In a perfect world, you'd be able to hit the snooze button a few times before emerging from underneath the duvet, splashing your face with water, and rolling out the door.
In reality, that whole #IWokeUpLikeThis takes a little more effort. It means cleansing your skin and restoring life to your complexion. It means hydrating, adding SPF, and perking everything up. It means not simply relying on layers of makeup to cover a multitude of skin sins. It means doing the work so that one day you do actually #WakeUpLikeThis.
Ready to rumble? We've asked some of our favourite U.K. beauty editors to share their morning skincare routines. Read on to see which beauty buys get them going first thing, from toners and masks to cleansing tools.
That natural glow is so within reach. Surely that's worth sacrificing a 15-minute snooze?
Alice Casely-Hayford, Refinery29 UK Fashion & Beauty Editor
"I wash my face every morning with this cream cleanser. I only discovered this product about three months ago but I'm hooked. I massage it in and then remove with a muslin cloth and warm water. I have combination skin and it leaves me with clean-feeling, smooth skin without stripping my face, and has cleared up flare-ups. Where has it been all my life?"
MV Organic Skincare Gentle Cream Cleanser, £35.50, available at Cult Beauty
Image: Courtesy of Cult Beauty.
"To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure if this does a great deal but it wakes me up in the morning, refreshes my face, and removes any last traces of dirt or last night's makeup. I've been using it for the past five years so it's safe to say I'm devoted."
Boots Botanics Rosewater Toning Spritz, £4, available at Boots
Image: Courtesy of Boots.
"I mix four drops of this oil into my moisturiser and I feel it's really added vitality and plumpness back into my skin. I have pigmentation marks and acne scarring on my cheeks so love massaging oils into my face to improve skintone. After a fair few late nights at events and launches, this product is my skin saviour."
Clarins Energy Booster, £30, available at Clarins
Image: Courtesy of Clarins.
"It might be surprising that a beauty editor doesn't use a more luxury moisturiser, but I love how unfragranced and gentle this is. Plus, I save all my fancy lotions and potions for the evening, when my routine has about six more steps! I have oily cheeks so this product keeps my skin hydrated, but is light enough that my face isn't an oil slick by lunchtime."
Simple Kind to Skin Hydrating Light Moisturiser, £1.95, available at Superdrug
Image: Courtesy of Simple.
"I apply this as soon as I wake up (and about 12 times a day after that). I never really wear lipstick, but this fits perfectly in between a gloss and a balm. I have one on my desk. One in my bag. One on my bedside table... "
MAC Lip Conditioner, £12, available at John Lewis
Image: Courtesy of John Lewis.
Alix Rentsch, Beauty Editor
"Hands-down, the easiest cleansing brush I’ve tried. It’s battery-powered (you get about 100 cleanses out of it before needing to replace it) and you can use it in the shower – excellent when you only have about 30 seconds to cleanse every morning."
Foreo Luna Play, £29, available at Cult Beauty
Image: Courtesy of Cult Beauty.
"It took me a while to get on board with the face mist craze, but I now spray this about as often as I check Instagram (a lot!). After cleansing, it gives me juicy, just-out-of-a-facial skin. I also spritz after I’ve done my makeup to stop it looking cakey."
Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence, £54, available at Cult Beauty
Image: Courtesy of Cult Beauty.
"I’m fanatic about cleansing; having acne as a teen does that to you. This one is much more gentle than my night-time cleanser as it only needs to freshen and wake my skin up. Plus it’s one of the few that doesn’t leave that tight, stretched feeling."
Bare Minerals Pure Plush Gentle Cleansing Foam, £18, available at Bare Minerals
Image: Courtesy of Bare Minerals.
"I hate the feeling of oil on my skin so I add a couple of drops of this into my cleanser instead. Rosehip evens out any lingering scars and is super-soothing if you’ve had a late one the night before."
Pai Rosehip BioRegenerate Oil, £22, available at Pai Skincare
Image: Courtesy of Pai Skincare.
"Now that we’ve found each other, I couldn’t have a relationship with any other moisturiser. It's true love. Mainly because it's hydrating without feeling greasy or heavy and the velvety finish sits perfectly under makeup."
La Roche-Posay Effaclar H Moisturiser, £15, available at Boots
Image: Courtesy of Boots.
Perdita Nouril, Beauty & Wellness Journalist
"The cold weather is skin’s kryptonite, and for me this is the only superhero product to save it from drying out. I rub two drops in between my palms and then press into my face. It gets me glowing in no time. Plus, twice a week is enough to do the job honourably."
Pixi Rose Oil Blend, £26, available at Pixi Beauty
Image: Courtesy of Pixi Beauty.
"For my peepers, I’m currently using Alumier MD. It’s a newbie to the UK and doesn’t officially launch until January, but trust me when I say it’s worth the wait. It contains encapsulated retinol that goes to town on fine lines and dark circles. The encapsulation is the genius part because it means the retinol is protected in tiny polymeric bubbles that stop it from mixing with the rest of the formula, keeping it fresh. These bubbles then burst under light pressure from your fingers, allowing for a controlled delivery of retinol that is mega-potent."
Alumier MD Retinol Eye Gel, price upon request, available at Alumier MD
Image: Courtesy of Alumier.
