Opening the door into the world of skincare can feel like opening Pandora's box — there are cleansers, eye creams, toners, serums, exfoliators, and more. Throw in having to apply products in the proper order and keep track of which ones are appropriate for the morning vs. the evening, and the time investment might not seem worth the payoff.

However, figuring out a skincare routine doesn't need to be complicated! Use this guide to start developing your daily skincare routine.

Skincare Routine for Beginners

You can start with a routine as simple as these three products in this order:

1. Cleanser: You should wash your face in the morning and at night to clear away dirt, environmental pollutants, and makeup. Different cleansers are formulated specifically for different skin types. The right one for you will clean your skin without stripping it of its essential nutrients, oils, and moisture.

SkinCeuticals LHA Cleanser Gel

SENTE Daily Soothing Cleanser

Jan Marini Bioglycolic Facial Cleanser

2. Moisturizer: It's important to moisturize daily, even if you have oily or combination skin. If you do not apply moisturizer, your skin might start producing more oil to try to compensate for the hydration it isn't receiving. Moisturize your skin twice a day in the morning and evening.

Medature PSL Repair Moisturizer

SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2

3. Sunscreen: Sunscreen is perhaps the most critical step in a skincare routine, but many people fail to put on sunscreen every day. Applying sunscreen should be the last step in your morning skincare routine.

EltaMD UV Clear Broad-Spectrum SPF 46 Sunscreen

Revision Skincare Intellishade Clear SPF 50

MDSolarSciences Mineral Crème SPF 50

Additional Productions to Add to Your Routine

Cleanser, moisturizer, and sunscreen should create the basis of your morning skincare routine. Once you've solidified that part of your routine, you can start adding more steps catered to your goals, whether you want to address acne, redness, dullness, or dark spots. Here are five skincare routine products beginners can experiment with in the order you should use them after cleansing:

• Toner: Toners help the other products in your routine absorb while balancing your complexion. Toner is definitely an optional step in your routine, but if you want to experiment with it, look for ingredients like rose water, green tea, vitamin E, and alpha and beta hydroxy acids.
• Exfoliator: Exfoliation helps to get rid of dead skin so new skin can shine. Chemical exfoliants are often the way to go. However, use exfoliators sparingly so you don't strip the skin. Using them in the evenings up to three times per week should suffice.
• Serum: You have nearly limitless options when choosing skin-enhancing serums. They're filled with active ingredients to combat skin concerns like acne, dryness, redness, and dullness. Some popular ingredients include niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, and retinol. You can use these first three ingredients both morning and night, but retinol should be reserved for nighttime. It's also critical to wear sunscreen while using a retinoid since they make your skin more sensitive to the sun.
• Acne treatments: Acne treatments can help you treat breakouts. Ingredients often used to treat acne include salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide, adapalene, and azelaic acid.
• Eye cream: People over 20 should start incorporating eye cream into their morning and evening skincare routines. Using eye cream in addition to moisturizer can be helpful since the skin under your eyes is especially delicate.

Follow up these products with your moisturizer and sunscreen for the ideal skincare routine order.

Tips for Preventing Adult Acne

Experiencing adult acne can feel extremely frustrating — after all, you may have heard your skin would "clear up" once you left your teenage years. If you're struggling with adult acne, try these tips:

Determine Your Skin Type

If you're struggling with adult acne, you might be using the wrong products for your face. Skin types are generally broken into five categories:

• Normal: Normal skin isn't too oily or dry with no severe sensitivity and barely visible pores.
• Dry: Dry skin may be flaky or have red patches with more visible lines and less elasticity.
• Oily: If you have oily skin, you may experience enlarged pores, blemishes, and a shiny complexion.
• Combination: Combination skin may be dry in some places and oily in others and thus exhibit traits from both skin types.
• Sensitive: If you have sensitive skin, you may have reactions like redness, burning, dryness, and itching when your skin comes in contact with certain products.

Allow Time Between Introducing New Products

It's wise to leave time between trying new products. This makes it easier for you to figure out how individual products impact your skin. For example, if you purchase a vitamin C serum and a new moisturizer, introduce them to your routine one at a time. If you start using them both at the same time and your skin has a bad reaction, it will be difficult to figure out which product caused the reaction.

Don't Double up on Active Ingredients

Active ingredients are one of your most useful tools for treating adult acne. Some of the most effective active ingredients out there include:

• Salicylic acid: Salicylic acid is a beta-hydroxy acid (BHA) that unclogs pores and decreases oil production.
• Benzoyl peroxide: Benzoyl peroxide reduces inflammation and lowers levels of acne-causing bacteria.
• Ceramides: Ceramides act as "shields" for your skin and protect it from pollutants that can clog pores.

You can find active ingredients in treatments, serums, and cleansers. One method isn't necessarily more effective than the other — even though some people think cleansers are less effective because they're wash-off treatments. However, using an active ingredient like benzoyl peroxide in both your cleanser and in treatment can dry out your skin, especially if you have naturally dry skin.

Give It Time

Perhaps the most important — and most challenging — tip for combatting adult acne is to stay patient. You won't see results after a day or even after a few weeks in some cases. Skin cells take between 28 and 40 days to turn over, so it might take that long for you to start seeing results.

In the meantime, celebrate the little victories — maybe one of your breakouts cleared up, or your face feels more elastic — and stay patient. Skincare is much more of a journey than a destination.

Discover the Exclusive Beauty Club Difference

If you're a beginner entering the world of skincare, you have the world at your fingertips. Creating a new skincare routine from scratch can be fun and exciting, but finding the right products can be challenging. If you're unsure how to find the right skincare products, explore the selection from Exclusive Beauty Club. When you shop our collection now, get free samples with your purchase and enjoy free shipping over $50!