🐌 Fantastic Skincare: We're So Drunk We're Seeing Elephants 🐘

[botemp]

Thread 1 Thread 2 Thread 3 Thread 4 Thread 5 Thread 6 Thread 7 Thread 8 Thread 9 Thread 10
Thread 11 Thread 12 Thread 13 Thread 14 Thread 15 Thread 16

For those who are taking a peek and wondering what this all about, we mostly discuss a bit of advanced skincare here with a perspective of seeking out the right ingredients (rather than the latest new shiny product and all its empty promises) for our particular skin needs. Distinguishing the acid toners from the actives whilst avoiding the truly unimpressive and harmful ingredients with a hope to achieve a bit of anti-ageing, alleviate irritation and sensitivities with some idle chat in between. Newcomers are always welcome but please note the following:

Questions and asking for help on this thread is encouraged, however, we can’t give you a specific routine to follow and hope it works out for the best. There are no overnight miracles in skincare whether it be in the form of products or techniques. It’s about perseverance, understanding your skin, assessing its needs and responding to that in a diligent manner.

These threads were created to help those who want to learn for themselves. We’re a group of interested and invested skincare nuts happy to offer tea and sympathy and dole out advice. Everyone’s journey with skincare is different, what is universal and binds us is that through actually learning about the different active ingredients it helps us get to know our skin and help us adapt as it will change many times throughout our lives - with seasons, hormonal changes, ageing, genetics etc. It's in everyone's best interests to get to know their skin and to keep reviewing those changes with the confidence that comes from the gathered knowledge here. We really encourage you to spend the time reading through previous threads and linked info sheets that the many contributors have taken the trouble to share.

By no means are we experts, we're only a bunch of amateurs that can only respond by suggesting what we would do in your place, for any severe conditions please seek out professional help.

Ahem, and finally a little note on spending. I'm well aware these threads cause many to reach for their wallets and spend with wild abandon. There can sometimes be a bit of a frenzy surrounding the excitement around a newly discovered product or on the back of great improvements when someone reports back. This is all great, it doesn't however, mean everything that's a sudden miracle for one will be it for you. Usually, it's a light bulb moment for connecting the right skincare ingredient with an individual experiencing a specific problem. Take your time to mull over decisions and question whether it's right for you too. Skincare is highly individual, it's a slow game that should cost mostly in patience, input, education, and perseverance. Please don't make it cost you financially needlessly.

I am very slowly working on consolidating the gathered information from previous threads into easier to read formats but it’s slow going. I would suggest reading thread 1 and at the very least the following info sheets (provided they apply to you):

Where to Start

Basics of an Actives Routine

Skin Types vs. Skin Conditions Info Sheet

Anti-Ageing Info sheet

Adult Acne Info Sheet

Understanding Which Sunscreen(s) to Buy

Do I Really Need to Wear Sunscreen Every Single Day of the Year?

A Damaged Skin Barrier - Now What?

NEW SERIES:

So You Want To Buy A Retinoid - A Guide

WRT to The Ordinary/Deciem:

Most of us had long since stopped using it, partially due to the inconsistency of formulations and the worrying behaviour of the CEO on Social Media.

For more info on the latter, overview here

A good overview of alternatives is here

Since that compilation, other brands like the Inkey, Revolution Skincare, QRXLabs, and Alex Steinherr x Primark have launched with similar products/concepts.

From the limited experience on here, the Vitamin C 23% and Azelaic Acid from Garden of Wisdom (at Victoria’s Health) is well liked and much preferred over TO versions.

OCTOBER 2018: In other news, we’re two years old this month! We’re so old- Drunk Elephant is finally available in the UK, but all this celebration is probably overshadowed by the fear that our beloved LRP Toleriane Fluide may have been discontinued

I'm no authority on it Sallie but going by that INCI I don't see anything problematic in terms of oils in there. Run it through INCI decoder or CosDNA to be sure.

Think it's fine to use with BHA and Retinol, possibly may help enhance absorption of them?

