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Daily skin care - the forgotten variable?

Much has been written on pre shave and post shave routines but recently I have been convinced that appropriate daily skin care can make a notable improvement.

The background:
For as long as I care to remember I have suffered from rosacea to a lesser or greater degree. The switch from carts & gel to traditional wet shaving a few years back led to a massive improvement in the condition generally and to the extent that major flare ups were increasingly rare.

One thing that does still lead to a decline are periods of cold weather ie. winter where we now find ourselves.

Recently:
To try and combat the re appearance of symptoms a few weeks back I switched from my usual daily routine and started using products containing hyaluronic acid, ceramides, peptides in forms such as serums, face washes and moisturisers. It took a little while but the results are starting to pay off with the stark red areas noticeably fading.

However there has been another improvement in that my skin seems far more resilient to the vicissitudes of daily shaving. I don't often get much in the way of irritation any more but now not at all. I have even been able to achieve closer shaves by being a little more aggressive with my daily razor and not suffered any burn or other mishaps whatsoever.

For those that have tried all manor of pre shve prep and are still suffering discomfort I really think it could be worth giving it a try.
 
For face wash I've replaced soap & water with Neutrogena hydro boost water gel.

Immediately after morning shave I use B.men serum (Superdrug own brand) followed by Super Facialist day moisturiser and at night serum again followed by CeraVe.

I'm based in the UK so not sure how many are available in other countries but pretty certain there should be similar products around.
 
No specific skin problems, but I find my shaves easier and better if I use a balm or a skin conditioner after a shave. I use Trumper's Coral Skin Food or Tcheon Fung Sing Bergamotto Neroli balm.
 
In the winter, especially, I use moisturizing products on my face before going to bed at night, and I have begun using DermE hyaluronic acid-containing moisturizer after each shave. I use Dr. Jon's all-purpose oil on my face, as well. I agree that good skin care does make shaving smoother and less likely to be irritating.
 
Before I shave, while I’m showering I use my facial cleanser with a facial brush. I have a scrubby horsehair and a soft synthetic type. Which one I use depends on my mood.
After showering I apply toner and Hyaluronic acid before I shave. I’ve found it to be more beneficial to pre treat my face with all the goodies beforehand rather than after the damage has already been done.
 
I completely agree. Most of us (even those with oily skin) have dry, dehydrated skin. Good skin care can make a world of difference to your shave results.
 
I agree having some kind of skin care routine is a good idea. I prefer to shave in the morning and doing my general skin-care routine at night before bed.
 
Just to clarify a little further on products and constituents:

The Neutrogena hydro boost water gel is a hyaluronic acid product. The Super Facialist is also hyaluronic acid but also peptides and niacinamide. The serum is peptides and anti inflammatories and CeraVe is hyaluronic acid and ceramides.
 
I can't comment on rosacea or any skin condition.

That said, I go by "less is more", trying to minimize the amount of different products I apply to my face. I just don't think that adding a whole lot of stuff all the time will benefit anyone in the long run.

So, my "pre-shave" is simply the very same lather I use for shaving that day. My "post-shave" is also that very same lather; I massage the leftovers and leave it on until I clean up my gear.

Then I take a shower and apply my A/S and that's that. I generally avoid A/S with high %-age of alcohol. Sometimes, but not as a rule, I might apply a moisturizing cream on top of my A/S, if I feel I need it. I rarely do, though.
 

Owen Bawn

Garden party cupcake scented
I think CeraVe moisturizer is a terrific product. 10 or 12 tall glasses of water each day help keep the skin moisturized from the inside out as well.
 
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