Daily Skincare - what are you using?

[greenchilli]

Often people ask for recommendations on a skincare routine or for specific products/combinations.  This might be a place to share your everyday skincare, both AM and PM.  A skincare "what are you wearing" as it were.  Hope this is useful.

*Age - 40

Skin type - oily/combination

Current skin condition - quite dehydrated (winter/indoor heating)*

01/17/16 - AM skincare in the order I used

1. Nude Jelly cleanser (love)

2. Pixi Glow tonic (5% glycolic toner - love)

3. Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Spritz (sample)

4. Radical Skincare Youth Infusion serum - hydrating and anti-ageing (new to me.  Testing)

5. Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream (like)

6. Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine cream (really like as an AM moisturizer)

I will try to post PM skincare tonight so the post can be comprehensive.

General comments - Okay skin.  Apparently the age between 38-42 is a transformational time in hormones (dehydrated skin/spots), so I am more aware of how my skin performs/reacts .  My skincare definitely has more "actives" now than before.

[greenporchlights]

Just popping in to say that I used Pixi Glow Pads last night, and holy mackerel is my skin happy and smooth. Highly recommend, kids. 🙂

[buggirl]

I went ahead and ordered two pixi orders with the target gift card promo

1. glow tonic and mud cleanser

2. glow pads + 1 missha sheet mask

separate orders to maximize the deal but Im very excited to try all of these items given the extremely positive feedback given the price point. 

[JazaChai]

Wait wait wait... Target sells Missha??? TIL. That is so much better than ordering direct, given the shipping minimum!

[jemly]

hey njattana 🙂

age is really one tiny piece of the puzzle of what should be in your skincare. more specifically, what do you find your needs are right now ? are you happy with your current routine and skin ? is there anything you want changed ?

the best anti aging (i hate that phrase. it's the sort of phrase that makes a 26 year old feel old. your skin is still very young darling girl !!) at your age is to keep your skin hydrated and nourished.

i know it's allll over this thread, but if you want to give me a run down of your current routine and what your current skin condition is, i can give you more detailed ideas of what to tweak 🙂

to be upfront: i'll probably be telling you something a long the lines of SR good genes every night at your age *may* be overkill. but that's why i say tweak. it may be little changes that give you the most benefit, rather than adding a new serum in. or maybe there is a serum i'll think will suit you.

and happy birthday ! 

[jemly]

ok, are you happy with how your skin is now ? i know you've had a lot of stress lately, but how would you say you skin is ? (i ask because i do tend to observe everyone has a slightly different definition for "breakout".)

i think we need to get some stuff into your skincare that is more gentle (but no less effective!). just get a bit of soothing nourishment in there. something like balm cleansers and a good facial oil that *isn't* active, that perhaps you can use on nights you're not using the luna/GG. like CLARINS lotus oil....i'd use the BHA at night after you cleanse, too, rather than in the morning. be careful with that clarisonic too 😉

be mindful of over exfoliating, as it can cause just as many problems as not exfoliating at all. 

[JazaChai]

Coming back to this after awhile away. Still generally dry skin, currently cleaning up the tail end of hormonal breakouts and accompanying residual redness.

2/23 pm:

Tatcha Camellia Cleansing oil

Bliss Fabulous Foaming Cleanser (foil, bleh)

Mario Badescu Glycolic Toner

Leaders 7 Wonders sheet mask, Olive Brightening flavor (Ulta, meh, too small for my face, also somehow both slimy and un-hydrating)

Philosophy Help Me retinol treatment

Verso Eye Serum

Natural Organics Argan Oil Blend

Murad Hydro-Dynamic moisturizer

Charlotte Tillbury Magic Eye Cream (foil, good but smells ...off)

2/24 am:

water rinse + Caudalie cleansing milk on T-zone/forehead

FAB facial radiance pad

Murad Hydrating toner

Waterest essence (Birchbox I think, similar to May Coop Raw Sauce but less alcohol)

Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance serum

Natural Organics Argan Oil blend

Shiseido Ultimune Eye Concentrate

Philosophy Ultimate Miracle Worker day (spf 30)

Bare Minerals Renew and Hydrate eye cream

Has anyone used the CT eye cream and can speak to how it's supposed to smell? The foil I have looks and applies fine, but the smell is a bit off-putting.

