Urgent intervention required - skin care

[tak1ngchances]

Oh man. I am 33 years old, non smoker, wear sun screen yadda yadda. Thought I had relatively good skin until yesterday when the Photographs of Doom happened.
DH took loads of pics at my niece's 1st birthday party and then we projected them in the TV and sat around with drinks to relive the day.
Every photo of me is DIRE. I look older than my mother. She is 61 and admittedly in very good nick. But STILL. Here are the issues:

• massive under eye bags and dark circles
• my entire face crinkles up like a brown paper bag when I smile
• no spots but enlarged pores on my cheeks

I have dry, sensitive skin and I am Irish so it's that translucent pale type with a smattering of freckles, on case that helps to visualise how mingin I am.

PLEASE HELP. Current skin care routine is gentle exfoliation once a week, Clarins day cream and a Darphin cooling eye cream in the mornings then Estée Lauder serum and Clarins night cream for bed. This combo does not irritate my sensitive skin. But clearly it is not helping prevent the first signs of ageing or whatever other shite they promise. HELLLPPP

How's your diet / water intake?

I hesitate to advise any products as I don't share your skin type. But I do get awful dark circles and dull skin when my diet is poor and I'm not drinking enough.

I eat very well but I could probably drink more water. Have just bought a gentle toner for the pores and a hydrating mask to use once a fortnight. Hope they help!!!

Watching with interest. I have aged 5 years in the last year, eye bags and crinkling are the main culprits.

I am a bit of a product junkie, but as much as I'd like to believe there is a wonder product out there to make me all dewy and gorgeous, the tiresome truth is that real change starts from within. Too much sugar and carbs = dull skin prone to wrinkles. Good skin IMO comes from leafy greens, oily fish, nuts and plenty of good oils (olive, avocado, nut oils, coconut oil).

You don't mention cleansing. What do you do to clean your skin? Hot cloth cleansing made a big difference to my skin when I started it properly a few months ago (36, a bit wrinkly, looked a bit dull, pale half Irish!)

But a big yes to optimising your diet too. Cod liver oil supplements are also supposed to help I believe.

I use a Lancôme cleanser, it's white and blue in a big pump dispenser

Also just found Caroline Hirons blog and am following the double cleanse, double tone, serum, moisturise steps she advocates. My skin is looking much, much better a week in. I have different skin type to you but her blog is really worth a read. Have a look at what she says about Hydraluron- this under yr moisturiser may help if you're skin is dehydrated.

I've learned loads from Caroline Hirons. Also love Sali Hughes in the guardian - you can go through all her previous columns on the website. She gives some good high street
Options too whereas CH is much more focused on the more expensive brands. CH brilliant on things like spots, milia etc.

Ok am googling Caroline hirons. She sounds v good