Sephora

jade8877 · ‎01-16-2024

Hello beautiful people! I’m new here and just turned 43! I’m not really sure where to start on building a new skincare routine. From cleansers to eye serums to moisturizers. I have combination skin, will occasionally break out on the forehead and chin. Looking for recommendations without breaking the bank.

Thanks in advance!

CorgiMommy · ‎01-18-2024

@jade8877 one area people forget about is their neck. I love IT Cosmetics Confidence in a Neck Cream 2.6 oz/ 80 mL . It works as well as more expensive neck creams.

CarrieDesh · ‎01-21-2024

Hey there! I’m 40 and somewhat of a skin care fanatic (have been since my preteen years). I highly suggest a Korean care routine. It has been a GAME CHANGER for my skin.

AM ROUTINE: In the AM I start by splashing my face with cold water, then do 7 skins with a hydrating Korean toner (Haruharu Wonder Black Rice or Secret Key aloe toner). Then I add my serums (hyaluronic acid & vitamin c but I switch it up depending on my mood), follow that with a gentle moisturizer with SPF (I use MISSHA Water Milk).

PM ROUTINE: At night I oil cleanse (I make my own but there are lots of awesome Korean skin care brands that make a great oil cleansing product). Then I do a swipe of Ordinary Glycolic acid toner (makes pores & wrinkles virtually disappear and gives a very glow complexion) or retinol depending on the day (NEVER together), then 7 skins with hydrating toner, hyaluronic acid serum, a moisturizer / eye cream, and top it all with an oil-based serum such as squalane.

I use a lot of products from The Ordinary (if you go on their site they will help you build a skin care routine and educate you on which products are safe to mix) and Korean based skin care products (hard to find here at Sephora so I buy elsewhere). I use some products from The Inkey too. They’re all very affordable. I get compliments on my skin all the time. There are some great YouTube channels on Korean skin care!

CarrieDesh · ‎01-21-2024

@jade8877

WinglessOne · ‎01-16-2024

Hello @jade8877 and welcome to the world of skincare! I’m in my 50s now, but I had to completely change my decades-long skincare routine in my 40s. I also have combo skin, though my oily zone’s just on and around my nose. And thanks to hormonal shifts, I get more acne now than I did just a few years ago. 😒

I usually tell folks to start with a simple routine:

Non-drying cleanser (PM, optional AM) - what do you currently use to wash your face? My skin’s quite reactive/inflammation-prone and many cleansers strip/dry the heck outta my skin, so I use an anti-inflammatory cleansing bar by a Korean brand (Abib Calming Facial Soap Heartleaf Stone). If I have to wash my face in the morning (I usually just gently wipe it down it a wet plush microfiber cloth), I use either e.l.f. Pure Skin Cleanser or a cleansing balm ( my faves are The INKEY List Oat Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm 5/150 and Paula's Choice Omega + Complex Cleansing Balm 3.5 oz/ 104 mL ), or sometimes I’ll just use a micellar water like Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micellar Water or COSRX’s new niacinamide micellar water (I’ve been testing that one for a week).

For acne: 2-3 times a week, try swapping your usual cleanser with one that contains 2% salicylic acid. CeraVe Acne Control Cleanser and The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Acne + Blackhead Cleanser are good inexpensive options that work well.
Moisturizer (PM & AM) - CeraVe, Vanicream, and Cetaphil make great effective moisturizers. I normally use Vanicream Daily Facial Moisturizer or CeraVe Moisturizing Lotion; in colder weather, I switch to CeraVe Moisturizing Cream for daytime because it contains petrolatum for maximum water loss prevention. When my skin’s in bad reaction mode, I use Vanicream Moisturizing Lotion because it’s a good basic formula with no irritants for my skin. If you really want something from Sephora, consider something like Paula's Choice RESIST Barrier Repair Advanced Moisturizer with Ceramides 1.7 oz .
Broad spectrum sunscreen (AM) - at least SPF 30, generously applied to all skin exposed to sunlight (and reapplied every couple hours during sun exposure), all year long, regardless of weather or season. Sunscreen’s the best anti-aging skincare product on the market, since UV rays can cause wrinkles, uneven skin texture, hyperpigmentation, worsened acne, etc. It’s never too late to start a good sunscreen habit. 🙂 I usually have trouble recommending specific sunscreens because that depends a lot on personal preference (matte vs. radiant natural finish vs. glowy/dewy; tinted vs. non-tinted; light fluid feel vs. primer feel vs. thicker/heavier feel; etc.). A popular one I also love is Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen Invisible Broad Spectrum SPF 40 PA +++ 1.7 oz/ 50 mL , but there are less expensive options out there. Oh, and it can be a chemical, mineral (zinc oxide), or hybrid sunscreen: all 3 types work largely the same way, and one’s not better/safer than the others unless your skin’s sensitive to a specific UV filter (ingredient in sunscreen that protects skin from UV rays). And some sunscreens can double as moisturizers, saving you an AM routine step.

You can add products/steps to that routine to meet specific needs, of course. But let your skin get used to those simple steps for a while. That’ll give you time to figure out what (if any) other skin issues you want to address.

You mentioned eye serums, for instance; are you trying to target undereye wrinkles, discoloration, or something else? Note that we all get lines under our eyes (repeated facial expressions cause many of ‘em) and the only way to “remove” them is to speak with a dermatologist about in-office/clinic procedures. You might be able to soften the look of them with ingredients like retinol and argireline; you could add The Ordinary Argireline Solution 10% for Reducing Fine Lines 1 oz/ 30 mL to your skincare routine between cleanser and moisturizer, for instance, and apply it either just around your eyes or to your whole face. (Argireline’s a peptide. Peptides are generally good skin hydrators.) Or you could try a retinol eye serum or cream like Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare Advanced Retinol + Ferulic Triple Correction Eye Serum 0.5 oz/ 15 mL , The INKEY List Retinol Eye Cream 0.5 oz/ 15 mL , etc.