What do you do when your skin needs all the acids?

[WellTidy]

I’m 45. After a lifetime of problem free (albeit dry) skin, my skin is now tending towards combination, needing regular exfoliation and brightening, more plumping and I’m having the odd spot (two at the moment, one near my mouth and one near my nose). I also have pigmentation.

I normally cleanse, apply hyaluronic acid (using nip+fab dragons blood extreme hyaluronic serum at the moment, then eye cream and then Estée Lauder day wear or night wear (which I like).

But I do think I need more. So I’ve been looking at nip+fab salicylic and glycolic serums and also their hyaluronic and glycolic masks.

Would I be better off using a daily salicylic serum instead of the hyaluronic serum, and using each of glycolic and hyaluronic masks once a week? Or can I put all the serums on each day and forget the masks?

I’m not particularly wedded to nip+fab, it’s just that they’re 3 for 2 at the moment and I’m trying to be thrifty moving into 2021.

Thanks!

All I get from this is stop using nip and fab.

And it's likely your chosen cleanser or moisturisers are responible for your combination skin no matter how long or wedded you are to the items.

What happens if you use no more than cleanser & water?

I'd stay off everything else (incl moisturiser) just to allow your skin to settle.

Salicylic acid probably isn’t what you need. It’s best for oily skin IME and even then can be quite strong.

Best all rounder I’ve used is niacinamide from the ordinary.

I would recommend using one thing at a time for weeks otherwise you’ll have no idea what is actually working!

I’m not a fan of nip+fab tbh, I think they’re very gimmicky.
French skincare is the best in my opinion. Have a look at brands like la Roche posay, cerave, Avene etc.
You don’t need tons of acids either, a bit of hyaluronic (which you can have combined in your face wash) and retinol should be enough along with a good moisturiser or facial oil.

The Ordinary every time. Transformed my skin. I'm 47 and just use a bit of concealer through the day now for the first time in my life.

You can email them and they will send you a regime. Not £££££ either, quite affordable.

I can definitely just cut out the nip+fab. I haven’t just used cleanser since I was about 13, so I have no idea how my skin would fare. I can try though.

My skin was always amazing when I only used Estée Lauder - cleanser, idealist pore refiner, advanced night repair serum and then day wear moisturiser. I stopped as so many new brands came on the market which were really popular, and I felt that I was missing out by sticking with a more traditional, established brand like Estée Lauder. Sounds daft when I think about if now.

I would be happy to use french skincare, but again just don’t know what to choose.

I would keep away from all of it

Just use a cleanser and moisturiser.

Different things.. HA isn't a true acid, it's a hydration rather than exfoliation
For hydration (which is your HA) I like Superdrug simply pure hydration. Usually on offer and about £4, use under a moisturiser
For exfoliating I really rate paulas choice or (sorry it's not the cheapest!) deviant gentle resurfacing liquid. I used nip fab for ages for exfoliating but the deviant liquid I saw almost instant results with

Your other option is to stop most stuff (except the HA) and go to dermatica or skin and me and start on retinol or whatever they recommend (you upload photos)

I think you've answered your own question OP.

Go back to EL for a while again, your trusted skincare regime that worked for you and hopefully your skin will thank you for it.

I think I will go back to my Estée Lauder routine. I have full size bottles of the cleanser, idealist pore refinisher, advanced night repair serum and day wear/night wear here. I could give it a month and see where I am at the end of January. I need to if back on sugar now that I’ve had my Christmas splurge, so maybe h to at will help with the spots too.

I am kicking myself for trying so many new products really, when the Estée Lauder was working so well. I just thought I might be missing out on some of the new brands like Pixi (I’ve tried all of their toners) and then the acids which seem more targeted on what they do. And Estée Lauder is quite pricey.

I will give it a go for a go for a month. My nose is very oily this morning and I have no idea why.

And try to put that deviant resurfacing liquid out of my mind!

