Building a skincare routine from scratch for the very first time can seem intimidating when you’re first learning about the ropes of skincare. Lucky for you, I’ve spent hundreds of hours researching, testing, and reviewing skincare products which has lead to the creation of this skincare routine quiz!
This skincare routine quiz will help narrow down the skin concerns that you need to target, adjust your routine according to your specific skin type, and give you personalized skincare product suggestions!
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Skincare Routine Quiz: Building a Routine for the First Time
The streamlined 6 question skincare routine quiz above will give you tailored product suggestions for your skin type and where to easily find them online or in-store.
The products suggested by this quiz range from $6-20 dollars so they can all easily fit into any skincare routine budget. When you are building a skincare routine for the first time it’s best to not go overboard spending $30-50 on ingredients or skincare products that you have never used before. Focus on finding brands that you enjoy and discover what really works for your skin.
Everybody’s skin will react slightly differently when using a new product. It’s smart to build a solid foundation of reliable skincare products before you go running off to try that trendy new serum or mask!
What are the essential steps of a skincare routine?
These are the must-have products that will exist within any skincare routine no matter what skin type you are working with:
- Cleanser
- Moisturizer (Check out my fave moisturizers for sensitive acne-prone skin here.)
- SPF – (Here’s my Budget-Friendly Sunscreens for Acne-Prone Skin)
Once you’ve created a solid foundation for your skincare routine using the essential products above, you can start adding other elements to your routine. These types of skincare products are by no means essential but they can be extremely beneficial especially when targeting specific skin problems.
Here are some nice to have but not 100% essential skincare products:
- Toner
- Serum (Check out my favorite Budget-Friendly Serums at Walmart!)
- Eye Cream
- Exfoliants
- Face Masks
- Cleansing Balms or Oils
If you’ve read this far you better have taken the interactive skincare routine quiz above! But if you skimmed past the quiz or if you just want to learn about every possible routine step, I’m going to break down every step.
How to Pick a Cleanser for Your Skincare Routine
When deciding on a cleanser here’s a couple things to keep in mind:
- Do you need something that can cleanse waterproof beauty products?
- Do you want your cleanser to also treat acne or a similar skin concern?
- Do you want to focus on controlling oil or do you want your cleanser to also moisturize?
Nowadays cleansing isn’t the only thing your product should be doing. Cleansers also have the ability to hydrate, treat acne, target dullness or dark spots, the list goes on and on! If you want to keep things basic and only use a few products a multitasking cleanser can really help to simplify things.
Here are some dual-purpose cleansers that are also budget-friendly:
| CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser | Hydrates, repairs the skin barrier, and cleanses. |
| La Roche-Posay Effaclar Medicated Gel Cleanser | Cleanses, treats acne, balances excess oil, and exfoliates. |
| ACURE Resurfacing Glycolic + Unicorn Root Cleanser | Exfoliates, treats dark spots and uneven skin texture, and cleanses. |
| Mad Hippie Advanced Skin Care Cream Cleanser | Cleanses, balances excess oil, and hydrates. |
| Differin Daily Deep Cleanser | Moisturizes, treats acne, controls oil, and cleanses. |
| CeraVe Acne Foaming Cream Cleanser | Treats acne, hydrates, cleanses, and protects skin barrier. |
Should Double Cleansing Be Part of Your Skincare Routine?
If you frequently wear makeup or waterproof beauty products like water-resistant sunscreen a two-step cleansing routine will ensure your skin is completely cleansed at the end of each and every day.
Even if you don’t wear makeup or use other heavy beauty products you can still greatly benefit from double cleansing! A two-step cleanse is very helpful for those struggling with excess oil. It gently removes all that excess oil without stripping the skin in one harsh step and helps prevent clogged pores as well.
If you have extremely sensitive or dry skin and don’t wear makeup you can skip this step as the extra cleansing isn’t necessary hoop to jump through for your skin type. It can be overly drying if your skin doesn’t produce enough oil to warrant an extra cleansing session.
Do you need a toner in your skincare routine?
Let’s talk toners. What are they and do you really need one?
Traditional Western toners were originally created to help re-balance the skin’s pH after cleansing with a harsh soap and to remove any soap scum or residue left behind. Facial soaps used to be mainly formulated with lye were so harsh that they would completely strip the skin leaving the pH balance severely out of balance.
Nowadays, cleansers shouldn’t leave behind any residue and usually do not affect the skin’s pH. Toners may have been a necessity in the past, but they are by no means a requirement in modern-day skincare routines.
So why do people still use toners?
The majority of toners being sold today are actually just watery formulas housing active ingredients or other soothing extracts. They aren’t actually “toning” your skin. Your toner should also not be cleaning any dirt or makeup from the skin. If you’re still seeing dirt/makeup on your cotton pad after using a toner that means your cleanser is not doing it’s job.
Toners are a great way to incorporate a chemical exfoliate into your skincare routine. The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution is one of the chemical exfoliants suggested in this skincare routine quiz. Toning solutions like this are a fast and easy way to gently exfoliate your skin before moving on to serums and moisturizers.
