About Lisa's Recommendations & Ideas

Basing off of comments during conversation the other day at work; complimented my "glow" and reduced appearance of pores, specifically mentioned dryness as an issue. Remember that YMMV (your mileage may vary) and patch testing is your friend.

Skincare communities are really active on reddit; highly recommend r/30PlusSkinCare/ and r/AsianBeauty/. r/AsianBeauty and r/SkincareAddiction/ have great wikis. On youtube @LabMuffinBeautyScience is awesome (she also has a book).

If you can't find products in store, Amazon can be reasonable but you have to be sure that you're buying from either Amazon itself or directly from the brand (check the seller before you add to cart, because it won't be obvious once it's in the cart). Asian sunscreen typically can't be purchased on the US Amazon; I've had decent luck buying from YesStyle - just keep an eye on whether a product is in stock or not.

My suggestions are mostly based on experience, so FYSA I have dehydrated oily skin that's easily sensitized with a tendency towards blackheads on my forehead, visible sebaceous filaments on my nose, and acne on my jaw and neck. I personally avoid fragrance (both for sensory and irritation reasons), dimethicone and most other silicones (trial and error shows that they do increase my acne), many exfoliating acids (e.g., glycolic, lactic), and certain oils (coconut and olive). I use salicyclic acid cautiously (only in wash-off products).

I have yet to find a single brand that has every product I want, but I've had particularly good luck with Purito, Aveeno, Cetaphil, Skin1004, COSRX, and Vanicream. CeraVe is really popular, and I even used to use it, but I've found that Cetaphil is better for sensitive skin.