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Sun Dec 30, 2012 3:01 am  |
Hi
i am still exploring skincare. so may need some good advice. 
i am 24 yo with dry, dull and dehydrated skin.
these are products i am using
1) Cleanser - Derma E hydrating Cleanser ( twice a day)
2) Toner - Reviva rosespray ( morn )
3) Retin A - ( night )
4) HA serum - Reviva, changing to GOW soon ( twice )
5) Moisturiser - so far i find that best is shikai 24 hrs. but at the moment i am trying eminence 2x but don't feel the hydration they promise. 
6) freeman apricot scrub once a week.
I cleanse, tone, moisturise in the day. but i feel my skin is not hydrated. also at some times, my face looks kind of dull and dehydrated. i dun use a sunblock as i am at home all day.
i close the windows and draw the curtains
what have i done for myself?
so today i incorporated a ha serum, i am thinking of using a brightening serum too. after settling these 2, i will incorporate a vit c into my skincare routine
i wonder is this ok?
i don't want to mess around with acids at the moment as i am on retin a.
Please give me some advice for hydrated and brighter tone complexion. Is what i am going to do ok? |
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Sun Dec 30, 2012 7:01 am |
Hi - I am lot older than you and with a completely different skin type so, I don't know how much help I am going to be, but I am happy with my current skin routine and my skin is behaving more like normal skin rather than the mess it used to be....
1) I know you've used Retin A for quite some time now and you haven't had any any major side effects from it. How was your skin prior to starting retin a? Was it dry and dull? I tried retin a for a while and eventually gave up on it. My skin loved the 0.025 concentration and did really well on it for a year. I tried moving up to 0.05 and could never get used to it. Now, I was applying to 0.025 only 3 times a week and had really good benefits from it. Are you using your retin a every night? Maybe think about scaling back to every other night and even reducing the strength of it. I eventually gave it up because I couldn't keep up with the visits to the dermatologist and getting a prescription.
2) Do you need to use a cleanser in the morning? Just for a couple of days you can try rinsing your face with water. That's what I do now in the morning. I just splash my face with water about 20 times and it feels clean and in the few weeks I've been doing this I haven't noticed any bad effects. I figured I am not digging ditches during the night and I really don't need to use a cleanser in the morning.
3) The Reviva Rose spray has HA in it so I don't think you need another HA serum.
4) I've never tried the moisturisers you mention and I don't know much about them. All I know is that my skin does a lot better without moisturisers. If I am feeling a little dry I take a little bit of aloe vera jelly into my hands put a couple of drops of sesame seed oil, mix it together and apply it to my face. Afterwards it doesn't feel dry any more.
5) I think you should stop using the apricot scrub. You can exfoliate your skin with a dry rough wash cloth. Just make circles around your face and then rinse. Or you can wet the washcloth with warm water, let it lay on your face for a bit and then gently rub it around. I think using a dry washcloth would be better and I would do that every morning instead of once a week.
6) try "skin fasting" - once a week apply nothing at night to your skin. Just cleanse and go to bed. No moisturisers, no serums, nothing. Your face might initially feel tight and dry but just let it be and see what happens in the morning. Give your skin a chance to do its job.
So, if I was in your situation, here's what I would do.
Morning:
- exfoliate with dry washcloth
- rinse with water about 30 times
- apply Vit C serum and wait a few minutes until it is well absorbed before doing anything else
- apply moisturiser
- spray with reviva rose spray
(you stay inside all day with the curtains closed so you don't need sunscreen).
At night:
- wash with your cleanser
- wait 20 min and apply Retin A
- wait 30 min and apply moisturiser
That's what I would do for a couple of weeks and see how my skin feels. Don't forget about good old petroleum jelly. I know it has a really bad rep amongst a lot of people, but you can try it a couple of times a week and see what happens. There have been studies done on white petrolatum and it has shown that as soon as it is applied to the skin it goes to work on repairing the skin barrier function. I will try and find the links for you.
