Skincare routine help?

Ireland..

Hey all,

as the title says I'm looking for some help with creating a skin care routine.
Truth be told I haven't really been looking after my skin the way I should.

I would like to start now as I figure it's better late than never, I'm 28 years old.
If anyone could advise me in as much detail as possible that would be appreciated as I'm not sure of were to even begin.
I'm mainly concerned about the skin on my face as I seem to be getting some blackheads :eek: but I'd love to learn how to start from scratch with regards to looking after my skin. Also if anyone would like to recommend some products that would be great to.

Thanks

Jack Skellington

Sorry don't know anything about products but from scratch...do you drink a lot of water? Just seeing as you didn't mention it might be good to start drinking more, also is your diet as good as it could be?

we'llallhavetea

really depends on how much money you would like to spend. i would recommend elemis pro radiance cleanser and a suitable moisturiser from the same brand. toner is not needed with that specific cleanser as you remove it with a hot wet facecloth. skin feels amazing aftewards. they may have a men specific cleanser, i'm not sure, they are sold on timetospa.co.uk

Morf

You should drink as much water to quench your thirst.

Drinking large volumes of water every day just puts more strain on your renal system.

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/womenshealth/features/watermyth.htm

Paully D

It's difficult to give you a step-by-step guide as what works for one mans skin won't work for the next. Generally you'll need to try a few things and then hit on something that works for you.

Personally what works for me is giving my face a good cleanse every morning and night with warm water and then applying E45 Cream to it.

I used plenty of other products and most made me itchy and/or annoyed my skin so I finally hit on the above after some trying.

Diet has been mentioned and I also find that to have a big impact on me. For example, if I go on a weekend of beer and eating crap then by Monday morning my skin is very irritated. After a few days of my proper diet and following my skincare routine I'm back to normal again.

My advice would be to go out and purchase a few different moisturisers and see which one feels best for you. You'll eventually find one that you really like and suits your skin.

hfallada

Morf wrote: »

You should drink as much water to quench your thirst.

Drinking large volumes of water every day just puts more strain on your renal system.

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/womenshealth/features/watermyth.htm

I call BS on that article. Your body can process a several liters of water with zero issues. I know I can drink 3/4 liters a day and still be mildly dehydrated. If you feel thirst you are dehydrated.

OP try something like Cetaphil facial wash. Its fairly cheap and very good. Most American and Canadian dermatologist recommend it. Its only for sale in Ireland in the last few years. It was something from friends always brought back from the US.

Palmers Mens moisturizer is incredible. Its not overly scented, its cheap and isnt greasy at all.

Professey Chin

Drink lots of water, a good face wash and a good moisturiser.
Best face wash I've used on a while is the Loreal Pure Power charcoal wash. It actually leaves your face squeaking. No idea how it would go with more sensitive skin.

joeguevara

I live in the American Gardens Building on W. 81st Street on the 11th floor. My name is Patrick Bateman. I'm 27 years old. I believe in taking care of myself and a balanced diet and rigorous exercise routine. In the morning if my face is a little puffy I'll put on an ice pack while doing stomach crunches. I can do 1000 now. After I remove the ice pack I use a deep pore cleanser lotion. In the shower I use a water activated gel cleanser, then a honey almond body scrub, and on the face an exfoliating gel scrub. Then I apply an herb-mint facial mask which I leave on for 10 minutes while I prepare the rest of my routine. I always use an after shave lotion with little or no alcohol, because alcohol dries your face out and makes you look older. Then moisturizer, then an anti-aging eye balm followed by a final moisturizing protective lotion.

um7y1h83ge06nx

The best thing I ever did for my skin was a proper shave routine. I got rid of my Mach 3 and started to use a double edged razor with some good shave soap.

The doubled edged razor is a lot kinder to my skin with no razor burn. And a proper shave soap or cream (I use Mitchell's wool fat soap) makes a huge difference too. Closer shave and better skin.

