After years of finessing her routine, these are the eight products beauty editor Lucy Partington uses morning and night.
The nature of my job means I get a lot of questions about skincare routine, whether it’s via Instagram DMs, on email or face-to-face.
It’s not just from people I know – my family and friends –but it’s also people who read my work, strangers on the internet and even ex-Tinder dates, who have quiz me for product recommendations, or more specifically, what my routine entails.
While I’ve written about the time I went to see a dermatologist, rounded up my favourite featherweight SPFs and waxed lyrical about the best Vitamin C serums, I’ve never actually written – in detail – what products I personally use on the reg, in what order and how much.
So, as of today (Friday, 11 October 2019), here is every single thing that is in my current AM and PM skincare routines.
However, I need to stress that just because it works for me doesn’t mean it’ll work for everybody. I’ve also tweaked various elements over the years, added in different ingredients and taken things away, swapped and changed bits that didn’t work or that I didn’t notice a difference with.
But right now, this is where I’m at. Here goes nothing.
A beauty editor’s morning skincare routine
Bioderma Hydrabio H20 Micellar Water
This is probably the laziest part of my routine and I probably shouldn’t admit it, but I don’t wash my face properly in the morning. Instead, I soak a cotton pad or two in micellar water and swipe it around my face – which also helps wake me up a bit. I’m not that fussy when it comes to the micellar water I use. Bioderma is great but I often keep a back-up bottle of Garnier’s so I don’t run out.
Bioderma Hydrabio H20 Micellar Water, £10.80
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Medik8 Clarity Peptides
This is a fairly new addition and I use it as the first step in my routine. It’s a water-light serum packed with niacinamide to help soothe redness and zinc to help tackle blemishes. It also works as a hydration booster meaning I can skip hyaluronic acid.
Medik8 Clarity Peptides, £40
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Medik8 Super C30
Vitamin C is one of three scientifically proven ingredients that I always harp on about. I won’t leave my house without applying it – not only does it help to brighten and even out skin, but it acts as an antioxidant and protects against environmental damage, free radicals and pollution. It’s one of the most important steps in any routine, especially if you live in a city. I apply one pipette-full and smooth it over my face, leaving it to absorb for around five minutes. I love that the formula isn’t sticky and doesn’t leave my face feeling like it’s got a film over it.
Medik8 Super C30, £44
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Glossier Invisible Shield
Alongside vitamin C, SPF is another one of the three scientifically proven products (the third is retinol). It’s also the other thing that I refuse to leave the house without. This, from Glossier, quickly became a firm favourite because it’s a truly invisible formula. It’s also not greasy, doesn’t make me break out and it sits perfectly well under foundation. I use four pumps over my whole face and wait a few minutes before I apply foundation.
Glossier Invisible Shield, £20
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A beauty editor’s night time skincare routine
Bioderma Hydrabio H20 Micellar Water
I use micellar water again when I get home from work to get rid of any surface level grime and pollution. I also find it really helps to loosen make-up, and while it doesn’t get rid of every scrap by any stretch, it definitely makes mascara a whole lot easier to remove when I go to properly wash my face.
Bioderma Hydrabio H20 Micellar Water, £10.80
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La Roche-Posay Foaming Cleanser Gel
I don’t tend to be that precious about cleanser – I usually opt for something suitable for sensitive skin because they’re gentler. I really love CeraVe’s SA Cleanser, £12, and I’ve also been using Caudalie’s Vinopure Purifying Gel Cleanser, £16, which is great too. At the minute I’m using this one from La Roche-Posay and I really like it. It doesn’t foam too much, it’s more of a creamy lather, and I find a little bit goes a long way. Plus it’s soap-free so it won’t ever leave my skin feeling too dry or too tight.
La Roche-Posay Foaming Cleanser Gel, £12.50Buy now
MZ Skin Cleanse & Clarify Dual Action AHA Cleanser & Mask, £58
Then the third (!) cleanser I use a couple of times a week is this one – I’ll switch between leaving it on for a few minutes and washing it off straight away. It’s another fairly new addition and is more expensive than the sort of thing I’d usually go for, but I really like it and I’ve noticed a difference in my skin. It’s enriched with a blend of AHAs and fruit enzymes that help to slough away any dead skin and helps to even out and smooth skin but doesn’t irritate it in the process.
MZ Skin Cleanse & Clarify Dual Action AHA Cleanser & Mask, £58
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Medik8 Clarity Peptides
Once I know my face is properly clean, I then apply Clarity Peptides again for the same reasons as I do in the morning. It also acts as a buffer between my skin and the active ingredients that I apply afterwards just to make sure it doesn’t get too dry, and it helps to avoid any potential irritation, too.
Medik8 Clarity Peptides, £40
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Finacea 15% Gel
Granted this isn’t the most aesthetically pleasing of products, but it’s arguably the most effective. It’s the only real active ingredient I use every day; I’ve written before about being prescribed azelaic acid following a dermatologist’s appointment and there’s a product called Skinoren that I usually use. However, due to a nationwide shortage of that I’ve recently switched to Finacea that I buy myself from The Independent Pharmacy and I really like it. I’m noticing the same results as I do with Skinoren – less blemishes, redness seems to be under control – and the creamy, gel formula is really nice to apply. I apply a 10p-sized dollop and smooth it all over my face and neck as the final step in my routine and then that’s it – I’m done.
Finacea 15% Gel, £20.99
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Images: courtesy of brands
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