Overwhelmed by complicated skincare routines? Learn how to create a minimalist skincare routine that works for your skin’s needs, with inspiration from my own routine.

A cluttered bathroom sink piled with skincare products

Let’s be honest—skincare has become ridiculously overwhelming. Between influencers pushing 10-step routines, products packed with ingredients you can’t pronounce, and that nagging feeling of “Am I doing enough for my skin?” it’s no wonder so many of us feel pressured to add more and more steps to our routines. One of the main reasons I started writing this blog was exactly because I wanted to help others stuck in the same loop as me.

Here’s the thing, though: A good skincare routine doesn’t have to be complicated. In fact, I’d take consistency over complexity every single day of the week, and the easiest way to stay consistent with your skincare is to simplify it. So, if you’re struggling to put together a skincare routine that you can consistently follow, let’s break down how to create a minimalist routine that saves time and money, and gives your skin exactly what it needs.

Start by Identifying What Your Skin Really Needs

The first step in building your skincare routine is understanding your skin's unique needs. With a skinimalist routine, you have the opportunity to customize your skincare approach based on your skin type, concerns, and goals. Instead of taking a one-size-fits-all approach, you can tailor your routine to address specific issues, by answering 2 easy questions:

What’s my skin type? The good news is that this is a multiple choice question which generally has one of 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 skin concerns I want to address?: Acne, aging, hyperpigmentation, dehydration, damaged moisture barrier, sensitivity—identifying your skin’s primary concerns is the key to understanding what products you need in your routine. These too could, and often 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 hyperpigmentation and early signs of ageing.

Skincare Routine 101: The 3 Core Steps of Any Routine

Now that you’ve identified your skin’s needs, let’s move on to building your skinimalist routine. Contrary to what social media would have you believe, you don't need a multitude of products to achieve healthy, glowing skin. In reality, a simplified routine allows your skin to function optimally and maintain its protective barrier, which is crucial for overall skin health.

A skinimalist routine focuses on three essential steps: cleansing, moisturizing, and protecting. Anything else? Consider it optional.

1. Cleanser

Cleansing is where it all starts. A good cleanser removes dirt, oil, makeup and sunscreen without stripping your skin of its natural moisture. Choosing which cleanser to use, and how many times a day to cleanse, really comes down to the skin type you identified earlier.

If you have oily or combination skin, I recommend cleansing twice a day, preferably with a double cleanse at night (start with a micellar water or an oil-based cleanser first, then follow up with a water-based one)
For dry and sensitive skin types, make sure you’re using the gentlest possible cleanser, something that leaves your skin feeling clean, but not tight, flaky or dry. A nightly double cleanse is still recommended, especially if you wear makeup or slather on sunscreen religiously, but consider skipping the morning cleanse and opting for a generous splash of water instead.

My Personal Faves:

2. Moisturizer

No matter your skin type—yes, even if you’re oily—a good moisturizer can help your skin lock in hydration, and support your overall skin barrier health. That’s why it’s considered an essential step in any skincare routine. Just like with a cleanser, choosing the right moisturizer largely comes down to your skin type.

Oily or combo skin? Lightweight gel moisturizers, loaded with humectants like hyaluronic acid, glycerin, panthenol, honey, etc., are your best friend. These help your skin retain moisture without making it look greasy.
Dry or sensitive skin? Your skin is likely not producing enough natural oils, so opt for thicker, more occlusive creams with fatty ingredients like ceramides or oils, like squalane.

My Personal Faves:

3. Sunscreen (Every. Single. Morning.)

Sunscreen is the MVP of your routine. It’s your first line of defense against UV damage, which causes everything from premature wrinkles to hyperpigmentation. It’s important to find a sunscreen that you’ll apply every single day, rain or shine, so make sure you choose one that feels comfortable enough on your skin to apply (and reapply) often.

Do some research into the differences between chemical and mineral (or physical) sunscreens before picking the right one for your skin type. I’ve got a helpful article here, but in short, chemical sunscreens tend to be more lightweight and cosmetically elegant, making them a good choice for those with oily skin. Mineral sunscreens (usually containing zinc oxide or titanium dioxide) are great for sensitive or acne-prone skin.
Look for a broad spectrum sunscreen (protects against both UVA and UVB rays) that’s at least SPF 30 or higher.

