Ever wondered why your skin breaks out randomly sometimes? It is very hard to pinpoint the exact reason, but here are some common sins that could be hurting your skin!

Not cleaning your pillow case frequently enough

it's not just your happy place if you don't wash it enough ;)

You rest your head on your pillow everyday. Each day, dead skin cells, sebum, and other stuff from your skin falls on the pillow. This feeds the bacteria and other microbes that breed and could cause issues for your skin upon frequent exposure.

We recommend cleaning your pillow case at least once per week to avoid any potential skin issues.

Not cleaning your makeup brushes frequently enough

basically iProperty for bacteria 😒

Similar to pillow cases, it’s easy to neglect cleaning your makeup brush. Makeup brushes are often in contact with your bare face. If not frequently, they can also be a breeding ground for bacteria and other nasties.

To clean a makeup brush, simply use any wash (your face or body wash would work) and run your fingers through the bristles, then rinse with water. We also recommend cleaning makeup brushes at least once a week.

Cleansing your face too frequently or too harshly

yea i'd say that's overkill

You might be inclined to cleanse more if you feel like your skin is particularly oily or if you have blemishes. Don’t! This will not help and can actually make things worse. Cleansing should be done at most twice a day, once (at night) is enough for many (those with dry skin will really want to be careful here. Over cleansing will strip your face off the natural oils and sebum, leaving it unprotected. You also want to make sure that the cleanser doesn’t stay on your face for more than 1 minute, any longer and it could be damaging to your skin! Also, be gentle! A light touch with circular motions is enough, going hard won’t make your face cleaner, and will only increase the risk of damaging your skin.

Sleeping without cleansing or removing makeup

not even he can save you if you don't cleanse before bed

If you crash into bed without cleansing, your skin will be covered with makeup (if you wear it), as well as the dirt, grime and sweat that has accumulated throughout the day. All these stuff can clog your pores, and will prevent your skin from breathing. This can lead to breakouts, clogged pores, and blackheads.

Even if you had a very long day, don’t forget to cleanse and moisturise at the bare minimum.

Pimple popping

man this is ridiculously tempting..

Picking or popping pimples, blemishes or squeezing black heads are a big no-no! It is super satisfying when you pop a pimple and the gunk comes out, but doing this could lead to permanent scars, acne, and in the worst cases, infection. These scars are not easily removed and some might require expensive laser surgery to fix.

Using oils frequently as moisturisers and doing oil cleansing can help to reduce blackheads.. Make sure to use one that suits your skin!

Introduce products too frequently without giving existing products enough time to work

just think of their feelings

When you have a skin issue, it can be tempting to buy the new, exciting product that claims to solve your problem. Could a new product save your skin? It’s possible! But it is also possible that the new product you introduced a week ago is just starting to work it’s magic, and you haven’t given it enough time to see the results! We all know someone that is caught in this product cycle.

To add to the confusion, some products can also lead to purging, which is a temporary increase of breakouts. This happens if a product makes your skin cells regenerate faster, leading to all the baby pimples coming out quickly. For more info on purging, check out this post.

So when is a good time to move on to a new product? Generally, give a new products at least 2-3 weeks to see it’s effects on your skin. If you introduce new products before 2 weeks, you won’t be able to tell which product is helping or making your skin worse. A product should show its effects within 1 skin cycle, which is about 28 days. If it still doesn’t work by then, then it could be time to give it up. Of course, if a product shows signs of irritation, then you should stop using it immediately.