Beauty

[Bixa2805]

I am over 50 and have some uneven skin tone, smile lines, a few spots here and there, and lack of firmness in my skin. I would like to add a vitamin c product during the day and eventually a retinol product at night. I currently have never used either for any length of time so I need something that will hopefully not irritate but will give me some visible results. Any suggestions?

[MarenSeattle]

I'm about to jump on the NCN bandwagon. More "natural" ingredients and rave reviews from those who have tried the products. She has a Vitamin C Serum and a Retinol product. Not sure if either of those will reall firm, though. She does have a couple of firming products, too. I'd suggest emailing Nanci (whose company it is) and ask for guidance. ncnskincare.com

[JeanLouiseFinch]

There are many threads that you can pull up that discuss Vitamin C serums and Retinol/Retin-A. My favorites are Mad Hippie Vitamin C Serum and prescription Retin-A (Tretinoin). I like Mad Hippie's serum because it's made with a more stable form of Vitamin C than what's found in most serums and it has other actives that are beneficial (read the info on madhippie dot com). Some people report sensitivities to the product, but I've never experienced that. To the contrary, I did have irritation with NCN's. In the end, it boils down to your own trial and error.

I believe a lot of people use the words "retinol" and "retin-a" interchangeably, but they are really two different products. Lots of people like OTC retinol (ROC, Alpha Hydrox Retinol ResQ, Philosophy's Help Me). If you're going to get one of those, the Alpha Hydrox and Philosophy products are the same thing, but AH's is 1/3 the cost. However, I prefer the prescription Retin-A because the chemical makeup and conversion to retinoic acid is more effective in Retin-A than it is in Retinol so it has a better impact on the skin. You can look up "Retinol vs. Retin-A" on the Internet and see for yourself. Retin-A (Tretinoin) comes in several different concentrations and must be prescribed by a dermatologist. It's really great stuff. If you do decide to go this route, be sure to ease into using it as it can be drying at first and cause flaking until your skin becomes accustomed to it and you settle into a usage schedule that's right for you. Nightly isn't necessary to reap the benefits. Some people use it a few nights a week, others just once. In any case, Retin-A does increase your skin's sensitivity to sunlight and you should wear an SPF every morning.

Good luck.

[jobiz]

I LOVE Paula's Choice products! Check out her website and call customer service....they are fabulous! Let me know how you make out. I am 56 and her products are reasonably price and have really helped my complexion. I also use Retin-a. Hope this helps you.

[myshell624]

On 1/22/2014 MarenSeattle said: I'm about to jump on the NCN bandwagon. More "natural" ingredients and rave reviews from those who have tried the products. She has a Vitamin C Serum and a Retinol product. Not sure if either of those will reall firm, though. She does have a couple of firming products, too. I'd suggest emailing Nanci (whose company it is) and ask for guidance. ncnskincare.com

I emailed NCN over the weekend and still have not heard back. I went through the link on her website. Does it usually take her this long to respond?

[SchippyLuv]

I've used both retinol and Retin A products for years. My usual routine is Retin A .1% at night and Green Cream Level 6 (.6%) in the morning as my moisturizer, followed by a light coating of Aloe Vera Gel as a primer and Tarte Full Coverage SPF 15.

Since I've started needling my skin to get better penetration of products, I've dropped back to Green Cream Level 3 (.3%) at night and in the morning, because needling is supposed to ramp up the delivery of active products by at least 400%. I'll slowly increase to my usual dosage over a period of months as my skin adjusts.

Whenever I make changes to my Vitamin A regimen, I expect and experience some degree of flaking, but not outright irritation. I console myself with the fact that a week of flakiness yields flawless skin on the other side. And I love using the Clarisonic twice a day. It really helps get rid of the flakes.

I can't speak intelligently to the Vitamin C question, because I've just started playing around with it. Apparently I'm sensitive to it, because I managed to burn the backs of my hands with it a couple of weeks ago. Now, however, the skin on my hands is absolutely glowing - go figure. I don't recommend doing what I did - just reporting my experiences.

My dermatologist is the one who got me to start using Vitamin A products aggressively to keep cystic acne at bay. Now I order Retin A three tubes at a time in various strengths from MedsMex in Mexico City. I use it on my face, arms and legs. I've used it to get rid of skin tags and precancerous skin lesions with great success. It's a staple first aid product in my medicine chest.

Again, I'm not recommending this routine for anyone else. I'm just reporting what has worked for me for the last 25 years.

[MarenSeattle]

On 1/22/2014 myshell624 said:

On 1/22/2014 MarenSeattle said: I'm about to jump on the NCN bandwagon. More "natural" ingredients and rave reviews from those who have tried the products. She has a Vitamin C Serum and a Retinol product. Not sure if either of those will reall firm, though. She does have a couple of firming products, too. I'd suggest emailing Nanci (whose company it is) and ask for guidance. ncnskincare.com

I emailed NCN over the weekend and still have not heard back. I went through the link on her website. Does it usually take her this long to respond?

I honestly don't know, and am disappointed to hear that! I think I've read that she's really good about answering questions and responding, so hopefully soon! I wanted to email her anyway so will go ahead and see how long it takes to get an answer. Ive NEVER gotten a response from PTR, even though I followed up -- twice! -- with "just confirming you received this as I haven't heard from you" type messages. Tatcha, on the other hand, is from another planet -- the fastest response ever (twice). NuFace is almost as good, Algenist is so-so. :-). Got carried away, there, but I hope you hear back from her soon -- and that I do as well because I'm going to go email her NOW!

[MarenSeattle]

On 1/22/2014 SchippyLuv said:

I've used both retinol and Retin A products for years. My usual routine is Retin A .1% at night and Green Cream Level 6 (.6%) in the morning as my moisturizer, followed by a light coating of Aloe Vera Gel as a primer and Tarte Full Coverage SPF 15.

Since I've started needling my skin to get better penetration of products, I've dropped back to Green Cream Level 3 (.3%) at night and in the morning, because needling is supposed to ramp up the delivery of active products by at least 400%. I'll slowly increase to my usual dosage over a period of months as my skin adjusts.

Whenever I make changes to my Vitamin A regimen, I expect and experience some degree of flaking, but not outright irritation. I console myself with the fact that a week of flakiness yields flawless skin on the other side. And I love using the Clarisonic twice a day. It really helps get rid of the flakes.

I can't speak intelligently to the Vitamin C question, because I've just started playing around with it. Apparently I'm sensitive to it, because I managed to burn the backs of my hands with it a couple of weeks ago. Now, however, the skin on my hands is absolutely glowing - go figure. I don't recommend doing what I did - just reporting my experiences.

My dermatologist is the one who got me to start using Vitamin A products aggressively to keep cystic acne at bay. Now I order Retin A three tubes at a time in various strengths from MedsMex in Mexico City. I use it on my face, arms and legs. I've used it to get rid of skin tags and precancerous skin lesions with great success. It's a staple first aid product in my medicine chest.

Again, I'm not recommending this routine for anyone else. I'm just reporting what has worked for me for the last 25 years.

That kind of makes sense about the results of the vitamin C on your hands. Maybe delivered the same results (and probably the same action) as a heavy duty chemical peel? I think both Mad Hippie and NCN have Vitamin C products that people have been happy with. Don't recall any reports of burns! :-)

[suzyQ3]

I've always received a reply from NCN in a timely fashion. Maybe they were off for the holiday and are catching up. But you can always call them. That's what I tend to do.

[Mishell5]

I have had amazing results with the Isomers C products. The serum is great. Just wanna say that I do not use her products so I am not pushing that line. BUT... my skin loves the Vit, C. HTH.

Michelle