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Skincare Ingredients

999 replies

Pupsiecola · 18/10/2016 16:08

Following on from the skincare routines post, what ingredients do you make sure you include in your products, for example, Vit C, Vit E, Hyaluronic acid?

TIA

OP posts:
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botemp · 24/10/2016 22:11

I do not cackle much.

That poor delivery person is going to age a decade at the sight of me Grin.

hollinhurst84 · 24/10/2016 22:19

Or like in finding nemo
"Mine. Mine. Mine" GrinGrin
I have an arrangement with my postman as I work late shifts. He opens the downstairs window, hurls the parcels on my bed and wakes me up on time for my shift

yongnian · 24/10/2016 22:22

I could always trawl the archives....Grin

botemp · 24/10/2016 22:52
hollinhurst84 · 24/10/2016 22:55

I heard the rumours about olay toner and that it's meant to be good
Interesting reading

EnidButton · 24/10/2016 22:57

bo Be very interested what you think of the Olay regenerist stuff. I was eyeing up their day cream but the Shea butter put me off as I find it can cause congestion and break outs on me but I need a cheapish (10-30£) moisturiser that can be bought in Boots etc and not just online so I'm still considering the Olay. The ingredients look decent for the price.

hollinhurst84 · 24/10/2016 22:58

C Hirons has written a little bit about it back in 2010
http://www.carolinehirons.com/2010/06/guesting-on-zuneta-lost-and-found.html?m=1

botemp · 24/10/2016 22:58

Correction The brand I was supposed to be referring to was Retrouvé, not Revive (which is also ridiculously expensive).

botemp · 24/10/2016 23:06

Read at your leisure here, yongnian, I've done my nerdy responsible bit for the evening so I think I can afford to be taken down a notch again Grin and that thread probably makes for interesting reading for anyone interested in an anti-ageing routine though some of it might be repetitive.

I'll have a look in the morning for you Enid, are you combo/oily?

EnidButton · 24/10/2016 23:24

bo combo/oily but also dehydrated. Get dry flaky skin on nose and chin. Prone to spots which leave marks for weeks. Mainly on chin and jaw/lower cheeks. Congested. Mid 30's. Anything that won't block my pores or give me spots as well as stop the dry patches is my main aim atm.

Closest I've got is Pai's calming day cream but it was a bit heavy and either the Shea butter or rose hip caused spots after a couple of weeks. Also Avene cleanance expert but after a month I had a lot of blackheads I hadn't had before and the de hydrated bits were still there. Skin hates glycolic and salicylic acid and Hyaluronic acid seems to cause blemishes too. Hmm 🙄

Loves zinc though.

Any advice on a moisturiser would be most welcome. Flowers

hollinhurst84 · 24/10/2016 23:29

Moisturiser has been really hard for me to find
I'm using secret key 24k gold first key or something similarly named Grin
Cheap and doesn't break me out but I could do with a heavier one

botemp · 24/10/2016 23:36

I've actually used the Pai Calming Day Cream in the past (was combo at the time) and hated the feeling of it on my skin, wasn't great for dehydration either but was otherwise inoffensive. It gives me a good reference for what works for you though.

Do you exfoliate at all? A wet flannel during cleansing counts too.

EnidButton · 25/10/2016 01:44

bo Yes I use EH cleansing balm with a flannel (fresh one everyday) and the pai face scrub occasionally as I know manual exfoliation isn't great but can't find an acid exfoliator that doesn't break me out.

The pai calming moisturiser was too heavy for me really. I used it mainly at night. Haven't had a moisturiser that really works for me in years. I used Neals Yard yarrow and comfrey for quite a long time for during the day but it wasn't nourishing enough yet too heavy for pores at the same time.

hollinhurst84 · 25/10/2016 02:54

I don't know the ingredients stuff but botemp might help me out here! I like that both companies have v clear ingredient lists

I've used this one in the past, found it cheap, good and not spot causing. They do different ones

http://www.amphora-retail.com/product_info.php/echinacea-cream-60ml-p-174

this is a company I've used a lot in the past and am going to get my next moisturiser from. Again they have others but I got a sample of this ages ago
http://www.poshbrats.com/oceanus-marine-renewal-cream-7842-p.asp

yongnian · 25/10/2016 11:26

Even your breakdown was quite restrained botemp!! Grin
Loads of other useful info on there tho, thanks.
Meanwhile in my own mirror, my combo of Ordinary vit c AM and A313 PM seems to be working wonders on my hyper pigmentation scars, even the older ones which have probably had more sun (despite SPF)
It seems to be having an accelerated effect compared to the vit c/ha serums I was using before from Tahe.
Interesting to read about Olay - am really sitting on my hands at the mo in terms of ordering anything else, but you know, never hurts to know about things!

botemp · 25/10/2016 11:38

Ok the amphora one contains Alcohol Den. (quite common in a simple 'natural' formulations like that) so probably not ideal with dehydrated skin.

The posh brats contains HA but not specified which type, so probably not ideal for Enid.

