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Daytime & Nighttime Beauty Looks
Your daytime and nighttime beauty looks are avenues to let your personality shine and your creativity flow. Rather than hiding your natural beauty, it’s a chance to highlight the unique features you’re proud of and make you stand out. But not all beauty routines are the same, and each one should be tailored to suit your face, skin, lifestyle, and preferences.
In this guide, we’ll run through the basics of daytime and nighttime beauty routines, with everything from color suggestions, recommended products, and even styling and application tips. Beyond makeup and hair care, we’ll also demystify your skincare concerns, and help you find the right skin-loving approach for you.
After all, beauty shouldn’t be complicated but is personal. By the end of this guide, you’ll be equipped with the knowledge to look and feel your best from dawn ‘til dusk.
Daytime Beauty Looks
Perfect daytime beauty is fresh and natural. Think flushed cheeks and bright eyes that look healthy and youthful. Before anything else, start with daytime skincare centered on sun protection and hydration. After this, your skin will feel primed and ready for makeup. How you apply your makeup depends on personal preferences, but you’ll want to stick with soft glam hues, like corals, light browns, and berries.
Since you’re likely to be busy throughout the day, make sure your daytime beauty products can keep up. Look for budge-proof products that won’t smudge or smear, even if you get sweaty or oily. Since you don’t want anything that feels too heavy on your skin as you go about your errands either, opt for lightweight formulations. The IT Cosmetics CC+ Nude Glow Foundation + Serum w /SPF 40 is a great example of something that would work great in a daytime beauty routine since it offers buildable, dewy coverage while staying light on the skin. For your hair, use products that can help you retain style even without touchups. The Bumble and Bumble Surf Foam Spray Blow Dry is one such hair essential that makes getting your morning haircare routine faster and more enjoyable. A multi-tasking spray and mousse hybrid, it can add volume, texture, and waves in a single use! Ultimately, the best daytime beauty enhances your features and simply lets your innate charm shine through.
Daytime Skincare Routines
As we mentioned earlier, the first step to any beauty routine is skincare. With the right skincare regimen, your makeup will look and last better throughout the day, and your skin will stay happy and healthy-looking when you take it all off later. To start, look for hydrating products that can replenish any moisture lost during sleep. Cleansers are fine but instead, try toners or micellar waters that can break down any excess oil and “wake up” your skin. To illustrate, the ELEMIS Smart Cleanse Micellar Water can gently cleanse and hydrate your skin using complex surfactants, including English rose water, apple amino acids, and chamomile, for a radiant complexion.
From here, you’ll want to apply any serums or essences that will work on your skin throughout the day. For the mornings, vitamin C serums are a good place to start since they help brighten your skin. Once your serum has been absorbed, lock that in with some moisturizer. Unless your skin is especially dry or it is cold out, go with a lighter, nourishing cream that won’t feel greasy. Finally, it’s important to know that sunscreen is a must-have for everybody and is helpful for both beauty and sun safety. This is why it should be your last step and applied at least 15 minutes before you put your makeup on. Some sunscreens can even double as moisturizers so this step can be even easier.
Nighttime Beauty Looks
Evenings are your time to be as glamorous as you desire. Experimental and bold looks work well at night, as they add more life back into your face to help your features stand out amid the dimmer lights and more mysterious ambiance you’ll find in evening hangouts. Since most special events are also held after dark, a nighttime beauty look that leans towards the more dramatic works well.
More often than not, your nighttime beauty look will be added on top of what you already had on in the day, so it’s all about deepening and refreshing. Color palettes that work best here are jewel tones and metallics since they’ll be vibrant enough to stand out even at night. For the eyes, an extra coat of volumizing mascara can help accentuate your peepers. As for the base, you can add extra definition to your cheekbones and jawline by adding on a darker blush and contour. This will prevent your makeup from looking washed out. You can’t forget your lips, of course, so this is your chance to whip out the more daring colors you might be too intimated to wear in the day, like bright red lipsticks. For your hair, it’s important to begin by refreshing your locks. After a full day, hair can become naturally limp and greasy, so try some hairspray to give an instant lift. If you want your hair to smell just as fresh as when the day started, you can even go in with a hair mist that perfumes and treats in one.
Nighttime Skincare Routines
After a long day, you want your nighttime skincare routine to be all about soothing and cleansing. It’s important to understand that when looking at a daytime versus a nighttime skincare routine, the latter usually involves more steps because it addresses any strain that the skin experiences during the day.
