This post will be sharing The Ordinary Retinol Guide for beginners
For my upcoming 27th birthday, I decided to gift myself two new piercings and The Ordinary Retinol.
I’ve been holding off on introducing Retinol into my skincare routine because I have enough actives as it is.
Typically, I like to start a new product at the beginning of the month.
This gives me ample time to prepare my skin for a new product and avoid irritation.
For the month of June, I finally decided that it was time for The Ordinary Retinol and Caffeine Solution.
So, I got them in my last batch of products. I’ve been using this for about a week now, and I’m ready to share a brief guide for first-time retinol users.
Please note that this is not a review of the retinol itself but just a guide.
First Impressions of The Ordinary Retinol 0.2% in Squalane.
First things first, I read the instructions on the packaging.
I’m fully aware of the strength of retinol as an ingredient, so I didn’t want to take any chances.
You’re directed to;
Apply a small amount to the face in the PM as part of your skincare regimen after water-based serums but heavier treatments.
I read these directions, but unfortunately, I did not assimilate them.
Here’s my step-by-step reaction after three days of using retinol:
- Day 1: I assumed because the retinol is formulated in Squalane, I could use it as the last step in my skincare routine like I do with Plant-derived Squalane. Oh boy, was I wrong! So, I started my PM routine by cleansing with Simple Micellar water, hydrating with The Ordinary Amino Acids, moisturising with Innisfree Jeju Lava Seawater Cream. When I was done, l applied exactly three drops of The Ordinary Retinol all over my face and waited for my skin to react.
REACTION:
My skin has never felt so irritated in such a long time.
It started really slowly, and then it heightened before it eventually cooled down.
In all, it took about 3 – 4 hours because I was watching Netflix.
But damn!
The irritation was crazy!!!
It was almost the same level as the Ordinary AHA/BHA Peel but worse! It felt like my skin was burning.
I did not realise that I had used the retinol wrongly until after the second time, which was two days later.
I also experienced some peeling, which I realised was also one of the side effects, but it wasn’t so bad.
- Day 2: After the first day, I was a bit hesitant to use it again. But then, I realised that my skin is trying to build tolerance for retinol. So the earlier I get into it, the better for me. This time, I tried to switch up the order of my routine. Note that I still haven’t realised that I used the product wrongly. I just wanted to try something different. So instead of using it at the last step of my routine, I used it at the third step. So it went like Cleanser —> Serum —> Retinol —> Moisturiser
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REACTION:
Compared to the last time, the irritation was minimal.
The moisturiser helped so much in calming down any potential high irritation I would have had like the previous time.
While I still experienced some tingle here and there, it was completely bearable.
After a couple of hours, the moisturiser was completely absorbed, and the irritation was almost non-existent.
Phew! Finally, I found a method I could use.
- Day 3: By the third day, I literally had no irritation. It just felt like I was using a regular activity like an AHA or BHA. I stuck to my routine of layering the retinol before the moisturiser, and it was perfect. Turns out, that was the ideal way to layer the product according to the instructions. Now, I kept wondering what would have happened if I had followed the instructions initially. I think I would still have the irritation, but it would have been very minimal.
Key Retinol Tips for Beginners
- Don’t jump on retinol if your skin is not familiar with actives. You should have been using actives such as chemical exfoliants, Niacinamide, Vitamin C, etc for a while before introducing it to your routine. This is to avoid causing complications with your skin in any format.
- Start with the smallest percentage. There is a reason Deciem has a retinol guide on their website. But unfortunately, people don’t read. Naturally, when starting any active, either AHA, BHA, Vitamin C or Retinol, always start with the smallest percentage and move up gradually. Starting small reduces the intensity of irritation you would get.
- Always read instructions. The instructions are there for a reason. Despite how experienced I am with acids and actives in general, I still made a rookie mistake. Don’t be like me.
- Avoid combining your actives as much as possible. As a beginner, you need to take things slowly. Yes, The Ordinary is cheap and affordable but it is easy to get overwhelmed. Take things slowly. As much as possible, don’t combine multiple actives together, particularly retinol. Use it alone with just a moisturiser and/or a hydrating serum.
I hope this post has helped someone, especially those looking to introduce retinol to their routines.
If you’re currently using retinol, please share your experience with me in the comments.
Where to Buy: The Ordinary
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Jackie says
You are doing amazing work! Thanks for sharing your wonderful posts ❤️. Just want to add my 2 cents. After having used some anti-aging creams for years I decided to move on and I got Tretinoin Cream 0.02%. Just for anti-aging. I have dry, sensitive Rosacean skin and I can’t tolerate many actives so I knew there was a possibility my skin would not like Retin-A. However, knowing it’s the best anti-aging treatment out there, I just wanted to try and see. So happy 😊 I Googled ‘Ret247get’ and got it. I really love my Tretinoin Cream. It works and it’s cheap. I’d say don’t waste $$ on overhyped and ineffective “anti-aging” creams. Try Tretinoin but be very careful. Vitamin A acid is very powerful and you really have to build up very slowly. Be patient. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Tretinoin doesn’t work overnight and it isn’t a miracle worker. It takes at least 1-2 months to notice real benefits. Last but not least: it’s not for everyone. Some people just cannot tolerate it so they would have to use other anti-aging treatments/actives like vitamin C. And/or another form of Vitamin A like Retinol or Retinaldehyde. Maybe less potent, but still effective.