"A decade in London means this former country bumpkin no longer has the patience of a saint. If a product tacks on too many minutes to my morning routine, I’m simply not interested. Fortunately this serum works in a flash. It sinks in immediately, but also has a mattifying effect, evening out my skin texture so that I can forgo a primer. I massage it into my face after washing with just water, as I cleanse religiously at night."
Shiseido Bio-Performance LiftDynamic Serum, £82, available at John Lewis
Image: Courtesy of Shiseido.
"Every dermatologist I’ve ever met says the same thing: an SPF is a goddamn must, or words to that effect. So without fail I slather a layer of this over my face and neck after my serum. It’s non-greasy and lightweight, yet still has the muscle to bat off the bad bits that are flung at skin every day. It’s also packed with retinol, which encourages my skin to renew itself at lightning speed. So now when my makeup predictably wears off by mid-afternoon, I no longer catch myself in the mirror and sigh."
La Roche-Posay Redermic R UV SPF 30, £29.50, available at Boots
Image: Courtesy of Boots.
"For mornings when I awake with a monumental hangover, this is my go-to saviour scrub. Jojoba beads gnaw away at the remnants of last night's makeup while also taking layers of good-for-nothing dead skin cells that hide radiance and hinder hydration. It has concealed a hangover more times than I care to remember."
Origins Original Skin Retexturizing Mask with Rose Clay, £24, available at Boots
Image: Courtesy of Boots.
Philippa Pearne, Beauty & Lifestyle Journalist
"Come rain or shine, I always wear SPF. This one is lightweight on the skin and not too expensive."
No 7 Protect & Perfect Intense Facial Sun Protection SPF 50, £14.50, available at Boots
Image: Courtesy of Boots.
"Having been a beauty writer for over a decade, you’d think that I would have tried the Clarisonic years ago. To be honest, the thought of anything electric going towards my skin has always scared the hell out of me for fear of breakouts. However, I recently bit the bullet after a fellow former acne-sufferer friend made me and I haven’t looked back since. It’s the perfect thing to use when you’re in a hurry but want to give your skin a quick buff in the morning. Plus, it makes for a quick and smooth foundation application."
Clarisonic Aria, £155, available at Clarisonic
Image: Courtesy of Clarisonic.
"I use this cleansing cream with my Clarisonic. It leaves my skin feeling soft, clean, and totally energised for the rest of the day. It smells really good, too."
Clarins Extra-Comfort Anti-Pollution Cleansing Cream, £25, available at Clarins
Image: Courtesy of Clarins.
"Perhaps every three days or so, I apply this mask and let it sink in while I dry my hair and get dressed. It goes on like a cream but once massaged in, it turns into a gorgeous oil texture which makes my skin feel super-hydrated and soft after I take it off with a cotton pad. It’s a real treat, especially when I feel like giving my skin some proper TLC."
Decléor Hydra Floral Ultra-Moisturising & Plumping Mask, £30, available at Decléor
Image: Courtesy of Decléor.
"I’ve got a real ‘thing’ for cucumber-scented skincare and this smells divine. I have only just started using an eye cream, thanks to some shocking lighting in a fitting room recently and this one soothes, cools, and de-puffs in a flash. Hopefully it’s working hard over time to get rid of a few wrinkles, too."
Origins Eye Doctor, £30, available at Origins
Image: Courtesy of Origins.
Katie Thomas, Beauty Journalist
“I double-cleanse in the evening before bed, so in the morning I just like to wake my skin up. This is a little more punchy than a simple micellar water; it’s super-hydrating, but also exfoliates. I can almost feel it nibbling away at my dead skin. It preps my skin really well for the next steps.”
Givenchy Vax’in For Youth, £29.50, available at House of Fraser
Image: Courtesy of House of Fraser.
“Thanks to my darling family, I have inherited dark circles that plague my daily life. No eye cream will ever rid me of them but this Clinique eye serum, with its super-cooling rollerball, reduces any sleep-induced puffiness. It doesn’t eliminate my bags, but it brightens the area.”
Clinique All About Eyes Serum, £24, available at Debenhams
Image: Courtesy of Debenhams.
“The best thing about this serum is the magical way that it blurs out any imperfections on my face. If I’m looking a bit dull or spotty, I just use this and everything just perks up.”
Omorovicza Instant Perfection Serum, £80, available at Omorovicza
Image: Courtesy of Omorovicza.
“After jumping out of the shower, I slather on Aerin’s Mediterranean Honeysuckle Body Cream. I also wear the fragrance and like to amp up the intensity of the scent by layering both the cream and perfume. If I’ve got it, I’ll use the shower gel too!”
Aerin Mediterranean Honeysuckle Body Cream, £40, available at Selfridges
Image: Courtesy of Selfridges.
“I recently went to the Darphin headquarters in Paris for a facial. It was hands-down one of the best I’ve ever had. The facialist told me that my skin was deeply parched and I needed to up my hydration. They recommended their Hydraskin Rich Cream and it’s been a game-changer. My skin is plumper, smoother, and happier now.”
Darphin Hydraskin Rich Cream, £35, available at Darphin
Image: Courtesy of Darphin.
“I used to be incredibly liberal with SPF, rarely using it, and in the past three years the freckles on my face have almost quadrupled. No longer. Now I use Skinceuticals Sheer Mineral UV Defense every day, even when it’s cloudy. It’s super-lightweight, glides on, and is the perfect primer for makeup.”
Skinceuticals Sheer Mineral UV Defense, £35, available at My Derma Center
Image: Courtesy of My Derma Center.Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?