We all know moisturising in the morning is essential, after all a good day cream acts as a protective barrier, locking in hydration, smoothing the skin, helping sunscreen apply more evenly, and even boosting the staying power of your makeup! But what about a night cream? Is it really essential too? Or is this extra step in your skincare routine just a clever marketing ploy? Can’t you just use your trusty day cream at night? And what even is the difference between a day cream and night cream anyway? Well, we have the answers! Keep reading as we explain how using a night cream (not just a day cream!) can make a huge difference to your skin and the night cream we can’t get enough of!   Understanding the difference between a day and night cream When it comes to optimizing your skincare, using both a day cream and a night cream isn’t just an indulgence, it’s one of the smartest ways to care for your skin around the clock! Why? Because each cream is uniquely formulated to cater to your skin’s shifting needs throughout the day, and while you sleep! During the day, your skin faces a barrage of environmental stressors, think UV rays, pollution, blue light damage, fluctuating temperature and oxidative stress. Day creams are your skin’s first line of defence! Their primary duties are to protect, hydrate, and reinforce the skin’s barrier, leaving it smooth and comfortable. At Night, however, while you sleep your body enters repair mode, and your skin is no exception. Cell regeneration is at its peak overnight, making it the ideal time to deliver deep hydration, skin-repairing actives, and nutrients that restore the complexion. Night creams tend to be richer in texture and packed with higher concentrations of active ingredients to promote renewal without the interruption of external aggressors.   The Perfect Pair for 24/7 skincare Day: Phytomer Expert Youth Wrinkle Plumping Cream This luxurious cream is a powerhouse of marine biotechnology, designed to smooth fine lines, plump the skin, and support firmness throughout the day. Formulated with Red Vegetal Coral and Brown Algae, it works beautifully under makeup and helps defend against visible signs of ageing, all while keeping skin supple and radiant. I personally LOVE it! And when you purchase the Expert Youth Wrinkle Plumping Cream this July, you will receive a FREE best-selling Phytomer Cleanser – The Souffle Marin Cleansing Foaming Cream! Night: Phytomer Night Recharge Youth Enhancing Cream This night cream is specially designed to help skin recover from daily stress! It’s skin-replenishing formula is enriched with marine extracts that help detoxify, firm, and deeply nourish the skin overnight. Beautifully silky and ultra-comforting, it literally cocoons skin while you sleep working to reduce signs of fatigue, improve elasticity and bring back your glow by morning, seriously! It’s formulated with the best in marine ingredients including D-Tox Microalgae (designed to promote the elimination of free radicals, toxins, and pollutants detoxifying the skin while you sleep), and Marine Mannitol (an active ingredient which helps to re-oxygenate tired and "asphyxiated" cells) as well as Laminaria Digitata Extract, Salicornia Herbacea Extract and Jojoba & Sunflower Seed Wax to deeply nourish, revitalise and strengthen the skin! Both my colleagues and I simply love how it makes our skin look and feel when we wake (I’m talking glowy, plumper and just more youthful looking!) What’s more it complements the Phytomer Expert Youth Wrinkle Plumping Cream beautifully, working in sync to boost cell renewal, reinforce the skin barrier, and ensure you wake up to a plumper, more youthful glow every morning!  So, do you really need both a day and night cream? If your goal is healthy, youthful, and balanced skin the answer is yes! By choosing creams tailored to your skin’s needs at different times of the day, you’re giving your complexion the full spectrum of care it deserves!  

