How can i even out my skin tone?

[majorcrowdpleaser]

So I turned 43 the other day (Urghh!!!) and although I have the odd breakout and the odd line is appearing hear and there (eekkk!) its the tone of my skin that bothers me the most. My skin is a combination of slight blotchiness, reddish splodges and brown freckle-like patches.

I wear a tinted moisteriser each day which evens it out a bit but am thinking its now time to go full-on!

Never had a facial so am thinking maybe that is the route to take, also been looking at reviews for skin brightening products and those ultra-sonic cleansing brush things??

Any suggestions much appreciated :)

What is your skin care routine at the moment?

Glycolic acid?

Maybelline mousse matte foundation covers over anything except crusty zits.

I'm the same age as you with the same skin concerns. I love the boots No. 7 skin cleaning brush. If you look on the Boots website, you'll see it has lots of great reviews. I'm hoping someone will answer your question on how to diminish red patches.

Routine at the mo (and for sometime) is quite basic I suppose - I wear a Nivea day moisterizer for dry skin followed by a tinted moisterizer, I follow with some bronzer, eye liner, brow make up, mascara, lipliner and gloss. I do have Clinique Even Better foundation but I don't wear it often as I find it quite drying and thick.

Take make up and eye make up off with coconut oil which I love and use the coconut oil as a night moisterizer as well.

I always had quite oily skin but its much drier now and quite sensitive at times.

I exercise and have never smoked and try to eat well but could be better I suppose, am trying (with not much luck) to give up or reduce my sugar consumption as I have heard this does wonders for your skin?!

I am a similar age to you, my skin is good but I do look better with a bit of make up on these days. My skin is fairly dry and sensitive.

I try to keep my routine quite simple. At night I usually double cleanse with a balm or cream ( such as Waitrose Pure) followed by Superdrug brightening hot cloth cleanser, using a flannel. Then I acid tone with Olay anti-wrinkle toner - not glamorous, but I think it's as good as the Nip + Fab pads I tried before, and is cheaper. Sometimes I use Boots Glycerine and Rosewater as a hydrating toner, which I decant into a spray bottle and spritz with quite lightly. I rarely use night cream.

In the morning I wash my face with water in the shower and use Olay Total Effects moisturiser. In summer I use a separate SPF on top.

My skin feels generally comfortable and looks pretty even. One of the main things that works for me is avoiding alcohol in products (listed as alcohol or alcohol denat). A lot of products, even ones for dry or sensitive skin, contain it, and it definitely causes irritation and sensitivity for me. I think certain fragrances are also irritating for me, and some SPFs, so it's trial and error.

It is a question of finding out what works for you. Have a look at Caroline Hirons' website. I am not really a fan of hers and think she recommends way too many products/steps in a routine, but a lot of what she says makes sense. She is discussed often on here! I bought a second hand copy of Paula Begouin's book 'Don't go to the beauty counter without me' and found it very interesting, especially about potential irritants. I now understand more about what will and won't work for me and try not to be blinded by advertising or hype. I prefer to read ingredients lists and generally believe less is more!

Well done if you have made it to the end of this post, I hope it is of some use to you. I believe it is possible to have good skin without spending a fortune or being enslaved to long routines.

Thanks Niteflights

First of all you need to exfoliate regularly. I use a granular scrub 2-3 times a week Second thing is sunscreem, a full spectrum one that blocks uva & uvb to stop more pigmentation. It needs to be worn all day, every day, even in winter. I find the mineral sunscreens are most effective specifically those based on zinc oxide.

I also wipe (slightly diluted) lemon juice over my face once or twice a week. My skin is very sensitive generally, but has never felt irritated or dry after using lemon juice, but I know this is not the case for everyone so proceed with caution! Has definitely faded my freckles and patchy pigmentation though.