How to get the most out of daily moisturising
What can help replenish your skin? Whether you have an oily, dry/eczema prone/menopausal or sensitive complexion, our face cream could be the answer.
Most of us reach daily for a moisturiser and there is nothing healthier looking and happier feeling than soft moisturised skin is there? After all, replenished skin is always in.
The difference in appearance and feel when your skin is moisturised is so noticeable – hydrating from the inside with plenty of water and foods with high water content will make a big difference as well as keeping that moisture content in with a good skincare routine and - the pièce de résistance – a great moisturising face cream.
Read on to discover the top 10 face cream habits of people with glowing and great feeling skin.
Habit 1: Think of face creams as moisturising friends with 3 key benefits
Radiance
Firstly you can expect a decent face cream to grace you with a more radiant youthful appearance.
We’ll explain: when skin becomes dry the skin barrier is compromised and that’s when low-grade chronic inflammation occurs in the skin. These low levels of ongoing inflammation ultimately lead to a breakdown of collagen, thus causing accelerated ageing. What’s more skipping your face cream will leave current fine lines and wrinkles looking more prominent as dehydrated skin tends to spotlight every sign of ageing and sun exposure - no one really wants that do they?
Protection
Using a face cream also offers barrier protection to your delicate facial skin, shielding from pollutants and environmental irritants.
Beeswax based creams excel at this. The beeswax forms a protective breathable barrier on the skin’s surface which is as beneficial and cocooning to our skin as it is for the bees who use it to create their hexagonal beeswax combs which must be protective, nourishing and breathable for adept storage of their honey, pollen as well as providing the perfect environment in which the queen will lay her eggs. Isn’t it amazing the benefits for us that can be learnt from nature?
The perfect primer
Using a face cream will help any follow up make up look flawless - you know those little lines where your make up creases – those will look a lot worse if we didn’t hydrate our face before applying a make up base. Top tip: wait 5 minutes after applying your moisturiser and SPF to allow them to absorb before continuing with your make up.
Habit 2: Banish oily skin with your face cream
"I have oily skin – should everyone, even me, use a face cream?" We are frequently asked this question and the answer is yes, absolutely! The secret of fabulous looking and feeling skin for those with combination, breakout and oilier skin types lies in choosing the appropriate moisturiser.
If you have oilier or combination skin avoid ‘heavier’ creams that often leave a greasy residue and choose a lightweight yet thoroughly moisturising cream formula such as an emulsion.
An emulsion is a lightweight, water-based moisturiser (all our creams here at HBB are emulsions) that promises all the hydration of a heavy cream but without the the weighty greasy feel that can, in particular, overload oilier acne prone complexions, leading to breakouts. Rather, emulsions will sink into the skin quickly, are readily absorbed and will not sit on top of the skin blocking your pores.
To get the glow without the grease those in the know opt for noncomedogenic (non comedogenic refers to a product that wont clog or block pores) moisturisers to keep their skin balanced. The great news? Beeswax is exceptional at ‘bee-ing’ non comedogenic as it allows the skin to breathe freely all whilst providing its amazing skin protection and nourishment.
It’s also worth noting that oiliness can be a sign that your skin is actually dry, resulting in your sebaceous glands stepping up their sebum production and overcompensating. So, it is important to treat your skin to the moisturising face cream it needs to fully quench without cloying.
Habit 3: Learn to layer
“I have oils, serums, cleansers – where does my face cream fit in?” Do you find yourself mulling over this question? It can be confusing can’t it knowing when exactly to put your moisturiser on for best results.
Perhaps you’ve curated a face cream you love and have incorporated it into your everyday skincare routine, but are you applying it at the right time? The stage at which you apply your moisturiser impacts how well it will perform on the skin – it’s all in the layering.
The secret to optimum efficacy of your facial moisturiser (this applies to all your skincare products) is consistency of use and the mode of application. By starting with the most easily absorbed product and building up to the densest you ensure a clear pathway for every ‘bee-utiful’ skin loving ingredient to sink deep into the cells that need them most. You should aim to craft a routine following these steps in this order:
- Cleanse – cleansing balm
- Exfoliate (you probably only need do this once or twice a week)- Queen bee scrub
- Double cleanse/tone – facial spritz
- Serum (if you use one)
- Face oil
- Face cream
- Sun cream
Apply your serum and/or oil before your moisturiser and your skin will be damp ready to receive your face cream – this will seal the moisture into your skin and is more effective than attempting to rehydrate your skin with your moisturiser after your oil has already dried completely. Your cream’s hydrating effects will last a lot longer and your skin will look more radiant.
Habit 4: Channel transformative touch
People with glowing skin know how to apply their face cream with aplomb, leaving their skin looking lit from within.
How? Take a pea sized amount, pat on skin and then work in gently, massaging in upward strokes, inhaling the aromatics as you go.
Touch is truly transformative in connecting you to your body and helping your face cream synergise with your skin – it will boost circulation, collagen production and help aid your lymphatic drainage.
Remember to apply your moisturiser to your neck and décolleté too. Your neck and chest do not have as many oil glands as your face, the dermis is much thinner with less collagen, meaning both areas will lose moisture and age faster than your face.
Habit 5: Face cream followed by sun cream = dream team
The most superior and effective tool in your anti ageing arsenal is your sunscreen – never forget to pop it on after your face cream as the last step in your skincare routine.
We often get asked why we don’t have SPF in our creams and the answer is because teaming your face cream with a separate sunscreen applied afterwards is the most effective way of protecting yourself from sun damage whilst retaining the efficacy your chosen face cream underneath.
