Skincare for improving texture

[Namechaaange]

I find skincare and skin 'concerns' a bit confusing so could really use some help.

Basically in autumn/winter my cheeks tend to get rough. It's not spots and they aren't particularly red (maybe a little more than usual) but they go rough. I think it might be a combination of dry skin and enlarged pores.

I've tried working out what skincare stuff I should be using but it seems so complicated. All acids and aha and bha and other stuff. I don't understand what I should use and also what products I should use together.

My routine is am - wash face in shower with water, then moisturise (if I'm going out I wear SPF too, not needed ATM though with all this grey rainy weather) / pm - wash face with cream cleanser and flannel, retinol (face theory regenacalm) then moisturise (Neal's yard vitamin e and avocado night cream).

What should I change to get rid of this roughness?

Hmmm could be you need an acid exfoliate? The pixi tonic one is fairly reasonably priced. I use that after I cleanse on non Retinol days.

Maybe a facial oil would be nice? Budget ones would be the ordinary rosehip, high end zelens, Sunday Riley Luna, Herbivore Lapis.

I would also use a Balm Cleanser and in the morning too rather than just water to add some extra moisture.

If you Google skin textural irregularities there is a lot of information I use glycolic acid every other day to treat mine.

Well it entirely depends on what you mean by texture, when used in skincare terms it usually relates to acne and/or rosaceae pustules. What you have sounds more like an accumulation of dead skin, could be keratosis pilaris but could just be slowing turnover of skin cells that comes with ageing that's exasperated by dryness (probably central heating plus seasonal impact). Although exfoliating does generally help, I'd keep it simple and try the Eucerin Urea face cream, urea is an exfoliant too but it's extremely gentle and not temperamental and quite easy to use just doesn't work as instantly as the big hitters (but that's not always preferred). You can always look at AHA (I'd look at PHA and/or glycolic specifically as they tackle hydration too) if that isn't enough.

I'd also use some sort of barrier cream to use topically on your cheeks whenever going out when it's that rough weather of high winds and/or the lower temperatures.

Thanks @doadeer I will have a look at the tonic - when would you use it? Do you use an oil and moisturiser? I really don't get along with balm cleansers, can't stand the texture.

@botemp I definitely don't have acne/rosacea - doesn't look like the pics online anyway. The dead skin thing makes sense. It is always much worse when it's cold. Though actually I've had it since I was a teenager and it was worse then (now 30) - but I lived in central Europe as a teen and the cold/central heating of winter was much more extreme than here in the UK!

I will give the urea facecream a try, thank you for suggesting it. Would that be for the morning and evening?

Sorry for the detailed qs - the problem I've been having with googling is finding lots of suggestions for products but then not really understanding how to fit them together iyswim?

At the moment I'm using good genes but it's expensive so I didn't want to mention it initially.

I do cleanse (you could try an oil one?), acid exfoliate 3 times a week, serum, moisturiser, oil. I have dry skin and I like to be a bit greasy before bed 🤣 I always wake up with my skin looking lovely.

I'm the morning I'm pretty low key, I cleanse with something light like a milk, then I put vit c on, then Spf, then I just use a cc cream as a foundation and stick some lip Balm on.

I know you said you don't like a Balm but if put something thick on before going out in winter like the espa all purpose Balm or astral cream. I do this if my skin has dry patches in winter

You can use urea day and night if you like. It does sound like you have delicate skin where the top layer gets broken by weather conditions and the shock of the change between going indoors and outdoors. Since that broken skin detaches prematurely it accumulates. You see this a lot with delicate skin on children too, especially in colder climates.

Urea will help with this as it gently exfoliates and helps rebuild your barrier. I'd be very cautious with acid exfoliators as they do a similar thing of breaking the top layer of skin and getting it to detach but if you do too much of it you can overexfoliate which leaves your skin impaired and even less resilient to outside weather impact and temperature changes. The use of an acid exfoliator incorrectly could potentially leave you with more issues, hence why I'd advise going in slow and cautious to start with. As mentioned above if going for an AHA I'd stick with lactic and PHAs, glycolic is very effective but very potentially irritating.

If you are going to use an AHA, generally you use it at night after cleansing, 2-3x a week at most and building up use very gradually.

doadeer- the ordinary lactic acid is a good dupe for Good Genes as is the Mad Hippie exfoliating serum. I found both worked just as well at a tenth ( or quarter, in MH case) of the price, and I say that as someone who was WELDED to my Good Genes for about 3 years.

yes to a chemical peel.
the ordinat aha/bha is great (but very strong) the lactic acid one is gentler.

sounds also like you need to moisturise more in the cold months.

always, always use spf, even on a grey, overcast day.