I’ve gleaned beauty secrets from all types of experts, ranging from top dermatologists to facial yoga instructors and everyone in between. But I’m very excited to spill what a French skin-care routine looks like, according to my latest resource: Mila Moursi, a 70-year old Parisian facialist who has decades of skin-care knowledge under her belt.
Moursi has a unique background—she studied (and taught classes on) aesthetics and cosmetic chemistry before treating the faces of stars like Jennifer Aniston and Sandra Bullock. “The combination of my education and years of experience taught me that beauty is from the inside-out,” says Moursi. “A good product can be amazing, but if your lifestyle is not good, you’re jeopardizing the product.” For example, right along with your skin-care regimen, she stresses the importance of “beauty sleep,” eating healthy, and staying hydrated.
To help bolster her 360-degree philosophy on beauty, the Parisian skin pro is all about consistency in your regimen and feeding your complexion the right ingredients. “I love peptides and amino acids,” says Moursi, since these even and brighten the skin, and she’s a big supporter of hyaluronic acid, because “it really plumps your face like a glass of water for your skin.” Keep scrolling for more of Moursi’s skin-care tips to promote longevity and health for your complexion.
1. Focus on cleansing
“A lot of people don’t know how to cleanse properly,” says Moursi. First of all, she recommends that you use circular movements to cleanse so that you’re “dislodging” all the oils and dirt from your skin. And she’s a big believer in double cleansing. “Unless you have very, very dry skin, you should double cleanse,” says Moursi. “Remove your makeup with a cleansing milk, then wash your face with a foamy cleanser.” While you’re most commonly thinking about removing the gunk from your complexion with a cleanser, proper removal of your cleanser is key, too. According to her, you should remove your cleanser from your skin with a warm washcloth. “Otherwise, it can go right into your pores and clog them up again,” she says.
2. Use a toner
Toners may be one of the most divisive skin-care products out there—you either swear by one, or you think it’s totally unnecessary. But Moursi believes they are essential to healthy skin. “It’s important to complete the cleansing process with a toner to balance your skin’s pH,” she says, noting this will make your treatment serums more effective afterwards. Look for a toner that says it’s ‘pH-balancing,’ and filled with gentle exfoliants and hydrating ingredients. The toner in Moursi’s skin-care line, for instance, uses salicylic acid and lactic acid plus plant extracts to soothe.
3. Try exfoliating lightly
“I find chemical peels and scrubs both to be too aggressive to the skin,” says Moursi. “The skin is very delicate and needs to be treated with respect and care.” Because exfoliating is important for healthy skin, she recommends doing sloughing away dead skin cells with an acid-laced “texturizer.” “This will have something like glycolic acid, which is a very small molecule that goes through your pores and cleans them gently,” says Moursi. “It’s like a little broom in your pores that takes away all the dead skin cells that are stuck.” So as not to overdo it with your exfoliation, she suggests every night if you have very oily skin, or three or two times a week if you’ve got sensitive skin.
4. Don’t forget your body
While most of us stop our skin-care routine at our necks, the body is equally important, and Moursi recommends giving it plenty of TLC. “People forget that the skin is the largest organ and it covers the whole body and ages the same way,” she says. “Be sure to dry brush and apply oils and creams to the rest of your body just like you do with your face.” So after you take care to nourish your face, be sure to spread the love (like a French girl).
And for that, here’s a roundup of the best neck skin-care creams to add to your body-loving arsenal. And perhaps you’d like to try a butt mask for your peach emoji while you’re at it.
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