I have come to the conclusion that we should not mess around too much with the natural moisture factor in our skin by using too many cleansers and using moisturisers all the time. I think we should give our skin a chance to do it's job and it will in turn be stronger and healthier. So, now at 38 my skin is a lot stronger and healthier than it was in my 20's. I hope some of this info can help you at least a little bit. Good luck. |
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Sun Dec 30, 2012 7:26 am |
Hi snowfairy,
my skin prior to retin a was also the same as now. yup dull and dry. have not experience the flawless or the look younger by 10 years some people are raving about by using retin a. i don't see any side effect or major improvement so i guess i will be using it every night.
Yes i don't feel good if i don't use a cleanser, i tried without cleanser in the morn a week. but my skin remained the same.
1) my skin is dehydrated and the rose spray does not have much HA from what i feel so is it ok if i corporate a HA serum? i am thinking GOW.
2) i feel that the moisturiser is just keeping my skin from being too dry but does not help much with my dehydration problem so i am thinking of butters, i am looking at macadamia, kukui, hemp and mango. i am considering cupuacu, almond and avocado i have considered aloe vera gel but i used the natural ones once and they dried out my skin.
3) i checked the net for the diff between exfoliator and scrub and found out it was the same? but i read you need to ex foliate for brighter skin. But i could substitute that with a face towel?
some questions
can i ask why is the face spray last and is it ok to wear a vit c serum in the day. what if i am going out? is it ok to wear vit c in the day if i am going out?
can i ask also why i cant use a vit c serum at night? is it because i will dilute the retin a?
If i need the extra hydration without a ha serum, what can i use?
Should i use aha/bha wash for my face? seems like everyone is using it.
What else can i do for a brighter and even skin tone?
And lastly can retin a make you look 10 years younger if use long term? that is why i am starting it as i have no acne.
Thank you
lastly, |
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Sun Dec 30, 2012 8:29 am |
A few more questions and then I will try and address the points you raise in your post.
Are you in general good health? Do you eat a variety of different foods. Are you restricting any food groups? Do you smoke, drink, take drugs (prescription or recreation)? Do you get enough sleep? Do you drink a lot of water? Do you exercise? Are you generally happy? Do you take long hot showers?
Try adding a green smoothie to your diet every day. Take a banana and some berries, place them in a blender with a little bit of water and a handful of spinach, kale, parsley or other greens. Blend them well and drink up. It really is delicious.
The rose spray being the last thing in your routine is just my personal preference and some things I have read over the net about facial mists. A thing I have read about HA is that it draws moisture to your skin. So I think if you apply the HA first, then it would take the moisture from the deeper levels of your skin and bring them to the surface thus dehydrating your skin. If you apply your moisturiser first, then spray the HA on top, I believe the HA will use the moisture from your moisturiser and keep it on the surface of your skin without disrupting the deeper layers. These are the conclusions I have drawn by reading different articles on the net and I have no scientific studies to support this. Of course you can always try to find a moisturiser that has the HA added.
The apricot scrub is made by grinding apricot pits. They might have had rough edges that damage your skin whan you rub them across. I think you should avoid it. Using a dry wash cloth will exfoliate your skin effectively, it will improve the blood circulation to your skin and it will get the lymph underneath your skin moving (all good things). Eventually as your skin gets stronger, you can work up to using a brush, but a washcloth is good to start with.
You can use Vit C serum at night if you want. Wash your face, apply vit C serum, wait 20min, apply retin A. I just always try to keep things simpler and not mix too many actives. Try it at night and see if it makes a difference.
You can use it in the morning and if you go outside make sure you wear sunscreen. I will come back later tonight to explain what the Vit C does to your skin during the daytime.
I don't know that Retin A can make you look 10 years younger. You are very young and perhaps the Retin a will over time help you keep your youthful look. When I was using the 0.025 I thought my skin was starting to look younger and if I kept it up I supposed it would have gotten even better.
The fact that your skin is dry and dehydrated makes me think that you need to look at your overall diet and make sure you drink enough water and take enough healthy fats in your diet. Make sure your diet is full of vitamins and minerals.