My Personal Faves:

Once you’ve chosen your cleanser, moisturizer, and sunscreen—CONGRATULATIONS! You just built yourself a skincare routine. Even if you don’t add any more steps from hereon out, you’ve still got a daily routine that’s tailored for your skin. But, if you think you need just a little more, keep reading.

What You Can Add On (But ONLY If You Need It)

Let me say this again, louder for those in the back, you don’t necessarily need more than the 3 steps above if you’re not dealing with any major skin concerns. But if you’re worried about things like acne, dark spots, signs of aging etc., you can add targeted treatments to address them. Now you may be tempted to embellish your routine with toners, serums, essences, ampoules, oils, masks…the list goes exhaustingly on—but my advice would be to stick to 1-2 extra steps, tops.

An easier way to think about this is to identify what ingredients your skin needs most, and then find a product that contains one or more of those ingredients. Whether that product comes in the form of a lightweight toner, a midweight serum or something more occlusive, like an ampoule or oil, comes down largely to the kind of texture and product consistency you prefer to layer on to your face.

I highly encourage you to do your own research to identify what your skin really needs, but to get you started, here’s a pretty basic cheat sheet of ingredients to look for based on some of the most popular skin concerns:

Skin Concern	Popular Ingredients to Look For	Personal Fave Products
Hyperpigmentation, dark spots, dull skin	Vitamin C, Alpha Arbutin, Azelaic Acid, Kojic Acid, Tranexamic Acid, Glutathione, Licorice Root	• Geek & Gorgeous C-Glow 15% Vitamin C Serum • Dr. Idriss Major Fade Serum • Naturium Tranexamic Topical Acid 5% • Reviva Labs Dark Spot Brightening Serum
Oily, acne-prone skin	Niacinamide, Exfoliating Acids (1-2 times a week), Retinoids	• Differin Gel • Paula's Choice 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant • SK-II Facial Treatment Essence
Signs of aging	Retinoids, Peptides, Vitamin C, Exfoliating Acids	• Medik8 Crystal Retinal • Tretinoin (by prescription only) • Allies of Skin Peptide & Antioxidants Firming Daily Treatment
Damaged skin barrier	Ceramides, Squalane, Centella Asiatica, Aloe, Colloidal Oatmeal, Green Tea	• Anua Rice 7 Ceramide Hydrating Barrier Serum • Cocokind Ceramide Barrier Serum • Beauty of Joseon Calming Serum: Green tea + Panthenol
Dehydrated skin	Hyaluronic Acid, Glycerin, Panthenol, Beta Glucan, Niacinamide	• I'm From Rice Toner • iUNIK Beta Glucan Power Moisture Serum • TIRTIR SOS Serum

How to Build Your Routine

Now that you’ve identified your 3 core steps + 1-2 optional targeted treatments, it’s time to start building your routine. The rule of thumb in layering your skincare products is to go from the most lightweight and watery products to progressively adding on heavier and more occlusive products. Here’s what your skinimalist skincare routine might look like:

Morning:

Cleanse (optional): Wake your skin up with a gentle cleanser or alternatively, simply splash some water on it
Targeted treatments (optional): Personally, I prefer to use lightweight products in the day time, so stick to toners or serums in the morning. These go on straight after my cleanse.
Moisturize: Lock it all in with a moisturizer of your choice. Mine are almost always lightweight, gel moisturizers, but choose what works for your skin.
Sunscreen: Finish with SPF—don’t skip it, even if it’s cloudy!

Evening:

Cleanse: Evening cleanses are not optional. Choose whatever cleanser is gently but effectively able to wash off the day, and preferably double cleanse if you’ve been wearing makeup or even sunscreen.
Targeted treatments (optional): Your evening routine is where you add in heavier targeted treatments like ceramides and peptides, or ingredients that can cause sun sensitivity during the day, like retinoids and exfoliating acids.
Moisturize: End your day with a soothing moisturizer.

