Simplify your morning face care to these 5 steps

Morning skin needs three things: to be clean, supported and protected. Everything else is optional. Five steps, under five minutes:

• Rinse gently — lukewarm water or a mild cleanser if your skin is oily. Morning skin isn't dirty; don't strip it with a harsh wash.
• One active serum, chosen for your skin, not for the algorithm — vitamin C for dullness is the classic morning pick.
• Moisturiser while the skin is still damp — it seals water in instead of chasing it later.
• SPF every single morning, even in winter, even indoors by a window. It is the only genuine anti-ageing product in the routine.
• Thirty seconds of lifting self-massage while the cream absorbs — knuckles from the chin up and out. Free, and it de-puffs better than a cold spoon.

If your current routine has more steps and your skin is happy — keep it. But if the shelf keeps growing while the skin stays the same, simplify first and judge in four weeks.