If you’ve been on TikTok lately, you’ve probably seen “Skin Cycling” trending, with 3.5 Billion –that’s with a B! – views on the hashtag #skincycling. Videos featuring both influencers and regular skincare-loving people show people exclaiming that it’s “transformed their acne-prone skin” and “has made their skin look the best it ever has!” (Today*)
First, what is Skin Cycling?
Vogue states, “The concept of skin cycling applies to a nighttime skincare routine, which involves using active ingredients only on certain days, and following them with ‘rest’ days,” explains Dr. Alexis Granite. “A four-day cycle is the most popular, which typically comprises using active ingredients for two nights of the week, followed by two nights of rest—and repeating.”
The New York-based dermatologist behind the concept is Dr. Whitney Bowe, who shared her vision for the ultimate skin cycling routine on TikTok.
Allure adds, “Dr. Bowe set out to create a strategic routine that implemented all the benefits that come from using exfoliants and retinol, all while preventing inflammation and irritation of the skin with two complimentary nights dedicated to "recovery." That, and she wanted to simplify the oversaturated world of the skin-care market for her patients. "The world of skincare was becoming overly complicated, and upon listening to my patients and examining how their skin was reacting to different skin-care routines, I saw the need to streamline the skin-care routine of my patients to optimize their skin health."
The Skin Cycle Risks
We need to make sure we’re using the right components with the active/rest cycle, and you’re already here on our page because you love our all-natural, organic, cruelty-free ingredients, which many other product lines cannot claim. Dr. Bowe mentioned that when her hashtag started trending, she started noticing people were taking a “kitchen-sink approach to their skincare.” Her patients were layering ingredients that weren’t “designed to work well together” or buying products with the highest percentage of certain ingredients, opting for a “more is better” approach. “Unfortunately, it was ending up with a lot of irritation, rather than driving results,” Bowe said. “People were mixing, matching, and layering all these skin-care products” [to an erroneous effect]. (Washington Post *)
What Makes Averr Aglow Skin Cycling Different?
So we’re here to help you achieve the trend that Women’s Health says promotes skin health and exfoliates, while also giving your skin a few days to recoup – all while following the Averr Aglow theory of using clean, clear, from-the-earth ingredients and products. We also show you how to approach the routine the right way: with a cocktail of products that combine, synthesize, and create the perfect skin care cycling routine for each step of the cycle, to give your skin the luminosity and glow you’re proud to show off, even sans makeup!
Also, though some may say that there are only four steps, we add a fifth: adding light, airy, clean products that you can use every day, to ensure that you’re supplementing the cycle.
Your Averr Aglow Skin Cycle Routine:
Apply in the following order for each combo, to ensure the best sequence of ingredients!
Night 1: Skin Cycle Exfoliate
Why Exfoliate?
Exfoliating is the process of removing dead skin cells from the surface of the skin to ensure soft, ageless skin and battle acne at the same time. Our skin naturally sheds dead skin cells, but if you deal with acne-prone skin, the shedding is increased up to 100,000! And if you don’t remove it, those cells can mix with the oil and dirt on your face, clogging and inflaming your pores. This step is a great way to clean, cleanse, and refresh those pores. Read more about Exfoliation in our previous blog here!
1. Illuminating Essence Exfoliating Mask
The Illuminating Essence Exfoliating Mask is imbued with luxurious, earthy ingredients like cloudberry oil, volcanic ash, and silica! Overnight, it extricates a trifecta of dead skin, toxins, and bacteria to create a flawless complexion and works on all skin types.
2. Perfectionist Overnight Serum
We recommend the Perfectionist Overnight Serum as a next step, to help recover the skin from the exfoliation. It’s infused with acài, prickly pear, and passionfruit, creating a blend of organic active botanicals! This works-while-you-sleep magic restores elasticity reduces swelling, fades sun spots and dark circles, and evens out hyperpigmentation.
3. Flawless Nourishment Cream
The Flawless Nourishment Cream smells sweet while sitting supple; enacting its anti-aging elements like reducing fine lines and wrinkles while simultaneously balancing oils, fighting breakouts, and calming inflamed and acne-inflicted skin!