My Current Morning and Evening Routine

To give you a real example of what a routine looks like, with products, I wanted to share a look at my current morning and evening routines.

My skin type is combination, leaning towards oily, and living in a tropical climate does me no favours in that department. My major skin concerns are hyperpigmentation and early signs of aging (I’m in my mid 30s). Additionally, because of years of skincare experimentation, my skin has suffered quite a bit of damage in the past, for which I tend to proactively use products that protect my skin barrier.

**Morning Routine**

**Naturium Niacinamide Gelee Cleanser 5%:** My oily skin, coupled with the hot, humid climate I live in, make a morning cleanse compulsory for me. This gentle cleanser, with niacinamide for additional oil-control, is my current fave.
**Geek & Gorgeous C-Glow 15% Vitamin C Serum:** Fights hyperpigmentation, check. Helps build collagen, check. Protects against sun damage, check, check, check. This Vitamin C serum, a near dupe for the famous Skinceuticals C E Ferulic, tackles multiple skin concerns with one serum.
**Beauty of Joseon Calming Serum Green Tea + Panthenol:** This serum, formulated with two of K-Beauty’s most iconic exports—Green Tea (antioxidant) and Mugwort (soothing)—helps brighten and protect at the same time.
**Purito Oat-In Calming Gel Cream:** As the name suggests, the primary ingredient in this ultra-lightweight moisturizer is 77% oat seed water that hydrates and soothes. Additional hydrating ingredients include panthenol, squalane and beta-glucan.
**Skin1004 Hyalu-Cica Water Fit Sun Serum:** K-beauty is famous for its lightweight, watery sunscreens with ingredients that provide additional benefits to the skin. My current fave is this one from SKIN1004 that’s infused with niacinamide, hyaluronic acid and centella asiatica to hydrate and soothe the skin.

**Evening Routine**

**Bioderma Sensibio Micellar Water:** Double cleansing has been a game changer for my oily skin, but unfortunately, it doesn’t love cleansing balms and oils all the time. Recently, I’ve been sticking to the OG micellar water for a first cleanse instead.
**Naturium Niacinamide Gelee Cleanser 5%:** For my second cleanse, I use the same cleanser as I do in the morning.
**Prescription Tretinoin 0.025% (alternate nights):** Like Vitamin C, Tretinoin is a master of multi-tasking, and helps fight against all my major skin concerns. It did take a while for my skin to build up a tolerance to it though, even at the low percentage of 0.025%. Now, after a year of usage, I apply it on alternate nights.
**Anua 7 Rice Ceramide Hydrating Barrier Serum:** One of the main reasons I’ve even been able to build up to Tretinoin on alternate nights is this incredible barrier repair serum, loaded with calming and hydrating ingredients like rice bran water, ceramides, niacinamide, glycerin, panthenol, and so much more. It’s become a permanent fixture in my routine, no matter what else changes.
**Purito Oat-In Calming Gel Cream:** No point reinventing the wheel here. I use the same moisturizer I did in the morning.

Why I Swear by a Skinimalist Routine

I used to think that more products would magically give me flawless skin, but it turns out, my skin just needed me to stop overthinking. Since switching to a skinimalist routine, I’ve noticed fewer breakouts, less irritation, and honestly, way more peace of mind.

The best part? My bathroom shelves are finally uncluttered, and I’ve saved so much time and money. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your skincare routine, maybe it’s time to give minimalism a try. Your skin—and your sanity—might just thank you.

How to build a simple skincare routine that works.

Overwhelmed by complicated skincare routines? Learn how to create a minimalist skincare routine that works for your skin’s needs, with inspiration from my own routine.

Start by Identifying What Your Skin Really Needs

Skincare Routine 101: The 3 Core Steps of Any Routine

NATURIUM Niacinamide Cleansing Gelee 3%

PURITO Oat-In Calming Gel Cream

SKINFIX Barrier+ Triple Lipid Peptide Cream

SKIN1004 Hyalu-Cica Water Fit Sun Serum

PAULA’S CHOICE Youth Extending Daily Hydrating Fluid

What You Can Add On (But ONLY If You Need It)