skin care help!!

[anjayelland]

hi everyonee, I am trying to find new and better products for my skin that don't cost me a fortune. I have quite sensitive skin that is acne prone, and oily (but also dries out easily :/) I am thinking about buying 'indian healing clay' for a mask, and maybe trying pantothenic acid? I'm open to any and all recommendations! thankyou in advance, I hope you all are having a great day 🙂

[MamaL35]

I second Dermalogica. I have rosacea and am sensitive to scents. The Ultracalming line is great. I know my skin gets extremely irritated by any products with clay. Not sure if it's the rosacea, but thought I'd mention it. FAB products are fantastic, as well!

[beechblondiee]

I use the Dermalogica line for my sensitive skin. They are a tad more pricey, but all the products last a long time. 

Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel 8.4 oz/ 250 mL 

Dermalogica Calm Water Gel Moisturizer 1.7 oz/ 50 mL 

Dermalogica Stress Positive Eye Lift Mask 0.85 oz/ 25 mL 

[meou]

@anjayelland what's your current routine looking like and how many steps do you want to incorporate? 

[anjayelland]

Currently I use a st.ives wash and scrub (I know they’re not good😅) and a eye cream as well as Aveeno lotion at night and a neutrogena face sunscreen in the day. I want to add a toner and switch my face wash and moisturizer

[meou]

@anjayelland Gotcha!

By product this is what I would look for 

• Cleanser: Any Gel Cleanser, part of that is personal preference since I just like that texture but they are also great or all skin types - I'm currently using the Cosrx Low PH Good Morning Gel Cleanser. Cerave is a great drugstore brand that has a foaming face cleanser that I hear is also great for sensitive skin. 
• Toner: BHA (aka salicylic acid) - this would be to break up the oil in your pores and help with the acne. It can come in products as low as 0.5% (i.e. the Benton Aloe BHA Toner which has a lot of soothing ingredients and its like $20) and as high as 2% (i.e. Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow PHA + BHA Pore-Tight Toner 5.07 oz/ 150 mL this one also has a PHA which is a surface level exfoliant to help unstick dead skin cells).  I'd start using this once a week and then move up to whatever makes your skin not feel congested
  • If you're still using up the st.ives scrub don't use the toners on the same day as the physical scrub
• Moisturizer: I'd look for something with ceramides, squalane, glycerin as these are all skin mimicing ingredients that help boost the skin barrier but also hdyrate and moisturize. If you see anything with Centella or Green Tea those are usually very calming to help with sensitivities. Also I love a gel cream since they are a bit more light weight, tend to aborb better and don't sit on the skin if you are feeling oily. Glow Recipe Banana Soufflé Moisture Cream has a lot of those skin barrier strong ingredients with the calming ones (like magnesium) I'm also about to start the Biossance Squalane + Probiotic Gel Moisturizer which has comparable ingredients but is fragrance free if that causes any issues. 

If you want to just test stuff I love getting mini's and Glow Recipe has a mini kit that has ther toner and moisturize I mentioned. It's more expensive in the long run it gives you a chance to try things without as much commitment.  Also please remember to patch test! Skin is really personal so something that doesn't bother one sensitive skinned person might cause another to break out. 

[anjayelland]

Thankyou so much for your recommendations! I will definitely give a few of those items a try, and getting a mini size is a good idea!