During my late teens and early twenties, I remember making countless trips to the doctors, with my Mum, to dicuss why I was constantly battling acne. My Mum even pushed for me to see a dermatologist that she booked, who could only point out the route of Roaccutane. It was always too scary for me, so it was a path I never took.
Whether the decision was right or wrong, it meant I spent another ten years all throughout my thirties using various ranges of skincare brands, cutting dairy and sugar out of my diet, having highs, having lows, yet never really going going down a dermatologist route again. It was only Roaccutane they seemed to push, and the cost of seeing anyone privately seemed a waste of time.
Even if I didn’t have such bad acne, years ago it seemed harder to know which skincare route to go down. Doctors prescribed peroxide based products which bleached pillows, and the next step was searching the internet for reviews or speaking to sale assistants at counters.
Since turning 30, which is a whole 6 years ago, I have found the developments across the skincare industry to be phenomenal. The help and choices we have to hand are now second to none. And this is what has lead me to sit down this morning and share my thoughts about Skin + Me, because I feel it truly needs shouting about.
Skin + Me is a subscription service that can be personalised to your needs, to help you overcome your skin worries. We all have some form of skin concern, whether it’s acne, breakouts, oily skin, dry skin and pigmentation, and of course, aging skin. A little extra helping hand is always needed when it comes to acne prone skin in my opinion (or from living through acne hell myself), and I feel like we’re finally getting there.
But, skincare ingredients can be too overwhelming for some. Salicylic acid, lactic acid, glycolic acid, niacinamide. Now for someone like me who has dedicated a lot of my life to ingredients, it’s what I live to see. But for those who just know that they are battling skin problems and see a list of words that look like they belong in the science textbooks…. well it may just scare them off.
And this is where brands like Skin + Me have bounced into our lives to help us out. They pin point the ingredients needed for each concern and combine them with other ingredients for a bespoke skincare product, ideal for you and your concerns.
This is what I needed a long time ago. My skin is actually not even half as bad as it used to me, but that aside, I felt I needed to review Skin + Me for those who haven’t yet discovered this skincare subscription.
Before I go any further, I’m dropping the link to Skin + Me here: skincare subscription for £24.99pm – for those wishing to break off early and have a nosey!
What is Skin + Me?
The brand understand that your skin is constantly changing, and its needs are too. Skin + Meoffer a free consultation online, in which they can then design a treatment plan for you with formulations that adjust each month, created to give you the best positive personal progress. If anything changes with you or your skin, which it usually does, they then reformulate your cream for free.
Here’s some of the pros:
Pros:
- Takes the hassle out of shopping for skincare, as you simply complete an online consultation
- The product gets delivered to your door
- The ‘Daily Doser’ product you recieves reduces waste
- Always comes in fully recyclable packaging
- The skincare plan is completely personalised to suit your skin’s needs
- Uses the finest skincare ingredients blended to your own custom treatment
Cons:
Because it’s very rare that a skincare brand can come off without any cons, here’s just a few that popped into my head:
- Could be unsuitable for delicate areas of skin around eyes and lips due to active ingredients
- If you commit to monthly subscription, you could be spending more than you usually would if you weren’t already investing in skincare.
- Hmmmm…. not sure of any other cons!
Skin + Me: How It Works
In a nutshell, it’s a personalised skincare brand that simplifies the skincare regimes and what you need. Instead of juggling millions of products to try and tackle a problem, it makes skincare simple, by being prescribed your ‘Daily Doser’ direct from the brand. It’s USP is to make your skincare regime fuss-free, therefore if you’re one who has been confused about which acids to use etc, Skin + Me identify your personal skincare needs from your consultation and work it out for you.
Once signing up, you submit a selfie of your face, making sure you cover the left-hand side, centre, and right-hand side. This is where the dermatologist help comes in, and what I feel would have been just what I needed in those dark acne-ridden days of my early twenties. The brand’s in-house dermatologists assess what would give you the best results, and then the magic happens of creating your daily doser..
Within a matter of days, I received a ‘Daily Doser’, my tailored skincare product. I was intrigued to use it for the first time, especially after knowing the process had been so simple. I had just answered questions about me and my skin, my lifestyle, skin goals, and then of course the photos of my skin,
It was a little bit like (don’t laugh at me now) skin therapy, like I was chatting to someone who gets my skincare concerns without physically speaking to someone. I answered how I want to get rid of my very obvious pigmentation and acne marks, yet also tackle my blemish prone skin and dryness. It seemed a lot to ask for, which makes it even more amazing that they can get a treatment for you in one daily doser product.
When the daily doser came, I used it twice a day. It comes with the date and signature on it which feels very clinical and almost a little bit like medication. This was really the only bit that felt medical, but in a way it kind of made me feel like I was getting a top grade product. It didn’t feel the same as opening a package from a beauty retailer. It certainly felt better.
I started my Skin + Me journey last year, but really got into it in January this year. I did, however, hold off before reviewing as I wanted to check the results that I noticed lasted loner than 3 months. I can honestly say that within the first three months, I noticed such a big difference, mainly in reduction of spots and a clearer complexions.
After 3 months was when the pigmentation and marks began to fade away, and the overall look and feel of my skin was just so much fresher and healthier looking. I have recently took a break, because it has been a good 5/6 months of using the daily doser, so I felt a break was due. Which is then what made me sit back and reflect on what a fabulous service it really is…
Personal results and thoughts
Everyone has a different skin type and a different skin concern, so I’ve read countless glowing reviews about Skin + Me for blackhead busting and improving brightness, refining pores etc etc. For me it is the smoothness that stood out, the complete reduction of any jaw and cheek breakouts. The reduction is oil on my t-zone. And lastly, the one that took longer to tackle, the fading of pigmentation.
