To ask how i stop my skin, especially on my face, looking like leather.

[ferriswheel]

Just that.

Moisturising and sun block for the most part. Leathery skin is caused by loss of water and sun damage.

How old are you?

What have you tried so far?

I agree with the moisturising - that generally helps the condition of the skin.

In my 60's and hardly a wrinkle, may be down to good genes though. I've always used moisturiser on my face and neck, having a Clarins phase at the moment.

You would have to tell us your age, lifestyle and current face care routine.

Your eating, exercising, sleeping and the amount of water that you drink, make a big difference to your skin.

Cleansing routine is important, but you may have to apply a few masks, or go for a chemical peel to start you off.

I'm nearly 50 and have found Aldi's moisturisers as good as the Elemis marine cream.

Coconut oil 👍🏻

Bravura glycolic acid. Its fab.

Isn't coconut oil comedogenic?(so?) it causes spots/blocked pores?

A balanced diet, lots of water.
Cleanse, tone and moisturise (using suitable products for your skin type) daily.
Invest in a good night cream, and a serum if your skin is really dry and you're over 30-ish.
Spf, Spf, Spf.
You could try regular facials and/or weekly hydrating face masks, too?

I'm probably not much help as I have an oil slick for a complexion but those seem sensible ideas!

Wasn't there a thread for rosehip oil? I've been thinking about trying that...

Wasn't there a thread for rosehip oil? I've been thinking about trying that..

I use it on my face of a night, not greasy, I have greasy skin and it doesn't make it worse.

I've been using it for 4 weeks now and now can see a difference in that I've had less spots and any ones I have had have gone quick.

I have very sensitive skin (can't use cotton wool, makeup wipes or anything with salicylic acid in and have Acne Rosacea so I have to be really careful what goes on my face. The Rosehip oil feels lovely.

I cleanse and moisturise every morning, cleanse and oil every evening, exfoliate once a week and wear sunscreen on my face daily.

Everything I use is from Dermalogica Ultra calming.

Leathery skin would suggest sun damage so definitely start with SPF and a good moisturiser.

I hear snail gel is amazing......and yes it is exactly what it says.
It's why I haven't bought it yet

Do you smoke or spend a lot of time in the sun?

Wearing SPF every day is going to help prevent further sun damage. If tone/texture/pigmentation has been affected by the sun then you could look into retinols and AHA exfolliants. Vitamin C serums are also supposed to be good for sun damage although I've never found them to be that life-changing, tbh.

Smoking is also thought to damage and contribute to aging of the skin.

Drink more water. Find a cleanser, serum and moisturiser that works for you - this will take some experimentation. I love Eucerin’s HA range and La Roche Posay’s Effeclar Duo serum - I use that in the morning and HA at night. Make sure your moisturiser has SPF and use a separate higher SPF as well on sunny days. Drink more water. Korean snail sheet masks - less than a quid on Amazon and the most moisturising thing you’ll ever put on your face. Drink even more water.

I personally can’t use any oils as they give me instant spots but for some people oil cleansing works very well.

IMO these are the main factors affecting your skin's condition:

1. Genes - you can't change these.

1. Sun exposure

1. Diet - veg, fruit, fish etc are great for skin. Sugar/fast food less so.

1. Hydration - both what you drink and how you moisturise.

1. Sleep, relaxation, exercise, contentment, stress.

Thank you everyone. I'm 41 with very young children and getting divorced so everything about me and my personal care has been ignored and forgotten for ages.

I'm terrible for drinking water but do much more easily force sugar free squash down. Moisturise day and night?

Go on the Style and Beauty page and check out the Retin A posts. I looked like a bag of smashed crabs until I discovered this and other 'acids'. The Ordinary or Nip + Fab are brilliant as is Alpha H and M&S 8 hour sleep cream. Oh and factor 50 everyday.

in that case why not start off with a decent facial?

The only people I know who have gone leathery are the cigarette smoking sun worshippers, the sun having the worst effect. I have a friend in her 20s who lives in Dubai and is sunbathing every day.. it's hard to consider the effects when you're so young but she's going to end up the same.
So I would say avoid the direct sun, don't smoke, wear makeup with spf and drink lots of water.

Exfoliation. As much and as often as you can be arsed. It lets the moisturiser through. The dead/dry skin cells sitting on top of the skin don't need the moisture, get them off daily if poss., it's the new skin beneath you need to treat.

I'm terrible for water to OP. My trick is to have 3 or 4 small bottles filled with water in the kitchen in the morning and try and make sure they're gone by the end of the day. Sometimes that means standing there downing one!

Don't worry about the water OP. There's no scientific evidence that it has any improving effect on the skin.

If you're thirsty, have a drink. If not, don't.

Sunscreen. Exfoliate, a flannel will do. Moisturise with whatever suits you, but start at the cheap end for the sake of your pocket. Nivea Soft is good. Your face includes your neck and décolletage. Don't forget to sunscreen the back of your hands.

I wear a hat in the sun and sunglasses all year round. I'm in Australia so more call for this.

So, moisturise morning and night. I will try and drink more water. When do I put SPF on? Will that not make my oily complexion worse?

OP, I wear SPF daily to protect my skin, rain or shine. I have oily skin so I use a lightweight, non-greasy moisturiser with SPF. It's the Alpha H Daily Essential Moisturiser SPF50. This will help hydrate and prevent any further damage to your skin.

I also strongly recommend a glycolic acid product (also known as AHA or Alpha Hydroxy Acid), which will help exfoliate the skin and tackle the "leather" texture. Paula's Choice make a very good range of AHA products. Altenratively, a cheaper but effective version is Pixi Glow Tonic.

There are some good articles on the Paula's Choice website about sunscreen and AHAs, how to choose the right product and their benefits:

www.paulaschoice.com/expert-advice/skincare-advice/dry-skin/how-aha-exfoliants-work.html

www.paulaschoice.com/expert-advice/skincare-advice/anti-aging-wrinkles/anti-aging-starts-with-sunscreen.html?fdid=anti-aging

Usually day moisturisers will have SPF built in, but if not, in the morning under your make up.

I didn’t realise you had oily skin - I took from ‘leathery’ that it was dry. Oily skin needs a different regimen, not one I can help with unfortunately.

Just to add, the suggestion to start out with a facial treatment is also a good one. You may wish to start with a microdermabrasion treatment or a gentle peel, which will give you instant results. Either of these will help exfoliate the surface layer of skin to help address any skin texture issues. The just work in different ways (microdermabrasion is a physical exfoliant, while peels are a chemical exfoliant).