The New Autumn Skincare
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Although I always love skincare, I don’t often discover that many new products that I love. I tend to now only buy things when I have a gap in my routine and I try to buy less of the things I don’t need in an attempt to try and be a little more sustainable with it. However, recently I needed to stock up on a few new things and with the temperature suddenly dropping my skin has had a bit of a tantrum and was in desperate need of a refresh. These products have help to hydrate my dry skin and have all made a visible difference to it since I started using them. They’re also all affordable and cruelty free. Perfect.
The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser^*: This gel-balm hybrid is gentle enough to not aggrevate my skin whilst also removing all of my makeup. I find it’s quite a stiff balm but once it’s warmed between your fingers a little goes a long way and you don’t need to tug on your skin as you massage it in. It removes any remaining eye makeup (I remove the majority with a micellar water and recyclable pad first) and dissolves foundation and everything else. It emulsifies on the skin with a little warm water and comes away easily with a flannel. The inclusion of squalane (it’s the number 1 ingredient listed on the back) means that it’s still hydrating on the skin and doesn’t leave it feeling at all stripped. Yes, you wash a cleanser off but I still prefer them to leave my skin feeling soft rather than stripped. Every little helps.
The Ordinary Retinol 0.2% in Squalane^*: This is the first time I have dipped my toe into the retinol water and I’ve been pleased with this so far. It’s a good entry level as it’s it’s a low strength and although they now offer a less reactive product I knew I wanted to be very gentle with my sensitive skin. Although they say it can cause moderate irritation I haven’t had any issues other than when I tried to use it twice in one week at the start, there was a very little bit of dryness around my nose. I now use it once a week in the evening after cleansing and don’t apply anything else to my skin. I’d be lying if I said I woke up the next day with a whole new face and not a single fine line or black head. Of course I don’t. But I have noticed that when I get a spot the scaring doesn’t linger around quite as long, my skin looks a little brigther the next day and overall it’s a nice entry point to retinol. Over time I plan to step it up to twice a week before graduating onto a stronger formula when my skin is ready. But for now, I’d rather be cautious.
The Inkey List Ployglutamic Acid*: This product had me the second I saw the signage in Boots that said “4 times more hydrating than hyaluronic acid”. This was made for me. It’s by far the skincare product that I’ve seen the most rapid difference in my skin when using. It glides on and leaves skin feeling soft, hydrated and comforted, but it also keeps my skin feeling hydrated. All day long my skin feels that bit softer and over the past few weeks I’ve noticed a really positive change. My skin looks that bit more radiant and it’s even had a bit of an impact on my forehead wrinkle. (That’s nothing short of a miracle). It’s still there but it’s not as pronounced for sure, and the other fine lines and general dehydration that had started to appear around it have eased too. I use it every morning and evening without fail, it sits beautifully under makeup and also works well on top of and underneath the rest of my skincare routine.