Ever wonder why your skin feels tired, dull, or even dry in the morning? The answer may lie in what you're missing at night! While you sleep, your skin enters repair mode, making it the perfect time to give it a little extra help with a night cream. These creams are designed to deeply nourish, hydrate, and rejuvenate your skin while you rest, so you wake up with a fresher, more radiant complexion. Keep reading as we explain why exactly it is that you should introduce a night cream to your routine if you haven’t already, and the best ones for your skin.   Why you need a night cream During the day, our skin battles environmental stressors like pollution, UV rays, blue light damage from our digital devices and for many of us makeup too, which can lead to premature ageing and other skin issues over time. But at night, while you sleep, your skin’s natural repair process kicks in, working to heal any damage and regenerate cells. Amazing right? Well a night cream can boost this process, leaving you with a smoother, more radiant complexion by morning.   But why not simply use your day moisturiser instead of a night cream you might ask? Unlike daytime moisturisers, which mainly focus on hydration and protection, night creams are packed with a multitude of richer, more potent ingredients from hyaluronic acid, to peptides, ceramides, niacinamide and more, that work together to enhance skin renewal and elasticity, target fine lines, as well as restore moisture levels. They are also formulated with active ingredients like retinol that works best when you’re sleeping. These ingredients promote cell turnover, smooth fine lines, and prevent early signs of ageing. Therefore if you skip this imperative step in your routine at night, you’re missing out on some of the most intense repair and hydration your skin can get! Night creams are also formulated to penetrate deeper into your skin providing intense hydration that lasts throughout the night!   How to choose the best night cream? Not all night creams are created equal! Just with your day creams, the best one for you depends on your skin type and concerns. If you’re battling dryness, look for rich, creamy formulations rich in hyaluronic acid or ceramides for deep hydration. For anti-ageing, opt for formulas with retinol or peptides to firm and smooth your skin. If brightening is your goal, night creams with vitamin C or niacinamide work wonders for evening out your complexion and reducing dark spots. And if you are worried about blemishes and acne marks, choose something with niacinamide and tea tree oil.   How often should you use a night cream? For the best results, you should be using a night cream every night after cleansing your skin. You can also use it over one or more serums as a night cream will lock in the benefits while retaining moisture in the skin.   Our top night cream recommendations; Best for Dry Skin Phytomer Hydrasea Night Plumping Rich Cream This gorgeously nourishing comfort cream literally envelopes the skin immediately restoring the skin barrier and locking in moisture leaving your skin feeling soft and supple by morning. Night after night, skin appears more plumped and revitalised.  1 review   Best for dull skin Vie Collection Night Peel Progressive Resurfacing Cream This ultra-soft night version of the chemical peel is a modern balm with a creamy texture that offers complete exfoliation to the skin, helping to brighten, refine and improve smoothness for a younger-looking complexion. Its formula is enriched with benchmark acids and has a progressive diffusion to act continuously all through the night. Each morning the complexion appears more luminous and even. After one month the skin looks renewed. Seriously.   Best for ageing skin Pevonia Micro Retinol Essential Moisturiser This light and gentle moisturiser increases cell turnover, stimulates collagen and elastin production (essential for youthful, plump skin), fades hyperpigmentation and helps skin stay hydrated and glowing without irritation. It’s a multi-tasking wonder! You should introduce it slowly though. This is because retinol makes your skin more sensitive to UV rays and sunlight decreases the efficacy of the product, hence why its such an essential night cream. To find out more about retinol and this Pevonia’s Micro Retinol range click here. Best for hyperpigmented skin Hubislab Derma Max Brightening Clinic This deeply moisturising night cream formulated with tranexamic acid, antioxidants and vitamins, nourishes the skin whilst soothing irritation, improving elasticity, correcting pigmentation and brightening the complexion all whilst you sleep! Remember, consistency is key! A great night cream will give you maximum benefits when used regularly, so don't skip out on this essential step. With the right night cream, you will wake up to healthier, plumper, nourished and glowing skin every morning!

The month of September is recognized as Self Care Awareness Month and what better time to practice self-care than now, when so many of us are living through what feels like forever in lockdown!And yes, I hear and echo many of those mum’s (and dad’s!) who are likely thinking self-care? Who has time for that! But self-care can be as simple as getting an extra hour (or minutes even!) of invaluable zzzzz’s! In fact, sleep is probably the most important part of self-care! Why? Because it can improve your mindset, memory, concentration, energy, productivity, and skin too! And we know, no one is choosing to be sleep deprived, the stresses of everyday life can seriously prevent us from getting the amount of sleep we crave, but if it’s possible to try and get our heads down at a reasonable time (I’m talking to myself here too!) and stick to it nightly, it’ll improve your quality of sleep and in turn have a positive impact of your life and complexion too!Below are 7 self-care tips that will help induce sleep as well as seriously benefit your skin. And if they are working for me, I’m pretty sure they’ll work for you too! Get outdoors and get activeSpending time in the great outdoors in nature is paramount to our mental wellbeing, but it is also known to reduce stress, alleviate anxiety, lower blood pressure and induce peaceful sleep! If you aren’t already doing so, or are becoming a wee bit complacent in lockdown, as part of your daily self-care routine, try and force yourself to get that 