Acid toners - do you use and would you recommend?

[Lottapianos]

I have seen Caroline Hirons raving about acid toners on her blog. This is all news to me and I don't know if its something i should get involved in, but I'm curious!

I'm 35, skin in good nick, good diet and healthy lifestyle in general. I have a rigorous cleaning regime (double cleanse every evening) and remove cleanser with a wet flannel morning and evening, this involves a bit of light scrubbing and buffing. I use a separate exfoliator once a week, just a Natural Radiance one from Superdrug. Skin is dry and dehydrated but I feel I manage this quite well, apart from a bit of flakiness on nose. Skin is not super sensitive and not prone to breakouts.

What do you reckon folks? To acid tone or not to acid tone?

It made a huge difference to the radiance of my skin, I wouldnt go without it. I also use liquid gold once a week.

I have, I think in order of strength, Clarins exfoliating toner, Pixiglow and the Ren one. If you are unsure try the Ren as its quite gentle, not too expensive and M&S sell it so you can buy it when they have their 20% off days.

I would never go back to a grainy type exfoliation again.

Same here. I alternate between the Bravura one and the Pixi Glow Tonic in the mornings, then Liquid Gold a couple of times a week before bed. They are an essential part of my skincare now and, as Lambzig says, they really make scrubby-type exfoliators seem a bit old-fashioned and way too harsh.

I love acid toners, especially the Clarins one and Alpha Liquid Gold for a bit more oomph. I hate scrubby exfoliators, too harsh and just drag at the skin.

Ok, I'm intrigued! The REN toner is a good price, may check it out next time there's 20% off at M&S. Reading reviews of products, lots of people refer to how the acid toners helped to clear up their acne. I literally never get a spot ever - is it still something I should use?

I use Liquid Gold about twice a week in the evening. Liquid Gold has really has transformed my face, my neck, décolletage and back of my hands ( I use it most nights on the back of my hands). I also really like Skyn Iceland Nordic Skin Peel Pads. Just make sure you have SPF protection on the next day.

Oh yes, backs of hands is a good idea. In the winter, I usually just use the SPF in my foundation, not a separate product. My foundation is SPF 18, does that sound ok?

In winter I just rely on the SPF in my foundation but do use oil free spf 40 in the summer or if it is a particularly sunny winter day. I have recently been using Clinique Sheer city block - its okay but I am sure there are better ones on the market.

I use the REN one. On Beauty Expert, it's £12.

I started using acid toners on my skin in September and have seen a HUGE difference in pore size and general appearance of my skin.
I use first aid beauty pads for a mild everyday tone.
Bravura calendula toner for a moderate tone and alpha h twice a week depending on how my skin is feeling.
I have oily skin so if it feels really greasy then I know I've overdid it and go back to first aid beauty.
I had huge pores and acne scarring on my cheeks and these have visibly reduced. I also use heal gel intensive on red areas of my skin and find this works really well.

See, this is what confuses me. People who have had great results from acid toners seem to have oily, acne-prone skin with large pores. My skin is the opposite of all that!

There are so many skincare products out there that its really hard to know what's worth investing in and what's just not. Anyone know whether acid toners are a good idea for dry/dehydrated skin?

I don't have oily, spot prone skin with large pores. Acid toners give my skin more luminosity and banish any bits that might be a bit dry and flaky.

If you think of what they actually do you can see how all skin types can benefit. They're essentially dissolving the dead skin cells off the first layer of skin, but doing so chemically rather than abrasively. If you have oily skin this is a good thing because it means oil, bacteria etc aren't so trapped under a layer of dead skin cells. If you have normal skin it gives your complexion brightness and radiance as the top layer of skin isn't a load of old dull dead cells. And if you have dry skin it encourages cell renewal so your skin is less prone to having flaky bits that hang around. Also, it makes whatever you put on your skin next work more effectively, whether that's a serum, a moisturiser, whatever, as it's penetrating lovely fresh skin rather than pointlessly sitting on top of dead cells. So everyone's a winner!

Acid toners are good for dry/dehydrated skin, but stick to glycolic acid (or even lactic if you want to be really gentle or are prone to sensitivity) and avoid salicylic, which is better for oily/blemish prone. Having said that, my skin is quite oily and I tend to use more glycolic products and have great results. Definitely good for exfoliating dry skin though. Start gentle.

im a total convert to acid toning and cant believe I actually used scrubs with "bits" in them, I use liquid gold 2/3 times a week and have really seen a difference in the look and feel of my dehydrated but oily skin, if also used the clarins one which I liked and the loreal one which is in a red box.

I've been using the Bravura ones for a couple of months now and I'm not sure! My skin feels super-smooth and silky, and (touch wood) the hormonal jawline spots have been very quiet indeed, so there's that. But I can't say I've noticed any increased radiance.

That said, when I was running out I did buy more, so I must feel it's worth continuing. The Bravura ones aren't very expensive anyway.

Thanks all. Think I'll give the REN one a try as its a decent price and has had good reviews. Two more questions - how often should I use it and is it after cleanser but before serum?

I've only tried Liquid Gold which is wonderful.

Heard good things about Shiseido too but £££

I have dehydrated skin and started off with the REN one, which is fab, but have now switched to Pixi Glow Tonic, which is even better.

I'd definitely recommend the REN one if you're not sure. I apply it daily after cleanser and before serum/oil/moisturiser. I'm a bit wary about using them in the morning because the moisturiser I'm currently using doesn't have SPF.

Sorry, meant to say *daily in the evening but one of my children interrupted my flow of thoughts!

I acid tone twice a day but I tend to use the stronger ones at night when I can use an oil as part of the routine as I'm not going to put make up on. A mild one is fine for the morning but Mme is right about SPF. Try and make sure your moisturiser or make up has it. I use mine between cleansing and hydrating tone, morning and night.

The Pixiglow one didn't do anything for me but I feel like everyone else loves it so much, I must be doing something wrong!