[meggieprice]

Age 62

Aging skin, fairly normal, some oil in t zone

I had to come find this because I am so amazed with the changes in my skin since I started doing the K Beauty, Asian Beauty, whatever you want to call it-routine. Being 62 and only discovering both makeup and skincare last year I have a lot to do toe make it up to my poor face! I had heard of the K steps and was invited to a FB group where I was happy to find that many of my existing products fit right in and I needed only a few tweaks and additions. One KEY thing was the need to use a low PH cleanser and even a PH lowering toner as your skin needs to be between 3 and 3.5 PH to truly absorb and utilize the "actives" like AHA, BHA, retinol, and Vitamin C.

My current routine

Ren oil cleansing balm

Sunday RIley ceramic slip cleanser they double cleanse in all routines

Cosrx or Mizon AHA/BHA toner- lowering PH

Cosrx BHA Blackhead liquid

wait 10-20 minutes

Sunday Rile Good Genes (AHA)

wait 10 -20 minutes

SK II First Essence

SKII Toner - moisturizing toner

Holy SNails SNowBang essence- packed with skin nutrients

Mixon Snail ampoule (you will see more and more snail products popping up ion the US- Korea is years ahead of us in skincare)

Holy Snails Shark Sauce serum - an awesome nutrient including niacinimide

A daily sheet mask- and you can get fabulous ones for under a dollar each.

Trying some samples to pick my moisturizer

Sunday RIley Luna Oil

Sulwhasoo Energizing night mask- seals it all in.

Yes that is 14 steps. It is my me time- and my skin is LOVING it. I wish I had a before photo but this is me yesterday after 2 weeks of the routine- no makeup and no filter or anything but cropping- straight out of camera.. The plus is many Korean brands are MUCH cheaper than US skincare.

I use my Vitamin C in the morning after cleansing and PH lowering toner. then primer and makeup. I am using up an Ole Henriksen and then transitioning to Drunk Elephant C serum -it is best if your C has ferulic acid and vitamin E.

[JenniferOhJenny]

My first time posting in this thread...would love recommendations/advice

Age: 43

Skin type: normal, slightly oily in T-zone 

2/24/16 AM skincare:

Neutrogena cleanser

Paula's Choice BHA liquid

Lancome Genifique Serum

OH Truth Serum

CeraVe eye cream

CeraVe SPF 30 moisturizer

(PM skincare mostly the same but double cleanse with Clean It Zero and random cleansers, also exfoliate 2x/week, use DDG pads (not every night), use RoC retinol sensitive night cream & heavier moisturizer/sleeping mask every night)

Comments:

I used to use all of the above along with Secret Key tea tree toner and Secret Key essence and I thought my skin looked pretty good. I wanted to try something new so I bought toner, essence, and serum from Missha. I (stupidly) used them all at once and ended up with a mess - a few blemishes, but mostly bumps. I stopped using all of the Missha items but now there are patches on either side of my chin with a raised texture and slight redness. 

I don't know what to do - if I should go back to the toner I used to use and my skin will just return to normal, or if I need to try and treat these areas with another product. 

I know it's a silly thing to be upset about, but these weird textured patches really bother me even though they're probably not very noticeable to anyone but me.

[meggieprice]

Ah yes- it is so hard to add only one thing at a time but it is always best to do that!

My first thought from what I have learned is that your cleanser may have too high a PH so that your BHA is not being fully utilized. What kind of Neutrogena do you use? I can probably find out what the PH is. Your skin needs to be brought down to a low PH (3-3.5) to optimize and utilize your AHA, BHA, C, and Retinol. I never knew that! There are several PH lowering toners you can use after cleansing to do that.In addition you might want to alternate your BHA with an AHA to remove more of the surface skin cells- the BHA penetrates deeply and AHA is more for top layers.

[JenniferOhJenny]

Thanks for the feedback!

My Neutrogena cleanser is the Deep Clean (I think). It foams and I have read on BT that foaming cleansers are not good for your skin so I am going to use up what's left of this bottle and then buy one that doesn't foam.

[greenchilli]

Jennifer:

I am one that does not like foaming cleansers at all.  They are stripping and leave skin more sensitive.  If you use a good balm, milk, or oil cleanser....they won't strip your skin and PH won't be an issue. 

Acids are by definition low PH.  So AHAs and BHAs will  lower the PH on your skin when you use them.

