Skincare After 30: The ULTIMATE Skincare Routine for Glowing Skin

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My journey with my skin has been a bumpy road ever since my teenage years. Lately, I’ve noticed some major differences in my skin and have found a routine that’s really working for me. Enter: Skincare after 30.

Skincare has always been something I’ve put a lot of time, attention, and money into, but not something I had necessarily mastered.

I had acne when I was a teenager, and my mom (bless her soul) poured a lot of her time and money into trying to help me find a routine and products that would help my skin.

I got facials as a teenager (not exactly relaxing ones—more like kinda painful extraction-focused ones) that helped, tried some prescription creams (but stayed away from Accutane, thankfully) that also somewhat helped, and then my acne started to calm down a bit.

But then college hit and oh, hello hormonal, cystic acne that popped up once a month and was a whole new ball game!

While I’m not a doctor, and from what I’ve read online most doctors would deny this, I truly think it was my copper IUD that caused a lot of this hormonal acne. I found so many online forums where women started to experience cystic acne after getting their copper IUD.

I switched to a Mirena IUD a couple of years ago and immediately noticed a difference with far less hormonal, cystic acne. So that’s my experience and my two cents on that!

Anyways, now that you’ve had a brief history of my skin woes, let’s fast forward to now, skincare after 30.

Over the last few years, I noticed I was getting more dry skin patches, whereas before my skin was so oily and I was constantly trying to dry it out. Now, I’m all about hydration for my skin.

I went to a facialist who used a skin moisture analyzer tool to check my skin’s hydration and oil levels. Btw, you can get one of these tools on Amazon for $20!

It’s so great for keeping tabs on your skin and having actual numbers to see if your products are helping to hydrate your skin.

When I first had my skin analyzed, we found that my skin was very dehydrated, and actually could use more oil! I was definitely surprised since I had been used to overly oily skin my whole life.

After that, I started experimenting with different products to really hydrate and nourish my skin. Below is my current skincare routine, and after using these skincare products for a few months, I went back to my facialist and my skin’s hydration and oil levels are now in the healthy range!

Skincare After 30

Morning Skin Care Routine

I used to wash my face both morning and night, but after listening to a TSC Him & Her podcast interview with Chriselle Lim, I learned she only cleanses at night and just uses water on her face in the mornings, so she doesn’t strip her skin of its natural oils.

I decided to give this a try and was honestly scared it would make me break out, but I’ve been loving it! No breakouts and I do think it helps to not over-cleanse your skin.

So in the morning, I start by just gently wiping a wet washcloth over my face.

Tatcha Essence:

First up, I use my Tatcha Essence. I am obsessed with this stuff. If you’re not familiar with essence, it’s a beauty must-have in Asia, and it works to plump and soften the skin while making all your other skincare products work better.

Tatcha’s Essence helps produce lactic acid, helping increase cell turnover which promotes better skin texture. And it double’s your skin’s natural moisture content, softening and plumping fine lines and wrinkles.

Since your skin is hydrated from the essence, it creates a pathway to deliver the rest of your skincare products more deeply, which amplifies their effectiveness.

If you’re spending money on products to take care of your skin, but you’re not using essence, you’re not getting your money’s worth out of the rest of your products!

Drunk Elephant B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum and C-Firma Day Serum:

Next, I apply two of my favorite Drunk Elephant serums.

Again, thanks to TSC’s podcast interview, I learned from their founder Tiffany that their products are designed so that you don’t have to worry about layering and which one goes on first—you can literally apply a pump of all of them on your hand, mix them together, and apply.

The B-Hydra Serum is super-hydrating to help replenish and brighten skin and holds moisture to the skin throughout the day.

And the C-Firma Day Serum is packed with antioxidants, essential nutrients, and fruit enzymes that work together to firm and brighten the skin, reducing the appearance of brown spots and wrinkles.

StriVectin Advanced Plus Intensive Moisturizing Concentrate For Wrinkles & Stretch Marks and Advanced Tightening Neck Cream PLUS:

I then take care of my neck. Honestly, neck skin wasn’t something I really thought much of until I neared my 30’s and thought ummm, excuse me, what are these lines on my neck??

I’ve been using StriVectin’s Moisturizing Concentrate which helps reduce fine lines and wrinkles, and their Tightening Neck Cream which helps to tighten, lift and firm while smoothing horizontal necklines.

