Skincare

publish Branched out of Body measurements. Related to Skincare logs (private).

New routine (circa ~2024-02-15)

I have combination skin type leaning oily btw. YMMV

This system is the perfect balance of effective and simple enough for me to stick to on a routine.

Morning

1. CeraVe foaming facial cleanser
2. Skin Aqua UV super moisture gel sunscreen

That provides enough moisture for the day. The sunscreen works as lotion for me and I like how it dries light and airy.

Evening

1. CeraVe foaming facial cleanser again
2. (Optional, only do this as needed like once per 2 months) The Ordinary Peeling Solution 30% AHA + 2% BHA
3. Haruharu black rice hyaluronic acid toner
4. Facial lotion of some kind. I use a green tea gel moisturizer - emphasis on the “gel” because my oily combination skin reacts better to alcohol-based products. I used the ordinary natural moisturizing factors for a while and swapped to a green tea facial moisturizer that was cheaper and scentless.

Misc notes

• I (update: used to!) keep an extra CeraVe hydrating facial cleanser around so that when I’m feeling lazy I’ll replace the foaming cleanser with the hydrating cleanser for dry skin types. Then I will skip moisturizing because that cleanser basically doubles as lotion.
  • Update from late Feb/early March: this is no longer needed (and actually strictly worse than my new solution) because I discovered a gel moisturizer. I just use the foaming cleanser for oily skin now and moisturize via alcohol based lotion which my skin prefers.
• I also have that cute Korean scrub glove, the green and pink brand, to do physical exfoliation every once and a while in the shower. I’m really light with it. I use green for body and pink for face so the two don’t mix. More on this in the misc notes section.

Old routine below

Old routine (Morning)

1. Cleanse (CeraVe Foaming Facial Cleanser for Oily Skin)
2. Exfoliate (The Ordinary Peeling Solution 30% AHA + 2% BHA) - once per 1 or 2 weeks ONLY
3. Moisturize + sunscreen (Target’s Up&Up Oil-free Facial Moisturizer 15 SPF)

Old routine (Evening)

1. Cleanse (CeraVe)
2. Exfoliate (TO) - once per 1 or 2 weeks ONLY
3. Moisturize (The Ordinary Natural Moisturizing Factors HA)

Fun acronyms

• AHAs: Alpha Hydroxl Acids.
  • Used for exfoliating the top layer of your skin.
  • It basically chemical-burns off the top layer of dead skin on your face.
  • You feel dry afterwards.
  • Note: Wear AT LEAST SPF 30 sunscreen for 24hrs after using this. Your skin is a lot more fragile afterwards.
  • This is not great for people with sensitive skin.
  • Common acids: glycolic, lactic, mandelic.
• BHAs: Beta Hydroxl Acids.
  • Used for exfoliating deeper layers of your skin.
  • BHAs are salicylic acid-based, which is oil-soluble.
  • Being oil-soluble means BHAs can slip past the oils in your pores to get deeper into your skin, chemically dissolving dead cells and grime underneath your pores.
  • Sunscreen is still necessary.
  • You can use both AHA and BHA exfoliants at once but be careful. Chemical skin damage is bad.

Theories?

My skin might be dehydrated because I overwash it. If that’s true, the way to fix this is:

• No exfoliation.
• Gentle, low-pH cleansers.
• Pair a gentle, water-based hydrating toner or serum with a cream to lock in the moisture.

Misc notes

Other people add toners/serums between steps 2-3 in my routine. Toners/serums are additive chemicals that are effective at treating specific skin issues (e.g. uneven pigment discoloration, acne, etc.).

The sidebar on /r/skincareaddiction is incredibly helpful for getting a balanced picture of the products out there.

There’s this cute scrub glove thing that’s popular in Korea these days. It’s a cheap tool for physical exfoliation. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08GCHR39G/ref=sw_img_1?smid=A2ELKFD9U58CKY&psc=1

• Funny quote from /r/skincareaddiction: THE GREEN ITALY TOWEL CURED MY ANXIETY, WATERED MY CROPS, AND PAID OFF MY CREDIT CARD

Misc list of interesting reddit posts that have product recommendations:

• https://www.reddit.com/r/SkincareAddiction/comments/8oildo/ba_my_freckles_fading_from_2015_to_today_after/
• https://www.reddit.com/r/SkincareAddiction/comments/x4azkn/review_my_thoughts_on_every_the_ordinary_product/

39daph’s skincare video and routine doc.

Timeline updates

Moved to Skincare logs because it’s a tad private.