You’ve got a pretty good grasp on the basics of skincare 101, and you’d like to work on some specific skincare goals in the new year. Just like any other area of your life, you can set skincare resolutions for the upcoming year. Setting effective and achievable skincare goals takes some consideration, but it’s totally doable. In this guide, we’ll walk you through identifying your skin’s needs, offer up some example skincare resolutions, and explain how you can adjust your goals throughout the year
Reflecting on Your Skin’s Needs
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Before you can set your skincare resolutions, you need to reflect on your skin’s needs. Hopefully, you’ve been keeping a skincare diary throughout the year that you can refer to for this part of the process. But if not, take a walk down memory lane and think about how your skin did over the past year. What went well for your skin this past year? What are some areas that you’d like to improve? For instance, maybe you got your acne under control this past year, and now you’d like to focus on lightening hyperpigmentation in the upcoming year.
If you made any skincare resolutions for this past year, now is also the perfect time to take stock of them and see how you did. For example, maybe you resolved to focus more on hydration during the harsh winter month, or you wanted to prioritize natural skincare ingredients in your routine. Did you meet your past skincare goals? Why or why not? Do you want to carry your past skincare goals into the new year, or do they need to be updated for the new year?
Setting Skincare Resolutions
Not sure how to get started with skin care resolutions? Here are five examples to help inspire you:
Establishing Daily Skincare Rituals
Daily consistency is key for seeing success with your skincare resolutions. In order to achieve your skincare resolutions, you should have at least one product targeted to that concern in your routine. You also need to be using the product frequently enough in order to get results. This varies from product to product: For instance, an exfoliator only needs to be used 1-3 times a week, while a purifying face cleanser should be used twice a day to wash your face morning and night.
Harnessing the Power of Hydration
The importance of hydration is a skincare 101 lesson, and prioritizing hydration should definitely be one of your skincare resolutions for the upcoming year. Hydration supports healthy skin barrier, promotes skin elasticity, and helps to smooth out the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Use a hydrating toner or serums featuring ingredients such as hyaluronic and glycerin, which will help attract moisture. Then top it off with a moisturizer that will help seal in the hydration and also promote a healthy balance of natural oils.
Nourishing from Within
Skincare isn’t only about topical products that work from the outside in: You also need to nourish your skin from the inside out with a healthy diet. Focus on lean proteins, fruits and vegetables, and whole grains. Try to limit your consumption of processed foods high in sugar and sodium, as well as beverages like caffeine and alcohol. Drinking plenty of water will also help your skin stay hydrated from within.
Protecting Against the Elements
One of our recurring skin care resolutions is to protect our skin from the elements, starting with applying a sunscreen every single day. You should wear sunscreen even if you are sitting inside all day, since UV rays can penetrate windows. You should also protect your lips with a lip mask, since the skin there is extremely delicate, not to mention exposed to food and drink as well as the outside elements.
Managing Stress
We know that it’s easier said than done, but managing your stress is key for maintaining skin health and happiness. Your skin is your largest organ, so stress will definitely take a toll and show up on your face and body. Having a morning and nighttime skincare routine can be part of an overall self-care program and help to manage your stress levels. We also recommend finding other stress management techniques that work for you, whether that’s exercising, painting, or meditating.
Staying Committed and Adapting
Like any other kind of resolution, you need to commit to stay consistent with your skincare goals for the new year. If you don’t already have a morning and evening skincare routine, we recommend establishing that first so that you get in the habit. You may want to create a habit tracker or set up a recurring reminder if you tend to forget about it. Once you have a simple new year routine going, you can start adding skincare products that address your specific skincare resolutions.
That being said, the needs of your skin change over time due to weather, location, aging, hormonal changes, dietary changes, and a host of other factors. You may want to establish biweekly or monthly check-ins to assess your skin and determine if you need to adapt your skincare resolutions, or if the goals you set in January are still working for you. Definitely don’t hesitate to adjust your skincare resolutions if your skin has changed.
If your new skincare routine is effective, you might even be able to set new skincare resolutions partway through the year if you feel like you met your January goals early. You might also want to experiment with setting skincare resolutions once a season to sync up with weather-related changes. For instance, you might want to focus on oil control during the summer and hydration during the winter.
We hope this guide helped you feel more confident about setting and achieving your skincare goals in the new year! We would love to hear from you about your skincare resolutions. Did you set skincare resolutions last year, or is this your first time doing them? If you have previously set skincare resolutions, how did you track them? Did you achieve your skincare goals? Let us know in the comments below?
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