uses a non-irritating form of vitamin C to smooth and brighten while hydrating and healing sensitive and acne-prone skins. Next, massage in Angela Caglia’s Soufflé Moisturizer–a weightless cream that leaves skin plump and supple without clogging pores and employs goat’s milk to calm redness and inflammation. Lastly, no morning routine would be complete without SPF, so go for this mineral one from Eau Thermale Avène that contains niacinamide and thermal spring water to calm and even the complexion without leaving a white cast. 

NIGHT

The whole point here is to keep it simple, so the evening routine is mostly the same as the morning. Use the same wash, (if you have stubborn makeup to remove, try massaging MAKE Beauty’s Pre-Cleanse Fluid over dry skin first), and then swap in Shani Darden’s gently resurfacing Lactic Acid Exfoliating Serum for remarkable brightening and texture reduction sans irritation. Finish with the same soufflé moisturizer, which can also double as your eye cream. 

Pro tip: if it feels like a sisyphean battle to apply treatments at night, try leaving them on your nightstand. You’ll have no excuse while reading or watching TV in bed. 

 

THE ROUTINE: THE STRATEGIST

You always have a plan. You’ve got goals and you know exactly how you’re going to achieve them. Willing to commit to more steps in order to see results, you work smarter, not harder, and require a more nuanced but still streamlined skincare system. For you, we’ve designed a routine packed with active ingredients that do specific jobs and work together to deliver firmer, smoother, more radiant skin that’s always hydrated and perfectly balanced. With the use of nighttime skin cycling—the latest TikTok beauty trend that dermatologists also love—we’ve made sure your regimen is well-rounded and effective yet still gentle on your skin barrier.

MORNING

Wash with the hydrating Cleansing Serum from Shani Darden, and then press in the skin-plumping, antioxidant-rich Pearl and Rose Hyaluronic essence by Agent Nateur for moisturized skin that is prepped and ready to receive active ingredients. For its incredible brightening and firming properties, apply the 20% vitamin C Skin Refiner serum by Beauty Stat, which will immediately make the complexion more vibrant while protecting against environmental damage. Around the eyes, pat in Indie Lee’s surprisingly rich (a little goes a long way) Restorative Eye Cream to banish dark circles, smooth, plump, and prevent signs of aging. For the final treatment step, we love ROSE Ingleton MD’s Signature Moisturizer for its silky texture that immediately makes skin look dewy and fresh, not to mention the fortifying ceramides and illuminating fruit extracts. As always, finish with a sunscreen like the new smash-hit Natural Mineral SPF 30 from Salt & Stone. 

NIGHT

Before bed, we have you keeping the cleanser, essence, moisturizer, and eye cream consistent with the morning and changing up the serum/treatment step, which will rotate in a cycle so you can benefit from different active ingredients while giving skin time to rest and regenerate. On night one, we recommend using what is perhaps the most famous anti-aging ingredient out there–retinol. We’re big fans of epi.logic’s Double Feature Retinol and AHA serum–a gentle yet powerful combination of active ingredients that, over time, visibly resurfaces, firms, reduces dark spots, smooths lines, and delivers brighter looking skin the next morning. On day two, go for Royal Fern’s hyaluronic acid-packed Phytoactive Serum that uses a proprietary complex to strengthen skin and reduce sun damage while hydrating and plumping. Here’s your break–take two nights off for your skin to recover. Next, you can add an intensive treatment like Face Gym’s Youthful Active Roller that uses “needles'' formed from crystalized active ingredients to regenerate and plump skin from deep within. Take another rest day, and then start the cycle from the top. You’ll see results in weeks if not days, and you won’t risk overdoing it and causing irritation. 

 

THE ROUTINE: THE MAXIMALIST

You are all about prevention and correction. You are dedicated. Every morning and night, you bring out the big guns and as many products as it takes for you to realize your ultimate skincare objective: skip the scalpel.

MORNING

We’ve got acids and actives galore coming your way here, so start off with a moisturizing cleanser that fortifies barrier function to keep skin healthy and strong– U Beauty’s The Mantle Skin Conditioning Wash. Follow with the exfoliating toner The Acid Solution from Omorovicza,which reveals brighter, smoother skin and clears dead skin cells to pave the way for the science-backed, bestselling Eighth Day Regenerative Serum–a global treatment that uses clinical-strength ingredients and proprietary technology to treat and prevent all visible signs of aging. Next, hydration. Smooth one to two pumps of U BEAUTY’S Super Hydrator over the skin for noticeable plumping and long lasting moisture retention, and a half pump (we mean it, this rich formula is concentrated) of Susanne Kaufmann’s Rejuvenating Eye Cream around the eyes for the fastest and most effective reduction in puffiness, wrinkles, and dark circles you’ve ever seen. For best results, lightly sweep the cream in an outward motion. You’ve made an investment in your skin with this routine, so please protect it with Isdin’s Eryfotona mineral SPF 50 that treats past sun damage with Nobel prize-winning technology while blocking harmful UVA/UVB rays. 

NIGHT

In the evening, we would like you to follow the same nighttime routine as The Strategist (above) with two key additions. 

Find a few minutes before bed (or frankly, at any time during the day) for the Lyma Laser, and thank us later. This device is the most intensive treatment one can get outside of a doctor’s office or medi spa, and it makes quick work of softening lines and wrinkles. plumping and lifting sagging skin, and fading dark spots. You can use it anyplace, from the hairline on down, so put it to work on crepey skin around the knees or on the arms. It’s easy to use, won’t cause irritation, and can even be used over products and sunscreen because it penetrates so deeply. We know this is an investment, but we feel strongly it is one worth making if you want to skip the scalpel.

Last, but certainly not least, don’t forget your neck. For all the treatments we use on the face, many of us neglect the thin, prone-to-aging, often sun-blasted skin just below. Give the potent (and sizeable)  Macrene Actives neck cream a few weeks to work its magic, and we promise you’ll never go without it again.