Great! Thanks for replies. 20% off in January at currentbody. I watched the hot and flashy review earlier in the week. She liked the gizmo for the eyes, which is what has sparked my interest. It only fits on the £300 model, not the mini but that’s the price of a few facials that use electrical current etc. I’ll likely purchase this week and I’ll report back of course, lest Accountability Bo should be on to me

at Accountability Bo

I’ve looked up the HC hyaluronic gel ingredients and no mention of oil though a couple of the ingredients are emollient so still not sure 🤔 might be better to go with one of the others recommended (not that I’m procrastinating or anything.....)

JDSTER I’m not sure if the advanced model with the eye attachments etc was around when I bought mine, or more likely I didn’t have the £££ for it. If I get into a consistent routine with the mini and get good results I’d consider upgrading - though my main concern at the moment is drooping round the mouth and jowls so hopefully the mini should do the job.

I bought mine off ebay for £100, the full size one, brand new, only hope its a genuine one, but the current body website shows how to tell the difference between real and fake

Hello! I wanted to introduce myself after lurking and following the advice here for the best part of eighteen months but never being fully caught up enough to post! I've read through all the previous threads, and have referred back to bo's sheets countless times along the way, and now I feel like I'm finally starting to work with my skin rather than fight it. So a huge thanks to all of you, and especially bo, for that.

I'm in my mid-thirties and, I think, have combination skin. I suffered with acne for years (first spot aged eight, countless prescription treatments through my teens and early twenties including three courses of roaccutaine, each of which left me with flawless skin for a few months before the spots started to come back). I still get a few spots (especially around my ears/jaw) and acne on my back.

My current routine, built up very gradually and over the last 18 months.

AM:

• lukewarm flannel, or sometimes LRP Toleriane Caring Wash
• GOW Vitamin C
• Skin Aqua Super Moisture Milk SPF 50

PM:

• Superdrug Naturally Radiant Hot Cloth Cleanser
• LRP Toleriane Caring Wash
• GOW PHA serum
• Aldi Lacura Caviar Night Cream

I also use the Neutrogena Pink Grapefruit BHA wash as a body wash in the shower - it has helped a little with the back acne, and seems to have almost totally cleared the KP from my upper arms.

I use Biore Watery Essence SPF in place of the Skin Aqua in the summer. (I also liked the Body Shop SPF 50, but was less of a Frezyderm fan.)
I tried out the Superdrug HA serum but I think it was giving me small bumps under my skin so I stopped.

At some point I'll be on the lookout for a different first cleanse and moisturiser I think, but my first priority is that my GOW PHA has just run out. I was planning to replace with Paula's Choice 2% BHA as I think it might suit my skin, but was a bit overwhelmed by the options! Hoped some of you might be able to point me in the right direction. Is it the Skin Perfecting Liquid that is often recommend? Applied with cotton wool? Or the gel, or lotion?

Thank you! (And sorry for the very lengthy post!) 😁

(Sorry for the random bold sections. Not sure what happened there. )

I've just looked for the Honey app but can't find it. Is it available on Android? Can someone please attach a pic (there are los of different apps with Honey in the title)? Ty

Also now looking at the Nuface...

Hmmm. I can't really see a difference in H&F's before and afters other than her jawline.

Hi Arabella 👋

This is the PC BHA that I use
www.paulaschoice.co.uk/skin-perfecting-bha-liquid-exfoliant-m2010.html
I swipe it over my face with a cotton wool pad, currently using in the morning followed by Vit C, it’s very liquidy though I guess you could pat it on if you wanted.

I had to google the GOW PHA as not familiar with it, but sounds like the PC BHA is more potent so I’d build up gradually, maybe start with every 3 days and see how your skin tolerates it than you can build up to daily use if no irritation. It can make me flaky/peely if I use it in a routine with high strength retinol, but I’m using a very gentle retinol right now so it’s been fine & I can’t see anything in your routine that would interact badly with it.

Off to look at H&F now, jawline is one of my issues Pupsie so would be happy if I saw a difference there.

Sallie yes, I just spritz after using the gel. The gel does undoubtedly soak in (I apply to the half of the face I using the NuFace on as if you apply it to the whole face the second half of the face has dried before you get to it).

interested in the eye attachment now but I suppose I should wait to see what the impact is on my general face first.

