Sleep and skin meet in the evening ritual: it is the last moment of the day when you can care for your skin without rushing. Night care is a short routine in which you cleanse your skin, add moisture and apply a richer cream that helps keep it soft through the night. If you are looking for a night cream, have a look at the BÁTHORYČKA dragon's blood night cream or the Blue night balm, or let our Advisor guide you.
Sleep and skin: what happens to your skin in the evening and overnight
During the day your skin goes through more than you notice: cold wind on the way to work, dry heating, make-up, screens and hands that touch it even when you do not know it. In the evening all of this gathers on the surface, so it makes sense to cleanse gently, so that you do not take away from your skin the few lipids of its own that it has left. Scientific papers describe that skin also has its own daily rhythm, for example in how much water escapes through it, and you can find more in studies on the daily rhythm of the skin barrier (source: the PubMed database). In practice one thing follows from this: the evening is a good time to replace the moisture and lipids that the day has taken. After a short night, skin often looks duller and more tired, which a cream will not change. But it can give you back softness and a feeling of suppleness. I will not advise on sleep as such, that belongs in the hands of a doctor. This text is about what you can do for your skin while you are not yet asleep.
What an evening ritual looks like, step by step
A good evening ritual takes ten minutes and does not need many things. Start with cleansing. A balm or an oil copes with make-up and with the layers of the whole day: the Multifunctional Cleansing Balm is built on hemp, cucumber and camellia oil and, according to the instructions on the product page, is applied to damp skin, massaged in and rinsed off with lukewarm water. Then pat your skin gently dry by pressing a towel against it, not rubbing. If you use a toner or serum, apply it while your skin is still slightly damp. A cream comes last. A night cream can be richer than a day cream, because you do not wear it under make-up or a scarf, and a layer that would weigh you down during the day is easily carried in the evening. A slow massage turns it into a moment in which you switch from day to evening.
- Remove make-up with a balm or an oil and rinse with lukewarm water.
- Dry your skin by pressing a soft towel against it.
- Apply a serum or toner.
- Spread the cream from the centre of your face outwards, in a thin layer and without pressure.
- Let the cream absorb and do not add anything more.
Which night cream suits your evening
When choosing a night cream, look at the composition, not at the words on the packaging. The BÁTHORYČKA night cream starts with rose water and almond oil, and in the INCI you will find niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, ceramide NP and the peptide Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5. It spreads like a lighter emulsion. The Blue night balm, by contrast, is an anhydrous balm of camellia oil, cocoa butter and shea butter that melts in your palm. It contains essential oils, for example strawflower and myrrh, and fragrance components Limonene, Linalool, Geraniol and Citral. On its page there is a warning not to use it on irritated or sensitive skin, so try it first on a small area. If you are interested in the difference between day and night care, also read the article on day and night cream.
A ritual for 10, 5 and 2 minutes: what to do when you have no energy
Not every evening is the same. Sometimes you feel like a long cleanse with a massage, at other times you just want to crawl under the duvet. Both are fine and your skin will survive. That is why here are three versions of the ritual, between which you can switch depending on how much energy you have left. The full version is for evenings when you have time, the short one for ordinary days and the shortest for moments when your eyes are closing already at the basin. More important than length is that you remove your make-up and add at least a thin layer of cream. If you take a photo of this table, you will find it on your phone even when you do not feel like thinking, and you only need to point your finger at the row that suits you right now.
| How much time you have | What you do | What you can skip |
|---|---|---|
| 10 minutes | Cleansing with a balm, drying, serum, night cream with a short massage | Nothing, this is the full version |
| 5 minutes | Cleansing, drying, night cream | Serum and massage |
| 2 minutes | Rinsing with lukewarm water, drying, a thin layer of cream | Everything else, your skin has had the most important part |
What you do not need before bed
In the evening you do not need ten steps or new products. Skin that is tired after the day tends to appreciate less rather than more, so leave a strong exfoliation, hot water and a cream tried for the first time just before bed for another day. If you notice a pillow mark in the morning, it usually evens out by itself, and lukewarm water and a thin layer of light cream will help it. It also helps to change your pillowcase regularly, so that make-up, traces of cream and oil from your hair do not build up on it, which you would then have next to your face all night. Sleep and skin do not need perfection together, regularity is enough. If redness, burning or itching appears on your skin and does not go away, speak to a doctor or dermatologist, because cosmetics do not replace an examination.
Did you know…
Did you know that the ingredients in the INCI list are given from the highest content to the lowest, so it is worth looking mainly at the first five to ten items?