Build the perfect routine for your skin concerns

The goal of any skincare routine is to balance your complexion so that it’s performing at its best. Great skin depends on lots of factors – DNA, diet, environment, lifestyle and also how you care for  it every day.

What you do every day counts and building a skincare routine that works for you is very personal. But because there’s an overwhelming amount of advice and marketing around skincare and ingredients, getting a routine that works for your particular set of skin concerns can sometimes feel like rocket science.

In this post, we unpack the fundamental elements that power each Pestle & Mortar skincare routine so you can make the best decisions for your skin and its particular concerns.

The Ageing Skin Routine

If you are concerned about fine lines, wrinkles, sagging skin, and hyperpigmentation, the Ageing Skin Routine is your friend. As we age, the skin loses its ability to restore itself and chemicals that are vital to its overall health and appearance are depleted.

The Ageing Skin Routine is a set of products that work together to reduce visible signs of ageing, refine the surface of the skin, and get deep into the dermis to stimulate collagen production so that your skin maintains its bounce and elasticity.

Your Ageing Skin Hero

This routine includes Superstar retinoid night oil that works as you sleep to supercharge your skin’s restorative processes. Retinol is the holy-grail ingredient for ageing skin – it’s one of the most effective skincare ingredients out there for targeting the visible effects of ageing and stimulating skin cell renewal. Superstar contains two types of fast-acting retinols that deliver visible retinol benefits without causing irritation.

The Dull Skin Routine

We’ve all at some point looked in the mirror and thought, ‘my skin is just dull and lacking glow’, particularly at Winter’s end. Dull skin is characterised by a dry, patchy appearance, lack of radiance and dark spots and shadows.

The Dull Skin Routine is packed with active ingredients like hyaluronic acid, squalane, vitamin C and magnesium that work hard to polish, brighten and illuminate the skin’s surface. 

Your Dull Skin Hero

Without a doubt, the stand-out skincare ingredient in this routine is Vitamin C. It visibly smooths the complexion, evens skin tone, and delivers a skin-brightening effect.

Best used in serum form to increase absorption, a great Vitamin C serum will showcase supporting ingredients that enhance the skin-brightening effect. Dull skin will thank you for natural extracts like tamarind and other fruit ferments as well as ingredients that provide extra hydration benefits. 

The Combination Skin Routine

If your skin feels oily, dry and tight all at once, it’s craving balance. The Combination Skin Routine combines intensely hydrating ingredients, nourishing natural extracts and targeted skincare actives that work together to rebalance and de-stress moody combination skin.

By using lightweight, deeply penetrative skincare products that deliver optimal hydration, gentle exfoliation and refreshing clarity, you’ll balance oil production and calm unpredictable combination skin.

Your Combination Skin Hero

NMF Lactic Acid toner slots into your combination skin routine and works wonders immediately. This gentle leave-on lactic acid solution hydrates the skin, sloughs away dead skin cells and clarifies the skin’s surface without causing any tight or dry feeling. Lactic acid is a sensitive-skin hero which won’t disrupt the pH of the skin or cause redness or irritation.

The Dry Skin Routine

Dry skin is crying out for moisture, but begging you to let it breathe. What you are aiming for is perfectly hydrated skin and a fully functioning skin barrier that keeps bad stuff out and lets good stuff in.

Our Dry Skin Routine boasts of a selection of products that are lightweight, deeply penetrative and super-soft so that skin gets instant relief from dryness without pore-clogging build-up.

Your Dry Skin Hero

If your skin is prone to dryness, it needs extra help to stay hydrated all day long. That’s why the Dry Skin Routine showcases our cult-favourite Pure Hyaluronic Serum. This lightweight, multi-tasking serum glides onto the skin and locks in moisture so that skin stays hydrated, healthy, and fresh. And remember this top tip when using any hyaluronic serum: spritz first and then apply your serum for extra hydration benefits. The serum will draw the moisture from the spritz into your skin and you will notice relief from dryness immediately.

The Oily Skin Routine

Oily skin has forgotten how to calibrate its oil production. Characterised by a shiny, greasy appearance, enlarged pores, and rough or thickened skin, your oily skin is craving balance. It needs a daily routine  that doesn’t strip away moisture or clog pores. 

The Pestle & Mortar Oily Skin Routine is a curated set of products that reduce pore size, rebalance sebum production, and clarify the skin.

Your Oily Skin Hero

Balance fine-misting facial spritz is a godsend for oily skin. All at once mattifying, clarifying, and hydrating, it’s enriched with a magnesium-rich deep sea extract that keeps skin calm and balanced. Spritz it on throughout the day to keep oiliness at bay and protect your skin against environmental stressors.

The Problem Skin Routine

For skin that is prone to blemishes and breakouts, a combination of deep cleansing, powerful exfoliation and calming hydration is key.

The Problem Skin Routine resets the skin’s oil production and restores its protective barrier without clogging pores so that it can regain optimal health.

Your Problem Skin Hero

Problem skin can be distressing due to unsightly pimples and pustules and there’s a temptation to layer on highly astringent acids in order to get a quick-fix. But while acids will exfoliate and clarify the skin, overdoing it with a harsh product will just lead to more problems.

Exfoliate Glycolic Acid Toner is especially formulated to treat problem skin in a way that’s gentle and effective. This glycolic acid based formulation evens-out skin tone, brightens the complexion, tightens pores and promotes skin cell renewal. With a free acid-value of 6.8% and a pH of 3.5, Exfoliate is suitable for all skin types and delivers instant skin benefits. Formulated with skin brightening and toning ingredients, it treats problem skin to deliver a glowing and rejuvenated complexion in the gentlest possible way.