FYI: Your toner should never burn or sting! If your skin stings after applying a toner this means the formula is too strong for your skin or may contain unsafe or irritating ingredients. If you want to learn more about why toners sometimes burn, check out my full explanation here.
Skincare Routine Quiz: Picking a Serum
Picking out the perfect serum is another key step in building any skincare routine. You’re not tied down to just one type of serum so feel free to mix and match! You may be recommended multiple serums by this skincare routine quiz because not every product can address the numerous skincare concerns that you may want to target.
A few things to keep in mind when using multiple serums:
- Chemical exfoliants should only be used in your nighttime routine or with SPF applied before sun exposure
- Try alternating a hydrating ingredient like hylauronic or polyglutamic acid one day, and an exfoliating serum the next!
- Apply your serums to damp skin! This boosts absorption and prevents water loss in the skin.
- Only use a 1/4 dropper or one pump of serum, your skin can only absorb so much and there’s no need to waste product.
If you want to dive deeper into the nitty-gritty of choosing a new serum I’ve also written a detailed piece on how to find out which serum ingredients are best for your skin type.
How to Build a Skincare Routine Quiz: Moisturizers
We’re almost there! Choosing the perfect moisturizer for your new skincare routine is actually going to heavily rely on personal preference.
This sounds super obvious, but the main job of your moisturizer is to hydrate and seal that hydration into your skin. Serums and cleansers are your biggest tools for tackling skin concerns like acne or skin texture and it’s best not to get too sidetracked by moisturizers advertising fancy formulas showcasing that latest skincare buzzword.
Every time you add a new layer of product to your skin you are further diluting the concentration of everything that was previously applied. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but when you apply a moisturizer that contains a minuscule concentration of an active ingredient, you’re not getting anywhere near the same experience of using a serum or toner that focuses on that one ingredient. This is why it’s important to let your toner/serum absorb into the skin for a few seconds before slathering on that thick lotion. If you pace yourself it ensures that your skin can take full benefit of the active ingredients being applied and that they aren’t getting mixed and diluted into a thick barrier of moisturizer. This isn’t to say your skin doesn’t absorb anything through creams or lotions. It just won’t penetrate the skin as deeply as a serum applied to clean damp skin.
How to pick a moisturizer for your skincare routine
If you live in a humid climate you will likely enjoy water-based gel moisturizers. These are also great for oily skin types or if you want something lighter for the summertime.
Water-based moisturizers tend to behave better if you need to be able to immediately apply makeup. As the saying goes, oil and water don’t mix. You can get away with layering oil-based primers over water-based skincare, but it’s tricky to make it work the other way around as an oil-based moisturizer loves to pill up when mixed with other beauty products.
If you wear a water-based foundation make sure you pick a water-based moisturizer. And the opposite is also true; oil-based foundation plays well with oil-based moisturizers. Another option is to wait 10-15 minutes after your skincare routine before you start applying makeup. This will give your skin ample time to absorb everything and you won’t experience as much finickiness while applying makeup.
Having trouble with your skincare pilling up before you even move on to makeup? Go read my article on why skincare pills up and how to stop it.
Do I need a spot treatment in my skincare routine?
Spot treatments are a temporary band-aid that covers a problem instead of actually resolving it. Whether it be an acne treatment, dark spot treatment, or any other skin issue that has been monetized by the skincare industry, if you legitimate struggle with it you should tailor your entire routine to treat it.
There is only one acne spot treatment in this skincare routine generator quiz and it’s actually a mask (The Ordinary Salicylic Acid 2% Masque) that can be used as a spot treatment. If you only receive the occasional one off blemish a spot treatment may be beneficial for you. But if you’re treating constant breakouts or something like dark spots that can take months of treatment, a temporary fix like a spot treatment is not the way to go.
The skincare routine generator at the top of this article will recommend serums and products that will target any skin concern that you want to resolve + all of these products are meant to be used long term.
Finishing Your Skincare Routine With SPF
Last but not least, don’t forget the sunscreen! Even if you spend most of your day indoors, it’s important to slather on some SPF every single day.
Mineral sunscreens tend to be gentler on sensitive skin types but there are also some great chemical spfs that play nicely with irritation prone skin! I personally have sensitive dry skin and love this Japanese chemical sunscreen by Rohto for everyday use.
Take the sunscreen recommendations from this skincare routine quiz with a grain of salt. Even if you frequently need a waterproof formula, it’s best to wear a normal SPF when possible. Waterproof sunscreens are more likely to clog pores so keep things basic and stick to a non-water resistant formula when appropriate.
One more thing to keep in mind while shopping for your new skincare routine:
Try not to get too wrapped up in the extras like face masks and essences until you’ve gotten your main skin routine hammered out.
Although once you’ve gotten comfortable and want to make things more interesting….. you need to check out amazing my face mask guide! And if you want to get become educated in the nuances between ampoules, emulsions & essences you can read up on ’em here.
You’re now armed with the info on the best skincare routine products so go build an astounding skincare routine!