As well as looking and feeling great in the clothes you wear you should look and feel great about your skin! Inevitably during your time at university, whether its too much alcohol, a change in diet, lack of sleep or work stress, your skin will suffer in some way. Here are a few tips, tricks and recommendations of how to keep your skin clear and healthy.
Cream not foam.
Cleansing is a vital step in your skincare routine, you should wash your face with a cleanser morning and night, removing any traces of makeup and dirt by splashing your face with water or with a muslin cloth. Whether your skin is oily, normal or dry, try to avoid foam based cleansers. They strip skin of natural essential oils, drying it out therefore the skin feels the need to produce to excess oil to rehydrate the face. The thought of a cream based cleanser might worry those with oily, spot prone skin but they work wonders by deep cleaning pores, producing a clearer and smoother complexion .
Many teenage skin care ranges such as Clearasil and Freederm are designed to treat mild acne but are often too harsh and although they might produce results within a matter of days, in the long run they damage skin by stripping its natural barrier.
Best budget cream cleanser: Ponds Cold Cream – £5 Boots/ £2.80 Bodycare
Best non-budget cream cleanser: Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser – £15 Boots/John Lewis
Moisturise, moisture, moisturise!
The most common error people with oily skin make is thinking that moisturiser adds excess oil to the face and thereby worsens the skin. No! Moisturiser is essential as it balances out oils and soothes skin, drying out the skin will only create unwanted excess oils and sebum which clog pores and result in more spots. Moisturise morning and night after cleansing, eye and neck cream are not worth the extra money, simply massage your normal moisturiser over these places too. If you do suffer from mild acne, use a moisturiser containing at least 2% salicylic acid.
Best budget moisturiser: Simple Hydrating Light Moisturiser – Boots £4.50
Best non-budget moisturiser: Kiehl’s Blue Herbal Moisturiser (contains salicylic acid)- Selfridges/House of Fraser £26.50
Exfoliate
Aim to exfoliate skin 1-2 times a week as this lifts any excess dirt and oil off your face by unclogging pores. Scrubbing away the surface dirt results in smaller looking pores and removing dead skin cells also speeds up the skin’s renewal process leading to a brighter and healthier appearance.
Best budget exfoliator: St Ives Apricot Exfoliating Scrub – £3.99 Superdrug
Best non-budget exfoliator: Liz Earle Gentle Face Exfoliator – £11 Boots/John Lewis
To tone or not to tone?
Toning is an optional step in a skincare routine; some people consider it to be too harsh for the skin or that too many products are counterproductive. I use toner at night, after cleansing, to ensure that all traces of make up are removed before I go to bed. Simply dab the toner onto a cotton wool pad and wipe over your face, concentrating on areas such as the hairline and jawline which cleansing can sometimes miss.
Best budget toner: Boots No7 Soft & Soothed Gentle Toner £8 (Boots hand out vouchers all the time which include £3 off skincare)
Simple Kind to Skin Soothing Toner – Boots/Superdrug £3.29
Best non-budget toner: Liz Earle Instant Boost Skin Tonic – Boots/John Lewis £14.50
Health
Whether catered or self-catered at university, you may find it difficult to eat a balanced diet and ultimately your skin will start to suffer. Plenty of fruit and vegetables will help your complexion along with drinking at least 5-8 glasses of water a day. Water is the cheapest form of skin therapy, upping your intake helps flush out toxins, leading to a more glowing and luminous complexion. Try to cut down on refined sugars often found in ready meals, cereals, white bread and soft drinks and you should start to notice a difference in a matter of weeks. Lack of sleep also contributes to a dull complexion, avoid pulling all-nighters to finish an essay and get at least 7-8 hours of sleep a night. As a student you might find this near impossible but plenty of fresh air and exercise should ensure a good night’s sleep.
Go makeup free!
Aim to go at least 2 days a week not wearing any makeup to allow skin to recover and breathe. If you have spotty or scarred skin this might be difficult for you but covering them with makeup will only slow down the healing process. Never go to the gym wearing makeup, it may be packed with weight lifting boys but working out with makeup is skin suicide! Your pores open when you sweat and this allows foundation to seep in and clog them up leading to breakouts.