6 Products To Try Immediately If You’re Dry As A Husk But Also Get Acne
Can we all agree that breaking out from a wrinkle cream is some time-bending type of injustice?
by The Candidly Team
If you grew up with acne-prone skin, you probably had some nice adult tell you at some point that you were actually lucky. Because oily young ladies age much better than those porcelain-skinned, tiny pored girls who’d never seen an OXY pad in person.
But then, us oily girls grew up.
And we learned that despite the promises of aunts and aestheticians and articles in Seventeen Magazine, we went ahead and aged right along with everyone else. Fine lines. Loss of firmness. The whole shebang. Only, we get to do it with the added perks of gaping pores and post-40 pimples. Fun!
But before we resort to our same old high-school level of hopelessness, let us take a moment to appreciate that skincare has gotten sooooo much better since we were 17. Honestly, sort of magically so.
It’s possible to get all the deep, rich, hydrating, anti-aging benefits without the ensuing breakouts. We just have to know where to start.
So consider this the start to a powerful, buildable skincare routine for those of us who want to keep our skin bouncy, supple, and youthful without worrying we’re gonna need 3 kinds of concealer to cover the blemishes it creates.
And because we know building a routine can be overwhelming (*cough* expensive), we included both a budget and luxe option for all 6 products you need.
And here they are.
1. THE CLEANSER
Budget: La Roche-Posay Toleriane Purifying Foaming Face Wash for Oily Skin
It verges on impossible to find a face wash that makes our pores feel suctioned of impurities without also feeling like every ounce of moisture in our skin has been sucked up along with it. But this foamy cleanser leaves zero gunky residue behind while keeping our skin's natural moisture barrier and pH in tact with ingredients like pore-tightening niacinamide and restorative ceramide-3. So we feel squeaky clean but not stripped.
Price: $14
Luxe: iS Clinical Cleansing Complex
This cleanser is again one of few that deeply gets at grime and removes every inkling of makeup or ick from our day without making our face feel tight and dry and requiring of 72 creams and serums to restore hydration. If smoothed “glass skin” is your ultimate goal, starting with this cleanser is a wise decision.
Use the code CANDIDLY to get 15% off.
Price: $45
2. THE Toner
Budget: COSRX Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence
If you’re at all spooked by the term “snail mucin” we get it. But the power behind this magical substance is undeniable, and the brand is thankfully noted to be cruelty free. The formula enriches the skin, hydrates, repairs, and brightens, but it also elasticizes every inch of the way, so you’ll notice you suddenly look like a glowy, sort of “ironed out” version of yourself.
Price: $25
Luxe: SK-II Facial Treatment Essence
This treatment has somewhat of a cult-following for its youth-restoring sorcery. It’s made of 90% PITERA™, a formula made from yeast, which means nothing to us except that everything about it seems like it’s undoing damage and renewing the surface of our skin. It targets dark spots and redness, both of which us acne prone humans tend to suffer. Plus, it’s sooo hydrating, so we’re left simultaneously clear and quenched.
Price: $99
3. THE Serum
Budget: The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 Hydrating Serum
$9 for deep, deep, deep hyaluronic hydration. And we didn’t break out one bit when we tried it.
Price: $9
Luxe: SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic
We have written actual tributes to this serum, and you can see why in our own Editor-in-Chief’s before and after photo HERE. We’re just not sure we’ve ever achieved such a natural, lit-from-within glow that didn’t also make us look like a grease mop. Or make us break out into a million tiny blemishes. The hydration is on a whole other planetary level. And we know the price is not easy, but if there’s something to be splurged on on this list, it, make it this.
And as mentioned above, you can use our code CANDIDLY to, at least, get 15% off.
Price: $182
4. THE EXFOLIATOR
Budget: Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant
Just one use and you’ll witness a huge transformation in the texture of your skin. And with 2-3 uses weekly, you’ll watch your pores shrink and your skin smooth itself into the perfect surface for applying your most natural “no makeup makeup.”
Use the code CANDIDLY to get 15% off.
Price: $35
Luxe: Trinny London Find Your Balance BHA Exfoliant
It’s very obvious to us “mature” women when a brand is making something for mature skin. Trinny just gets that even those of us with fussy, congested skin in deep need of serious exfoliation also have to maintain its suppleness or we’re lost at sea (or more like the desert). Only use it at night before all your gloriously drenching moisturizers and serums, and you’ll be seeing a new skin in mere weeks. Plus, all the bottles are refillable which we love!
Price: $46
5. Moisturizer
Budget: La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer
Once again La Roche-Posay has nailed a highly protective, deeply restorative formula that we rely on to look like we’ve drunk the correct amount of water, eaten copious amounts of vegetables, and never once got a glimmer of sunburn since we were 16. It just exudes “health.”
Price: $23
Luxe: Skinfix Barrier+ Triple Lipid-Peptide Refillable Face Cream
If you’re serious about saturating your skin with max hydration and countering the harsh, stripping effects of anything else that touches it on a given day, this is the one, my friends. It’s brimming with lipids and peptides and hyaluronic acid and rich shea butter, and you can feel all of that instantly as it soaks into your skin, turning it into the bouncy elastic surface you once knew. It doesn’t leave any signs of sleek oiliness, and though we call it luxe, it costs 4x less than a lot of fancy formulas that did less for us. It also comes in an XL bottle so it lasts forever. And each pot has a convenient little top dispenser that just feels more sanitary to us than dipping our fingers in the cream itself, an enormous no-no for those of us prone to breakouts.
Price: $54 - $78
6. Night cream
Budget: CeraVe Skin Renewing Night Cream
Is it just us or does our night cream feel like the thing we most rely on to work some sort of magic on our skin? Maybe because it’s the last thing we apply before we drift to sleep, entrusting it to do its thing, and hoping for Benjamin Button results in the morning. Well, lo and behold, CeraVe is all about reversing signs of fatigue. It has a patented “technology” to slowly release its hydrating properties into our skin so we absorb it to our utmost capacity. It all sounds very science-y for a face cream, but looking better in the morning than when we went to bed is a concept we have to say we’re very much here for.
Price: $24
Luxe: The Outset Restorative Niacinamide Night Cream
We were as surprised as you are that we fell so deeply in love with the results of this cream, probably because any beauty product founded by Scarlett Johansson that doesn’t make us immediately look like Scarlett Johansson is bound to be a let down. But oof, was this NOT a let down. It’s made from 3 prime polishing ingredients: Hyaluroset™ Complex, a plumping botanical alternative to hyaluronic acid, niacinamide which illuminates us like nothing else, and bakuchiol, which steamrolls fine lines and wrinkles. The results are so satisfying, we can’t think of a single cynical thing to say about it. Instead, we’re showering it with praises left and right, recommending it to friends and gifting it to family over the holidays.
Price: $54
BONUS: The Extras
The Eye Cream: No need to splurge. THIS is just better.
The Face Balm: If you’re very serious about smooth glass skin that sets a near-poreless stage for your makeup, THIS is miraculous. And you can use the code CANDIDLY20 to get 20% off. Not sponsored. Just that good.
The Oil: If a ray of literal sunshine existed in serum form, THIS would be that serum.
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
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