I get bot of these from Ulta and I’ve been really liking this combo—I feel like it’s a one-two punch!

It Cosmetics Confidence in an Eye Cream:

Can’t forget about the eyes! I was researching eye creams and this one from It Cosmetics kept coming up as a best-seller.

The cream brightens and color corrects, making you look more awake, but it also helps reduce puffiness, dark circles, and fine lines.

Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide Cream:

I use Drunk Elephant’s Polypeptide Cream as my daytime moisturizer. I love that it keeps my skin feeling moisturized throughout the day, while also being light on my skin.

Night Time Skin Care Routine

My nighttime routine looks a little different than in the morning. First, I always take off my makeup (duh) and cleanse with Biossance Squalane + Antioxidant Cleansing Oil.

It’s been my favorite for melting makeup right off, while not stripping my skin. I love that the key ingredients in this cleanser are natural and it’s cruelty-free.

I use it with these microfiber washcloths that are amazing for taking makeup off, and this combo is incredible for cleansing your skin, no matter what your skin type is.

After my skin is cleansed I’ll once again use my Tatcha Essence to make sure the rest of my nighttime products are properly absorbed.

Drunk Elephant TLC Sukari Babyfacial and TLC Glycolic Night Serum:

Back when my skin was super active, I used to exfoliate every night. Now that my skin has calmed down a bit, I only exfoliate once or twice a week, using Drunk Elephant’s Babyfacial.

With 25% AHA and 2% BHA and several different acids (glycolic, lactic, citric, and salicylic), this product really efficiently exfoliates and gets rid of dead skin cells.

I loooove this one! On nights when I’m not using Babyfacial, I’ll use Drunk Elephant’s Glycolic Serum, which has 12% AHA/BHA and helps to refine and resurface skin for a smoother complexion.

It also enhances the performance of your other products by clearing away dead skin cells for max absorption—there’s nothing better than an effective antioxidant serum.

Algenist Genius Liquid Collagen:

Algenist’s Liquid Collagen is rich in omegas and vitamin E, and helps enhance your skin’s bounce and resiliency.

I slather this all over my face and my neck at night—it works amazingly on sensitive skin and boosts collagen production.

Tatcha Dewy Skin Cream:

Gah, this is one of my favs! I just recently ran out of my Dewy Skin Cream and had literally wiped the inside of the jar dry.

It is soooo hydrating, and I use this as my night cream as I find it to be a little too heavy and rich for daytime when I might be wearing makeup.

Tatcha’s Dewy Skin Cream has a blend of Okinawa algae and hyaluronic acid to help capture water and replenish your skin’s natural moisture reservoir.

When I use this overnight, the result is plumped, nourished, and soft skin when I wake up in the morning.

Drunk Elephant Marula Face Oil:

At night, after my Dewy Skin Cream, I like to seal the deal with a good face oil, to really rehab my skin overnight.

Drunk Elephant’s Marula Oil is high in antioxidants and rich in omegas, which help to moisturize and rejuvenate your skin.

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This is my current skincare after 30 routine! I hope you found these skin care tips and skin care products helpful.

The only other thing I’ll add is that I’m looking for a fab retinol product to add into the mix. This year after working with Epi Center Med Spa (more to come on all my skin treatments with them, but if you’re in the Bay Area get $50 off by mentioning I referred you!), I’ve learned that retinol is on every expert’s skincare tips list.

It’s definitely the most powerful ingredient for anti-aging and glowing, healthy skin. I’ve been using prescription Retin-A during my treatments with Epi Center MedSpa, but as my treatments wrap up I’ll be checking out other retinol product options that don’t require a prescription and are a little gentler on the skin.

If you have any fav retinol products, please let me know!

I do get quarterly facials as part of my skincare routine too. I definitely think it’s worth the investment to have a professional give your skin some love and promote skin cell turnover to remove dead skin.

Looking for more beauty/skincare tips? Find them here!

GloPro Review: Why You Need to Start Microneedling at Home
Best Tatcha Products to Add to Your Skincare Routine
Rodan & Fields Intensive Renewing Serum + Active Hydration Serum Review
Dermapore Review
Why You Need to Shave Your Face: How to Dermaplane at Home

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