Best skincare for 40 year old with combination skin?

[beyondthehill]

I have decided that I really need to take care of my skin now I am 40. I'd like to get some cleanser etc for Christmas but could really do with some help deciding what to buy. I have combination skin and quite visible pores.

Liz Earle all the way for me, I would probably buy the cleanse and polish, superskin moisturiser if your skin is dry and maybe the exfoliator if you have problems with pores. The Liz Earle website has a good offer on at the moment with a ton of freebies, about £59 I think. I love how it doesn't feel chemically and my skin doesn't feel tight. I'm 39. (And a half!!)

I use the oil cleansing method and really like it. Mix 50/50 olive oil and avocado oil to use along with an organic flannel. It just takes a few drops to clean my face and it's a great body moisturiser too.

wellnessmama.com/7569/skin-oil-cleansing/

Use rosewater spray as a toner and mix of jojoba oil and rosehip oil as a moisturiser. A clay mask from time to time helps cleanse pores and tighten them up a bit.

To make the oils a bit girlier I add rose essential oil to the moisturiser and carrot seed oil to the cleansing oil. Store them in blue glass aromatherapy bottles with pipette droppers which look pretty.

www.akomaskincare.co.uk/ is a good source of oils, rosewater and clay powder and www.fushi.co.uk is good for oils, plus www.essentialoilsdirect.co.uk for bottles.

I know it sounds like a faff, but it really takes about 5 minutes to mix things up and £100 will get you enough stuff to last a year easily.

If you prefer something with great packaging from a counter, I do sometimes succumb to something from the Chanel Hydra Beauty range in duty free.

Dead Sea Mineral stuff is great for combination skin, I get it at Holland & Barrett and there's buy one get one half price at the moment. I get nice matt skin which doesn't rub off in icky bits IYSWIM when applying makeup over the top (which happens a lot with mattifying products IME). It's moisturiser doesn't contain an SPF so bear that in mind. But, having spent a small fortune on various skin care products over the years, this works for me. The mud mask is great too.

I am 32 with combination skin and after years of trying everything under the sun for my moderate acne, I'm currently a big fan of La Roche-Posay. I use their Effaclar range mostly - the foaming gentle cleanser is great (even though I'm not normally a fan of foaming cleansers) and I love their Effaclar Duo + treatment. As a moisturiser I use their Toleriane Ultra, and sometimes their Toleriane cleanser instead of the foaming one.

If you aren't particularly prone to spots you might find the Effaclar products unnecessary, though.

They're often on offer at Boots at a third off, which makes it reasonably priced, IMO.

Another big favourite of mine is Neal's Yard Rose Facial Oil - use as a nighttime moisturiser and you will literally wake up glowing! It calmed down my oily skin and definitely helped reduce oil production. God I love that stuff.