4 AM Skin Care Routine?
I tried Cassie’s infamous 4 AM skin care routine from Euphoria… here’s what happened.
Some things should probably just be left as on-screen fantasies, but to save you the trouble, we went ahead and conducted this weeklong skin care endeavour so you don’t have to, and you shouldn’t - in case you were wondering. If you haven’t been following the tantalizing teenage drama series that has taken over the internet, that’s completely okay, we’ll break down the important stuff, and you may or may not be opening Netflix later today to see what all the hype is about.
Starstruck and obsessing over the likes of resident hot-guy Nate Jacobs, Cassie is on a mission to come to school every day looking like she just stepped off a runway, in hopes he’ll finally take notice of her melodramatic outfits and perfectly curled hair. Obviously, the best way to do this is to conduct a rigorous, middle of the night “self-care” regimen (it’s not, it’s so not).
Here’s what happened:
Waking up at 4 AM:
This was one of the worst parts of the whole ordeal for obvious reasons. I set my alarm to a crisp 4 AM wake up time and did abide by it for the entire process, tired girl at your service. Stumbling into the bathroom in zombie form and half asleep to hop in the shower and wash my hair.
The pros: Hard to justify any pros here.
The cons: Actually, getting enough sleep is crucial to healthy skin, as the most repair and cell turnover happens when you are asleep. Robing your skin of this crucial time does not allow proper healing of blemishes, scarring and other skin conditions, which slows down your skin care results and leaves major eye bags.
The shower routine:
Cassie doesn’t skip a single step here, so neither did I. I washed my hair each morning, exfoliated and shaved my ENTIRE body, lathered on the body wash, before getting out to coat myself in body lotion and tanning oil.
The pros: Truthfully, I’ve never had softer body skin after so much continued exfoliation and moisturizer. That’s about all the positives we have to cover.
The cons: Washing your hair everyday can cause some serious damage for most hair types and I was no exception. My hair after a few days became dry, lack lustre and brittle from so much continued and excessive washing. In those with an oily scalp, sometimes daily washing can induce the scalp into producing even more oil, as oil reserves become low and leave the skin under the impression that it is lacking and must produce more. There is usually a happy medium here!
P.S – Applying self-tanner in the morning is something I do not recommend to anyone, what a mess.
The skin care tools:
Cassie pulled out several different skin care applicators, rollers, and scrubbing tools in hopes of achieving a texture-less complexion every morning. I used 3 different rollers, a roller with an applicator that required prior overnight freezer time and a Guasha tool. Covering every square inch of my face, neck, and décolletage each morning.
The pros: Ice rollers can be conducive of reducing inflammation, improving blood flow and may help reduce recovery time of certain skin conditions. This was actually a great addition to my routine, and I will probably stick with it.
The cons: Much like over exfoliating, you can certainly find yourself overexposing your skin to applicators and tools. Specifically, the neck and chest area, which is sensitive, prone to sun damage and is overall thinner than other parts of the body. Instead of tools, this area would benefit much more from SPF products and moisturizers.
The skin care:
Besides the daily facial exfoliation, the most highlighted skin care was executed in the form of face masks and under eye patches. I took the two most hydrating masks and patches I could find, to hopefully counter the terrible daily exfoliation I was subjecting myself too (oh, the teenage flashbacks…).
The pros: The daily hydrating masks and under eye patches felt great on the skin, plus increasing your moisture intake is never a bad thing. It might become highly expensive, but no damage was done here. If you are going to splurge on under eye patches, it is highly recommended to use those containing caffeine to reduce puffiness and correct under eye circles.
The cons: Daily exfoliation in any form is never a good idea and can drastically thin out the skin barrier causing small abrasions in the skin if continued too long. A good rule of thumb is to physically or chemically exfoliate the skin 1-3 times a week depending on your sensitivity level.
The verdict:
A few other honorary mentions of this routine were failed heatless curls with a “hair robe”, a full face of makeup (each morning, yep), copious amounts of caffeine and some tired workdays. There are definitely a few great products in this routine, and minus the whole 4 AM thing, I did feel rejuvenated. Otherwise, the obsessive and repetitive scrubbing and stripping of the skin was too much too handle, and balance is key.
Don’t be fooled, fancy tools and over doing it won’t contribute to a realistic or healthy skin care routine, and we encourage you to get your beauty sleep!
Interested in your best skin and body care routine for your personalized goals? Send us an email and we’ll point you in the right direction!