Incredibly basic skincare routine

[SnowyIcySnow]

Please, don't get complicated!
Im mid 40s.
I wash my face with soap once a day.
I put sunscreen (boire watery essence) on if I'm out all day, or on holiday. I usually break out in spots if I use for more than a few consecutive days
My skin drys out a bit more in winter. I put moisturizer on about once a month. I've been trying to do it more frequently since the new year, but, again, ive had spot breakouts. Previously ive tried simple, but these newer more gel like cosmetics, rather than creams, feel less 'evil' on my skin.

However, my skin is starting to show its age. I wear makeup about once a year.

What should I do?

What moisturiser are you currently using? I have very dry skin and find the gels dry me out even further. Simple branded skincare is anything but simple ingredients, unfortunately!

Mine is any old face wash maybe Simple or Cerave or Nivea
Tretinoin twice a week
Sunscreen
Olay or Cetaphil moisturiser.

Can't get simpler. As I have said many times on here before, I get Tret cheap from overseas so my skin care bill per year must be about £35 or thereabouts.

But you can get it in the UK via Dermatica or Skin and Me.

Sorry, Oz, thought I'd put that in!
Neutrogena gel (hydro boost?)

Lentil doesn't tretinol (and retinol) require regular sunscreen? Given how infrequently I use that might I actually do more harm than good?

I am a big fan of getting the basics right before you start messing about with retinol or whatever.

Please stop using soap immediately. It strips your skin so it doesn't surprise me at all that the moment you put anything on your face it freaks out.

You need a basic cleanser. If you are doing this in the shower, browse boots to get a bog standard gentle cleanser from.somewhere like cera ve or la Roche possay. If you want to spend a bit more and have a nice "experience" try a Clarins one. I like the hydrating gentle cleanser. As you have dry skin however, my real recommendatio would be to swap to a balm cleanser. M&S do a few (I think there's a Rose one I have heard people rsve about), Body Shop camomile one is nice, sali Hughes and Super drug and Elf all do good budget ones and I love the Farmacy and Elemis ones at the top end.

Then moisteriser. At night, something extra moisturising and a bit richer. And with spf for day. I like the neutrogena hydro boost range myself and they do a nice spf one for day. The elf day moisteriser is very light so might be a good choice. Nivea is also great but I suspect too rich for you. Cera ve is very popular but I think it can activate sensitive skin.

That's it.

Over time, you might want to add some.serums and /or retinol. But get the basics right first.

Morning - wash face with water
Moisturise (doesn't need to be expensive, you can use Simple, Nivea or Boots own brand)
SPF - use all year round. In summer I use only SPF (don't bother with moisturiser in the morning)

Evening - cleanser. Again, can be a cheap one, or a face wash
Night cream moisturiser - Nivea in the blue tin makes my skin soft, but it's quite thick. There are Nivea night creams that are cheap.

I think that's what you need for a basic skincare routine. SPF in the morning, cleanser at night, and moisturise twice a day.

Cleanser - One with glycerin
Moisturiser/serum - Any with hyaluronic acid in
Night cream - Tretinoin 0.025% from Monderma or Dermatica
Sunscreen - Either SPF30 or 50 is fine
£50 a month to look 5 years younger.

I would banish the soap immediately and switch to Squalane Cleanser from The Ordinary, suitable for all skin types, unscented and reasonably priced: simply apply in circular motions twice a day and remove with a clean wash cloth soaked in warm water. It leaves no harsh residue on your skin to cause further dryness. Follow with Moisturising Factors from The Ordinary - again; a good, everyday, no frills moisturiser that won’t clog pores or leave an oily after feel. Finally in the morning; SPF30. Every day! This is the single most effective way to future proof your skin against pollution and a lot of premature ageing. When we don’t see the sun or it’s the winter, we mistakenly think we don’t need it. There are many non comedogenic (non pore clogging) products but maybe try the Heliocare range. Not cheap but a little goes a long way. Trinny London BFF cream has Factor 30 and adds the lightest wash of glowy colour. Nice for mature skin. At night; cleanse (as above), start a low strength prescription of retinoid cream (I’m in my 60s and use Monderma who are excellent) and follow with moisturiser if skin feels dry. If you use an online dermatology service like theirs, you benefit from skin experts prescribing exactly what your skin needs. To me that’s a no brainer compared to wasting time and money with over the counter trial and error. You do need to invest time twice a day to skincare to really see results as opposed to a hit and miss, irregular approach, but it doesn’t need to be complicated.

Ordinary amino acids are great instead of moisturiser when mixing with tanning drops.

….you definitely need to add SPF to your daily routine and especially if using retinols/retinoids. No point trying to improve or maintain your skin whilst allowing UV light to damage it every day (even cloudy ones).

From my understanding a lot of the prescription skincare places like Skin and Me and Monderma ask if you use suncream regularly and prescribe accordingly so might be worth a try as they use dermatologists. This was a worry of mine too

Thank you all.

