Your daytime moisturiser may not be what your skin needs in the evening—here’s the difference

While it’s true that you could simply use the same (SPF-free) moisturiser for day and night, why settle when just a little tweak in your routine could completely transform your skin?

Believe it or not, your skin knows what time it is. That’s right—it has got its own personal clock, and it behaves very differently depending on whether it’s daytime or nighttime. You know what that means? It also needs to be treated differently depending on the time of day, which means that your skincare routine needs to cater to your skin’s circadian rhythm.

This doesn’t necessarily mean you need a separate 12-step routine for day and night—it’s much simpler, actually. You just have to pick the right moisturiser for that particular time of day. There are a few nuances to consider when doing this, which we’ll cover ahead. Not only will your skin feel better than ever, it’ll look better than ever too. So, let’s break down the needs of your daytime vs your nighttime skin:

Daytime Moisturising 101

The good news is that this is the simple part of Moisturising 101: Your day cream doesn’t actually have to fulfil a huge amount of criteria to be the ideal. All you need in a day-to-day moisturiser is a lightweight, hydrating formula with plenty of protective ingredients (i.e. antioxidants) and, preferably (but not necessarily) a generous dose of SPF.

Try: BURO’s favourite day creams (swipe)

Okay, so, let’s take each pointer one at a time. A super-rich, oily formula in the daytime is bad news for both your makeup and your humidity breakouts (and maskne!). So, if you like not having clogged pores and greasy, melted makeup before you even step outside, you might want to check your texture.

Further, when it comes to your day cream, it’s also important that it provides adequate protection against the elements. This means that an antioxidant-rich, anti-pollution formula is preferred—look out for ingredients like vitamin C and polyphenols. Not only do they combat the free radical damage that results from pollution, they also have additional brightening properties to give your skin an extra glow.

On that note, you should also be following up your daytime routine with an SPF; or better yet, use a moisturiser that includes sufficient SPF protection in its formula from the get-go.

Tip: Don’t settle for anything less than SPF 30.

Not only does SPF help protect from skin cancer, it also helps to prevent the degradation of your precious active ingredients in the sun. This means everything from glycolic acid to retinoids stay effective to work on your skin. Alternatively, save the fancy ingredients for the evening where there’s no risk of UV degradation! On that note…

Nighttime moisturising 101

Sleepy time is the time for recovery and rejuvenation—this is your opportunity to go wild with the active ingredients, because it’s when your skin cells are in peak absorption mode. Whether a cheeky chemical exfoliant or an anti-ageing active, it’s time to #TreatYourself.

On top of that, your sebum production hits an all-time-low come nighttime, which means it’s in dire need of extra conditioning. In other words, this is the perfect time to whip out the luxurious oils and rich formulations—your skin is in the market for a pamper.

Try: BURO’s favourite night creams (swipe)

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