It also makes me think that the acid mantle on your skin (your skin barrier) is disrupted allowing too much moisture to escape from your skin. Look this up and see w if you can learn more about it. I would focus on repairing your skin barrier first. There are studies that have shown sunflower seed oil to help in the repair of the skin barrier while olive oil cause damage to the skin barrier. be careful when you choose your skin butters that you don't choose something that will further damage the acid mantle instead of repairing it. Once your barrier has been repaired your skin will start to behave more and healthy and be naturally brighter. |
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Sun Dec 30, 2012 9:05 am |
Hi snow fairy,
i have PCOS but my skin is not acne prone, i am on diane 35 but without any changes to my skin, i am using minoxidil for thinning hair which internet rumours say will cause wrinkles or dull skin which i am not confirmed as my doctors say are rumours. i am prescitarian, only fish seafood, veg and fruits. breakfast is raw vegetables with blended tomatoes and green apples, lunch is apples and nuts with h20.
dinner is normal rice noodles etc i drink an avocado soyshake twice a month. i sleep up to 8 hrs, i am at home. i try to drink 1.5 everyday. yup some light weight training and exercises for my legs and abs 4 times a week. i am not happy, went through depression a period of time but i dun take medication. i self heal. nope no alcohol or drugs. i live in the tropics, i bath with normal temp h20, no heaters. i started sunblock early this year in march prior to that was without sunblock but i don't tan. just go out without sunblock but a beautician said my skin has a dot by the sun but ok in all.
but now i am wisening up, i use sunblock and carry a brolly regards of weather as long as it is between 7am and 7pm.
i googled skin barrier and it is about ph, in the past was worst, things became better after i used shikai 24 hrs but still not good. But still i am confused about the skin barrier part. i do take a biotin and epo. after dinner i take a cayenne pill for digestion.
i tried cocoa butter but did not get the hydration i wanted. shea butter too. only made my skin feel dry and sticky. someone told me oils cannot hydrate your skin only hydrating serums or cream. i wish to substitute butters for moisturiser.
But i read comments off net that retin a will make you look 10 years younger or at least let me maintain. but i have been using for two months so i will have to use for a longer while to see the effects.
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Sun Dec 30, 2012 9:31 am |
Oh snowfairy
i read and skin has to be slight acidic and too much soap and water will alkaline the skin which is not good. in fact like what you said water and cloth is enough. but the weird thing is i wake up in the morning, my skin is so perfect. like porcelain i don't know why after the day goes when i use my spray and moisturiser my skin does not look as perfect as when i wake up. But the night before i use moisturiser. Maybe i should use a vit c serum to balance the acid in my skin?
but what do you think of dr h's skin theory?
http://www.drhauschka.co.nz/Need-To-Know/Skin-Facts/ |
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Sun Dec 30, 2012 11:10 am |
I'll respond to you in more detail tonight, but I just wanted to say that Vit C serum has done wonderful things for my skin and I think most people will benefit from it. I tried several different brands (wasted money and time) but finally settled on Nufountain Fresh Cosmetics C20. It has minimal ingredients which is what I wanted.
As for Dr. H - I agree with some of the recommendation and disagree with others. I have even tried Dr. H products and didn't care much for them. I agree that we do not need a nightime moisturiser. I haven't used a moisturiser at night in quite some time now and my skin has benefited from it. It was really tough at first but over time my skin balanced itself. I don't see the need for deep cleansing in the morning. If the skin was cleansed properly at night and no moisturiser was used, why do we need to deep cleanse. Assuming none of us sleep on a dirt floor surrounded with cow dung than our skin is fairly clean in the morning. All that needs to be rinsed away are some dead skin cells and maybe some sweat.
I'll have more time later to share some more insights.
I can see that you are anxious about your skin, but please do not rush into using too many products. Let's take it slowly and one step at a time. There are a lot of people here that are very experienced with skin care, I have been doing a lot of research lately and some of things I am learning are very surprising. To be continued... |
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Sun Dec 30, 2012 12:44 pm |
Just a couple more questions?
Are you overweight and have you had your thyroid function checked?