[meggieprice]

Yes that is true, however, if your skin is already low PH you get more benefit from the acids- there is a lot of research about this- and though I am new to it it made sense to me. I'll see if I can find this info for you. 🙂

[greenchilli]

Meggie - if your routine works for you....that is all that matters. 🙂

Skin is naturally acidic (low PH).  The goal when I cleanse is to clean skin, and not destroy the skin's acid mantle.  That is it.   I am not trying to lower it further in the cleansing stage since I use an acid afterwards that has a specific role.  Foaming cleasners destroy acid mantle (alkaline), so I avoid it. 

Do what makes most sense to you. 

[meggieprice]

Oh I don't use a foaming cleanser- ever. I was speaking only of the K Beauty concept of using a ph lowering toner before your actives. Doing that had a transforming effect on my skin!

[JenniferOhJenny]

Do you have any particular cleansers that you like? 

Dumb question but do I need to use AHAs and BHAs separately or together or does it not matter? The Paula's Choice is a BHA and I use that in the morning (will be switching to the Pixi tonic when this runs out) and the DDG pads are AHAs (I think) and I use those at night, but not every night.

Thank you!

[greenchilli]

Hi Jennifer,

There are several good cleansers around.  NUDE, Ren, Oskia, Tata Harper....they are just a few brands that offer good ones off the top of my head.

I would suggest trying NUDE Omega Jelly as it is at a good price point, good product, convenient (tube form..  Although they need to improve tube).  Many on this thread seem to use it as well, and it looks like it is a well loved item. 

AHA and BHA do somewhat similar things although they have some key differentiators.  They exfoliate gently removing dead skin, unclogging pores, help treat active blemishes, and regular usage prevents frequent breakouts.

You don't need one more than another, nor do you need both.  Many exfoliatesr use multiple acids (DDG peel pads etc).  But people can be sensitive to Salicylic acid (BHA) or Glycolic (AHA)...so different products offer choices.  There is also PHA.

If you take me for example - I can tolerate all acids just fine and use them all.  But I find that I enjoy higher percentages of Lactic more easily than a higher percentage of Glycolic.  Not that my face falls off, but a strong Glycolic feels like a strong glycolic :-).  Salicylic works well for me when I am trying to address a spot.

DDG peel pads use a combination of acids.  It is my staple.  I have used it for ages.  Pixi is 5% Glycolic, and I use it on most mornings. 

If you like PC BHA and DDG pads....just use those. 

[meggieprice]

Can you suggest a good spot treatment? That is one thing I have not set on yet...

[JenniferOhJenny]

I was actually thinking of trying the NUDE Omega Jelly since it seems to get a lot of love around here.

I think I'm like you in that I can tolerate any acids. As long as the DDG pads and the PC (or Pixi) are working for me, I will just stick with those. Thank you again!

[JazaChai]

AHA vs BHA vs both is mainly a matter of individual skin sensitivity. Some people are sensitive to either one or the other (and so obviously then can't use both), some people are fine with either but both at the same time is too much for them, and others aren't sensitive at all (or as long as the concentration isn't too much).

If you've been using one in the am and one in the pm for awhile now, and your skin is fine with it, then you're probably fine.

[JenniferOhJenny]

Thanks for the info! Knock on wood, I haven't had any issues with either, and I have been using them for six months or so. So I guess I'm ok with acids 🙂

[TriesToBoClassy]

almost 31, normal/combination skin.

dehydrated.

2/23 PM

- Josie Maran Argan oil cleanser (ok)

- Malin + Goetz grapefruit cleanser (ok)

- Pixi glow toner (like)

- Missha essence (like)

- Fresh Black Tea eye concentrate (like)

- Fresh Black Tea serum (like)

- Sunday Riley Luna (love)

- Bobbi Brown EXTRA eye cream (like)

- Fresh Creme Ancienne (love)

Spoiler

I have spent a couple weeks trying to use up some DS samples. They are all fine.. and my skin is fine.. but i will soon go back to Sunday Riley for my first steps because they are so much more enjoyable.

Also, while my skin is normal/combo, it drinks up the heavier products i use such as the Bobbi Brown EXTRA line and Fresh Creme Ancienne. If i don't use heavy creams/oils in my night routine, my skin feels tight in the morning. This will probably change once the temperature is warmer? We shall see.