New Year, New Skin: Starting A Skincare Routine in 2025
Madeleine Thornburg
Global Education
4 min read
Turn your resolutions into radiance with a skincare routine that shines in 2025.
A new year is the perfect opportunity to shed bad habits and embrace a fresh start. It’s a time for resetting, refocusing, and taking charge of your happiness and well-being. After all, that is the essence of New Year’s resolutions. This year, while you're setting your goals and mapping out ways to achieve them, don’t forget to prioritize self-care, starting with your skincare routine.
A well-planned skincare routine with products that work for your skin won’t just have you looking and feeling great but will create moments of calm and care every day. So, no matter how busy 2025 gets, you will always have dedicated time to unwind, relax, and indulge in a little pampering. Let 2025 be the year you fall in love with taking care of your skin.
Creating the best skincare routine to target your unique concerns doesn't have to be complicated. Let's focus on the essential first steps that will set you up for success.
Cleansing and moisturizing are the backbones of good skincare, working together to keep your skin balanced and beautiful. In the morning, use a gentle cleanser to remove any overnight buildup, clearing out your clogged pores and preventing breakouts. This creates a fresh base for the skin to absorb the nourishing ingredients in the rest of your products. In the evening, take a moment to wash away the day's makeup, excess oil, and impurities, then follow with your toner, serum, and moisturizer to support your skin's natural barrier function and lock in that precious hydration while you sleep.
Our recommendation: You've just spent the festive season spoiling your loved ones, so why not extend some of that care to yourself? The fresh Awaken Radiance Set gives you everything you need to start your skincare journey, complete with our gentle, non-stripping Soy Face Cleanser and nourishing Black Tea Advanced Age Renewal Cream. Or try our Wake Up & Hydrate Set, pairing the same beloved cleanser with our Rose & Hyaluronic Acid Deep Hydration Moisturizer for a daily dose of lasting hydration.
The secret to effective skincare is keeping it simple and sticking to a routine that you can maintain. While those shelfie-worthy product collections look amazing on Instagram, your skin thrives on consistency and simplicity. Using too many products can do more harm than good, stripping your skin of its natural barrier, increasing breakouts and irritation, and making it more susceptible to damage and sensitivity. But a few well-chosen products that work in harmony with your skin will serve you better than a dozen competing formulas.
Our Dewy & Hydrated Skin Trio Skincare Set is a perfect example of a simple, effective routine. Perfect for after cleansing, this three-piece set includes your everyday hydration essentials: the Rose Facial Toner to soften and refine the look of pores, the Rose Deep Hydration Oil-Infused Serum to nourish and hydrate, and the Rose Face Cream to strengthen and deeply hydrate for dewy skin that's plumped with moisture. This trio is formulated with a careful blend of natural and deeply hydrating ingredients like rosewater, Damask rose extract, and hyaluronic acid, providing deep, lasting hydration without overwhelming your skin.
You’ve probably heard it a million times before, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Sunscreen, regardless of the weather or season, is a non-negotiable part of your daily skincare routine. After you have moisturized (and before your makeup), apply sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30 to protect your skin against sun damage and reduce signs of premature aging. And if you're outdoors, show your skin some extra love with reapplication every few hours.
With the basics checked off your list, you can start exploring a few more products to take your routine a step further and help your skin thrive.
Regular exfoliation helps sweep away dead skin cells, unclogging your pores, promoting cell turnover, and revealing a brighter, glowing complexion beneath. While it’s recommended to exfoliate two to three times per week, it’s more than okay to start slowly — once or twice a week is perfect — and let your skin guide you on frequency. Our Sugar Face Polish Exfoliator pairs brown sugar crystals, wild strawberries, and nourishing oils for a gentle yet effective treatment that buffs and hydrates in one step.
The right vitamins can have a massive impact on your skincare. Vitamin C is a powerhouse that brightens and boosts your skin's natural radiance, while vitamin E provides much-needed nourishment and protection. Adding retinoids into the mix can be a game-changer; these vitamin A derivatives speed up cell turnover, smooth out wrinkles, and improve skin texture.
The fresh anti-aging Black Tea Line taps into the antioxidant magic of black tea kombucha, helping your skin stay rejuvenated, resilient, and radiant.
Serums are the overachievers of skincare. Lightweight yet powerful, they deliver concentrated ingredients exactly where your skin needs them most. Whether you're looking to boost hydration, enhance brightness, or support your skin's natural renewal process, there's a serum for your skin type and concerns. We recommend the Vitamin Nectar Antioxidant Face Serum. This noncomedogenic formula is clinically proven to improve four key aspects of healthy-looking skin: brightness, smoothness, hydration, and signs of tiredness. It’s packed with 480,000+ nutrient-rich microbubbles that burst on the skin, releasing the benefits of its ingredients through a fast-absorbing, weightless texture. Apply the serum both morning and night after cleansing and using an essence. Then, finish off with your favorite moisturizer to lock in hydration.
A facemask is the perfect chance to pause and give your skin exactly what it is craving. It’s a moment of care and connection — a time to reset, restore, and tune in to what your skin needs. Our Umbrian Clay Pore-Purifying Face Mask works triple duty as a deep cleanser, pore refiner, and shine controller. Or transport yourself to a garden of roses with our Rose Deep Hydration Sleeping Mask, a two-step overnight treatment that drenches your skin in moisture and locks it in while you sleep. Wake up to supple, dewy skin that looks as refreshed as you feel.
Your skin’s needs can shift from week to week, and so can your mask. Opt for purifying clay when your complexion feels congested, hydrating masks when dryness sets in, or brightening formulas when chasing that radiant glow.
Beautiful skin isn’t just about the products; it starts from within. A few healthy daily habits can complement your natural skincare routine and draw out its benefits. Make sure you’re drinking plenty of water to keep your body (and skin) hydrated. Never underestimate the power of a good night’s sleep, either. Those precious hours of beauty sleep are when your skin goes into repair mode, so create a relaxing bedtime ritual that helps you unwind, perhaps applying your nighttime skincare while listening to calming music or practicing mindful breathing. You should also work to maintain a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats, which can provide your skin with essential vitamins and minerals. Regular exercise also promotes healthy circulation, leading to a natural, healthy glow.
Your skin deserves products that work as hard as you do. At fresh, we harness the power of nature — like kombucha for renewal and protection, soy for cleansing, Umbrian clay for purification, and rose petals for deep hydration — and enhance it with advanced science to create formulas that start working immediately and deliver long-term benefits. From the gentle yet effective Soy Face Cleanser to the transformative Black Tea Complex, every skincare product is designed to turn your daily routine into an act of care and celebration. So, if you’re taking one skincare brand with you into the new year, make sure it's fresh.
Madeleine Thornburg is an NYC-based skincare education expert. Madeleine has 7 years of experience in the beauty industry and shares her passion for skincare daily as part of the Global Education team at fresh.