Have I strayed from my faith? Have I strayed from my holy grail of skincare? Definitely not. I still stand by the fact that La Mer helped me out of a long stretch of bad skin. It's just no secret either that it comes with a serious price tag. In the meantime I sometimes get 'lucky' when nice products show up in the outlet in Halfweg or Bataviastad, but that's not always the case. On top of that, I was now looking for products that tackle very specific concerns. So, quite late to the party, I ended up at The Ordinary. After some research I landed on several products, to tackle my enlarged pores and the extreme dryness that just won't go away.

Build My Regimen

It's sold through a huge number of sites and shops. Before I started buying products, I used the Build My Regimen tool on their website. In this 'quiz' you can indicate your preferences and also how many products you're willing to use. If I were to give advice, I'd at least use a cleanser, toner and moisturizer as a routine. Cleanse, prep and hydrate. Want to expand further, then start with a serum you can use both during the day and at night. I was curious what the advice would be if I wanted to use the full range, how many steps and products that would be. What did I list as concerns? Dryness, Congestion and Sensitivity & Barrier Support. Then I wanted 6+ products and, also important, I have no experience with the more aggressive ingredients. These were the recommendations:

Step 1: Prep
- Squalane Cleanser; Removes make-up and Softens Skin.
- Saccharomyces Ferment 30% Mily Toner; Evens Texture & Tone, Hydrates.
Step 2: Treat
- Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG Eye Serum; For Dark Circles & Puffiness.
- Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%; Oil Control, Brigthtens, Smooths.
- 100% Plant-Derived Squalane; Hydrates, Reduces Dryness.
- 100% Organic Cold-Pressed Moroccan Argan Oil; Reduces Dryness & Smooths Hair.
Step 3: Seal
- Natural Moisturizing Factors + PhytoCeramides; Nourishes, Plumps.

Skin prep with The Ordinary

It got a little out of hand, which honestly fits me perfectly. I bought both products from the first step. Mainly because I'm almost through my La Mer cleanser and I was curious about how these products from The Ordinary work. So I bought the Squalane Cleanser. They have three types in total, but this one was recommended to me because of the thickness of the cleanser itself. They call it a Cleansing balm themselves. It's a nice, rich cleanser that you only need a little of, and it doesn't seem to dry out your face.
How to use it? Dispense product into hands, rub together to warm the product, allowing to melt into an oil. Massage well onto dry face and rinse with warm water.

I also bought a Toner from them. This preps your skin to better absorb the products that follow. On their advice I bought the Saccharomyces Ferment 30% Milky Toner. They describe it as: A gentle exfoliating toner that promotes smoother, brighter skin while boosting hydration. Suitable for sensitive skin. It's a somewhat milky substance. How to use it? Shake well before use. Apply in the morning and evening. Appla to the face and neck using a cotton pad of fingers. Do not rinse off.

The three chosen treats

Don't judge, for that ten-euro price tag each I just got greedy okay. Also, the one I wanted wasn't physically in the store, so I picked a different one, and then I still wanted the one I originally wanted. So suddenly there was another order after all. Let's start with the exfoliator to hopefully make my pores smaller, the Salicylic Acid 2% Anhydrous Solution. You use this after cleansing. How do you use it? Apply in the morning and evening. Apply a small dot tot the target area or apply a small amount over the face for general use. I'm still mostly figuring out how many drops is enough for me.

Then I got a serum for daytime and an oil for the evening. The serum is the 100% Plant-Derived Squalane. This is really meant to hydrate my face like crazy and hopefully make it less severe as well.
As oil I have the 100% Fermented Rose Hip Seed Oil. This one isn't on my recommended list, but it got a better rating than the one that was recommended. The one I bought is specifically for dry and sensitive skin.

Lock it in, with The Ordinary's moisturizer

Just 100 ml for almost 25 euros. I'm really curious about this cream. According to their website, the Natural Moisturizing Factors + PhytoCeramides is their most nourishing moisturizer. It's a thick cream too, a rich cream.

My routine with The Ordinary

1. The Squalane Cleanser
   • The first step, in the morning or evening, cleansing the skin.
2. The Saccharomyces Ferment 30% Mily Toner
   • The second step, prepping the skin for the products that follow. It basically makes your skin 'open up', so it absorbs the products better. I like applying it with a cotton pad.
3. Salicylic Acid 2% Anhydrous Solution
   • The third step, an exfoliator. This step 'takes away' or 'cleans' even more of the skin layer. Be careful with this though, since some exfoliators can be fairly aggressive. This exfoliator is a bit gentler and a nice starting point for getting used to using salicylic acid. It's meant to shrink the pores a bit.
4. 100% Plant-Derived Squalane
   • Then we move to the fourth step, a serum. This is a highly concentrated product you buy specifically for your skin's needs. In my case, hydration.
5. 100% Organic Cold-Pressed Rose Hip Seed Oil
   • Step five, oil. This is super personal whether you like this.
6. Natural Moisturizing Factors + PytoCeramides
   • With this final step, you lock in all the products by applying your moisturizer. This one is mostly really for hydration and comes in different thicknesses. I use the most 'rich' formula because of my dry skin.