Skincare routine from scratch for mid-30s

[Bungalow87]

I am 36 and have basically zero skincare routine. I have two small kids and other than washing and moisturising once a day, nothing much else is happening. I don't wear much make up and my skin is generally fairly forgiving but I have really bad dark circles and it's all a bit unloved.

I feel like I've aged 10 years in the past two but think that's mainly the kids and not the skin
.. but I want/need to start giving it some care.

So - where do I begin and what should I be buying as essentials? My skin is normal to dry I'd say and not sensitive.

The main things I’d look at are prescription tretinoin, vitamin C, glycolic acid and SPF. These will actually make a difference to your skin (clinically proven to be effective, unlike lots of other stuff out there).

You could look at Dermatica or Skin and Me for prescription skincare, and they can help you decide what products you need in your routine.

I’m 37, and use Azelaic Acid and Niacinamide in the morning on my chin and nose (helps prevent breakouts) then Vitamin C, then SPF50 (all year round, every day). In the evening I use an oil based and then a cream cleanser, then either tretinoin (a few times a week) or glycolic acid (once or twice a week) and a good bland moisturiser (I use Dr Jart Ceramidin cream).

As above really Tretinoin is essential for long term trying to prevent signs of aging ie wrinkles and pigmentation. And spf everyday at least factor 30 ideally factor 50. Vitamin c is great for brightening and evening skin tone and helping with overall skin texture and pores.

I use vitamin c serum with spf in a garner one first in the morning, then I use and spf moisturiser before make up. At night I use a cleansing balm to remove make up and a gentle face scrub every other day tret can dry out and make skin a bit flakey) then I use another moisturising cleanser. I then use my Tretinoin followed 10 mins later by a retinol eye balm and a thick moisturiser to seal everything in at the moment I'm using the blue nivea cream

Here's my referral code to get 1st and 5th month for free just p&p 3.50 for skin+Me - Tretinoin FYI I get £10 off my next month if you sign up

www.skinandme.com/?promocode=LAURENS5YP3

Hi OP, I'm 39 and have combination skin. Here's what I'd recommend:

Bioderma micellar water
Cerave hydrating cleanser
La Roche Posay toleriane sensitive cream
Hero sunscreen
Beauty of joseon retinal eye cream (night only)

For liquid exfoliation, I like The Ordinary lactic acid 5% and Farmacy deep sweep bha toner.

Love Hero mighty pimple patches for spots and uneven texture.

Missing from this routine is a vitamin c serum (which I'd use after my morning cleanse and before moisturiser). That might be worth incorporating too.

I've just used this code ...hope that's OK. I've signed up for daily dose and free trial of moisturiser and SPF. X

This is really helpful, thank you! And for the referral code - much appreciated.

If you have no routine at all, then start slowly.

A cleanser, an Spf50, a moisturizer.

Any cleanser will do. Dermatologists rate CeraVe. Any moisturizer you're happy with will do.

Then think about adding SLOWLY and steadily, maybe a vitamin C serum in the morning, and a vitamin A at night. (start gently with retinoids and build up)

PS Tretinoin is NOT essential at all. I worked up over a few years from entry grade retinols (0.3% to 1%) to Tret but then came back down to Retinal which is much less harsh. Nobody with no skincare routine should be leaping straight into Tret.

@Bungalow87 watch some videos from dermatologists and skincare experts before throwing loads of stuff at your face.

Acid toners (not those dreadful scrubs which we used to use for exfoliating) might be ok for you but are not essential (cleansing with a hot cloth exfoliates) but establish first what kind of skin you have. Salicylic acid is for blemish prone, glycolic for mature and ageing etc.

I would say start small with one or two things and when that becomes routine, add something else do you're not overwhelmed or spending a fortune.
For starters I would say add a spf and a cleanser. They don't have to be expensive. You can then look at retinol or somthing like glycolic acid, but when using these you will need to use an spf so it's good to get into that habit first.