20 minutes plus of exercise daily and release those feel-good endorphins it induces.Eat your way to sleepWe all know eating too close to bedtime can impact the quality of our sleep but so can the foods we eat! Now is the time to make changes to your daily diet and incorporate the following foods and drinks that are known to have sleep promoting properties!Nuts – such as almonds, are a great source of the hormone melatonin which regulates your internal clock and signals your body to prepare for sleep. They are also an excellent source of magnesium which has the ability to reduce inflammation and stress levels, in turn helping to improve sleep quality, especially in those who suffer from insomnia.Dairy – such as a glass of milk or plain yogurt are known sources of the amino acid tryptophan which increases the production of melatonin. A glass of milk before bed has been proven to improve sleep.Bananas – like milk contain tryptophan, and the fruit itself is a modest source of magnesium.Oatmeal & rice – are high in carbs and fibre and have been reported to induce drowsiness when consumed close to bedtime. Additionally, oats are a known source of melatoninChamomile tea – offers a variety of health benefits! From being rich in antioxidants that help reduce inflammation, to boosting your immunity, reducing anxiety and depression! In addition, this popular tea contains apigenin, an antioxidant that binds to certain receptors in your brain that help promote sleepiness.Indulge in a salt infused bubble bathIf you can’t remember the last time you let yourself enjoy a long soak in the bath free from distraction, then now’s the time to treat yourself to a salts-infused bath. Little instantly promotes relaxation quite like taking a remineralizing bath. Ahhhhhh. Begin by creating a spa-like atmosphere so your entire body is relaxed – I’m talking soothing music, burning essential oils, lighting your favourite candle, whatever it takes to set the mood. Next, fill your bath with Phytomer’s Oligomer Well Being Sensation Essential Minerals Relaxing Bath. This amazing lightly foaming product is enriched with Oligomer – a partially sodium-reduced seawater concentrate that contains all of the remineralizing properties of seawater –to strengthen and restore the skin and release all pent-up tension, helping you drift off into a world of utter relaxation.Create a night-time skincare ritualIt only takes minutes to apply your skincare products before bed but what a difference it will make to your skin! If you want to drift off to peaceful slumber and awake to gorgeous glowy skin these are my personal night-time go-to’s; Phytomer Night Recharge Youth Enhancing Cream - Skin cells do their greatest renewal and repair whist we sleep, so applying much needed hydration at night is encouraged to maximise absorption and to enhance your skin barrier. I personally LOVE Phytomer’s Night Recharge Youth Enhancing Cream and use it religiously because my skin demands that extra layer of rich fluffy moisturiser. The cream literally cocoons my skin in nourishing hydration and really does restore youthful vitality by morning.Pevonia Aromatic Oil – with all the benefits of 4 mood enhancing essential oils – lavender, grapefruit, chamomile and rose, combined with squalane and vitamin e, this soothing and indulgent face oil combats dehydration and dryness while soothing, calming and brightening skin. It also promotes an immediate feeling of increased wellbeing and total relaxation from the moment you apply it! Heaven.Say goodbye to dark undereye circles and bagsIt's not an urban legend — falling short on your zzz's, whether due to insomnia or late nights, can cause circles under your eyes to appear or become more prominent. This happens because lack of sleep tends to cause the blood vessels under the thin skin of the eyes to dilate, creating a dark tint. Not getting enough sleep can also increase stress which too can exacerbate dark circles.Fed up of waking with bulbous bags and black circles under your eyes? Try to get more of the necessary shut-eye, but also apply an eye cream like this beauty before bed and when you wake in the morning;Vie Collection’s Chrono Eyes Puffiness-Dark Circles Wrinkles Cream. Yes, a mouthful to say, but a product that does exactly what it says. It’s a beautifully fine cream enriched with moisturising ingredients to nourish the eye area while reversing puffiness, dark circles, and wrinkles! Seriously! it gives immediate gratification thanks to a pearlescent finish that instantly brightens the eye area and it has definitely calmed my puffiness, lightened my dark circles, and even smoothed my wrinkles! Meditate to clear your mindMeditation is one of the best ways to take care of yourself. I couldn’t imagine not having my nightly 5-minute meditation ritual, which my little one’s love to do before their bedtime too! It’s my way to wind down and calm my mind before bed and has vastly improved my quality of sleep too (because prior to committing to my bedtime meditation I was guilty of sitting staring at a screen until at least 11.30 pm at night and we all know how this can interfere with our circadian rhythm (our natural, internal process that regulates our sleep-wake cycle.)Meditation has a whole heap of benefits from reducing stress and negative emotions to increasing self-awareness, creativity, and patience. So, if you haven’t already and are keen to give it a try, I recommend both the Headspace and Calm apps. They have a range of guided meditations for an array of concerns such as sleep deprivation, anxiety, stress and productivity. It might take you a few goes before you start to relax into it and feel a change but believe me when I stay stick with it as you’ll soon wonder why you didn’t give it a go before now! Play soothing soundsThis one gets me every time! Not only when I go to bed but when I’m putting my kids to bed and pass out too!! In addition to facilitating quickly falling asleep and improving sleep quality, playing relaxing music before bed can improve sleep efficiency, which means more time that you are in bed is actually spent sleeping. Improved sleep efficiency equals more consistent rest and less waking up during the night. Result!Our family favourite is Relaxing Deep Sleep Music on Mindful Kids! Bliss. For more ideas on how to practice self-care at home, check our team BC’s beauty recommendations.