The Ordinary Discussion

Tannygirl - I tried using the EUK in the morning with my niacinamide and zinc but it made my skin waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyy too shiny so now I just use the EUK with my primer and sunscreen before applying my mineral foundation.

I like the texture of the EUK (do not use more than a drop for cheeks and chin) and I like how my mineral foundation sits on it but around midday my skin looks rather shiny/oily so I blot and it looks nice again for almost the rest of the day/evening.

I'm really not sure if I will keep using this but it will take me a long while to use up so I have plenty of time to decide.  As for noticing it doing anything, I don't notice any changes at all but like I said, it feels nice on the skin and helps tame redness for the day.  I think I'd rather use it at night but I just don't know how I would fit it in since that is when I use my Vitamin C and Acids.

The MAP is beautiful and I really enjoy using that with the Resvertrol and Ferulic Acid (this one can be a little irritating to skin so one drop mixed in with any of your Vitamin C's is plenty) but I also really like both Vitamin C Suspensions so I end up alternating a lot during the week.  It all depends on what I feel my skin can handle.

Currently I'm trying the Marula oil and it's nice but I think the Rosehip Seed Oil is better.

   I have the Resvertrol + Ferulic Acid too, I want to try it with the different vitamin C products. I have both the suspensions. I want to try using them in the morning but I heard they are really strong and burn so I may have to use them at night. 

   I currently do the routine for hyperpigmentation in the morning - Niacinamide, spot treatment of Alpha Arbutin and MAP all over. Really good at keeping my skin from getting really oily in this warm weather. I really am liking how smooth and radiant my skin looks after applying MAP. The only downside is because of the high silicone content, the fact you have to apply it after water based treatments and I don't know how well facial oils will absorb if I layer them on top, in cooler weather it might not be moisturing enough. But it's a great product for summer. 

    I've heard that EUK can be added to moisturizers and stuff. I heard someone even added a whole bottle into their jumbo sized to their body lotion. The downside is it's supposed to work really well with antioxidants and it doesn't pair well with the Vitamin C suspensions. 

You could probably get away with using the Vitamin C 30% in Silicone as a primer.  It doesn't sting anywhere near as much as the 23% nor as shiny/oily.  I've never used it like that myself though so I couldn't tell you how it would last throughout the day.

Put little dots around your face and blend them in, it's quite spreadable that way.

I'm actually not adverse to the silicone in these products.  I thought I would be but no, my skin seems quite happy with it.

Have you tried the Azelaic Acid?  That's really nice to finish your night time routine off.

Mix your facial oil in with your MAP and apply them together, see how you go.

You're right, you can't use EUK with AHA/BHA or Vitamin C (MAP should be fine though) so that leaves only mornings for me :(.
 

  Interesting about the Vitamin C in silicone version. I've heard of some people using the 23% suspension as a mask because it was so strong so they just had it on for about half an hour. 

  I have been using the Azelaic Acid I started alternating between it and the Retinoid 2% during winter. It dried out my skin so much and you can't apply moisturizer or on top because it just balls up and you can't apply anything that has oil on underneath because it balls up too. The trick is to use a hydrating mask before applying it, I would use a rinse off one before my toner and the water based treatments and then apply this one once everything absorbed. What worked the best was to use a sheet mask before the water based treatments because that would infuse my skin with the most moisture before the Azelaic Acid would dry it out. 

   It terms of benefits I haven't seen this do more for my skin than the Retinoid, in fact I got this because I wanted to get rid of roscea and all the wonderful things this claims to do. But other than really dry my skin out I haven't seen this do much. Plus when my skin is a bit more sensitive from exfoliation the Retinoid emulsion is so gentle I can still use it but this dries out my skin more and I can't use any nourishing oils with this. I have one more tube of this which I'm going to use up over the summer but not repurchase. 

