When it comes to a nighttime skincare routine, the amount of time, number of products, and method of application, not to mention the order in which products are applied, varies from person to person. There are a lot of beauty channels, TikToks, and IG models who swear by their own nighttime skincare routines and I want to remind everyone that skincare is absolutely relative.

However, I'd also like to share my own personal skincare routine that's minimalistic, simple, and gentle on the skin. I'm not an advocate of overworking the skin right before bedtime; these hours of sleep and restoration are also a period of recovery and repair for your skin. 

So without further ado, let's get started.

Remove Makeup/Brush Your Teeth

This one should be obvious: you don't want to be applying cleansers, creams, or serums to skin that currently has powder, concealer, blush, etc. Be sure to wipe away and clean facial makeup so that your skin is nice and prepped for further product application

In addition, be sure to brush your teeth prior. I say this because you don't want water and toothpaste running down your chin and intermixing with whatever beauty products you've applied around your mouth and chin. 

Apply Your Cleanser

It's time to cleanse. I personally use my AHA/BHA exfoliating cleanser, a product that's ideal for slowing down the aging process while gently exfoliating. I can use every day, but if you find that your skin is a bit more sensitive, you can push this out to every other day.

Wet the skin on your face and apply a small amount, around the size of a quarter, onto your hands. Gently work into the skin in circular motions. You may be able to feel the exfoliating beads but the good thing about this cleanser is that it isn't harsh at all. 

Having a good cleanser is vitally important because you're essentially repairing the skin, clearing away oils, and removing dead skin cells. If you were only to apply creams or serums, you would be just mixing all these oils, dirt, and unwanted skin around on the face instead of removing them. And while I highly recommend my own cleanser, feel free to research and choose a cleanser that best fits your own skincare needs.

Remove Eye Makeup/Mascara

You might have already done this in step one, but I don't do this until later, only because I don't personally use a heavy amount of mascara.

I like to use Burt's bees Miscellar Cleansing Water, which I apply to a flat cotton pad. I then fold the pad in half, forming what looks like duck lips, before genty pinching my eyelashes between the pad and pulling (without too much force) to the edge of the eye. This is a method I learned in esthetician school and works wonders. If you're removing mascara or eyeliner by scrubbing or rubbing in a circular motion, this is pretty harsh on the eyelid skin and the skin under your eyes and I highly recommend you discontinue doing this. 

Apply Your Moisturizer

Lastly, I apply my own Gin Amber Beauty Vitamin C + Squalane Repair Cream. This cream brightens and tightens skin while clearing redness and acne after just a couple weeks of application.

Apply a dime-sized amount (or two pumps) to your fingers and apply to forehead, under-eyes, cheeks, neck, nose, and chin. Then work into the skin until absorbed. The cream is surprisingly velvety, not oily, and I recommend applying to the hands as well to keep them moisturized and matching the consistency of your face. 

And that's it! As I said before, nighttime skincare routines should be simple, with more focus on cleansing away the day's oils and dirt and moisturizing/repairing. You have a long night of sleep and restoration ahead of you that your skin and body requires for that morning glow and sometimes, less is more.

Thank you Amber babies for sharing in my personal nighttime skincare routine and if you have any suggestions, comments, or would love to share your own nighttime skincare tips, drop it below!