The 5 Steps to Correctly Washing Your Face

Step #1: Wash your face with lukewarm water and a cream cleanser. Warm water helps lift the dirt out of your skin, but hot water can be too drying. Cream cleansers are more hydrating, but if you wear a lot of makeup, you might want to use a gel cleanser and/or a makeup remover instead. After washing, dab your face with a towel—don’t rub. It will stretch your skin and lead to wrinkles.

Step #2: Take a cotton ball and dip it in toner and swipe it around your face, focusing on problem areas. For example, if you have an oily t-zone, toner is a huge help. You don’t need a lot! Just one soaked cotton ball is perfect.

Step #3: Serum is like a green juice for your skin. There are some amazing high-end ones, but you don’t need to spend to over due it—L’Oreal has some amazing ones that you can get at your local drugstore. Use one or two pumps for your entire face. This is also a great way to address any specific issues you have with your skin, because they make serums for everything: anti-aging, moisturizing, redness, etc.

Step #4: You can also mix your serum in with your moisturizer, which cuts down on a step. For night, pick a heavier moisturizer, but for day, make sure you choose one with SPF if you’re not going to apply sunscreen on your own.

Step #5: The last step—don’t forget your eye cream! The under eye area is the thinnest part of your skin, so it’s desperate for moisture. Massage or pat a pea-sized amount of eye cream under your eyes about half an inch under your brow bone. If you’re putting on makeup afterwards, wait a few minutes so the cream can sink in.