How To Get Smooth Skin in 5 Steps
We’d all love to have perfectly even and smooth skin by default. When there are so many external factors that come into play, achieving the skin of your dreams may feel overwhelming. That’s where skincare products come in: they let you take the fate of your skin into your own hands.
“Finding the cause of your uneven skin texture is the first step toward smoother skin — but remember, all skin has some level of texture!”
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Shani Darden, Esthetician
If you’re struggling with getting smooth, even skin, don’t worry; many people have the same problem. There’s a wide selection of products that can help — it’s just about finding the right products and ingredients for your individual skin.
So, let’s break down what might be contributing to your skin texture and what you can do to improve it.
What Causes an Uneven Skin Texture?
One of the main things that can affect your skin is lifestyle factors like exercise, sleep, diet, and water intake. Eating a balanced diet rich in antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids, as well as getting enough sleep and drinking enough water, can improve not only the overall appearance of your skin but its texture, as well.
There are other factors that can contribute to a rough skin texture, as well. Breakouts and blemishes can leave behind rough patches and scars, which can be a concern, particularly for those with oily or combination skin.
Aging can also be a factor. Both sun damage and natural aging can affect your skin’s collagen and elastin production. This can contribute to visible signs of aging, like fine lines and wrinkles, which can interrupt the texture of otherwise smooth skin.
Your uneven skin texture could also be caused by dead skin cellbuildup. This buildup can accumulate on the surface of your skin, leading to rough-feeling patches of skin.
Another possible cause behind skin texture issues is improper skincare. While skincare can ideally help you achieve smooth, glowing skin, using the wrong products can irritate your skin, leading to an uneven texture.
Certain skin conditions can also cause uneven skin. If your skin texture issues don’t respond to skincare or they get worse over time, you may want to schedule a consultation with your dermatologist to discuss possible causes.
How Can You Get Smooth Skin?
If you want smoother skin, start out by making a few adjustments to your skincare routine. Let’s talk about five easy steps that can help you get smooth skin.
1. Use a Gentle Cleanser
If your skin’s texture is particularly rough, resist the urge to scrub — using a scrub or abrasive product may damage your skin, especially if you have dry or sensitive skin. Rather than using an intense and abrasive cleanser, you’ll want to stick with a gentle formula that protects and nourishes your skin.
This is because hydration is often a core issue when it comes to uneven skin texture. Using a cleanser that is too harsh can strip your skin of its natural oils and can even damage your skin barrier over time.
Since your skin barrier is responsible for keeping bacteria out and water in, a damaged skin barrier can lead to breakouts, dehydration, redness, and irritation. This can lead to flaky, scaly, and even bumpy skin.
With this in mind, my Cleansing Serum is ideal. It works into a luxurious lather that easily melts away makeup and other pore-clogging impurities without stripping away your skin’s natural oils. This leaves your skin ultra-clean and silky soft instead of dry and tight.
2. Add in Chemical Exfoliants
While a physical exfoliant like a scrub or brush may be too intense for sensitive skin, chemical exfoliants are a great option for addressing some causes of an irregular or rough skin texture.
Chemical exfoliants are ingredients that help to loosen the bonds between dead skin cells. This helps them easily slough away, revealing the brighter and potentially smoother skin underneath.
This can rejuvenate the appearance of your skin in general, but it’s especially helpful when you have dull or rough skin that is caused by a buildup of dead skin cells. It can also be an effective way to address breakouts, dark spots, blemish scars, and even visible signs of aging like fine lines and wrinkles.
Common chemical exfoliants include alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs), like glycolic acid and lactic acid, and beta hydroxy acids (BHAs), like salicylic acid).
My Lactic Acid Serum is a great way to work chemical exfoliation into your routine. Its powerful yet gentle resurfacing formula uses lactic acid and gluconolactone to smoothen and refine rough-feeling skin. Meanwhile, a soothing complex made up of hyaluronic acid, aloe vera, and white and green tea extract works to calm your skin and minimize irritation.
3. Moisturize Thoroughly
A strong skin barrier is key to keeping your skin’s texture smooth and soft. If your skin barrier is damaged or not receiving the nutrients it needs to thrive, this can have a cascading effect on your skin.
In addition to drinking water regularly, you may want to try using a rejuvenating moisturizer packed with botanicals, peptides, and antioxidants to smooth, hydrate, and restore dry skin.
For this step, I love my Hydration Peptide Cream. This moisturizing cream contains Hydrosella™, peptides, ceramides, and squalane to support the skin barrier, combat dryness, and seal in moisture for 72-hour hydration.
Plus, it contains niacinamide to help fade the appearance of dark spots, encourage an even skin tone, and brighten the skin so that skin looks visible younger. As an added bonus, this formula is oil-free, which means it can provide hydration to those with oily skin and overactive sebum production without causing blackheads.
4. Wear Sunscreen
Always wear sunscreen, especially after using an AHA or retinol! Wearing SPF every day, even when you won’t be getting direct sun exposure, is so important when it comes to maintaining a smooth and even skin texture. Without sunscreen, your skin can be exposed to damaging UV rays, which can lead to premature signs of aging, dark spots, and other serious problems.
I like Supergoop’s Play Everyday Lotion because it provides the protection of SPF 50 in a quick-absorbing, hydrating formula. This SPF offers your skin protection from UVA and UVB rays to help prevent photoaging and dehydration, which can affect your skin’s texture in both the long term and the short term.
Whatever sun protection you choose, make sure it is at least SPF 30. You may also want to add some antioxidant ingredients to your evening routine, such as vitamin C, to help defend against free radical damage and support the appearance of healthy skin.
5. Try Chemical Peels
On top of your daily routine, there are a few options you can try periodically to help keep your skin looking even and glowing. One of my favorite occasional skincare products is chemical peels.
Chemical peels are strong chemical exfoliants that are designed to loosen and lift away the rough layer of dead skin to reveal the new skin underneath. You can get at-home peels like my Triple Acid Signature Peel or seek out a dermatologist for clinical-grade chemical peels.
The Bottom Line
If you’re looking for dewy and glowing skin, it’s important to manage your skin’s texture. However, many factors can affect your skin’s texture, such as diet, exercise, and skincare products.
Luckily, there are plenty of science-based skincare products that offer a wide range of solutions to suit every skin type! By making a few changes to your daily routine, you can get one step closer to the smooth skin you’re looking for.
Sources:
Decreased Collagen Production in Chronologically Aged Skin | National Library of Medicine