Serious skin care

[ginorwine]

Wish I'd done this before !
Aged 50 skin good as in no spots ... But dry , pale , dull .
I don't believe the hype re skin moisturises .
What type and actual brands do I need to buy to

Hydrate
Renew
Get a glow - skin turnover
I've read about vic e and c , retinol , Salic acid .
I don't know what I need and what does what .
Have decided to invest in serums . So many on Amazon ! Can't choose !
Can you use seperate serums as I need to stimulate skin to reproduce cells as well as hydrat e or is there one for both ?
What moisture cream ?
Can I smooth skin ? Looking coarse !
Basically what is hype and what works ? Been reading for a while and getting confused especially as I believe some reviews are not perhaps authentic on web sites that sell products ..
Thankyou , Ps I don't believe in products to temp tighten the skin I'm after renewal and hydration any wrinkle reduction wd of course be a bonus but I think via a peeler type product or something not what you see on creams saying seems to give the effect of ... Im not after illusory stuff like an egg yolk type temp effect ..

Ps thinking of getting a derma roller - any experience ? Terrified !!

Have looked at medic 8 web site !

I think that in mid life skin care is as much or more about diet and lifestyle than products.
I'm told I look years younger than I am and I swear by:
Good fats daily- avocados, nuts, oily fish 2-3 x a week
Sleep
Little or no sugar or refined carbs
Loads of veg and fruit
No / little booze
fresh air and exercise daily
Sun block every day spf25+

Nothing you put on your skin (IMO) is going to make that much difference- it's down to genes, lifestyle and your history ( ie sun worshipper, smoker, weight yo-yo-ing)

I used to use Clinique moisturisers simply for their lack of perfume but have recently changed to Olay 3 point Regenerist. Cleanse with Clinique take the day off balm, no toner, sometimes a serum (Olay was nice or Clinique but not really essential) and that's it apart from a weekly exfoliate (Clinique 7 day scrub- gentle) and sometimes an overnight mask- Clinique Moisture Surge overnight mask.

No creams or serums can reproduce new cells- if they did they would be drugs and regulated because uncontrolled cell growth is cancer :(

Thanks re sleep ! I do a lot of that !
Exercise I must try harder tho ! Will try the fats - I do r eat well really !

Ps was thinking of exfoliaters as well as the cell turnover things and will look into your recommendation . Thanks .

What sun block do you find good ?

I use clinique City block- spf 25 or 40 but it's quite yellow - they seem to have increased the tint recently but it's still ok under make up. I've also just changed to Estee Lauder Day Wear lotion (in a tube) which is spf 50 but have to admit I prefer a separate sun block on top of a moisturiser.

I have read a few articles where dermos have said that sugar is very bad for skin as it causes inflammation and destroys collagen.

OK what you need is:

non-foaming cleanser

acid toner - exfoliate and glow

peptides and/or Vit C depending on your priorities - peptides anti-wrinkle, Vit C more glow and anti-pigmentation

retinol - the business, exfoliation, making more collagen, supporting your pores, preventing acne (if that's an issue for you). The best skincare ingredient bar none

SPF for the day - pointless doing all of the above if you aren't doing something to prevent it getting worse

Of these your top priorities should be SPF, acid and retinol. Please not no mention of serums! You may benefit from a serum but there are gazillions of crap pointless serums out there making themselves out to be marvellous jst because they have the word serum in the title. The key is the ingredients.

Without knowing your budget here are some recommendations (plus most of the mega bucks products are just hype anyway)

Cleanser: LRP Physiological Cleansing Gel, Cetahil, Avene Extremely Gentle Cleanser

Acid: Bravura Calendula Toner, any Paula's Choice acid product - you want BHA if you have blackheads, AHA if you don't

Serum - Hylamide has a good range of peptides, there's a Vit C option, full of hyaluronic acid. It's not worth spending ££££ on a Vit C serum as they oxidize before you've used the whole bottle and don't work so well. Look for one that is Vit C, Vit E and Ferrulic Acid eg Oz Naturals

Retinol - the better retinol products are LRP Redermic R, Paula's Choice and Avene Ystheal, Skinceuticals if money no object. A lot of products have retinol in but not enough to actually impact your skin, these are the best ones.