I've had an extensive look at the Olay moisturisers (will look at the rest another time) and sort of get why it doesn't get the all round love. It promises a lot it will never deliver, had quite a chuckle over the poor woman in a Boots review saying it did nothing for her wrinkles as there's simply nothing there to achieve this. They are sort of the poster child for everything that is wrong about misleading beauty PR. The formulations also feel a little old school, nothing wrong with it at all but to the modern paraben and everything else avoiding public they'd get a few alarm bells ringing. Mineral oil derivatives, parabens, silicones, fragrance are in almost all products. Also aluminium starch octenylsuccinate which I know sends many people running in fear (unwarranted) at the mere mention of aluminium. They do seem to have their eyes on the ball in terms of ingredients worth including in formulations, a lot of the buzz ingredients of today long established in their product line, which I think speaks positively. A final note on the brand, it's part of P&G which I tend to have some issues with wrt animal testing, social responsibility, etc. and why I personally won't knowingly buy from them. Being part of P&G, however, explains much of their advanced use of these ingredients and they are by no means a poor innovator in this field.

My other issues with them is this, they clearly have a day and night deal. Day cream all have SPF so you'll need a separate night cream whether you want it or not. Without trialling I'd never know if the night cream is too rich for day wear with a separate SPF but since they don't allude to skin types at all I assume if you're anything above dry you'd need two moisturisers which in my mind feels a bit of a rip off.

On the whole the Regenerist line feels overpriced compared to the rest of their products (I know it gets discounted a lot but I have to go by suggested RRP). I can't really see the cause of the inflated price of £15-20 on basis of the ingredients alone. Mostly the addition of Matrixyl and little else.

If I'd pick a day cream it would be the Olay Anti-Wrinkle Sensitive Skin Day Cream with SPF15 as it has a few non HA hydrators and a promise of high % Niacinamide in a paired back fragrance free formula (some ingredients are not that suitable to sensitive skin though) but I would probably look at LRP Toleriane instead (don't know how these compare price wise in the UK though, LRP is v. affordable here). I considered the Olay Total Effects Sensitive that has a few more beneficial ingredients but also potentially a lot of clogging ones.

The only thing that did genuinely look interesting from the Regenerist line is the Wrinkle Relaxing Complex which has the suspected high % Niacinamide, Vit E, Green Tea, Yeast Extract (which I assume are like Galactomyces another much loved ingredient of mine that I've neglected to mention so far, same goes for Green Tea, camellia sinensis leaf extract, Allantoin (great hydrator), Matrixyl (unfortunately not paired with its lovely sister Matrixyl3000 for better results) and Panthenol (Vit B5, another great hydrator). It has some citric acid in there most likely to keep the formulation from being too alkaline so that speaks positively. It does have fragrance in it, which bothers me as strangely enough Paula's Choice/BP who are always scathing of it disregarded it in their review, claiming it was v. minimal, however, user reviews all complain about the pungent smell so it's not a slam dunk and outside of an offer I'd find this relatively expensive for what it is. Disregarding the presence of HA momentarily, the Ordinary Matrixyl and Niacinamide with proven % actives and a simple moisturiser without fragrance just make more sense to me personally. Big tick for it being in a pump though and no SPF means it would work for day and night unlike the rest of their line. This doesn't promote itself as a moisturiser though (even though that's what is says it is) so I do wonder if it's occlusive enough for all skin types.

I know you mentioned reacting badly to HA (I do too but only if it's the low molecular weight stuff) and Salicylic but my first thought to a moisturiser you'd like with your skin type is the Malin + Goetz Vitamin E moisturiser (without SPF version). It's pricey in initial purchase but contain about 2.5x the amount of product if comparing it to the Olay Regenerist price point and it then actually works out more reasonable. You don't use much either as it's rather fluid. I liked this a lot when I was combo with dry patches. The Salicylic amount is very minimal so irritation might be limited (unless you genuinely have an aspirin intolerance) but enough to stop congestion and I never reacted to the presence of the HA in this. Ebay should have some travel sized versions available as a hotel or airline give them away, I think that may be worth a try despite the reservations with some of the ingredients.

RubyGoat · 25/10/2016 11:52

So... having read all of the recommendations (that I can get my head around!) I'm a bit lost... what would be the best couple of things for me to start with? I'm thinking The Ordinary (as they seem really reasonably priced) & I have a history of reacting to skincare so I'd like to know what I'm reacting to if & when it happens again. Combination/oily sensitive skin, definitely dehydrated at times / in places. Blemishes around nose & temples (mild), also chin & jaw/neck area (not mild, tend to leave lasting marks). Blackheads around nose (very annoying). I'm in the UK. Mid 30s, no visible wrinkles but I suspect they will appear before I'm 40.

I generally don't wear sunscreen but I'm going to get one. Should I chuck out my facial serum which includes silicone? I'm a bit bit wary of using it now.

botemp · 25/10/2016 12:33

That's pretty much why Nabootique and I caution people away from The Ordinary until they fully understand it despite how appealing their prices seem to be, LegoCaltrops. As informative as I like to think I am, it's a lot to digest and by no means do I think that by reading through this thread most will be instantly the wiser.

