It’s the start of a new year and if your New Years’ resolution is to take better care of your skin, we got you covered! There are so many good beauty products that you should be adding to your routine, so take a look at this list and pick out your favorites.
1. Face and Body Exfoliators
The skin on your body and the skin on your face are very different – for the same reason, you don’t put body lotion on your face. Getting a good exfoliator and using it two to three times a week can do wonders for your skin.
Face:
Body:
2. Moisturizer
You need to do a skin assessment and find out the type of skin you have: oily, dry or combination. This will then determine the type of moisturizer you need and how often to apply it. Try some of these moisturizers and let us know what you think.
For dry skin:
This is a face and body lotion, for those who feel like using something that’ll kill two birds with one stone.
For oily skin:
One myth that I recently debunked was thinking that oily skin needed less hydration so I would skip out on moisturizer. WRONG! First off, don’t ever skip your moisturizer, even oily skin needs to be hydrated. Find an oil-free moisturizer because oily skin overcompensates when it comes to oil production, so correctly moisturizing will keep those sebaceous glands at bay.
For combination skin:
3. Sunscreen
Don’t skip out on this step, it’s a must-need product and deserves more love! You need constant protection from UV rays to stop those signs of aging. Trust us, you’ll thank us later.
Tip: Get a moisturizer that has SPF in it so you don’t have to add an extra step to your routine!
4. Hydrating Hair Oils and Hair Masks
Don’t forget about your luscious locks! They need TLC too and deserve every bit of it, from root to tip. Hydrate your hair and give it the right amount of care.
5. Scalp Soothers
Celebrity hairstylist Lacy Redway says that “dryness, itchiness, and dandruff are three of the biggest scalp problems black women experience.” Scratching and patting your head is only making it worse and adding oil to your hair is going to clog up your follicles. Next time you wash your hair, consider you using these Head and Shoulders products.
6. Mineral Foundation
Black people are more prone to oily skin than any other race, according to Andrea Arteberry, a writer at Cosmopolitan. It’s because of an increased amount of oil glands, therefore increasing the amount of oil production. That’s why mineral foundation will be your best friend and help dissipate that oily appearance.
7. Glycolic Acid
This stuff works like magic! Arteberry writes, “The chemicals of glycolic acid work to expose the healthy layer of skin beneath the uppermost layer of the epidermis so all you (and anyone else) see is glow.”
8. Balm
Got dark spots on areas like your elbows and your knees? Looking for a way to lighten these spots to even out your skin tone? Well, we got just the product for you. Bag balm!
9. Heat Protectant
We respect any and all decisions to do what you want with your hair, that goes without saying. But what we will not tolerate is not taking care of your hair! It’s the only one you got, so you have to take care of those tresses! If you plan on straighten or put any heat on your hair, spray with some protectant to keep your hair safe from damage.
10. Ingrown Hair Treatment
They are common and they suck, but there is a treatment for ingrown hair! Here is some brilliant advice from Cosmopolitan “To keep your skin ingrown- and bump-free, try chemically exfoliating with glycolic and salicylic acid-laced pads that also contain soothing green tea. This combination keeps your pores from getting clogged, and keeps redness and inflammation at bay.”
Moises is a full-time graduate student at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY reporting mainly on food and restaurants but maintains overall emphasis on arts and culture.