When I last visited with my aesthetician, I asked her: “what are the most important things to do for my skin as a 42 year old?” With no hesitation, she replied: “Alternate every other night between a retinol and an exfoliating pad. And then use a red light therapy mask every day.” I had the mask down — I’ve been using this exact one for two years now, although I will admit that I fall into and out of the habit depending on how busy I am, which is absurd, because you can wear it while doing other things and — how can I not find 10 minutes in my day for this simple act of skincare? Anyway, when I am consistent with it, I really do notice a difference in overall skin tone, evenness, and clarity. Maybe a little less wrinkling around the eyes. But it does level up and even out your skin. (BTW, at time of writing this, CurrentBody has bumped up our Magpie community discount to 20% off! Use code JEN10 (yes, JEN10) for 20% off my red light therapy mask right now.)
Back to my aesthetician’s three recs: I’d given up on retinol after finding it dried out my skin horribly on each previous attempt, and I’d never known to exfoliate routinely?! I’d used a pad or scrub whenever I felt I needed it, but not with any routine in mind. I ended up ordering this retinol-squalane oil in the lowest concentration (0.2%) I could find. I’d read that starting with a really low concentration would help me build up up tolerance to the retinol; I suppose I’d leapt in at too high a concentration previously. (The Ordinary now has a 0.3% emulsion that they specifically designed for “retinol newbies” that could be worth consideration, too.) After using that for a few months, I upgraded to 0.5%. I’ve had no irritation — just much brighter, smoother skin. I’m actually about to bump up to 1%. I’m very happy with the results.
Now onto exfoliating pads. The key is looking for ones that contain glycolic acid and other AHAs (alpha hydroxy acids), which break down the outer layer of dead skin cells, making skin appear smoother and more even. I’ve tried a ton (kissed a lot of frogs) and have narrowed it down to four favorites. Some are more abrasive/intense than others, and I sort of listen to what my skin feels like / wants on a given day. I’m organizing my four favorites from lowest to highest intensity below, along with other notes on packaging, etc —
01. Barefaced Toning Pads.
Aat time of writing, 25% off! Apparently a pack of these are sold every 3 seconds in America! These are the gentlest and most calming I’ve found — I use when I want to be easy and gentle on my skin. They do contain resurfacing acids but in lower-strength doses that are coupled with lots of skin-soothing botanical ingredients. These feel like they sweep the day off but with a soft brush — no burn, tingle, etc. I recently ordered their stepped-up version (with higher-strength glycolic acids) while on sale, and these are excellent, too, and I’d put them on equal footing with #3 below in terms of intensity. I really like that these come in travel packs, too. This is what I typically take while on the road. Each little pack contains 5 pads. Super convenient and thoughtfully designed! (One other note: Barefaced was founded by a nurse practitioner who wanted to develop pregnancy-safe products! Check with your doc, but I believe all their products are pregnancy-friendly.)
02. Summer Fridays Exfoliating Pads.
Another gentle option, also convenient for travel. These give me a refreshed, pore-shrunken feeling — a tiny bit more astringent than the Barefaced ones. My only demerit for these is that I wish they sold them in a tub vs. individual packets as the packaging feels wasteful for every-other-day use. Still, these are handy for travel or gym.
03. YISE Your Favorite Ex Exfoliating Pads.
Higher strength than the first two in this lineup (I usually feel a little tingle and zing), and each generously-size pad feels more deeply hydrated/soaked than the first two I mentioned. These feel like they really do a lot of heavy lifting, but skin doesn’t feel dried out post-use. I also feel like these do the best job at removing every last bit of SPF, sweat, makeup, etc. out of this entire lineup. The pads are large — large enough that I occasionally cut them in two to make a jar last longer — and I absolutely love that you can order refills for the tub versus buying a new tub each time you need one. Use code JEN15 for a discount.
04. Goop Beauty 15% Glycolic Acid Overnight Glow Peel.
The turbo jet version of an exfoliating pad — inspired by professional chemical peels, these are the most intense on this list and they really deliver a full reset. Definitely feel a spicy when you apply but then you wake up and feel like you’ve turned your skin around overnight. I’m pretty sparing with these — maybe once a month — whereas I use the others every other day. Don’t be intimidated, though; these are not painful, just a little zingy, and are definitely worth putting in the rotation. Use code JENSHOOP20 for a discount. (BTW, all my Goop Beauty favorites here!)
P.S. More beauty products I’m loving in my 40s. Many of these are specifically formulated for “mature” skin.
P.P.S. Magpies answer nitpicky, nosy questions on personal grooming.
P.P.P.S. Thoughts on the hype around Victoria Beckham Beauty.
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