You mentioned you have PCOS and are generally not very happy. So I am asking about your thyroid because it is not unusual for women that have PCOS to also have Hypothyroidism or it is even possible to misdiagnose PCOS when in fact it could be under active thyroid function. The symptoms for both are basically the same including dry skin, depression and hair loss (amongst others). So if you don't think your PCOS treatment is doing you any good, consider having your thyroid checked (TSH including T3 and T4). |
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Mon Dec 31, 2012 5:27 am |
| nope i am not overweight. but low metabolism, i control my diet. yup i had my thyroid checked.all is ok, skin was oily in younger days but dehydrated and dry as i became older. will a diy vitamin c do? because i don't want to spent so much money. i know you are happy with your current vit c. depression well it is not illness but my life. i wish to use some aha and bha. what is good. cleanser or cream? |
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Mon Dec 31, 2012 1:19 pm |
OK, I am sure your doctor has done a thorough workup, but I wanted to ask anyway.
As far as adding AHA's or BHA's - you need to do it very carefully. I believe BHA's are more suitabe for oily, acne prone or congested skin and AHA's are more suitable for dry or sun damaged skin. How would you incorporate them into your routine? Would you forego using retin A a couple of times a week and use an AHA exfoliant instead? I would not use them at the same time or even in the morning after using retin a. If it was me, I would not want to bombard my skin with too many products at once and I would alternate them. I think an AHA cleanser would not be the best choice. I don't think it would be in contact with your skin long enough to make a difference so I would choose a cream. How about Derma E evenly radiant overnight peel? It is suitable for dry skin and it has 5% glycolic and some lactic and malic acids. ...or even Olay Regenerist night resurfacing elixir. It has glycolic acid, and some antioxidants. You have to do some research and find a good product, but I again would advise you to alternate it with the Retin A and discontinue your apricot scrub. Don't forget to use sunscreen. Seriously, you can cause more damage to your skin, by using Retin A and AHA without sunscreen.
As far as Vit C serum is concerned - I am not much of a DIY person, so I can't advise you there. The effectiveness of VIt C is sensitive to the PH of the product and I would not even know how to properly formulate anything. I have some seen recipes in the DIY section. Take a look and see what you find. The upfront cost of sourcing all the ingredients might be higher initially. The one I like to use has minimal ingredients which is what I wanted, but a lot of people don't care for it because it feels like water, but that's a personal preference. I am sure others here can advise you better on choosing a good C serum. |
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Mon Dec 31, 2012 7:06 pm |
hi snowfairy,
thanks. yup i was looking at the drema e and you mentioned it. so it is not a good idea to use the radient peel and retin a together? just to ask, i am at home all day behind closed windows and curtains, so i will not need sunscreen right? even if i incorporate derma e radiant peel into my routine?
you don't use moisturiser right? what do you think is a good substitute for moisturiser?
oh also what do you think if i incorporate some clay mask into my routine? |
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Mon Dec 31, 2012 7:28 pm |
Well the leaflet that comes with the retin a mentions this:
Unless your doctor tells you otherwise, it is especially important to avoid using the following skin products on the same area as tretinoin:
Any other topical acne product or skin product containing a peeling agent (such as benzoyl peroxide, resorcinol, salicylic acid, or sulfur)
Now it mentions salicylic acid which is a BHA and it doesn't specifically mention AHA, but I figure AHA's fall quite well within the peeling agents category. I think it would be too much irritation to handle. Small amounts of irritation applied in an intelligent way, can induce healing, but to much irritation can lead to inflammation and damage and that is not a good thing. Take it easy. At least work in the AHA a couple of times a week apart from the retin a and see what happens and how your skin reacts. It might just be enough. When I was using retin a at 0.025 three times a week, my skin was loving it. When I tried to increase to 0.05 everything went downhill. Sometimes less is more.
If you are staying inside with the curtains closed, then you don't need sunscreen. If you are going outside you do need it even on cloudy days.
Good luck and Happy New Year. |
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Tue Jan 01, 2013 10:20 am |
Water and water based products can be especially drying to your skin as it evaporates. I would say since you have such a thorough routine to avoid water completely in the am. Begin by misting your face with a non-water based toner or even a hydrating toner like Eminence Mimosa Champagne Tonique. Then try using a non-water based cleanser like Seaware with Rosa Mosqueta® Facial Cleansing Cream.
