How much do you spend on your skin care regime every month?

[DentalRenovation]

Have just been to see a dermatologist, and then bought all the recommended products. They come to just under £150, which is lots of money to me as all I used until now was a face wash, whatever was on offer from the supermarket.

I'm hoping they last a reasonable amount of time but I can't help thinking the moisturiser at £40 for 50ml is going to run out fast. So it will be an expensive regime.

What do you spend on yours? How long do your more expensive products last?

Ouch ! £40 for a moisturiser is expensive ! I think thT any cheap moisturiser is as good tbh ! I spend about £10 on acid tone pads , £8 on Cetaphil cleanser , swap and change serums approx £5-£10 and use either blue tub Nivea or Cetaphil moisturiser ( both last much longer than a month ) and £9 a tube Retin A ( lasts at least 2 month )
Double cleanse and acid toning is the most effective then a serum to target skin needs .. All the moisturiser does is lock in moisture for a while , I wouldn't spend a lot on that part of my regime

OP, as useful as dermatologists can be, some of them push particular ranges of products because they're paid to do so. It might therefore be a good idea for you to post what you've bought and perhaps some posters could help you with cheaper alternatives to at least some of them.

I spent ages looking for decent cleansers which didn't make my skin more oily (I'm late 30s and have combination skin) or leave it looking like a dried tea bag. I have some real problems with fragrance on products which aren't going to be washed off. My budget is pretty small and I find I don't need to buy new stuff every month but that's because I use my skincare on rotation. I have three cleansers (all about £10) on the go at the moment. I generally won't spend more than about £35 on any one product.

Oh and as for moisturiser, Caroline Hirons (who for many is a guru) reckons your money should go on a serum not a moisturiser.

Apologies the above isn't good English - She recommends that you use a moisturiser but you should spend the most money on a serum. See here: www.carolinehirons.com/2015/02/cheat-sheetfaqs-where-should-i-spend.html

I use E45 or aqueous cream to double cleanse then I use E45 cream and Aldi restorative day and night cream on alternate days. If my skin gets really dry I use Allergenics cream from Holland and Barret.

After years of spending a fortune on skin cream bizarrely this works the best and leaves me with the best skin I've had in years.

I use no7 so tend to buy when they do £5 off vouchers. Last month spent £20 on day moisturiser, night moisturiser, hot cloth cleanser & gel cleanser for morning. These should last at least 2 months. Will need to replace toner in a couple of weeks which is a loreal one for £4

Great, thank you for replies, there's food for thought here.

Good idea to post the expensive items I bought (moisturiser and SPF) in case there would be cheaper ones that are just as good.

Moisturiser is Obagi, SPF 50 is NeoStrata.

May also start a thread about them, see what people think in general.

OP, as useful as dermatologists can be, some of them push particular ranges of products because they're paid to do so.

ooooh- no!

Unless you have gone to a dermo who has their own range of products then a medical consultant dermoshould be completely impartial. I've never ever known a dermo who pushed products other than perhaps to say some brands were 'safe' to use with acne, etc etc.

Going back to your post OP- some good brands are half price on Amazon. I've recently swapped from Clinique @£40 a pot to Olay Regenerist 3-point for around £15 on Amazon and it lasts for months. I use medium-high end products but they last for ages not weeks. For instance Clinique Cleansing Balm was a steep £22 but it will have lasted me 6 months.

Thank you.

Yes that's a fair point in terms of the products - they're from a mixture of brands, and some are actually quite cheap, some middling, and then these two super expensive (to me!) products.

Hopefully, all bar the moisturiser will last ages? I've never worn SPF on my face so don't know. But with moisturiser I use loads, my skin laps it up! I can't see it lasting ages.

How much moisturiser do you use?

Maybe what you use is not rich enough?
I use about a pea sized amount- no more than a 5p piece- which covers all my face, then another blob the same size for my neck.

Therefore, my pot of Olay or whatever lasts around 3 months - using it twice a day.

I try to stagger it a bit so everything doesn't run out at once, but my usual products are:

Serum - Advanced Night Repair - £68
Day moisturiser - Clarins Hydraquench - £35
Cleanser - Merumeya - £13
Night moisturiser - Nivea - about £5
Face oil - Kiehl's - lasts forever, think it's about £30 too
Acid toner - Clarins - £25

I don't mind paying for stuff that suits my skin - however from bitter experience will never, ever buy anything without trying a sample at home for several days first.

OP what were your recommended products and what was your skin issue.