Why? This is because the two products perform different jobs. Sunscreen is meant to sit on the skin and act as a defensive film without penetrating into the skin; Moisturisers on the other hand are the opposite – their very purpose is to penetrate the skin to add moisture.
Further, sunscreen is less likely to have the ability to fully live up to its SPF number within a facecream as it is diluted with the other moisturising face cream ingredients. You would need to flood your skin with an SPF containing face cream to gain the same efficacy as a separate sunscreen which would likely lead to congested skin overladen with product.
Whilst we do not currently have a separate SPF cream to offer you here at HBB we do have a couple that both of us have tried and tested that we would fully recommend. Both are also eco-friendly, reef friendly, cruelty free and gentle:
For drier skin types: Green People's scent free sun cream (SPF 30)
For combination/oilier skin types: Supergloop's unseen sunscreen (SPF 40)
Habit 6: Foster the feel good factor
Face cream fanatics also know how good your skin FEELS when its moisturised – have you noticed how much more confident and happy you are when your skin is feeling soft, smooth and hydrated?
Nourishing your skin with an effective moisturising cream leaves it feeling calm and soothed - if you don’t’ adequately hydrate your skin you are likely to experience that tight, dry itchy feeling on your skin all day and that just isn’t comfortable is it?
The inclusion of beeswax and raw honey in creams has fantastic skin softening properties and enhances the skin’s elasticity to leave it feeling super smooth to the touch and helping to reduce signs of ageing.
And why stop there? Contribute to our planet’s wellbeing by plumping for eco friendly, sustainable moisturisers that are not only kind to the skin, but kind to nature and the environment too. If this is important to you, have a look at the eco credentials of our face creams to put your skin and mind at ease.
Habit 7: Multipurpose your moisturiser
“Do I need to use a separate night cream?” This is another question our lovely customers often ask us.
Your HBB face cream will work perfectly well as a night cream thanks to the nourishing power of beeswax, plant oils and honey – they act as hydrating humectants – nature’s version of hyaluronic acid which is often found in specialised night creams.
If you do find your skin needs some extra ‘heavier’ night time moisturisation, we recommend layering your usual HBB face cream with our rich Sensitive bee beeswax balm which will attract and lock in moisture overnight, leaving very dry, thirsty skin drenched with hydration upon waking.
Habit 8: Embrace essential oils in your face cream
We are so often told by you kind people how much you adore the scent of our face creams, but did you know that those naturally fragrant essential oils offer so much more than a divine smell when you moisturise?
Those with truly glowing skin embrace how the aromatics of their moisturiser not only offer skin benefits but also aid with their mental well being – when a scent calms, soothes and uplifts, it leads to a happier person, happier skin and a glow from within.
Our regenerative rose infused face cream for dry skin has antioxidant skin soothing benefits teamed with a grounding, comforting, mood enhancing aroma. The rose essential oil has a variety of vitamins, antioxidants and minerals known for helping relieve dry skin for a petal-soft complexion.
For wrinkles rose essential oil works wonders – the vitamin C and E content is known to have collagen boosting benefits for your skin.
It’s the lavender in our face cream for oilier skin types that shines a calming light on both the complexion and mind.
Lavender essential oil will purify, decongest and balance oily skin; it also contains pain reducing properties, calms inflammation and helps prevent scarring – great for those of use who are prone to blemishes and acne. It is an excellent stress soother too!
Habit 9: Cocoon sensitive skin
We are asked so often by people who have tried many a face cream before only to be left with red sore skin, as to whether our face creams will help? Thankfully so many of our customers have delicate skins and tell us they are so relived to have found our fragrance free sensitive face cream.
So, if you have sensitive skin make it a moisturising habit to opt for a fragrance and essential oil free natural cream that won’t render your skin reactive or irritated.
Beeswax based face creams are ideal; being anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anti oxidant, antibacterial and germicidal beeswax is very unlikely to cause skin irritation but remains very competent at delivering all the moisturising needs to care for and cocoon sensitive skins with nourishment.
Habit 10: Moisturise through menopause
Using an effective moisturising face cream is so important to help with dry skin frustrations experienced during perimenopause and menopause.
When oestrogen levels plummet the levels of elastin in the skin reduce and skin thinning accelerates. This leads to dryness, itching and a reduction in suppleness as well as an increase in sensitivity.
To help, choose a moisturiser free from harsh chemicals that will further strip the skin of moisture and try a face cream that contains natural humectants (ingredients that bind with water molecules to hydrate) such as our beeswax and raw honey face cream for dry skin.
There we go - that's our top ten picks of great face cream habits!
Interested to know more? See below for the buzz on what our best-selling beeswax and honey face creams are best known for:
- award winning
- made in small batches with love and care
- made without sulphates, parabens, petroleum, parfum, synthetic fragrance
- natural aromatics to promote skin happiness and mental well being
- natural, cruelty free, ethically sourced oils, butters and essential oils
- different creams available for different skin types
- proven water-based emulsion formula for efficacy
- formulated with natural ingredients especially tailored to support different skin concerns
- promotes ethical beekeeping
- housed in recyclable or reusable glass pots (click here for a guide on how to return yours)
- 'starter sizes' available so you can try before committing to full size
- long lasting, excellent value – only a small amount needed for transformative results
- support and advice available from us to guide you through your face cream journey
Are you feeling more confident in how to tap into your face cream’s efficacy to achieve happy, glowing moisturised skin?
We hope sharing these top revered face cream habits has inspired you to curate your own love of moisturising.
If you are still feeling unsure about whether our face creams are worth a try, would like any further information about our ingredients or face care advice in general we would be delighted to help in an way we can so please reach out and let us know.
Wishing you all happy healing hydration,
Cath and Bec xx
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