Skincare Trends to Take with You in 2025
One of the most entertaining and educational aspects of social media is how it highlights skincare trends. I absolutely love hearing about a new trend and watching how it catches fire or sinks online. Some trends seem quite out there… remember the period facials a few years back? As we look back at 2024, what skincare trends will last the test of time and carry over into 2025? Get ready to make your skincare resolutions with my predictions below.
Double Cleansing. Unless we’re talking money or cheeseburger, doubling something doesn’t seem like it’s a great idea and just implies more work. However, when we are talking about your face, double cleansing is a must in my opinion if you want to get that clean slate each night. Double cleansing is exactly what it sounds like, cleansing your face twice. You first cleanse with with an oil cleanser or micellar water and then cleanse again with a water-based gentle cleanser. The goal for the first cleanse is remove sunscreen (which I know you wear every day) and make-up and the second cleanse is to remove dirt, oil and pollutants that may be on your skin. A double cleanse creates the perfect foundation for starting the rest of your skincare routine. If you have oily skin and/or wear makeup daily, double cleansing is a must. If your skin isn’t particularly oil-prone or you’re only an occasional makeup wearer, double cleansing every night may not be necessary and often you only need a gentle cleanser. Although it’s a bit more effort, a double cleanse is essential to get your face clean. And don’t sigh. It’s not too much work if you think about it because you should remove your make-up and sunscreen at the end of the day anyway. Now, it’s just trendier to do so by calling it a double cleanse!
Skin Flooding. A flood isn’t usually a good thing, but for your face, it can be. Skin flooding refers to a process where you simply drench your skin in moisturizer. Keeping your skin well hydrated can improve your skin’s barrier function and minimize fine lines and wrinkles. Skin flooding is like skin slugging, but a little different with a few more steps involved and special ingredients to really plump that skin up. So how do you create an act of mother nature on your face? Follow these steps to flood your skin with moisture:
1. Clean the skin with a gentle cleanser, ensuring that the skin remains damp.
2. Apply a hydrating serum containing hyaluronic acid or glycerin, which work to draw in moisture.
3. Apply a serum containing hydrating ingredients like niacinamide or polyglutamic acid.
4. Apply a moisturizing lotion, cream or ointment to lock the moisture in for those with mature or very dry skin.
While I love a skin flood on occasion, it’s not the best for acne prone skin and may lead to more breakouts. You can skin flood all year round but might want to substitute out light weight moisturizers during the summer months. Skin flooding seems to be best for those with dry skin or mature skin types but anyone can try it.
Collagen Banking. More collagen in the bank? Yes, please! Collagen is what makes our skin tight, gives it elasticity and minimizes fine lines and wrinkles. Translation–Collagen gives your skin that youthful appearance. So what is collagen banking? This is a new term given to collection of beauty techniques, from supplements and topicals to minimally invasive procedures such as injectables or lasers, to increase your collagen reserves. If you think about it, our collagen breaks down over time, due to several reasons like genetics and environmental factors like sun exposure. In fact, experts believe we lose about one percent of our collagen per year. As a result, wrinkles start to appear, and our skin becomes looser over time. If you think about it, you wouldn’t let your bank account drain itself without putting more money in, so why should your collagen not be replenished? There are a variety of ways to collagen bank, including collagen supplements, masks, topical creams such as vitamin C and retinoids, red light masks, injectables that promote new collagen formation and procedures like micro-needling, laser etc. Sunscreen is a part of collagen banking too because those pesky UV rays love to break collagen down. More studies are needed to show the value some of these collagen banking methods offer, but most experts agree using topical retinoids, such as retinol, or vitamin C is a good place to start with your sunscreen daily. In this economy, doing any savings might seem daunting, but collagen banking a trend that is here to stay and one you should start adopting.
Skin Minimalism. The thought of doing less for your skin might frighten you, but it might be your secret to success. Let’s face it, a lot of us want to be routine people, but it’s not realistic for us to follow a ten-step skincare regimen with our busy lives. Skin minimalism is a new concept whereby you simplify your skincare routine, but you don’t sacrifice results. Skin minimalism is appealing, especially for busy people or if you’re intimated by a multistep routine. Skin minimalism saves time, potentially money and makes skincare a bit more realistic for the average person. Less can be more, especially if a complex routine turns you off from taking care of your skin. To be a skin minimalist, look for combination products, like a vitamin C and antioxidant blend sunscreen that can be used right after cleansing. At nighttime, you can use combination retinol products that might have niacinamide or hyaluronic acid. That way you can get the right ingredients but cut the steps down to get there. My philosophy for good skincare is to keep it consistent and concise. This usually yields the best results. Multiple steps often set you up for failure. If you happen to be the one who loves routines and has time, then continue to follow your detailed regiment. If you’re new to skincare regimens or think I barely have time to put my pajamas on at night before I fall into bed, then skin minimalism is for you. No matter what you prefer, with all the skincare products out there, you can completely individualize your routine based on skin needs and personality of loving multiple steps or just a few.
Trotter’s Take: Trends for skincare may come and go, but these trends are worth adding into your skincare goals for 2025.
Check out my podcast where I review Skincare Trends from 2024 to launch our new segment, “Trot or Not.”
