Totally lost with skincare

[TheWayOfTheWorld]

I used to be deeply into skincare and thought nothing of going to SpaceNK and spending £200 on a face cream (this was all pre-children).

Since covid I've totally lost my way. My current "routine" (if it can be called that as I maybe do it twice a week at the moment) is a total hotchpotch (combo of things I've been sent to test for free and stuff I've seen on offer/with discount codes)

• Elemis exfoliating cleanser
• Medikate press and glow toner
• Medikate copper peptides serum and/or Zelens Power D face oil (both about to run out; I used to use NIOD CAIS but wanted to try a different copper peptide)
• Elemis pro collagen marine cream or Allies of Skin Peptides firming daily treatment
• Factor 50

At night - dermatica or Allies of Skin retinal repair cream

Anyway, to the immediate issue.

I'm off on a spa day in a couple of weeks and left it too late to book any treatments. So I thought I'd spend the equivalent cost of the treatments on new skincare products

(A) to give myself a nice facial whilst I'm there and
(B) to kick start my skincare regime again.

I've got £200 to spend. Skincare concerns are:

• general skin health (I'm late 40s)
• sensitive skin (underlying redness etc, react to over-strong ingredients, too many actives)
• probably could do with some better hydration/plumping

I'm not bothered about buying "luxury" products, it's more about value for money and things that are effective but I just feel lost with it all!

Thank you in advance

I think for sensitive skin I would avoid the exfoliating cleanser and ask for advice of something more gentle to cleanse. Also check on the strength of retinol and see if it's causing dryness. I would add a Hyaluronic Acid serum to increase hydration. I am sure more experienced posters would recommend some brands. I like actives from the ordinary or inkey list.

I completely overhauled my skincare routine during lockdown. My bathroom cabinet was full of expensive products and endless minis from beauty boxes and free gift with purchase sets, and I used to spend a fortune!

I started following loads of skincare experts and doing lots of research and decided I needed a hyaluronic acid for moisture and a vitamin C for brightness. I learnt that lots of people use hyaluronic wrong and it needs some moisture to work properly, or it takes moisture from your skin and actually makes your skin more dry.

If you do introduce new products, do it one at a time and give it a few weeks to see if it makes a positive difference or if your skin has a negative reaction. My routine is

AM
Cerave Hydrating Cleanser
Curel Deep Moisture Spray
Hada Labo Super Hyaluronic Lotion
Curel Deep Moisture Spray again!
Geek & Gorgeous Vitamin C
No 7 Future Renew Eye Serum
Byoma Gel Moisturiser
La Roche Posay Anthellios SPF 50

PM I use either Inkey List Oat Balm cleanser (more so in the winter) or The Ordinary Squalane cleanser, followed by The Ordinary NMF. My next step is to introduce a retinol.

I’m 45 and my skin has never looked better. All the products I use are fairly cheap and available on the high street.

Not as fun as a treatment (apologies!) but why not sign up for Skin+me which has all you need and would be tailored to your skin. I'm over all the expensive fiddly products... prescription retinol is the only stuff that really works. I do have sensitive skin so don't use retinol every night and for the nights I don't I just use a basic cream like la roche posay toleriane.

Sarah Rossi from Taming Twons has just posted about her skincare regime. She looks brilliant so somethings definitely working for her. If you go to the Taming Twins website it's worth a read.

I mean you are doing all the right things. The reality is skincare (even tretinoin) can only do so much. I agree with maybe switching to a gentle cleanser if your skin is a bit sensitive. This time of year I find my skin is much drier and needs heavier moisturisers and can react a bit.

I have been using this from Geek an Gorgeous - usually at night after my tretinoin and found it good for making my skin feel more hydrated.
https://geekandgorgeous.com/collections/101-serums/products/happier-barrier

If you wanted you could maybe introduce a Vitamin C serum in the morning (instead of the toner) as an antioxidant.

https://geekandgorgeous.com/collections/101-serums/products/c-glow

I promise I don't work for G&G, I just find them very reasonably priced.

The main things that have been proved to work are tretinoin and suncreen, everything else goes into the category of 'nice to have' but don't spend loads of money on.

If you are looking for a boost for your skin generally, would you think about using that £200 to get a chemical peel or in office treatment instead of just buying more creams? I'm about to undergo a course of IPL and laser treatments over the next few months to deal with underlying redness in my skin (and some broken capillaries) as even good skincare won't treat it.

I see a few of you have mentioned Geek&Gorgeous, I was reading about them the other day.

I think a large part of this is getting back into a proper routine rather than doing it half-heartedly every now and then.

I've got some hylauronic but never quite sure whether to use it with the copper peptides/face oil or not (seems like a lot to shove on my face).

On the question about spending the £ on a treatment, that's a possibility but I think I'd like to get the regular skincare sorted first and then look to do that after.

I agree, even if you paid it down to a very basic quick routine - consistency is key.

I do wonder if a face oil stops other things from being absorbed properly. Maybe try the hyaluronic acid serum beforehand and let it soak in a bit before trying the face oil. But then that takes more time and steps in the morning so might not be feasible.

Really if you are using dermatica and a good moisturiser at night, and sunscreen during the day you have a decent routine going. There are a lot of other bells and whistles out there (ingredients with lots of fancy sounding claims) but they aren't going to do all that much.