I’d get a little excited when the Skin + Me package, which is letterbox-friendly, would arrive by post. It’s a bright yellow pocket type package, which is all recyclable, and in some aspect, is quite small and low-key for minimum waste. The daily doser again isn’t anything flashy, yet looks premium in it’s own way in it’s metal tube casing. It’s a clever little design, which comes with markers inside to indicate how many nights worth of use is left. All I have to do is twist the product until it clicks and that’s the designated amount of product for that nights particular use.
My daily dose
Luckily, I’ve worked in the beauty and skincare industry on and off for a long long time so I’m no stranger to ingredients and their benefits. So when I received the breakdown of what was prescribed to me, I understood it and it made sense. Emma in her early twenties and late teens would have had no idea though and would have loved to have had such a comprehensive site with dermatologists online to help with this.
Here’s a run down of my daily dose:
| Tretinoin (0.015%): a retinoid proven to improve pigmentation issues |
| Niacinamide (4%): an antioxidant that treats pigmentation |
| Azelaic Acid (4%): a natural acid proven to lighten dark spots |
Tretinoin (usually known as synthetic Vitamin A), is a key one as I mentioned acne, and the dermatologists would have been able to see signs of acne damage from my photos. It’s also a good one for sun damage, in which you can clearly see on my skin, mapping itself out across my forehead and cheeks. Due to my age, it’s a good one to have in for improving the appearance of fine lines and dark spots.
Niacinamide has been an old fave of mine, as this is a form of Vitamin B3 to help reduce inflammation and ease redness. I tend to use niacinamide in toners, which I have paused when using Skin + Me as to not overload myself. It aims to moisturise while treating the skin, and is great with closing open pores too.
The one I don’t really tend to use on it’s own beforehand is Azelaic Acid. This is a naturally antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory ingredient, again working to fight blemishes by deep cleaning pores from bacteria, preventing outbreaks and working on oil.
It’s advised to wear SPF everyday when using the daily doser, as the ingredients can make your skin very sensitive to sunlight, otherwise you could risk over sensitivity and redness to the skin. I’ve surprised myself at how regimented to SPF I have been lately!
Things to consider
If you’re a little unsure about the ingredients and it’s your first go with acids, leave the product on your skin for a short period of time to test it out before getting into a twice daily routine.
I also noticed on day 3, I started to get slight peeling on my chin and nose, and then quite obvious dryness too. This seemed to disappear by day 6, in which the dryness and the flaking of my chin stopped and never returned. Even though my skin is used to many strengths of ingredients and all the acids going (eeeek) I put it down to the combination together being new to me, and the regimented way I was carrying it out both morning and night.
The flakiness and dryness are all common and to be expected, but obviously go slow with your application to start with if you are apprehensive. Purging is another biggie for a lot of people, but luckily I didn’t experiencde this. Purging is the flare up of spots during the first week or two of starting your daily dose, which tends to be your skins reaction to the the cell renewal taking place. If this happens, try to resist the urge to pop and spots!
After many months of using Skin + Me…
As I mentioned earlier, I’m now on a Skin + Me break, but I’ll be returning to it in a month or two. I wanted to incorporate some tanning serums to my skincare steps and a new exfoliator I have, so decided to step away for 1-2 months and also to see what happens to my skin when breaking off.
I’ve just been overly impressed and honestly find it quite hard to stress in exact words about how I feel this was needed some time ago. The difference in my skin is brilliant, and I really feel that the acne prone younger girl I was needed a service like this in my life, when I needed extra help but struggled to find it. It’s just so simple to get set up, and the combined ingredients really are a powerhouse at treating your concerns, their own percentages and amounts bespoke to you.
My pigmentation, breakouts, oily t-zone and dull skin has improved completely and very obviously. I wouldn’t say there has been much difference with my fine lines, but mine are mainly around my eyes, and that’s where I’m not able to use Skin + Me products.
How much does Skin + Me cost?
I like to think it’s for the skincare enthusiasts out there, who appreciate ingredients and really want to see a difference with their skin. The price reflects that, where a Skin + Me online consultation, dermatological assessment, prescription and ‘Daily Doser’ will cost you £24.99 a month. Some people may go through £70 cleansers in two months along with other high end products, in which this price doesn’t see high. For someone like me who is very keen on purchasing more luxury skincare brands, it sits with me fine.
But for those who enjoy £10 moisturisers and spot products, you may whine a little. The best way to look at it is by knowing it’s a regime and a treatment plan. It’s working on the concerns and problems, to solve skin issues. It gives results, and the ingredients are well thought through and bespoke to you. It made me feel better by knowing that it’s just one product, which saved me layering up my toners, moisturisers and spot creams.
I’ve talked about Skin + Me at my press meetings with other brands, which may have not been what you would tend to do with competitor skincare brands, but I wanted to let them know that this is what is working. This is what has got people talking. And more importantly, it’s what people needed. I know I keep saying it, but I do keep thinking about 21 year old Emma, leaving university with acne and using Elemis and Clean + Clear because the doctors could only offer me Roaccutane or a peroxide, pillow bleaching gel.
A very happy customer! Click here for the free consultation.
*Started out as a PR collab
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