Since I quite like the feel of the hydroboost stuff I'm thinking of a the neutrogena hydroboost cleanser - with hyaluronic acid, and their moisturizer with spf 30.

I know that is ignoring quite a few of you suggesting more stuff, but honestly, it's several steps more than currently. I'll come back in a few months and re-read and hopefully add more stuff.

I'm definitely looking at the budget end of this skin care lark. Some of the prices are £££!

I've been using tret from skin+me and it hasn't improved my mid life breakouts at all, though I do see improvements in fine lines.

I'm going to cancel it. The cystic acne is worse if anything

@SnowyIcySnow fine, but you need a night cream/moisturiser without SPF too. Don't sleep in SPF, it'll break you out. Which might be why you struggle with the Biore.

Thanks @owlexpress , I've got none spf moisturizer that I've slowly been using.
Moisturizer hasn't been a thing at night. And I'm not actually sure i can bring myself to sleep with a slimy face. But I'll need to wash things off in the evening, so will give it a go, and see how I feel about it.

You need to change your moisturiser if it’s making your face slimy all night. If you’re using one that’s correct for your skin type it should absorb and not be able to feel it on the skin.

What is your skin type? Dry? Oily? That will determine whether you want to go for a gel, cream or oil based moisturiser, cleanser etc..

I think you are on the right track with a moisturizer with spf for day. If you are out all day, do you sunscreen separately, like you are already doing.

And if you like bar soap, there are some made just for face cleansing, such as L'occitaine, Cetaphil, La Roch Posay. They are a bit gentler on skin.

Like you say, you may add a night cream later. They don't need to cost a fortune if you stick to drug store brands, and you can find a light gel cream that targets fine wrinkles if that is what you are noticing.

@Cheesyfootballs01 everything I've ever put on my face make it feel slimy. It always feels like I've got a layer of something sitting there.
Moisturizer, suncream, makeup... it's why I'm reluctant to use anything - it just feels "yuck". Creams, lotions are the worst. Gels seem to be the least bad!

I've no idea what type of skin I have!!

Curel is a nice simple range and you can buy a trial set -- here.

Are you ND/do you have sensory issues?

I think this is fine to start. Just don't use the spf one at night - rather buy the regular one for night and apf for morning.

Against the grain, but I've given up using SPF in a British winter. Every single one I've tried (and I've tried all of them, including EltaMD, Skinceuticals, a million Korean brands) makes my skin break out slightly with small bumps if not actual spots. In summer I do use SPF, but if you are spending only half an hour to an hour a day outside in a British January then you aren't going to be damaging your skin! The Cancer Research foundation says:

•	The sun can be strong enough to damage skin and cause sunburn from mid-March to mid-October in the UK.
 
•	The UV index tells us how strong the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays are. If it is 3 (moderate) or above, you need to think about protecting your skin.

I recommend washing with a cheap unscented cleanser (Savers do some good ones) and using this as a moisturiser both morning and evening: https://pureseoul.co.uk/products/beplain-cicaful-calming-gel-80ml-n1?variant=40358667190406&currency=GBP&gadsource=1&gbraid=0AAAAACsfrRIHp2cPohg3iCC_oaTaMJA-EA

Cetaphil is a great moisturiser for acne prone skin,

that’s literally all I use, every morning and sometimes night.

my dermatologist recommended it when I was taking roaccutane.

they’ve got some newer anti ageing products I’ve been meaning to try

Not that I know of, but not impossible.

You will got lots of advice as skincare is quite individual. Take your time to read lots of information about skincare, reviews etc and to highlight what are your main concerns. Is it breakouts, dry skin, anti aging etc.

A simple routine is cleanser, moisturiser, spf. (No spf in the evenings obviously). If you find that your current spf and moisturiser break you out after using for a few days then they may not be right for you.

If you find that you get into this routine you can add to it, with a serum or something like retinol/tret. Give anything you change a good few weeks or months to take affect.

I recommend Nip + Fab, they have a little quiz you can do to help identify what you might like. I use a cream cleanser and a gel moisturiser, my skin is oily, extremely sensitive and will breakout in spots or eczema if slightly upset. I also use a skin barrier repair serum from there which has made an enormous difference to my skin. Someone complimented me on my skin a few weeks ago which was lovely as it has been so bad for so long.

Yes to stop using soap on your face.
Honestly I wouldn't worry too much about SPF unless you go outside in the sun for longer than 1h or so.
Have you tried Ultrasun? Unfortunately it's quite expensive but sometimes on offer. You apply to completely clean and dry skin and only needs 1 application for all day protection. It's the only brand I've tried which does not sting my eyes or clogs pores so it might be OK for you. Also it doesn't leave that sticky feeling.
I wonder if your breakouts might be hormonal as opposed to due to something you put on your skin. In which case, in the absence of a more layered skincare approach, you just have to accept them at certain times.
Instead of moisturiser, look for lotion. It's a lighter formulation and doesn't usually sit there giving you that annoying sticky feeling.