  

That's really interesting!  I usually use the Azelaic Acid last in my routine and had no problem with it balling up.  I also layer so I don't let anything sink in before applying the next step.

My routine goes something like this:
Re:Pigment
Either Retin A, Differin, or 5% Retinoid
Lactic Acid (most nights)
MAP or Vitamin C Suspension 23% or 30% with Reservatrol & Ferulic Acid
Paulas Choice Moisturiser mixed with a drop of Buffet, Squalane, Niacinamide (if using MAP) and either Rose Hip Oil or Marula Oil
Azelaic Acid

The AA gives it a beautiful finish as I hate shiny, oily looking night time skin care.

I mix and match as needed and oddly my skin has not rebelled against this.  It might flake and dry out a bit if I don't give it a rest from the Retin A, Differin and 5% Retinoid so I alternate a lot in and out.

   I see I'm not the only one using more than 3 of the Ordinary treatments in my routine. Good to know you can use the retinoid and vitamin C suspensions on the same night. I never thought of really coctailing products together in my routine. I added a bit of rosehip to MAP yesterday and it felt a bit heavier when I applied it but when down dry to touch. I'll try that again in the cooler weather. 
   The AA not only dries out my skin but I have to use an oil cleanser to get it off the next day because otherwise if I just use my cream cleanser I feel like there's some pills or balls of the AA on my face left behind when I'm layering on my morning skincare routine. 
    How are you finding the Lactic Acid? I want to try it at some point but I already do maks/peels with acids in them twice a week and use the Glycolic toning solution maybe once or twice a week. I really love the glycolic toner it takes a few uses but after that you really notice your skin a bit smoother and pores just a tad less problematic. I think that it's one of those products that would smooth things out to a point and then just after a while the improvement plateus. But it's nice to use sometimes. 
    I use chemical exfoliants like two-three times a week so I have to be careful not get over ethusiastic about the glow I get from using them and pick ones that are gentle.

I love the Lactic Acid.  It doesn't irritate my skin and is very gentle.  I have the 5% (which I use almost every evening) and the 10% which I will use once or twice a week depending on whether my skin is flaking or not (keep in mind that I have oily skin).  

I used just the AA last night after the 5% Lactic Acid and loved the way my skin looked this morning.  I might do this more often.

I read on Victoria Health that AA is great for fading acne scars following it up with a drop or two of Rosehip Seed Oil but it does take a long time of around 4 months use.  You can read the article here.

I have the Glycolic Acid but that broke me out so I stopped using it.  Perhaps I should try again and use it in the mornings only.

Oh so many toys to play with :).

   That sounds really good. I might try the Lactic Acid 5% sometime. The Alpha Arbutin does a really good job of fading the new acne scars. It doesn't seem to anything for the old ones but if I apply it on the soon after the new breakout is in remission or nearly finished it fades it within a few weeks. It also lightens the darker spots of pigmentation on my face slightly. The funny thing is I have heaps of tan blotches of hyperpigmentation and I keep dotting Alpha Arbutin on them twice a day and they don't budge or lighten one bit. I guess at least they don't get darker.  

I received an email from The Ordinary today saying they were reducing the prices of their L-Ascorbic products from their NIOD and Hylamide ranges.  Intrigued I went to Victoria Health to see if they had reduced their prices and came across this article about Brandon and how The Ordinary came into being, very interesting reading.

At the end of the article they mention a couple of other companies that have started up to push the boundaries of the more expensive lines and I just wanted to know if any of you guys had come across them yourselves.  They are both UK sites:

Beauty Pie - a monthly subscription allows you to buy their brand of high quality make up at less than $10 each.  

Trinny London - enables you to purchase stackable pots tailor made to your skin tone, eye and hair colouring etc.

With the Beauty Crew blog the other day wishing there were items we could get here, I wondered if anyone knew these two existed (Trinny ships worldwide).

Wow thanks so much for sharing. I haven't heard of either of those sites, so definitely will look into it.