Had my first " your skin looks amazing" comment-- THANK YOU Caroline Hirons!

[bigbuttons]

A colleague said this at work today, I was so chuffed.
I'm 47 and was looking not so good. This last month I have invested in serums, acids and what not have gone back to Caroline Hirons properly this time. I have been religiously cleaning and tending to my face AM and PM. I use a 30% glycol peel every couple of weeks and use tretinoin every 3 days.
I must say even I have noticed a difference, it has knocked years off me.
All blemishes gone, skin is ultra smooth, wrinkles reduced.
There is hope for us more (ahem) mature ladies!

Thanks kundry. I think I'm being over zealous with my flannel. Skin is very dry but very shiny. I might just whack a load of moisteriser on for a few days and be less vigorous when cleansing! Think the pixi glow just took a layer too much off, it was fine when I tried it on the back of my hand

I just put on my retin A

And my pores now look huge! I can't normally see them. Is that meant to happen? skin is a bit red as well and I only put it on 30 minutes ago.

I used a pea size amount.

Nothing will have changed in your pores in 30 mins! Retin A works over weeks and months. Step away from your pores!

Leave it, see what it's like tomorrow, don't put any more on til the redness has gone.

Honestly it did. I never had visible pores before! Maybe it is down to the cleansing and acids I had been using.

or I'm just looking at my skin more closely

It's really great that so many of you are off buying stuff. Just a note of caution though: be gentle, too much change too soon could upset some skin types.
I would suggest if your skin is sensitive to introduce each new product SLOWLY and see how your skin reacts.
Don't worry about pore size. Like Ch says, you can't open and close them like doors. I find when I use my nip and fab pads that my pores look huge and my face shiny. It's only a temporary thing though.

Try some metanium on the pixie glow burn (ouch). When I burnt my face last week metanium was the only thing it could tolerate. It felt immediately soothing and took away a lot of the redness. Good for irritated bottoms, good for irritated faces!

Thanks Kundry for the retinol advice, will try out the vichy one this time.

Hylamide -- is it the subq anti age advance serum sold at boots?

Starting slowly, got some washcloths on the way home, now washed and ready for morning cleanse.

This thread made much more sense once I had read CHs cheat sheets and posts, making copious notes, have online shopping baskets set up, now need to whittle down so I don't get several products that do the same thing or the wrong thing for me, might post the shortlist if thats OK

Yes that's the Hylamide only no sodding Boots near me stocks it Am still using up my Hydraluron but tried it once and really liked it. Plus the packaging is amazing - yes I know that's marketing bullshit but I still thought the packaging concept was cool

I too made a lot of notes and at one point had a spreadsheet

I have a rota

Kundry, thanks so much for your help. Been doing my homework and have questions:

What's the difference between Hydraluron and Hylamide?

Do peptides have a specific ingredient name, or should I assume if the word 'peptide' isn't in the description it isn't it the product?

Thanks for the tip of the combined moisturiser and retinol. If I don't get that, does the retinol stage come after serum and before moisturiser, or instead of serum?

Retinol would be before moisturiser. Serum would depend on what your serum is - serum is only useful if it has useful ingredients for the problem you want it to address.

So there is no serum, there is Vit C serum, hydrating serum, anti-pigmentation serum etc.

Annoyingly not all manufacturers tell you what their active ingredient is in the blurb. Sometimes, OK a lot of the time, this is to cover up the fact that there isn't one. So you need to look at the ingredient list - is there something peptide, retin something, salicylic glycolic etc. CH loves manufacturers that tell you what's in it - a frustrating number don't post this on their website. I prob prefer a lot of Vivhy products to Avene but their website drives me insane as there are no ingredients - while the lovely people at Avene list everything so I know what I'm buying.

Hydraluron is basically just hyaluronic is a sort of gel. Hylamide is hydraluronic plus other stuff in a liquid therefore in my eyes better as doing more jobs and in a texture I prefer. Have a look at the Deciem website. Plus I am increasingly feeling massively ripped off by Hydraluron after seeing the Aldi link for essentially the same product for peanuts

Well girls I'm going to brave it today and go into town wearing a BB cream rather than my usual EL double wear foundation. This is a first.

Thanks again Kundry.

I get what you mean about needing a targeted serum. Hylamide looks good given I want to combat dehydration and crepeyness. I love the packaging too. No Aldi near me to try the bargain bucket wonder product.

Presumably I would be getting my salicylic acid hit with my Clinique Mild Clarifying Lotion, so if I get the Vichy product that is retinol and moisturiser combined I could be on to a winner.

Loving this thread :) so off to search out some acid toner , thinking the nip and fab from boots ? What I'm currently using :

Soap and glory cleanser x 2
Loreal rivitalist serum or balance hydraulic *spelling !
Youth code moisturiser
(Pm natysal rentiol/vit c night cream ) cheap as chips in tk maxx but feels really good on )
Been doing this for a week or so and can see a difference even DP commented !!
So whT else should I get ??
Checked out the geoff pharmacy link re retin A bit confused as to why the 0.025 was double the price of the 0.1 ?? Think the stronger one might make my face fall off ;)
Any advice welcome :)

*hyaluronic 554 youth serum !!!

I wonder if it's twice the price as it's selling twice as much

Am out today in makeup (unusual forme) and sstunned to find that except for my dark circles, I didn't need concealer! And my usual Laura Mercier oil free tinted moisturiser is now giving an annoying powdery finish as I am so much less oily. Canssee more shopping to do ...

Am in tkmaxx, Tis a revelation! Have selected a skinician serum. However there is no cetaphil to be found in this goddamn town! Lady in boots informed me 'oh we had shelves full of it but it's all sold out this week' I wonder why?!

So my face is not red at all this morning! It seems to have tolerated it well.

My liquid gold should arrive today but I don't know if I should use it or lay off it for a while.

I've been lurking and buying so wanted to join in. I found lurking in my dressing table some 0.25% retin A from last ime I gave it a go, so I've used it the last two nights. I have a vague memory that it didn't give me any peeling, but when I went up to a 0.50% it did and I gave up. So I thought I'd start again with this lower dose but do it fairly frequently, probably stick to daily unless I get a bad reaction. Then when this tube is running out ill go to a higher strength but introduce it slowly. Is that ok?

In the meantime I've got the ginseng glycolic toner coming from Bravura and a glycolic peel that it says can be used a few times a week. I'm not sure how to peel and retin a, obviously not on the same day.

I'm cleansywith the Emma Hardie stuff and avene micellar water, syrup is Clinique smart stuff, but it's too expensive for me to buy more when it runs out so might give the make your own Vit C a go.

Lastly

And this is a secret....

I had Botox this week.

Am just adding myself a message to find the ebay seller that I got the hyaluronic serum from last year.
And to ask Kundry-guru what serum for 49 yr old fine (because I've always spent more on my face than my wardrobe so for an old gal am not too wrinkly) and face- droop (for want of a better word)?
And to say I bloody love Guy Garvey.

fine lines obv....

mrsguy your plan sounds fine. The day you do the peel you'd leave out the retin a. Possibly even the day after depending on sensitivity. Vit c diy is the way to go.

Oooh at your secret. Good for you. Happy with it?