What is the H&F website?

Thanks Skin so maybe I won’t need to rewash my face then as long as I find a gel that doesn’t cause irritation. Do you then carry on with the rest of your routine after you’ve spritzed, and do you use any actives, acids or retinol? I’m just a bit worried they might not penetrate through the gel or it would reduce their effectiveness.

H&F is Hot & Flashy, she’s an American beauty blogger but a nice non-shouty one. This is her website, if you scroll down you’ll find her review on the nuface though she’s got the more expensive one with the eye attachments.

www.hotandflashy.com/tag/nuface/

I can definitely see a small difference round her neck and jawline and I think her eyes look slightly less hooded - not massive changes but she said she stopped using Botox and fillers so she could test the nuface so I suppose it might have been more of a maintenance thing for her as she wasn’t drooping, sagging or jowly in the first place.

Thanks Sallie! I'll definitely introduce it slowly.

Welcome Arabella. BHAs are suitable for oily skin since they dissolve oil. PHAs are more like AHAs as I understand it. All exfoliants just different properties. I have oily skin and combine both (not at the same time). I use the same BHA as Salie and apply with cotton wool. I use a couple of times a week, in the morning as I tend to use a retinoid at night, with P50w (more a combination acid) used maybe twice a week. I’d advise getting the 30ml travel size of Paula’s choice to see how you get on.

Hi Arabella I also use PC BHA followed invariably by Differin which keeps my combination skin in check. I found creamy hot cloth cleansers to cause complete havoc with my skin but a cleansing balm like Clinique TTDO is fine.

I came on to say that re hand cream I have been using Zeroveen emollient with much success. It's oat based.

Tant what specifically has the combination of BHA and differin done? I think I’m pretty good now with my routine etc but I still have SFs despite careful oil cleansing, BHA, P50w, retinoid and non comedogenic tinted moisturiser. I’ve never managed to be rid of them completely . Differin didn’t seem to make a tangible difference but wondering if the double whammy of them both together might be the golden combination......

I'm reading the Nuface updates with interest - I feel like I've aged particularly badly in the last 6 months... a combination of weight loss, poor sleep, stress and general decrepitude, unfortunately :(

Jowls are starting to appear, I've got saggy cheeks (!) and my eye-bags have grown.. I'm seriously considering fillers now. Grrrrrr!!! Sorry for the negativity, I'm well aware that ageing is better than the alternative but I needed a moan...

Brandon Truaxe was found dead this weekend:

www.vox.com/platform/amp/the-goods/2019/1/21/18191759/brandon-truaxe-deciem-dead

Awful news
Clearly a clever guy

that’s awful news about Brendan sadly it doesn’t come as surprise to me - though obviously we don’t know the details yet.

Oh no, that’s very sad! Though perhaps not surprising. 😢

Thanks JDSTER. I started with the PHA as it seemed like the most gentle introduction to chesmical exfoliation that I could try,. I think my skin is looking less dull since I started using PHA and Vit C, but I'm hopeful that BHA will give more improvement and might help to tackle sebaceous filaments too. I hadn't looked into P50 before but I've made a note of it for the future as I hadn't realised you could get combination acids. I've just ordered the travel size Paula's Choice BHA.

That's good to know Tantric, thank you! I think my skin appreciated the hot cloth cleanser when I started using it (after learning some skincare basics from this thread) as before that I was mostly just doing a single cleanse with a basic face wash** , so I probably saw an improvement because I was actually removing my make up and not stripping my skin in the process. Now that I'm starting to refine the basics though there is probably something out there that would suit me better. TTDO is on my list of possibles.

So sad about Brandon, mental health is such complex issue.

JDSTER I think in my case using BHA and differin definitely seem to remove dead skin layers really well. There's always lots to remove the next morning and red marks on my cheeks have gone down significantly.

Arabella stick with what works for now I guess as there is a lot of love for the Superdrug cleanser you are using.

Oh that's terrible news. Really awful. His poor family.

Extremely sad news, things like this really bother me and play on my mind. Obviously don't know any details but I'm guessing he took his own life. Awful