With this in mind, start your PM routine with a good cleansing oil. This can come in the form of a liquid or a balm, although some products like the Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm transform into both textures. These work to melt off any makeup, oil, dirt, and debris without pulling on the skin. After this, you’ll want to go in with a more dedicated cleanser that can wash off the remaining cleansing oil and essentially transform your skin into a blank canvas. Creamy or foaming cleansers work best for more mature skin here since they are non-drying. Next, apply your toners, exfoliants, emulsions, and serums. Going in order of thinnest to thickest consistency, using these more targeted products at night is better since you don’t have to worry about exposure to the sun, makeup, and sweat. Finally, you’ll want to lock in your skincare with a moisturizer and sleeping mask that works overnight for soft and pampered skin.
Your Questions, Answered
Can your morning and night skincare routine be the same?
Absolutely, your morning and night routines can be the same if you’re trying to streamline your regimen or if you’re new to skincare. Some products, like the StriVectin Multi-Action Daily Brightening/Retexturizing Toner, are also specially designed for both AM and PM use. That said, if you want to really pamper your skin and target more specific concerns, it’s recommended that you adjust your routines accordingly.
Remember, the skin cycles differently throughout the day, so some products are better used at certain times. For instance, the skin is prone to feeling oilier upon waking due to the sebaceous and eccrine sweat glands working overtime to keep your skin hydrated during sleep. As such, it’s important for you to use a hydrating toner to quench the skin and cleanse off excess oils. Aside from this, some skincare products have ingredients that react better in the day or night. A great example of this is retinol anti-aging products. While retinol has been clinically proven as a safe and effective anti-aging ingredient, it’s photosensitive, making it ideal for a nighttime skincare routine. Fortunately, if you’re unsure how to create your day and night routine, there are a number of expertly curated sets, like the Peter Thomas Roth Super-Size Water Drench & Unwrinkle Day & Night Set, that eliminate any guesswork!
What order should skincare go in?
Your skincare should be applied based on product consistency, with the thinnest going on first and the thickest last. For example, in a daytime skincare routine, you want to start with a cleanser or toner and end with sunscreen. Meanwhile, your nighttime skincare routine should end with any spot treatments that are usually more occlusive, such as pimple creams or sleeping masks.
Applying your products in this order ensures that each can fully penetrate your skin, maximizing each product’s benefits.
What is the rule of 7 skincare?
The rule of 7 in skincare refers to a Korean beauty technique using toner. Also called “the 7 skin” method because toners are called skins in Korea, this practice helps lock in essential hydration that helps the skin look moisturized, soft, and bright. Those with dry or mature skin will enjoy this method the most as it can help boost plumpness, as the extra hydration helps diminish the look of texture and fine lines.
To try this yourself, you simply need a hydrating toner and your clean hands. Any toner will do, so long as it’s not a stripping astringent or loaded with actives. For example, the Ultra Repair Wild Oat Hydrating Toner by First Aid Beauty would work well here. After cleansing your face, pour a few drops of toner into the palms of your hands. Before the product dries, gently pat it all over your face, making sure to gently press the toner in. As the name implies, you should do around seven layers of this, although some days you may need more or less depending on how much hydration your skin needs. You’ll know you’ve added enough layers when your skin feels bouncier. After this, you can continue with the rest of your skincare routine.
What is the 4-2-4 rule in skincare?
The 4-2-4 rule is based on a Japanese skincare cleansing ritual. Based on the belief that a beautiful complexion begins with well-cleansed skin, this technique involves massaging your skin with an oil cleanser for four minutes, then massaging your skin with a foaming cleanser for two minutes, and finally gently rinsing your face for a final four minutes.
While it requires a bit of a time commitment, the 4-2-4 rule is a worthwhile addition to your nighttime skincare routine. This can help unclog pores, exfoliate, and improve blood circulation. Remember to use light circular motions when massaging your face so as not to tug on the delicate skin. You also want to use gently formulated products that will neither dry your skin nor evaporate during your massages. Cleansing sets, like those from Sunday Riley, are great options for the 4-2-4 rule since they come with a perfectly paired cleansing balm and foaming cleanser that washes away impurities while keeping the skin moisturized and soothed.
Do you put vitamin C or hyaluronic acid first?
If you’re using both vitamin C and hyaluronic acid, you should apply whatever comes in a thinner consistency first. For instance, you’ll want to apply the C Serum Vitamin C Ester Skin Conditioner first since it’s got a slightly watery formulation. Then, once that’s absorbed, you can apply the ClarityRx Feel Better Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizing Cream since that’s got a denser consistency. This way, you’re sure each product melts deeply into the skin.
If you’re using these in your daytime skincare routine, don’t forget to apply sunscreen afterward, as vitamin C can be photosensitive!
Should I test a new skincare product on a patch of skin first?
Yes, everyone’s skin is different. We want you to have the best experience with our product so we absolutely recommend trying a small amount first when introducing any new skincare product to see how your skin reacts.
