After years and years of beauty routines that require more steps than I make in a day, makeup looks that hide all of our natural features, and a multitude of influencers who pretty much “shove” beauty products down our throats, it seems like the next beauty trend is doing the exact opposite!

So… have YOU heard of “skinimalism”? This new movement is all about achieving a healthy, glowing skin with very minimal, natural-based products. It is perfect for people who don’t have the time for complex beauty routines. AND, most importantly, it saves your skin from chemicals and the environment from packaging waste and contaminants.

To be honest, I always found beauty routines extremely confusing. There are so many products on the market, from moisturizers to oils to different acids and retinoids.. don’t even get me started on the makeup!

Plus, every few months a new trend surfaces, which means all the products you were using before are no longer “in” and once again you find yourself going back to the cosmetics store. And this goes on and on until you can’t even see your bathroom sink because it’s covered with all your beauty routine products.

Isn’t that just stressful?

Well at last, a trend that makes all of this unnecessary daily stress go away. Skinimalism is all about what your skin needs, and we are finally starting to learn that what our skin needs is in fact the opportunity to form its own natural oils and be able to breathe.

All these beauty products are marketed as magic against wrinkles, under eye circles, blemishes, redness, etc. What we don’t see on social media are the potential side effects that may arise by overloading on the active ingredients of all these products.

Our skin’s natural moisture barrier can get stripped down, which causes redness, breakouts and sensitivity [1], locking us into a vicious circle.

As Shereene Idris, a certified dermatologist, says “the biggest risk is developing an irritation, which can evolve into residual post-inflammatory erythema and hyperpigmentation. This outcome can take months to resolve, leaving you with a bigger problem than you had in the first place” [2].

Instead, why not opt out for 3-4 essential products containing only natural ingredients or that are homemade, and call it a day. We are often paying a lot of money for our skin care and it is not rare that what we are paying for is only a handful of useful ingredients, like rose or avocado oil, but mainly water, lots of chemicals and nice packaging. A few basic ingredients which are essential for a specific skin type are sufficient. Your skin, wallet and the planet will thank you.

Yes, it would be only right to mention that by reducing your skincare products you lower the amount of packaging waste that you produce. Not only waste, but the amount of contaminants that enters the environment decreases as you start incorporating less and less chemicals in your routine.

From store bought to DIY?

As I mentioned, skinimalism is all about what your skin wants and the only way to really know what you’re putting on it is either by buying natural products from a trusted source – meaning the manufacturer has disclosed all the ingredients inside their products – or by making it yourself at home. Pinterest has observed a 110% increase in searches for “homemade skincare” [2].

However, dermatologists do warn that making your products at home might be counterproductive unless you’ve done your research and made sure you’re an expert on every ingredient. As Dr. Hirsch says “all we tend to do with the mix-and-matching of ingredients is cause our own troubles” [2].

So if you do find yourself craving a homemade moisturizer, make sure you know exactly what ingredients your skin needs! We have several recipes ready for you and I’m sure you will have fun trying them out.

If you feel like maybe it’s time to give your skin something different than the countless beauty and makeup products, why not try some skin yoga!

And no.. your skin is not going to be doing the downward facing dog, but INSTEAD you will use your fingers to massage and exercise the muscles and lymphatic system to get some stimulation going in your skin.

This technique was developed to soften and relax the face muscles and help reduce stress and tension from the face… and maybe even a few wrinkles!

As much as beauty products can help with problematic areas, it is evident that slathering a million different products can make your skin feel tired, longing for a break! So do your skin a little favor and try this new trend!

It is time for some self-loving and how better to show your skin some love than with minimal products that consist of only natural and cruelty-free ingredients.