Easy Dress: The difference between Day and Night Cream (and why ...

I am often asked about moisturisers and whether or not you can use your daily moisturiser at night. This post was prompted by a conversation I had with a woman in her mid thirty's in the skin care isle at a supermarket.

She was looking for a day time moisturiser and after watching her debate with herself for 10 minutes while I was reading the back of fake tan bottles, I stepped in. Within a few minutes I knew her skin type and had selected a moisturiser for her, she then asked me about night creams and whether or not she could just use the day time moisturiser instead of buying another cream.

The answer is 'yes, you can, but you shouldn't'.

Here's why:

Day Creams

1. Daily moisturisers have a thin consistency, they're light weight and quickly absorbed. They're designed this way so your skin doesn't look glossy through the day and so that you can layer make up on top of it. 
2. They're hydrating and refreshing for the skin and have a long lasting effect. They're often cooling so that your skin will relax and any night time puffiness will vanish. 
3. You will commonly find an SPF in your day cream, this takes away the need for an additional sunscreen. 
4. Day creams are commonly oil-light or oil-free. This will help to keep your make up in place and control your natural sebum throughout the day.
5. On a hydrating/nourishing scale, day creams usually sit at about 5/10. They're not designed to be a treatment for your skin.

Night Creams

1. Night Creams are a heavier cream, they're thicker and deeply nourishing. They don't absorb as quickly, allowing them to sit on the skin surface and slowly absorb, treating and repairing each layer of skin gently. 
2. They're commonly oil rich (although oil-light and oil-free night creams are available). The oils in night creams are designed to soften and protect your skin from fine lines and wrinkles. Night creams commonly have a collagen booster in them, especially creams targeted at those aged 30 and above. This helps to naturally fill in fine lines and prevent future lines from appearing. 
3. Night creams are designed as a rich, hydrating treatment that cares for and protects your skin. 

"So, if night creams are so good why don't you just use a night cream during the day as well?"

Well, night creams are typically heavy. Make up won't sit on top of them because of their rich base, you'll find your blush is sitting around your jaw line by lunch time. And while they are nourishing, we've all heard the saying 'too much of a good thing'. Over hydration can cause skin problems such as break outs and dermatitis, it can also flare up eczema.

Using too many creams and oils on your skin can stop your skin from producing it's own natural oils and hydrating itself. The aim is to give your skin a good treatment at night and just a 'helping hand' during the day with a day cream. This way your skin still works too protect itself but it gets a break too.

If you really enjoy your day cream and want to use it at night too, you can always boost it with a little Jojoba or Rose Hip oil. Take your regular day cream, add a drop or two of oil and blend it gently into your skin. The hydration from the oils will help to restore, repair and treat your skin while you sleep.