Check the Facial Hairs and Hats forum for more info.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=1103

seachto7

I sometimes get spots on my chest or below my belt line. The odd time after running.
Because there are lots of hair follicles, and it's a sensitive area, I find it very hard to get the spot to clear up for ages.

It's like all the little hair follicles block up together, and you almost have to pop them yourself.

I got a spot once in the nether regions, and it took ages to heal, but I had to pop it in the end.

If there was a scrub or cleaning pad you could recommend for this, would be appreciated?

Ireland..

cheers guys, I'll have a proper look over your answers and reply later

Dingle_berry

Go to a professional. They will look at your diet and lifestyle as well as what you put on your skin. Then tell you how you can get the best out of your skin. I went to skin essentials by Mariga, think she also does online consults.

Pug160

It's hard to really give any specific advice, as what works for one person may not work for another. There are different skin types so it can be a case of trial and error. I got a man's face wash kit as a Christmas present and used it on a recent weekend break. It wasn't one of the cheap ones, so when my face turned bright red I was wondering why. When I looked at some of the ingredients on the back I saw that benzyl alcohol was in it. My first reaction was why would they put alcohol in a facial product - it seems counterproductive. I did a bit of research and found out that there are actually good types of alcohol and bad types. The good types are fatty alcohols and might actually be beneficial. I haven't written down the list of good and bad but it is easy enough to find if you Google it. But definitely avoid benzyl alcohol if you have sensitive skin.

Ireland..

thanks for all the replies guys.. I've taken your answers on board and I'm much more in the know now than I had been

yabadabado

What would ye recommend as a good everyday moisturiser ?
I shave my head 2 or 3 times a week ,so also put moisturiser on that.Looking for a good product that isn't too expensive .

Jimmy Iovine

yabadabado wrote: »

What would ye recommend as a good everyday moisturiser ?
I shave my head 2 or 3 times a week ,so also put moisturiser on that.Looking for a good product that isn't too expensive .

Simple

Wibbs

Avoid/protect yourself against the sun would be much of it. UV exposure ages your skin the most and science backs that up. Plus there's a reason the term "Black don't crack" has legs. Dark skinned folks have a built in sunblock from birth and more sebum production. Asian folks have similar(though they're light skinned in general, their light skin is borne of a different set of gene adaptations to Europeans).

Just speaking personally here, but as a toddler I got sunstroke and my parents were so freaked out about it that from then on I associate the summer with the smell of zinc based suncream.

And because I grew up with that I did tend to avoid the sun like a paranoid vampire as a general thing. That said, now at 48 even after decades of smoking, stress, drinking, a so so diet, not really exercising etc, I have pretty much zero wrinkles on my face, no crows feet, forehead lines or any of that, so IMH there's a helluva lot to the sun thing.

If you're of a pale European background. If you happen to be reading this and you're a lad or ladess of African extraction you can safely ignore this. You bastards. Have you seen Denzil(I'm a few months away from sixty so fcuk you) Washington recently. Like I say, you bastards.

Remmy

A few things really helped my skin. Shaving everyday with a safety razor.Drinking a feck load of water. Using a good facewash. The most important imo is not constantly touching your face throughout the day.

Pug160

Look for products with salicylic acid in them and topical vitamin c. I've noticed a difference after using them. I use a cotton pad when applying the vitamin c lotion. I also use a bio serum. UV protection is important too. I'm only inclined to use it when the sun is out but in reality it should be used more often.

Wibbs

Pug160 wrote: »

I'm only inclined to use it when the sun is out but in reality it should be used more often.

The sun in or out may not be a good indicator. I'm saying this from a really weird angle, so bear with... I've got some wristwatches with luminous dials and the lume material gets charged by light, specifically UV which really charges it up. Annnyhoo I've been surprised that on some overcast grey days in November or whenever I'd often come indoors into a darker environment and the watch dial is glowing like Chernobyl and on some sunny days it may not charge up nearly as much. Like I say surprising. It seems quite the bit of UV may be coming through on cloudy days.