I know it’s probably psychological, but I’ve just used the Estée Lauder skincare that I listed above, and my skin feels great. Smooth, no oil, no dryness, a bit of a glow (I know I’m imagining that part at least). Fingers crossed it stays this way and that my skin settles back.

Nip & Fab are great, same ingredients at a much lower price point than say, Paula's Choice or Clinique etc.

Hyaluronic acid (so your DB etc) is in EVERYTHING and as others have said, it's not an "active" so if it suits your skin as an extra hydrator (remember it needs to be used on damp skin or it has the opposite effect and dries out) carry on. I find it a bit Emperor's New Clothes especially as it's been around in products for decades it's just that suddenly it's a beauty buzzword. (EL advanced night repair is HA) Everyone does a single HA these days, but IMO that's another marketing gimmick- shall I buy seven bottles each containing one ingredient for a fiver each or one bottle containing everything for £30. Individual choice but it tickles me when people rave about TO or Inkey when everyone has been using those ingredients without knowing it for years!

You might like to introduce an acid toner - if you're 45 then as pp said, you're probably better off with a glycolic. The Nip &Fab pads or the Superdrug own brand ones are great. I also like good old Olay anti wrinkle which also has niacinamide (fades age spots) and costs about a fiver. Acid toners will make a huge difference to anyone's skin as they've replaced the grit and sand scrubs we all used as teenagers. Gentle exfoliating in other words.

A vit C serum (mornings- followed by sunscreen) will also make a huge difference. It's the biggest difference I've noticed.

If you want to go the retinol route, evenings only and build up. And be aware of naughty companies telling you their product is 3% when it's actually granactiv retinoid which means you need to divide it by 10 to get the actual %. (TO again)

The EL routine you've gone back to contains HA (I think the resurfacer has an acid in it?) So IMO you'd only need a vit C if you felt like anything else.

Just checked and the Pore Refinisher doesn't contain actives (acids) but is silicone based (ie that's how it minimises the pores - by acting like polyfilla!)

I think I had a sample once but had forgotten about it.

I’ve started using a cheapy version of cleanse and polish (Aldi one) and I think my (oily) skin looks better than when I used foaming face washes. I used to use the la Roche posay one and always liked it but I do think the cleanser and face cloth makes my skin look a bit more ‘glowy’. I’ve started reading Caroline Hirons skincare book so maybe I’ll be a bit more knowledgeable when I’m finished!

Wow TheSilentStars that is an education, thank you for taking the time to write.

I think I will try an acid toner once I’ve done a month with this skincare regime, so that I can be sure that my skin is happy. I have a 250ml unopened bottle of Pixi 5% glycolic. Would this be suitable please? And at what stage in my cleanse/pore refiner/serum/moisturiser routine would I insert it? Morning and night?

And is there a vitamin c serum that you’d recommend? I’ve used Pixi in the past but it oxidised quickly and I didn’t see any noticeable effect. And again, what stage would that come (I see that it is mornings only)?

Retinol - again, do you have a recommendation, and wrap what stage would input it on (I see that it is night time only)?

I really appreciate your input.

I use Beauty Pie Vic C serum in the morning, then a standard moisturiser followed by BP SPF 25 which includes hyaluronic acid.
In the evening I use BP retinol and aveeno moisturiser.
Cleanser is African black soap and a dual sided cleansing cloth.
Despite Christmas indulgence and 10 days of little fresh air (been SI), my skin is settled and comfortable. I have rosacea, so it’s not great but definitely getting better the longer I go with this.

I'd use a glycolic toner and vitamin C serum

It’s two weeks since I went back to my Estée Lauder products, and my skin is the best it’s been for a good couple of years. I’ve put everything else to one side, or I’m using them on my neck and chest to use them up, as I can’t see myself going back to them (Pixi, Elemis, Clinique and the rest, I have loads of things). Fingers crossed my skin stays settled!