Effective skincare routines for less
I’ve tried my best to think of an effective skincare routine that would be also affordable. This is just a post to help out and give you some ideas. These are some of the things I did/learned from living in poverty.
-A short one-product routine: The least you can do to maintain healthy skin is cleansing and moisturizing. For this combined you could use just one product: safflower oil. it’s the most affordable I could find; 16 ounces for $7 on amazon (for scale, 30ml lasted me for 2 months to moisturise with) It contains omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, vitamin E, and a high concentration of linoleic acid. Making it very beneficial for the skin. You can oil cleanse with it, oil cleansing will remove all your makeup and has a slight exfoliating effect, removing some dead skin and hardened sebum. I prefer oil cleansing over a regular cleanser because it doesnt strip your moisture barrier as most inexpensive cleansers will. Safflower oil is also a good moisturiser as it absorbs quickly, NOT leaving you with a greasy face. Thats why its also suitable for oily skin and acne prone skin as it has the comedogenic rating of 0!!
Other oils good for this but more expensive: Argan and hempseed.
-Vaseline: If you have dry patches this could save your life. Vaseline acts like a piece of foil over your skin, put in on after moisturizing to prevent the moisture from leaving. Its especially beneficial when living in harsh temperatures. -
-Toner: Green tea ($2 for a box of 24 tea bags) is good at combating acne and soothing redness as a toner. I havent found spot on scientific evidence for this but theres plenty anectodal evidence. Using it on a cottonpad will also give you an exfoliating effect. Its very rich in antioxidants, thats why you should be drinking it as well. Its found that drinking GT can also reduce inflammation. It also appears to balance hormones, whose imbalance causes acne. And balances out or lowers insulin levels.
-Acne treatments: Acne has many different causes and finding something that works for you might be a chore. These are just a few things that may help.
Many people have had great results using neem oil (6oz 7$) to combat (cystic) acne. Just be careful; it smells bad, but its an effective spot treatment and a good substitute for tea tree oil which is more expensive. As research studies have shown neem oil effectively controls the harmful bacteria that cause the infection and reduces inflammation.
Benzoyl peroxide 2.5%/5% 100ml for $3 Benzoyl peroxide has been the most effective acne treatment for me personally. if you struggle mainly with closed comedones and zits this is the treatment to get. Start with 2.5% as its a strong treatment. Apply it at night on areas where you break out.
-More moisturisers: CeraVe PM is a cult favorite, its $13 dollars though and there are cheaper alternatives. I love to use argan oil (100 ml for $10) as a nighttime (and sometimes daytime) moisturiser, it leaves the skin smooth, soft and healthy. It has the comedogenicy rate of 0 too so its suitable for my acne prone skin. Its rich in fatty acids, antioxidants and vitamin E, making it a great anti aging product. Its not greasy and absorbs very quickly, giving you a healthy glow. Hempseed oil (24 oz for $16) would be more suitable for oily skin as it dries more than argan oil and has the same benefits. Studies have shown that hemp seed oil can dramatically decrease skin dryness and soothe itching and irritation. Both of these oils last long as hell as ive used up 50ml bottles of both in 5 months, with every day use.
-Exfoliants: For inexpensive exfoliation you tend to reach out to physical exfoliants, neglecting the fact that they cause more irritation and acne by micro tears. As an exfoliant I reccomend The Ordinary 5% Lactic Acid ($8) for a gentle exfoliantion. It gets you rid of blackheads and often also acne, fades acne scarring and gives you smooth skin and even skintone. This is pricier than other products on this list, but its much better than physical exfoliants, and its the cheapest out there probably. The Ordinary makes other inexpensive AMAZING products worth checking out.
-Body Care: Shea butter (16 oz 10$) and coconut oil (500 ml 6$) for me, work better than any other body butters I’ve ever tried. Dont use coconut oil on the face as its very pore clogging, but suitable for the body. I love to oil cleanse with CO sometimes and regularly moisturise my body with shea butter.
-Masks: Putting honey (500 ml $5) on your face as a mask can give you great effects, as its softening, anti inflammatory and locks moisture into the skin. Green Clay (400gr $3) is my favourite clay mask, gives immediate results and visibly makes my pores smaller. Extracts excess sebum from the pores.
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