I've been battling this myself this winter waking up with dry skin for not lack of moisturizing at night. A good quick fix is Osea Algae Oil. It's good to just have a bottle of that around. You can use it everywhere in the winter. |
_________________
33, dark skin, oil-slick |
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Wed Jan 02, 2013 12:54 am |
| esq wrote: |
Water and water based products can be especially drying to your skin as it evaporates. I would say since you have such a thorough routine to avoid water completely in the am. Begin by misting your face with a non-water based toner or even a hydrating toner like Eminence Mimosa Champagne Tonique. Then try using a non-water based cleanser like Seaware with Rosa Mosqueta� Facial Cleansing Cream.
I've been battling this myself this winter waking up with dry skin for not lack of moisturizing at night. A good quick fix is Osea Algae Oil. It's good to just have a bottle of that around. You can use it everywhere in the winter. |
i don't really understand. :X
so i cannot use a ha serum? |
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samantha70
New Member
 
Joined: 30 Dec 2012
Posts: 4
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Wed Jan 02, 2013 12:46 pm |
Hi there I am a skincare specialist and educator so i know something about skin.
I also have dry skin! and battled for it for years, it always felt dry as if it was one size to small.
I am going to through the spanner in the works here and say whilst yes dry skin does need to kept hydrated topically with gentle natural products that contain humectants that don't strip the skin and undermine the barrier function! You also need to think about diet.
Make sure you are supplementing daily with omega 3, 6 and 9 most of which our body needs but doesn't manufacture, secondly this advise came from a nutritionist, make sure you are eating a lot of more wet foods, not to dry, otherwise the dry foods are absorbing all the moisture in your digestive tract, drying out your skin.
I really found this information helped and since I have been taking the supplements my skin is much less dry!
a different approach I know but after all we are what we eat!
Samantha |
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Wed Jan 02, 2013 7:30 pm |
Hi samantha,
what is dry and wet foods. but is a serum ok to hydrate skin? |
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ammy_love
New Member
Joined: 03 Jan 2013
Posts: 2
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Thu Jan 03, 2013 4:17 am |
| i am using beautiful science products and the best product is scar gel i am using it from long time and my scars are gone now and my skin looks more fresh. |
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Thu Jan 03, 2013 12:30 pm |
| Salome_B wrote: |
| esq wrote: |
Water and water based products can be especially drying to your skin as it evaporates. I would say since you have such a thorough routine to avoid water completely in the am. Begin by misting your face with a non-water based toner or even a hydrating toner like Eminence Mimosa Champagne Tonique. Then try using a non-water based cleanser like Seaware with Rosa Mosqueta� Facial Cleansing Cream.
I've been battling this myself this winter waking up with dry skin for not lack of moisturizing at night. A good quick fix is Osea Algae Oil. It's good to just have a bottle of that around. You can use it everywhere in the winter. |
i don't really understand. :X
so i cannot use a ha serum? |
Here is a link that talks about how drying constant contact with water can be for your skin http://dermatology.about.com/od/skincare/f/water_dry_skin.htm- hope that makes a bit more sense.
So I was just recommending a facial wash that wasn't water based, meaning that the first ingredient listed is not water like your current cleanser. Also to moisten your face with something other than water by using the hydrating toner I mentioned.
You can still use your ha (hylauronic acid?) serum this is actually moisturizing your skin.
Hopefully you'll find by just making this change in your AM routine should make a difference in the moisture levels in your skin.
This is all topical. I am in total agreement with taking some Omega 3s, watching your diet and working on this from the inside out, also. |
_________________
33, dark skin, oil-slick |
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samantha70
New Member
Joined: 30 Dec 2012
Posts: 4
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Mon Jan 07, 2013 12:18 am |
Hi there a wet food is well essentially wet like porridge, fruits, veg that have a high water content.
Dry food like bread, pasta that will absorb any water taken internally that also has a longer transit time around your digestive system.
A serum is good to use under a moisturizer for an additional boost, but I would say do your research on humectants such as glycerine, hyaluronic acid, sodium pca, urea etc and purchase products with these in, which have the ability to hold many hundred times their weight in water and will help lock in moisture in your skins tissues, keeping them nice and hydrated!
hope that helps |
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