Alright, I hope there isn't anything more lurking in cupboards
I tend to be quite black and white on here with what ingredients to avoid even though they may not be irritating to everyone but it just makes more sense to preach a rather safe rather than sorry approach because even if you're not sensitive to something now you can become sensitised to a lot of the common irritants over time through exposure and it's something I rather not have on my conscious when these ingredients don't add anything substantive anyhow. It's quite interesting to see in the past few years now that skincare has become more common among men, it has come coupled with a surge of dermatitis cases as men are disproportionately flooding dermatologist's offices compared to previously.
First of all, it's a lot of products and some rather indulgent ones at that, I understand a lot are GWP or AC items, but still. I get that with a young baby and sleep deprivation the idea of a bit of 'me time' and self care sounds like a very appealing moment of pampering but the reality is that if you're knackered a multi-step routine is going to feel insurmountable at times and a less is more approach will see you get into the habit of it a lot better. These are my notes on your products:
- Votary rose geranium and apricot cleansing oil
This is somewhat deceptively named. It's an oil cleansing method product rather than an oil cleanser as it doesn't contain any surfactants. I'm not a fan of the OCM as all it does is move makeup and dirt around your face, just nourishes it a bit with some steam and leaves a film behind there's no real cleansing involved. Temporarily your skin looks and feels better but you haven't really cleansed your face properly. Not everyone gets on with it well, but I would recommend not using this on its own and follow up with a gentle cleanser and seeking out a cleansing oil or balm with a surfactant in when this is finished.
- Elixir universal emulsion
First impressions, it looks to be on the richer side, reviews seem more favourable to very dry skin. I'd be concerned about sauna face with this one. It also contains citrus essential oils which can be phototoxic (meaning they can inflict damage on skin when exposed to light in the immediate or only become apparent in the long term) so would not recommend using this during the day if you must use it. If it's a mini or GWP or similar I'd be tempted to pass it on or use it as a hand cream (at night).
- REN ready steady glow dAily AHA toner
Also contains citrus essential oils, so if you must use it, use at night. Fragrance plus essential oils make this potentially irritating.
- Dr Sebagh repair serum with hyaluronic acid
Right, so this is predominantly a collagen serum which always gets confusing as people assume lack of collagen can be topically supplemented. It can't, it contains hydrolysed collagen (essentially gelatine) and that does make the skin feel nicer but it's crock science -at this point in time- that it will actually do anything for your skin. Treat this as a hydrating serum, won't harm you, well maybe the old wallet will feel harmed.
- Dr Sebagh Vitamin C powders
This is a mediocre Vit C product using the SAP derivative which can be helpful for people with active acne that leaves behind red marks, for others not as interesting. I'm hoping this is another GWP/AC product as it's a faff to use.
- AA Algenist barrier serum
Pretty clean INCI, a bit of an overkill product unless you live in central London and cycle to work in the most polluted areas. Small caveat, it contains retinyl palmitate that is theorised to speed up the formation of cancerous (skin) tumours when exposed to light (where it becomes unstable), there's not a great amount and the concern is mostly when used in sunscreens but I'd use this at night only, preferably.
- Caudalie premier cru eye cream
Could potentially be on the heavy side but otherwise, nothing problematic to spot beyond that it's expensive for what it is. If you spot any sort of millia forming, stop using it.
Caudalie serum revitalift
- Herbivore Orchid youth preserving facial oil
A love of oils usually signal dehydrated skin as they provide instant relief, they just don't really fix the problem, unfortunately, just mask it in the temporary. Another one that is pricey for what it is (majority of coconut oil derivative that is used to bulk out) but I can see why you like it, they're lighter and close to skin-identical oils so no sauna face.
- caudalie resveratrol serum
Essential oils and fragrance make this potentially irritating. Resveratrol is Caudalie's USP but it doesn't really warrant building entire products around. I'm hoping this is another AC/GWP, if you are going to use it, treat it like a night time serum for a bit of added hydration and repair.
Natura Bisse diamond white SPF 50 (I’m very scared of opening this as it was so expensive and I’m not sure it will be right for me).
- Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Exfoliating Moisturizer
Most unproblematic with a good set of active and support ingredients of the lot and probably a good one for you as it multitasks as an exfoliator, moisturiser, and barrier restore (that will help towards the dehydration issue). You have pretty easy skin theoretically so you don't really need to throw everything at it, this will probably serve you well in a pragmatic sense.
I'm undecided on this, it contains fragrance and EO which isn't that problematic in a wash-off product but user reviews aren't that good. It contains a lot of oils and only one mild surfactant but it's not an oil cleanser, I can imagine this leaving a film and eventually leading to breakouts (which would explain the unfavourable reviews). As an unproblematic (as far as you know) combo skin you just may fall on the right side of this but it could potentially be the opposite. I'd axe if possible.
- REN Evercalm Global Protection Day Cream
I have a long dislike of the Evercalm range, I used it about ten years or so ago and the smell made me want to retch. Granted I'm sensitive to scents but would still suggest to sniff it in store before use. Fragrance and citrus essential oils would mean I can only suggest using it in the PM. Not anticipating it'll be too heavy but there are better options out there for a simple moisturiser that is less problematic and cost less.
-Becca backlight primer and under eye corrector
Can't speak to the makeup performance but Becca generally is good with not using common irritants so tend to be safe bets from a skin irritation POV.
-Dermalogica daily superfolient
Contains EO but as mentioned previously not such an issue in a wash-off product. Otherwise, a potential morning/second cleanse. I know you're supposed to mix it with water, do use enough water otherwise you risk it acting like a physical scrub too much.
If I had to cherry pick and build a routine, it would be as follows:
AM:
Dermalogica Superfoliant (but if you're knackered and need to get on with life you can probably get away with just rinsing with lukewarm)
Dr Sebagh Vitamin C and I believe you can mix it with other products which would make it less of a faff to use, so I'd mix with the Dr Sebagh repair serum for an efficient one step.
Moisturiser if you need it, the Dennis Gross is probably better suited for night, the Evercalm I'm iffy to recommend here so if you need an alternative the Cerave PM moisturising lotion would slot in well here. I'm guessing with the repair serum you may very well be able to skip this step but I'm not familiar with the texture of the product.
Eye cream, using it at night can lead to puffiness for some people in the morning and it often helps concealer sit better.
SPF - can you swap it for something at SpaceNK? Are you breastfeeding still, that would influence the SPF rec I'd make as certain filters are best avoided on a rather safe than sorry account?
PM
Votary Cleansing oil
Gentle cleanser- Cerave hydrating is a good one, the Oskia would be too similar to the Votary.
AA Algenist barrier serum (could potentially skip when you're knackered)
Dr Dennis Gross moisturizer, potentially layer over the herbivore oil (it's not really a necessity but you obviously enjoy using it and it's light enough not to be overdoing it) or alternate nights as I'm not sure how strong the DG moisturiser is, his stuff is pretty potent but I suspect this cream should be designed for daily use, not confident enough to suggest twice daily use but once a day should theoretically be ok.
Oh, and no to Sunday Riley anything, it's a brand to be avoided altogether, some very dodgy practices both in marketing communications and leaving glowing reviews of their own products to drown out negative reviews which they've owned up to and it's speculated they also leave negative reviews on competitor's brands.