It depends what your routine is like now, what you believe to be working for you and what doesn't. Silicones aren't an issue generally unless you find it balling up on your skin. It's a decent occlusive, it just won't help much with skin improvement and will somewhat mask the actual condition of your skin.

I'd probably recommend you start with cleansers, moisturiser, SPF and further down the line look into introducing BHA, possibly HA. Glean into AHA and Retinol for anti-ageing when your routine is settled. Meanwhile look for products with as little triggers as possible (perfume, SLS, etc.). It's similar to the advice I gave on this thread and if you scroll further down there's a lengthy explanation on routine steps and possible popular S&B products to consider. By no means do you need to follow all steps but it's a good indication of what you could work towards.

I could probably draw up a routine that I think would suit you with minimal irritations but there'd be absolutely no guarantees that it all works.

yongnian · 25/10/2016 13:16

Just picking up something you said botemp on that thread you linked to...have been thinking about ph balance....the water at my house is ultra ultra hard (comes from a bore hole) - think massive white deposits all over the outside of the kettle, never mind the inside!!
So given I have some rosacea (which suggests skin too alkaline??) I might really benefit from some judicious use of acids, to counteract the extreme alkinity of our water. I think you say you found a LRP toner to really help with this same problem - which one was it?
After all the info gleaned from this thread ive been coming round to the idea of BHA at some point - would this still be helpful with the hard water thing too?
I do hope you get as much out of helping us all as we do, by the way!

botemp · 25/10/2016 13:39

It's a good distraction from tedious work. Does that count Grin

I will admit to having researched a special water dehardening(?) device installed at the mains not only to improve the water quality for face and body but also to extend the life of the washing machine and dishwasher. Came out a bit pricey but might just splurge with a future renovation or move...

Anyhow... The LRP is the thermal water spray, nothing fancy about it. Avene do a similar one but I prefer the nozzle on the LRP. It's an old trick of Parisians who have shitty water too (strangely great for hair though) and why those water sprays only seem to be taken somewhat serious there.

I'm not sure if rosacea is purely an issue of alkaline skin or a symptom, etc. I've never read up much about it but I think it might be worth trying out a low %bha depending on how severe it is if course and whether you're using any specific medication for it.

botemp · 25/10/2016 13:49

Apologies misread, hard water does not equal high pH. It just means there's usually a high mineral content (calcium and magnesium mostly) that can be drying, require more products as it doesn't help lather as well, and is particularly aggravating to those suffering with eczema and psoriasis. I'm guessing on that basis rosacea isn't a fan either.

EnidButton · 25/10/2016 14:34

Thank you for all the advice. Smile I'll have a look at both the last olay one and the M&G. Is there anything else that can be bought in Boots that could be good? I have a heap of points and have over spent this past month. Blush

I use the Avene water spray and find it really helps. Don't tend to mention it as it felt a bit ridiculous thinking water was beneficial but I really do like it. I'm wondering about our water now. I have great hair and temperamental skin.

RubyGoat · 25/10/2016 16:30

So my routine...

If I've worn makeup, I use Una Brennan Vitamin c cleansing oil as a first clease. It's a bit more perfumed than I'd like (albeit very nice). I know plain oil works too but this doesn't gunk the sink up as horrifically badly each evening.
Wash face morning & evening with this Lancome face wash & a microfibre cloth. I use a fresh cloth every day or so (so max 2 uses per cloth).
Garnier micellar water morning & evening - the original one in the pink bottle.
Lancome Visionnaire serum - evening only
Morning - this Lancome cream - I suspect it's too rich for my skin but the woman on the counter said it would be a good fit. I'm thinking probably not as my face feels oily after.
Evening - Visionnaire cream - again I suspect this might be too rich for my skin. Both creams feel fine & don't sting, cause dryness or any apparent breakouts though so I'm not sure. Just rather on the oily side.

The microfibre cloths get washed alongside my bathrobe only, with a non bio detergent & some napisan to kill germs. I don't scrub with them, only gentle wiping & patting. I've found that any trace of product left on my skin leads to major breakouts so I have to rinse really thoroughly.

I used to use the Lancome Hydra Zen gel cream (forget exactly which) which was better but I think they discontinued it.

I really like the Lancome face wash. It's the first one I've ever found that leaves my face feeling clean & not stripped & tight. The micellar water is not bad but I found plain chamomile water or orange flower water to be equally good. The rest of it, frankly, ...?

yongnian · 25/10/2016 16:42

Yes I think that can count!
Yeah I do use a St Cecile Cristalline thermal water spray before my AM cleanser to soften the skin...but I also rinse off with tepid (tap) and I do a rice-bran oil 2nd cleanse at night that also gets swept off with tepid tap....so I guess some of that stuff is going to be left on the skin..might try using only the thermal spray and ditch the tepid tap water, see if that helps...
Ok, well a low % BHA will stay on my list then....

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