When you were a teenager, you spent hours making homemade facial masks with your friends. You can still recall slathering egg whites and mashed avocados on your face, adding sliced cucumbers to your eyes, and then concocting some homemade hair conditioner that had to set for 30 minutes.
Fast forward to today, and you are lucky if you have time for a daily shower, let alone remember to wash your face or apply makeup. You know you should be taking care of your skin, but your family, house, job, friends, pets and other responsibilities seem to always come first.
While there are definitely some skincare routines that are time-consuming-like the homemade mask and conditioner sessions of your youth-it actually takes much less time than you may think to take good care of your skin.
In fact, all you need is eight minutes a day, broken down into the following easy peasy tasks:
One Minute: Put on Sunscreen
Many dermatologists agree that sunscreen is the No. 1 most crucial skincare product you can use. Put a nickel-sized dollop on your hands and gently massage it on your face, at least 30 minutes before you head out for the day. This really shouldn't take more than 60 seconds.
Two Minutes: Apply Cosmetics
Here is a welcome tip for busy people like you: if you wear makeup, you don't have to spend a lot of time with a sponge or other applicator getting your foundation on just so. Consider skipping the foundation all together and simply powder your face with a fat makeup brush; this will help to eliminate any oily shine and make your skin look nice and smooth.
To recreate memories of your teenage years, you can also make your own homemade powdered foundation in a few minutes on your day off. Don't Waste the Crumbs has an easy recipe that includes cornstarch, cocoa powder, ground nutmeg, cloves, and a few other common ingredients you may already have on hand. Add a touch of eyeshadow, mascara, and some lip gloss and you are ready to go-all in about two minutes.
Four Minutes: Wash and Rinse
It's best to wash your face both morning and night to remove makeup, sweat, and any other impurities that settled in over the course of your day. If you're out of the habit, try doing it first thing when you brush your teeth in the morning and right before bed at night. For a dermatologist anti-aging skin routine, use a comprehensive skincare kit that includes a cleanser, toner, and moisturizer for a faster process that has better results. Doing so will keep your skin clean, soft, and glowing.
One Minute: Add Moisturizer
In about 30 seconds in the morning and evening, you can quickly apply a high quality moisturizer to your face, including the delicate skin around your eyes. That one minute you spend each day will help your skin to look smoother, more hydrated and without as many fine lines and wrinkles.
Eight Minutes? No Problem
As you can see, you do not need much time to take proper care of your skin. In eight quick minutes, you can adopt a new skincare routine that is fast, easy, and, most importantly, effective at keeping your skin healthy and looking great.