Help me with a skincare routine

[MeadowHay]

I'm 22 and have always suffered with acne/sensitive skin/sometimes a bit of seborrhaic eczema in varying degrees of severity. But I really want to start myself a proper skincare routine. My acne is mostly just tiny pimples and HUGE pores, I only get a couple of big cystic spots now and then, and me and husband are ttc so don't want to take anything from the GP at moment really.

I use Angels on Bare Skin from Lush to wash my face with every other day, the day in between I just rinse it with water. After washing it I moisturise, I'm using a crappy S&G men's thing at the moment but just ordered myself a Cetaphil moisturiser as have heard good things about them. Then I apply tea tree oil directly to any sore/red spots. I rarely wear makeup but if I do I remove it with a micellar water from Mixa in the evening, although this is nearly finished so looking for something to replace it with. Do I need to use a toner too? Masks? What even are serums??? It's all a minefield! Would really prefer any products I use are cruelty free also.

[MeadowHay]

Please? xD

[MeadowHay]

Please? xD

[banivani]

Ok so your "skincare concerns" are enlarged pores, mild acne? All skincare gurus recommend adding a sunscreen. Sun exposure in itself can cause pore damage. If you add a sunscreen however you need to be meticulous about taking it off at the end of the day and AOBS won't cut it. Then you need an oil cleanser to shift the sunscreen and then a second cleanser to clear of oil cleanser residue. I highly recommend going for a low ph approach to cleansing. Your skin is naturally acidic so if you use skincare that's close to your skin's ph it gets less irritated which in itself will help with the acne. It's really helped me!

Second thing that helps with pores is acids. BHA acids help with clearing out blackheads, AHA acids refine skin structure (simplified). However for the acids to work the product you buy has to have a low ph too. If the product is high ph it doesn't do much, and if it has to work a lot just to lower your skin ph before it can start working it won't be able to do much either.

[MeadowHay]

Can you recommend any products? I'm really concerned about using acids because in the past acids have really upset my skin and given my eczema, which has always made it hard to treat the acne. :/ How do you know if a cleanser is an 'oil cleanser', will it say in the name? Why is skincare so complex??

Will deffo add a sunscreen, been meaning to do so for ages to be honest.

[banivani]

Haha, I know what you mean, but it's not that complex really if you try and ignore the fancy names! Fecking names.

I am currently using an oil cleanser uk.babor.com/products/cleansing/6749-hy-oel.html and a foaming wash uk.babor.com/products/cleansing/6758-gel-tonic-2in1.html from Babor, which according to the company has a ph of 5,5. They are working well (i.e. cleaning my face and not breaking me out), but the wash has mint in it so I know it might be an irritant for some. What I think is handy with an oil cleanser of this type is that they emulsify when you add water so you can rinse it off, and then you follow up with your foaming cleanser. :)

I'm not in the UK so it's hard to recommend products, I'm not sure what you've got. But if you like Lush, and don't use makeup, I might try Ultrabland from Lush as a first step, and then follow with AOBS. Remove Ultrabland with a warm, wet, flannel. I like Ultrabland just fine myself but I didn't find it economical. :/ It's more expensive here (Sweden).

Anyway, I'd also consider not using tea tree oil undiluted because it's an irritant. You might be getting irritated skin from it, but blaming other things?

Check this blog post out:www.snowwhiteandtheasianpear.com/2014/08/skincare-discovery-cleansing-part-i.html

[banivani]

Btw what acids did you use?

[mintbiscuit]

Totally agree with banivani

Your skin could be sensitive/acne prone if you don't have a healthy moisture barrier.

Oil cleanser = an oil or balm that has an emulsifier in so it washes off cleanly. Used only at PM 1st cleanse to dissolve sunscreen, make up and oils. Eg. Body Shop Chamomile cleansing oil or clinique take the day off balm.

Low ph cleanser = 5.5 or less. Used as 2nd cleanser in PM and your AM cleanse. Cleans your actual face without stripping natural oils. Eg. Cerave foaming cleanser, cerave hydrating cleanser (only available on amazon but really good value for money). If a cleanser says ph balanced it means NOTHING. You may need to do some research on this one.

Moisturiser. See how you go with cetaphil. You don't say whether your skin type is dry, normal, combo, oily. You should choose a moisturiser based on that.

Serum - try superdrugs simple pure hydrating serum. Very cheap. Ok for sensitive skin and great ingredient list (lots of ceramides for skin repair and hyaluronic acid for moisture).

You may also want to include a hydrating toner after cleansing if your skin is dehydrated.

Sunscreen - is a must. Again look for sunscreens formulated for your skin type. Japanese sunscreens (imo) have some of the best formulations in the world.

Acids - only try these once you have built a solid routine with the above for at least a month. Paulas choice acids are well formulated and very gentle (no alcohol). Expensive but might be better suited if your skin is sensitive.

Hth

[Canshopwillshop]

I use Cetaphil for my son's eczema and it's made a huge difference. We use the Cetaphil Restoraderm though, not just the regular one.

[banivani]

mintbiscuit - I need an "in awe" smiley. :D Nice!

[MeadowHay]

Gosh I'm so sorry I posted and then didn't come back for ages!

I have ordered the Cetaphil cleanser off Amazon, I'm living in France at the moment and it might not arrive for a few weeks apparently. -.-

My skin type is oily/combination.

I remember using products with salicyclic acid in them as a teenager to try and combat my acne (it was worse then)...and benzol peroxide...but just really irritated my skin and gave me eczema.

Thanks for all the advice. Will give the Body Shop cammomile one a go, planning to go to our big shopping centre on Monday so will buy it then!

If I buy a serum, when do I put it on?

Also, what do you use to take your makeup off, the oil cleanser?

[MeadowHay]

*Cetaphil moisturiser sorry not cleanser!

[banivani]

Use a serum first thing after cleansing, and then follow with a moisturiser. Depends a little on what type of serum it is - some ingredients work better if they go straight on naked skin some time to themselves, but I wouldn't worry about that right now, lol. I have my cheap supermarket hydrating serum here that I actually often just mix in my moisturiser to lighten it up a bit. I like to play around a bit, like. ;)