3 steps to master the Scandinavian beauty routine
Please find summary of the text in Finnish at the end of this blog post/ Suomenkielinen tiivistelmä blogin lopussa.
You might have already noticed that the latest trend in beauty and skincare is no longer the 18 step Korean beauty routine. Things are getting much simpler with S-beauty - Scandinavian beauty routine that promotes naturally healthy skin, fresh natural ingredients and a minimalistic approach to your bathroom cupboard.
At Henua, Scandinavian skincare is in our DNA. After all, the whole range was developed to discard useless and harmful ingredients from skincare products. But beyond our product philosophy, we want to share what else we know about the holistic approach to beauty here in the Nordics that aims to achieve that naturally glowing skin.
At its essence, Scandinavian beauty can be condensed to three simple steps.
Step 1: Simplify your skincare routine
S-beauty is about taking a holistic approach to beauty. Finding balance in all areas of life: what to eat and drink, how to exercise, what to apply to the skin and hair. Scandinavians tend to choose products that will give us the most impact for the fewest amount of steps. Just like we gravitate towards fresh and uncomplicated food like fish and vegetables and prefer to simply exercise by heading out to nature.
So as a first step, try to think all the aspects of your beauty routine you could simplify. What can you leave out? What can you combine? What can you clean? Less products, less packaging, less ingredients is the goal. Simple, uncluttered living is becoming a trend not only in lifestyle, but in skincare as well. It means both, streamlining the routine and using only few products but also opting for a more simplified ingredient lists.
Scandinavian skin care is the complete opposite to the Korean skincare routine, where we are encouraged to layer dozens of products to skin. Here we believe key to good skin lies in simplicity. Most Scandinavians layer a couple of products and that's it.
Choosing products like a cleansing oil, that doesn't dry out skin, also means you don’t have to layer multiple hydration products to balance out after cleansing. And finding these hero products that allow you to use less products will result into a cleaner and more minimalistic beauty shelf too. You can emphasize the effect by choosing simple natural packaging and turn your bathroom into a beautiful Scandinavian spa.
Step 2: Choose natural ingredients that boost skin glow
Scandinavia is home to the cleanest nature and purest water in the world. This means that our nature is an invaluable source of ingredients that we can also utilise in skincare. Nordic women are used to choosing products that boast clean ingredients. It is a common misconception however that this means lower efficacy.
Scandinavian women are knowledgeable on things like how strong antioxidants and fatty acids can help strengthen the barrier functions of skin cells. Or how vitamins can help awaken skin glow through activating and stimulating its outer layers. And these active ingredients don’t need to be manufactured in a laboratory.
Berries are a key source of skincare efficacy of scandinavian products. A powerhouse like sea buckthorn is a source for vitamins, antioxidants and fatty acids. So it is a staple in Nordic skincare, as you can tackle multiple skin problems with this one berry. Another staple is lingonberry that is known to help skin elasticity and help reduce appearance of wrinkles. The list goes on.
Choosing the right ingredients to your skincare regimen is not always easy. But opting for natural and organic ingredients is a safe choice. And finding formulas that help promote skins natural functions instead of disrupting them is a step in the right direction. A good tip to find cleaner product formulas is to look at the length of the ingredient list. Even if you don’t understand every word, simple and short is better in Scandinavian skincare.
Step 3: Biohack your way to better skin
Scandinavian beauty is a holistic approach that isn’t limited to only skincare. Your lifestyle choices show on your face and body and your skin reacts to what you eat, how you exercise and sleep. While biohacking might seem like an extreme method and contrary to the Scandinavian simplicity, it’s actually quite naturally ingrained into our traditional lifestyle here up north.
Biohacking for beauty can be as simple as understanding how active ingredients, often applied to skin during your skincare routine, can actually help and have even a bigger impact when digested internally. The berries used in skincare deliver a vitamin boost also when eaten fresh. For fatty acids we turn to salmon which is very popular in all Nordic countries. And oat is our choice of grain to get fiber. All these ingredients have a similar affect internally than on skincare products: they help our bodies to naturally repair and restore.
You can also approach this on a cellular level. Lipids are essential for the development of our outer skin layer. Therefore fatty acids like omegas are critical to a balanced function and appearance of skin. They keep your skin hydrated, plumper, and younger looking. In addition to salmon and sea buckthorn these can be found in nuts for example.
Or are you looking for a replacement for harsh retinol? Vitamin A influences pretty much every skin function. It helps promote cell turnover and stimulates the dermis making it effective for both acne and anti-aging. This vitamin too can be found in salmon but also eggs.
It is important to note though none of these foods these are a quick miracle treatment but rather lifestyle choices. The effects are shown over time, not instantly. Consistency is key, it keeps improving cell functions, which in turn keep skin working, and looking fresh - without invasive treatments, the Scandinavian way.
Lyhyesti suomeksi
Skandinaavinen ihonhoito on nouseva trendi kaikkialla maailmassa. Se korostaa luonnollista lähestymistapaa sekä ihonhoitotuotteisiin että laajempaan hyvinvointiin. Tuoreet ja puhtaat raaka-aineet sekä yksinkertaiset koostumukset ovat trendin ytimessä. Suomalaisina naisina tämä kauneudenhoidon filosofia on meillä verissä, mutta kolmen yksinkertaisen askeleen avulla, sitä voi entisestään tehostaa.
- Yksinkertaista ihonhoitorutiinisi
Myös meillä suomalaisilla on yhä varaa yksinkertaistaa ihonhoitoamme. Voimme valita vähemmän tuotteita, tuotteita jotka tekevät kerralla enemmän ja tuotteita jotka käyttävät vähemmän pakkausmateriaaleja. Lyhyemmät raaka-ainelistat tarkoittavat yksinkertaisia koostumuksia - joiden ei tarvitse olla tehottomia. Aloita valitsemalla luonnollisia raaka-aineita, jotka auttavat ihon oman toiminnan tehostumista.
- Valitse luonnollisia raaka-aineita, jotka tuovat iholle hehkua
Pohjoisen luonnosta löytyy uskomattomia aarteita, jotka auttavat ihoa voimaan hyvin. Erityisesti pohjoisen marjat ovat täynnä hyvää tekeviä tehoaineita, kuten vitamiineja ja antioksidantteja, jotka herättelevät ihon hehkun. Myös hyvät rasvahapot auttavat ihoa hoitamaan luontaisia suojamekanismeja. Siksi esimerkiksi omega-rasvahappoja sisältävä tyrni ja antioksidanttirikas puolukka, ovat löytäneet tiensä myös ihonhoitotuotteisiin. Teho ei aina synny laboratoriossa.
- Ota biohakkerin opit käyttöön
Ainesosat, jotka vaikuttavat ihonhoitotuotteissa, auttavat myös sisäisesti nautittuna. Terveellinen ruokavalio, jossa on runsaasti vihanneksia ja marjoja ja esimerkiksi hyviä rasvoja sisältävää lohta, näkyy myös iholla. Lisäksi riittävä uni ja liikunta pitävät ihosolut aktiivisina, joten terveellinen elämäntapa näkyy vuosien saatossa myös kasvojen ja vartalon iholla. Ihon hehkua voi herätellä pitämällä yllä terveellistä skandinaavista elämäntapaa pysyvästi, ei vain tehokuurina.