SPF - Heliocare

Moisturiser - Cerave. Sadly only available on eBay and Amazon in the UK. Not massively expensive, good for all skin types, has ceramides which help support your skin as well as niacinamide. Has an am version with SPF in too.

Anything else is just marketing

Dry, pale, dull, coarse skin - I have just sorted this out.

Acid pads a couple of times per week for chemical exfoliation and instant glow after your evening cleanse. I use the Nip+Fab glycolic acid twice a week, that might be a good choice for you too if you don't have blackheads and acne.

Wait for 30 minutes, then layer on something deeply hydrating. I recently found Korean products, sheet masks and sleeping packs, but you could start with anything that contains hyaluronic acid and butylene glycol (iirc Clinique Moisture Surge has these as effective ingredients but I've found that the Asian alternatives are cheaper.) These hydrating moisturizers fill up the spaces within the top layer of your epidermis with water and plump it up. On my 42-year-old face it means that fine lines disappear, my skin feels silky and glows and looks much younger. The products are quite inexpensive, I posted links on the Asian/Korean thread earlier today.

And basically this is what happens: the acids slough off extra dead cells, the humectants plump your skin up and smoothen it. After you have done this, you can decide whether you need more serious stuff like retinols. (I don't need them right now.)

Then use daily high spf facial sunscreen. I've tried very many over the past years, the Biore Watery Essence from Japan via Amazon is cheap (£8ish) and the best I have tried so far.

I'm the same age and decided this would be the year I sorted out my skin. Have been for some serious facials with extractions, dermabrasion and gorgeous massaging which have truly been marvellous. I've been totally rigorous about cleansing etc and using Clarins serum plus the heavenly Elemis marine cream. In addition I got the magic Duac cream from my GP which has erased the hormonal spots on my jaw.

Happy? Yes, you might say that.

I thought the jury was out on retinols? Aren't they potentially bad for the skin- too harsh- and only really to be used on prescription?

Wow ! Thanks for all that information !!!!!!!!
Just what I needed plus didn't want to spend just for hype ! Eg I got the expensive clarins serum once .
Frugal what is a sleep mask ??? Is it a face pack u leave on overnight. ?
Thanks again !!!

Matilda - sounds great . Gd for u ! I'm intrested.in dermobrasion - good result ? How do you tell If its good salon ? Non my friends really have facials and do can't check via word of mouth '

Retinols are absolutely fine, most products don't even have enough to have good effects let alone bad. They exfoliate but alos build collagen, the only product that will actually do something about the live bit of your skin. Retinols are also much much weaker than the prescription stuff - and people have been happily using the prescription version for years.

Use them at night only, always use SPF in the day (but if you are serious about skin care you would anyway) start slowly and build up to every night. If you get any redness it's actually a good sign that your product has enough retinol to do some good! Just slow down, stick with it and your skin will get used to it and eventually love you for it.

Kundry. Thanks for amazing list !
Have looked up cerave . Am going to Oder !
Would you recommend the day with sf and the pm or the thick one . Would I need a more heavy duty sf too ie one spefic for the task not a moisture cream with sf in do you think ?

I've only ever had the pm one as my skin is more oily, I'd pick the thick one in the tub if I was drier. Keep meaning to try the SPF one for am but haven't yet.

Thanks Kundry !
Have ordered Roche possey r .also the medicate retinol serum looks good . Am welded to phone !

Make sure you start one thing at a time! Your skin takes 6 weeks to renew so it will take that long for you to see any serious results. Also give each product at least a week for your skin to settle down and you decide you like it before adding another - be warned you may get more spots, especially in some random places (I started getting spots in my eyebrows - most odd) before everything settles down.