Everything I cut out of my skincare routine, and why my skin thanks me for it now. Plus my favourite multi-tasking products to get there.

I have to confess, I have a horrible secret I keep hidden away in my bathroom. Every time I look at it, I wonder how I ever let things get so deeply out of control. I call it the shelf of shame—standing tall, mocking my lack of impulse control, full of half-used (or maybe even just once-used) skincare products lying neglected, and possibly expired.

A few years back, I was never satisfied with my skin—even when it looked perfectly fine! I was always tempted to try the latest product or ingredient promising miraculous results, but the funny thing is that more products never equalled better results for me. Quite the opposite, in fact. My skin ended up getting overwhelmed with everything I was putting on it. There were times she looked great, but more often than not, she was being a moody little brat—dry, sensitive and prone to breakouts.

One day, when the shelf of shame and my skin had both had enough, I took a step back and asked myself, "Does my skin really need all this?" That simple question was a game-changer. I realized that my skin was craving simplicity, not a complicated routine. So, I embarked on a journey to skinimalism, scaling back my skincare and focusing on what truly matters—healthy, happy skin.

A messy vanity shelf full of skincare and makeup products piled up and overflowing

Benefits of scaling back my routine

Less overload, more clarity: By ditching the excess products, my skin could finally breathe, and I could finally understand what’s working for me. No more confusion about which product was doing what.
Budget-friendly: Let's face it, skincare can get pricey. By focusing on essential products, I not only saved money but also invested in high-quality items that truly made a difference.
My skin says thank you: My skin responded positively to the streamlined routine. Today it looks and feels so much healthier, more radiant, and surprisingly, less prone to breakouts and irritation.
Eco-friendly approach: I can’t be the only one whose skincare cabinet was a source of constant guilt. Scaling back meant less waste—both in terms of product packaging and unused products. It's a small but meaningful step towards a more sustainable skincare routine.

Not going to lie, this process took a lot of restraint and patience, but trust me, it was absolutely worth it. If you want to simplify your routine, you have to be honest with yourself (easier said than done, I know). Start by doing the following:

Identify what your skin really needs

The first step in scaling back your skincare routine is understanding your skin's unique needs. And remember, needs are different from wants. I can want to look like a supermodel, but do I need it? Probably not. Needs are based on what your skin requires in order to be healthy and look its best (which varies for everyone). There are 2 questions everyone should be able to answer about their skin’s needs:

What’s my skin type? The good news is that this is a multiple choice question with only 4 possible answers—oily, dry, combination, or sensitive skin. The bad news is that factors like weather, pollution levels, hormones, and even age, can cause your skin type to change over time, so this may need to be periodically reassessed.
What are the areas I want to focus on?: Acne, aging, hyperpigmentation, dehydration, damaged moisture barrier, sensitivity—identifying your skin’s primary requirements is the key to understanding what products you need in your routine. These too could and normally do change over time, but it’s important to focus on the top 2-3 areas which are impacting you the most right now and focus on them. For e.g. my top 2 skincare concerns at the moment are my uneven skin tone and early signs of ageing.

Focus on ingredients

Once you know your skin type and concerns, the next step is to identify ingredients—just the basic ingredients, not yet the products—that can best address those concerns. For this, you’ll have to do your homework and educate yourself about the benefits of different ingredients, but the online resources for this are literally unlimited. Here’s what you’ll need to keep in mind:

Look for active ingredients: As someone who’s spent their entire career in marketing, let me emphatically say—don’t let the marketing fool you. Just because something’s called a brightening serum, or an anti-ageing cream or a hydrating toner, doesn’t mean it’ll work to target those concerns. Look, instead, for active ingredients in the formula that you know will work for your skin. For my concerns, I knew I wanted multi-tasking specialists, vitamin C and retinoids, and 1-2 more targeted treatments, for which I go between azelaic acid, niacinamide and peptides.
Know what to avoid: On the flipside, it’s also important to know which ingredients could be making your skin worse. If you have sensitive skin and are using strong retinoids every day, you’re making your skin worse. If you’ve got acne-prone skin, and you’re using products with comedogenic ingredients, you’re going to make your skin worse. For my combination skin that’s prone to dryness and sensitivity, I stay away from exfoliating acids like salicylic acid or glycolic acid, even if they’re listed as secondary ingredients in a product.

Rethink your routines

Now comes the hard part. This is the point where you’re going to have to Marie Kondo your skincare stash and start eliminating products that aren’t bringing joy to your skin. Think long and hard about how many of them are really necessary, and how many may be doing more harm than good. A few things I force myself to do are:

Stick to the essentials: Skip the 10-step skincare routine, and stick to the essentials instead—cleanser, moisturizer, sunscreen, and 1-2 targeted treatments (these can differ in the day and night time). If you’re skincare obsessed like I was, this may sound nearly impossible to do, but eventually I got there and my skin’s happier for it. For me, the additional treatments I’m currently using are a vitamin C serum and brightening toner in the morning, and retinoids and peptides at night.
Cheat with multi-tasking products: My favorite hack for scaling back my skincare routine is finding one product that targets multiple concerns. These are your cheat codes, allowing you to get multiple benefits without using multiple products. A vitamin C serum with hyaluronic acid is going to give you brightening and hydration. A sunscreen with centella asiatica is going to protect and soothe your skin.
Eliminate the rest: This will also help you eliminate products that are doing the same things as your hero products. Niacinamide and hyaluronic acid, for example, are 2 ingredients that are in almost all products today, including moisturizers and sunscreens, so there’s no need for separate serums with these as active ingredients.

Start low and slow, and keep it consistent

Now comes the self restraint. Start with the most basic routine you can bring yourself to live with (I literally went back to just cleanser, moisturizer and sunscreen), and establish a baseline for your skin. Give your skin a period of peace and quiet, let it breathe and recover. Once you’ve gone a few weeks without any skin freakouts, introduce one targeted treatment at a time—ideally only once a day, or even every once every other day for stronger ingredients like retinoids. If it causes irritation, get rid of it and start again, but if it feels good then use it for a few months before you make a decision about its place in your routine. Give at least 2 weeks before you introduce the next new product into your routine.

My top 5 picks for multi-tasking

Before we get into my favourite multi-taskers, let me preface by saying, there’s nothing wrong with a single ingredient product. A lot of my routine is built on simpler formulations, and brands like The Ordinary are cult favourites for a reason. However, if you’re looking for benefits from multiple ingredients and don’t want a 10-step routine, then these products below might help you do just that, while keeping your routine simple.