What Is Skin Minimalism? How To Simplify Your Routine Without Compromise

This term is just a buzzy name for a very evergreen habit: keeping your products down to the necessities. However, this doesn't mean your routine has to be boring or subpar. To follow, a few tips for practicing skin minimalism without compromising your skin health or the fun of beauty rituals. 

Skin minimalism is a method of shopping and practicing skin care that focuses on the bare necessities—think cleanser, moisturizer, and SPF. There are many reasons to adopt this philosophy, including the following benefits: 

You'll want to be cautious when cutting down your routine, though, as you don't want to compromise on quality and efficacy. To ensure you're getting the most benefit with the lowest number of products on your counter, keep these tips in mind: 

Look for a vitamin C serum with ingredients like hyaluronic acid, panthenol, or niacinamide in addition to the antioxidant active. Our pick? The Olehenriksen Banana Bright Vitamin C Serum. 

Even those who prefer a simple skin care routine might want to slap on some eye patches every now and then. For the sake of sustainability (and saving your money), you may want to consider reusable eye patches like the Forever Eye Mask from Dieux, over the single-use packages. 

On the nights you use retinol, skip the exfoliants. If you want, you may even add a recovery night with only hydrating products to give your skin a break. This process is also known as skin cycling, which you can read all about here if you're curious. 

If you love going to bed with skin so dewy it looks wet, then you've probably tried slugging in some fashion. Rather than layering a petrolatum-based jelly or oil over your moisturizer to get this effect, look for an oil-rich cream instead. And for those with acne-prone skin, be sure to stick to noncomedogenic oils. 

Beauty supplements are a great way to tend to your complexion from the inside out, but you don't need to have a ton of different capsules cluttering up your counter. Instead, look for one that pulls the major players like collagen, hyaluronic acid, vitamin C, and biotin all into one step—here's a list of our top picks to get you started. 

Skin minimalism involves cutting down your routine to the bare necessities. You shouldn't compromise on quality, though, so look for multitasking topicals and supplements. Still not sure where to start? Here's a helpful routine guide.