Help my skincare regime grow up

[CmdrCressidaDuck]

Have seen a lot of posts about brilliant skincare products on here and would like the S&B hivemind's input on an accessible way to get a more grown up/caring skincare regime, as I feel I'm still doing what I was doing in my teens/early 20s. (I'm now 35.)

I'm basically just using Simple products at the moment. I cleanse with cotton pad and use a night moisturiser. I also occasionally use a St Ives apricot scrub on my face in the shower. I have olive skin that's prone to the greasy although drier on T-zone. Can post a pic if that's any help. I don't wear much makeup - largely for work/going out - and I never wear foundation, hate the feeling of something clogging my face. Tinted moisturizer is the furthest I can go.

What nice caring skincare would you recommend to help take care of and protect my inevitably ageing skin? Am willing to pay for products that deliver the value. (Although we're not talking Creme Dr la Mer here, but maybe Liz Earle?)

As far as I know Simple products are gentle to skin and I would say fine to keep using.

I think any kind of scrub actually does microdamage to skin (although it feels soo good to use!) so I would avoid the St Ives.

If your skin is generally clear and feels comfortable all I would add in to your routine is the Ordinary's Buffet serum. It's called buffet because it's an array of anti aging wonders in one bottle. It's not expensive.

I personally wouldn't bother with retinols despite being validated for antiaging because of all the faff you need to do with daily sun protection and building up strength etc which possibly doesn't seem like your cup of tea.

Thanks, that's a great suggestion (and sounds workable for not-particularly-high-maintenance me!). Is that something to get on the high st? Online?

I guess I was also thinking about, I dunno, the hot cloth thing? Or that Korean cloth thing that apparently makes so much dirt come out?

It's never to early to start with a good SPF all year round. And plenty of water.

www.boots.com/the-ordinary-buffet-serum-30ml-10267776

If you don't wear much make up I don't think you need to double cleanse. Someone more knowledgeable will hopefully come along and explain hot cloth cleansing more. I literally rub a nice skincare oil into my skin which dissolves my make up and clean it off with a flannel dunked in hot water and wrung out. It feels more luxurious than it sounds!

Using oil to cleanse and also hydrating my skin (Buffet serum has hyaluronic acid in which hydrates) has done wonders for general oiliness.

I would really recommend using a decent SPF year round, it really is the best thing you can do for your skin. Sometimes it’s trial and error to find one that you get on with, but it’s worth it in the long run.

The St Ive’s scrub is notoriously bad for your skin, it doesn’t so much exfoliate as tear your face up! I’d try an chemical exfoliant/acid toner (eg Pixi glow tonic, Paula’s choice BHA) a few times a week instead. If you can’t do without a scrub then look for one with a smoother beads, under a microscope the walnut shell in St Ives looks like jagged broken glass. Retinol is great but like pp said, you really need to be committed to using SPF every day before you start one.

I personally find the simple face wash way too harsh/drying for my skin, but if you get on with it then go for it! If you want to change them I would recommend looking at the French pharmacy brands (La Roche Posay, Avene etc), they do some nice, gentle cleansers and moisturisers.

Can anyone recommend a nice daily SPF? When I'm wearing makeup I use Charlotte Tilbury Wonder Glow, but otherwise I'm bareface.

Heliocare do a fab range and some of it has colour in as well. I use it all year round as well as on holiday. I presume you can buy it online, I buy it from a private cosmetic clinic.

I like the bioderma photoderm aquafluide one, and the la Roche Posay anthelios anti-shine one. If you have a look in style and beauty there have been a few threads about SPF in the last few weeks, so you can get a few more recommendations.

Also if you are wearing SPF I would probably double cleanse, to make sure you’re getting it all off at night. So cleanse your face once to get the SPF off, and then a second time to actually cleanse your skin. A lot of people get spots when they start using SPF but that’s often down to not removing it properly, rather than the SPF itself.

I think the SPF concern is (dons tin hat) overdone. Yes, absolutely necessary between March and September. But in UK winter, you'd probably be better off getting the vitamin D from any sunlight going for your overall health.

Perhaps with the proviso, unless you are a Celtic red head and can get sunburn on New Year's Day.

In the winter (in the UK) there is very little UVB radiation around, which is the type of UV radiation you need to produce vitamin D. However all year round, no matter how cloudy or cold it is, there is plenty of UVA radiation, which is the type that causes sun damage. So going without suncream in the winter won’t help you with your vitamin D levels, but it can damage your skin and lead to wrinkles etc.

Mysteriously, despite a heritage composed entirely of Celt as far as anyone knows, I have Mediterranean colouring and very rarely burn in this country

I'm having some trouble getting hold of The Ordinary serum but have got the Pixi Glow Tonic to try and will look for an SPF. My apricot scrub has duly gone in the bin (or at least to my toddler, who is mysteriously in love with the tube).

A skin care routine is fine at any age as long as it works for your skin. However at 35 I would suggest adding some anti ageing products in (not that you need it now) but it's better to prevent then cure.

I use a mixture of aveeno and RE9 Advanced night time products to help the signs of ageing and I'm 27!

My apricot scrub has duly gone in the bin

👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Don't bin it - you can use it on your feet/elbows! I'm using mine up like that.

I’d also add a facial oil. Rosehip oil is lovely

Vit C serum will also make your skin look very fresh and plump