I don't spend a lot of time in the mirror. Those happen in my younger days. Now that I'm a full-time mom and working part-time as a software automation engineer, my daily to-dos seem to grow like yeast: housework, parenting, career, sometimes writing/blogging, exercise.
One day, I noticed the fine lines on my forehead. Concern sprang up. In 2020, I've shared my skincare regimen for winter. Post here. Obviously, it's not working. No problem. It only takes one quick Google search to fix my issue. That's how I've learned about The Ordinary.
According to one Youtuber, these are not beauty products but treatments. It's made of active ingredients, meaning it's formulated to address a specific skin concern. No fluff.
Say...
I have a problem with fine lines, then this Argireline Solution 10% would help with that.
Uneven skin tone and dark spots? Reach for the Alpha Arbutin 2% + HA.
You get the idea.
Sure, scheduling a facial treatment at a beauty salon would do the job. But I don't have the budget for it. And I'm deterred by a bad experience in the past.
Can you believe how gullible I was? I paid around $1500 USD -- that's a huge chunk of my savings as a single career woman living abroad -- for 10 or 20 sessions (The details blurred in memory). When I retracted and said, I don't want to use them all up, instead want a refund. They refused. Such a scam!
I didn't come back after that and only used up 1 session. They never returned my money. Now they're bankrupt, perhaps they've renamed their business to another to perpetuate their scamming.
Of course, not every beauty salons are like that. But better be careful.
However...
If there's a way to do it on your own, on a budget, why not?
These are what I got from Sephora for Mother's Day:
Buying them from Amazon is expensive. If you are interested in these, check out The Ordinary's website. If you have a Sephora account, get it from them to earn points. ;) That's where I got mine.
As a member, I get free products too. This time, I got free stuff from Drunk Elephant.
As of writing, there's no way for me to tell you how effective these products are since I haven't used them.
For reference, below are my current skin issues. No filter.
Not sure why the fine lines didn't show in the photo above, but it's there. So many things are going on in my face, I had a hard time naming some of them: dark spots, pimples, texture irregularities, congestion, fine lines, dull skin. >.<
***
The moisturizer I'm currently using is the Ultra Facial Moisturizing Cream with Squalene from Khiel's. Hydration is amazing, unfortunately, it's breaking me out -- which my skin doesn't normally do.
See the big one on my forehead, there's another one in my left temple, in my jaw, and mini ones on my chin area? Tsk. Not good.
Anyway, I have high hopes for The Ordinary products. I will write an update soon, so stay tuned.
Oh, before you jump ship with The Ordinary, make sure to do research. Some of these products conflict or cancel each other, so better be informed.
I love that these are super affordable. Heard they're effective too. No wonder the brand has a huge cult following.
Have you tried The Ordinary products? What's your favorite?