Night 2: Skin Cycle Treatment
1. Clear Skin Set: Clarifying Hydration Dew No. 1 & Radiant Cleansing Nectar No. 2
First, cleanse with our Clear Skin Set: No. 1 & No. 2, which contains over 40+ all-natural ingredients including rosewater, cucumber, and hawthorn berry! This gluten-free and paraben-free refreshing and deep cleansing combo (the Clarifying Hydration Dew and Radiant Cleansing Nectar) gives off a lovely hue and scent - healing and preventing breakouts, diminishing hormonal and cystic acne, fading scars and dark spots, and giving you a more even complexion.
2. Clear Skin Elixir Overnight Mask
Fight and clear up acne with the Clear Skin Elixir Overnight Mask, whose French pink clay, Raspberry Seed Oil and Coral ingredients work overnight to pull impurities from deep within the skin, combat and prevent breakouts, and fade scars and marks, pairing with the Cleanse product to even out your complexion! And it has a wonderful earthy scent to make your dreams sweet.
3. Flawless Nourishment Cream
The Flawless Nourishment Cream smells sweet while sitting supple; enacting its anti-aging elements like reducing fine lines and wrinkles while simultaneously balancing oils, fighting breakouts, and calming inflamed and acne-inflicted skin!
Night 3: Skin Cycle Recovery
1. Clear Skin Set: No. 1 & No. 2
See Night 2 above – same products, same ingredients!
2. Perfectionist Overnight Serum + Super Peptide Booster
See Night 1 – same products, same ingredients for the Serum – plus, add the Super Peptide Booster! This powerful yet gentle booster repairs and diminishes pockmarks, reduces acne, prevents inflammation, and protects the skin’s microbiome (the delicate and essential surface of our body’s largest organ, our skin)! This booster has a .34% active concentration of palmitoyl pentapeptide-4, which stimulates skin reconstruction – the pampering that we all deserve after a long week of work.
3. Flawless Nourishment Cream
See Night 1 above – same products, same ingredients!
Night 4: Skin Cycle Recovery
Repeat Night Three!
Everyday Morning Routine
1. Clear Skin Set No.1 & No.2
Let’s review this one again, as it’s a wonderful, refreshing duo that you and your skin deserve daily. The Clear Skin Set: No. 1 & No. 2 contains over 40+ all-natural ingredients including rosewater, cucumber, and hawthorn berry! This gluten-free and paraben-free refreshing and deep cleansing combo (the Clarifying Hydration Dew and Radiant Cleansing Nectar) gives off a lovely hue and scent - healing and preventing breakouts, diminishing hormonal and cystic acne, fading scars and dark spots, and giving you a more even complexion.
2. Lightly Moisturize with Flawless Water Crème OR Flawless Nourishment Cream
A deep moisturizer and yet light-as-air, the No.4 Flawless Water Crème is natural, vegan, and supple, especially for sensitive skin and perfect for under makeup. It infuses your skin with endless hydration to eliminate breakouts and reduce redness, while also balancing out any oil. It can be used interchangeably with the Flawless Nourishment Cream (use whichever one you have!), which we talked about above on Nights 3 and 4.
3. Pure Protection Invisible Mineral Sunscreen
The Pure Protection Invisible Mineral Sunscreen is also a very lightweight moisturizer and sunscreen created especially to protect you from the sun’s harmful rays while also leaving no grease or white casting. It’s made with ingredients like seed butter, shea butter, and pomegranate, and is velvety-smooth. We always recommend SPF every day, to protect your skin.
Our client Amber wrote and said,
“I bought this (the water crème) for my husband who has dry skin and redness. He’s loving how happy his skin is! His skin looks quenched, and the redness has started to go down!"
Bottom Line: Does Skin Cycling Work?
TikTok may not be equivalent to WebMD, and there is still research to be done, but there are plenty of dermatologists and skin care experts on the platform who claim it’s the best way to set your skin aglow and plenty of health and beauty blogs who believe it’s worthy of your time and energy.
