How Much Skincare Product Should You Really Be Using?

Admit it: there’s probably a time or two in your daily beauty ritual where you'd put that anti-ageing cream twice “just for good measure.” We’re all guilty of this habit — as though we could trick our skin into working twice as hard into giving us the complexion we actually want.

But is there a standard guide that we should follow when it comes to how much product to use? To help you out, here's a simple cheat-sheet on just how much skincare product we should be using for maximum effect.

What products to use every day

Before figuring out the amount of beauty creams and serums to use, we must first know what should be part of our beauty arsenal in the first place. As a general rule, women should wash, tone and moisturise both day and night as part of their daily routine. Serums, eye creams and spot treatments are advised if you have specific concerns. In the morning, sunscreen is a must. In the evening, a face oil or a treatment can be added to the routine.

Cleansers

Don’t you just love squeezing a lot of cleanser at the palm of your hand and using that amount to cleanse off yesterday's remnants and start the day afresh? The truth is, a small dab that covers the centre point of your palm (about the size of a walnut) can already go a long way especially if your cleanser is the foaming kind.

Exfoliants

The best amount of exfoliant to use on our face is about the size of a small coin because the skin on our face tends to be more sensitive than the rest of our body parts, meaning more exfoliant could pose irritation. 

Moisturiser

We’re all guilty of applying moisturiser that basically covers every crease of our face. We end up putting so much, leaving our face not really moisturised but greasy. So how much moisturiser should we really apply? Try two globs as big as raisins — that's it!

Eye cream

Don’t overdo the eye area because this part tends to be the most sensitive. So make sure you don't irritate it by putting too much product on. As a general rule, a small pine nut size of eye cream per undereye area is good.

Night cream or anti-ageing cream

We understand the attraction of putting on more of these products because of their promised effects — who doesn’t want to look young? — but a blueberry-size portion would be enough for both face and neck.

Sunscreen

Protect yourself from the harmful rays of the sun with a grape-size amount of sunscreen for your face and every other part of your body.

(Cover photo from: ardaisy_)