Jessica Matlin explains how.
Bad news: The party won’t last forever.
When I was just a 21-year-old fashion intern, I’ll never forget the magazine’s formidable fashion director whipping her Chanel handbag over her shoulder as she stomped out of her office, and narrowing her eyes at my dumbstruck, round little face.
“Don’t be like me,” she hissed, tossing me a new Nature Bisse eye cream from the open beauty cupboard.
She was en route to be jabbed with yet another cosmetic injection, just one of the many procedures she had to suffer through to maintain her game face. Framed photographs in her office showed a dewy-faced mid-level editor, snapped not too long ago.
It’s a cautionary tale: Your twentysomething complexion’s ability to bounce back – literally and figuratively – is fading fast. Once your thirties hit, the damage you’ve incurred becomes visible, and the heavy repairs – and pricey treatments – begin.
“My thirtysomething patients who come in for Botox and fillers often confide that they wished they’d taken better care of their skin in their twenties,” says Frederic Brandt, the Manhattan and Miami-based dermatologist (best known for his work on Madonna).
All of the pastimes of your twenties – the sunning, drinking, dieting, overindulging, staying out late and waking up early – take a massive toll on your skin. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
Beverly Hills facialist Sonya Dakar, who counts Drew Barrymore and Gwyneth Paltrow as longtime clients, believes that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
“Smart women like Drew and Gwyneth have both been diligent about skincare since they were in their twenties—and it shows,” she says. “They protect their skin, use anti-ageing products and lead healthy lifestyles. They don’t rely on injections.”
And neither will you, if you start investing in your future face.
The Right Routine
Chances are, your skincare routine needs to grow up.
“Most twentysomethings’ regimens are missing critical anti-ageing ingredients,” says Brandt.
Start by cleansing with a wash specific to your complexion, he says. If you’re oily, use one with salicylic acid, which prevents breakouts. (Try Murad Clarifying Cleanser, £19.50.) Drier complexions benefit from creamy, nourishing cleansers, like Weleda Wild Rose Cleanser, £6.95.
Then follow with a moisturiser jam-packed with antioxidants. They protect your body from free radicals, which bring on wrinkles, sagging skin and uneven pigmentation. Choose from the veritable buffet of antioxidants on the market - green tea, vitamin C and coenzyme Q10 are Brandt’s faves.
Another powerful ingredient that’s changing the anti-ageing game is sirtuins. Dubbed ‘longevity genes’, sirtuins are agents that are already found in your own body, and their job is to keep cells in repair mode, delaying the ageing process. The lab coats at Clinique have spent the better part of a decade creating a cream that works in the same fashion: Youth Surge SPF 15 Age Decelerating Moisturizer (£27.40), boosts your skin’s natural defence capabilities, so skin looks younger for longer.
And get religious about eye cream. If your work and party ethics are typically twenty-something, make friends with caffeine: In eye cream, it de-puffs and brightens tired eyes. (MAC Fast Response Eye Cream, £19.09, has a shot of it.)
If you find those tiny crinkles by your eyes less than endearing, pat on a cream with peptides – they promote collagen production. (Try Boots No7 Protect & Perfect Eye Cream, £16.50.)
If you think collagen is something you don’t have to worry about till you’re well into your thirties, here’s the deal: ‘Collagen is the “cushioning” in your skin,’ says Dr Brandt. ‘It’s what makes it supple and firm. Although most people don’t see the signs of collagen break-down [ie the loss of that natural plumpness in your skin] till they’re in their thirties, the rate at which it deteriorates will be determined by how it’s been treated over time.’
So start protecting your collagen from environmental exposure and using ingredients that help boost its production today to avoid the expensive, injectable horror show in your thirties.
And most importantly, don’t forget the sunscreen, says Puneet Gupta, a cosmetic dermatologist at London’s Private Clinic.
“Most people mistakenly think sunscreen is only for holidays,” he laments. “In reality, we’re subjected to UV damage even in cloudy British weather.”
He recommends smoothing SPF 30 over your skin, but if that feels too rich for you, try Kiehl’s Abssyine Cream + SPF 23 (£38.66), an anti-ageing moisturizer with sun protection built in.
In the evenings, cleanse and follow with a cream enriched with either peptides or retinol – both boost collagen, says Brandt. Naturally, follow with your eye cream.
Intelligent Add-Ons
Should masks, scrubs, and – quelle horror! – spa treatments reek of self-indulgence right now, rationalise these so-called treats as cost-effective, preventative measures.
Exfoliate weekly to stimulate the production of that all-important collagen, says Brandt. Try an at-home microdermabrasion product like Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion in a Jar, £54.81, or a gentle peel like Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel, £26.
Once weekly, use a mask. If you have oily skin, slather on a clay mask to draw out impurities. Dehydrated? Look for one with hyaluronic acid (manna from heaven for dry skin). Sensitive types, cosy up to masks laced with chamomile. They’re calming.
If you’re feeling spendy, hit up the spa or dermatologist’s office for an LED laser or professional microdermabrasion treatment.
“Both stimulate collagen without irritating your skin,” says Brandt.
It’s also worth speaking with a professional to see where you should invest your efforts. A good derm is always tops, but solid skincare brands like Elemis and SK-II have digital skin analysis machines at their counters that allow you to check in on your skin on the cheap. The complimentary – and rarely pretty – photo session reveals exactly what skin problems are bound to appear in your future and what you can do to thwart them. How clever.
Cosmetic Treatments
Lazy girls rejoice: Giving yourself an anti-ageing treatment is as easy as swiping on gloss, as cosmetic companies are increasingly infusing top-tier skincare ingredients into their formulas. (Brands like Chantecaille and By Terry are built upon this concept.) Look for products enriched with antioxidants and SPF, the two essentials for preserving your skin into the next decade. Just remember, these top-ups are supplements, not substitutions for your daily regimen, says Brandt. And before bed, always remove your make-up - completely. “Residual make-up can clog your pores and bring on breakouts,” says Gupta. It also prevents your pricey skincare products from penetrating. What a waste.
Tinted Replenishing Lip Care, £25.45 by By Terry at Space NK
Think Holistically
Those national ads pushing you to gorge on fruit and veg, take the stairs and slash your alcohol intake can seem irritatingly pedantic. They would have been smarter if they’d just appealed to our collective vanity.
'No cream on earth does as much for your skin as eating antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables,' says Gupta.
Of course, not everyone’s diet is squeaky clean. Eating too much processed food – or not eating enough – can actually leave our skin cells depleted of vital nutrients.
'If your diet is lacking in fruits and vegetables and high in processed foods, your skin can become dull, dehydrated and blotchy, and its elasticity can wane. Or if you’re extreme dieting, your skin can actually thin,' says Dakar, who sees it all of the time in her Beverly Hills clinic.
Most people can benefit from taking a supplement to help compensate for what’s missing (if not all of the time, then some of it). G. Baldwin & Co. Hair Skin And Nails Multi (£10.75 for 60 tablets) includes vitamins A, C & E, essential for collagen production or try Glisodin (£24.46 for 60 capsules) – it’s billed as an anti-ageing catalyst and we hear it makes a visible difference to skin.
But always adhere strictly to the supplements’ accompanying directions, warns Dakar. When one of her clients was so overzealous with her daily (skin-smoothing) vitamin D supplements leading up to a red carpet appearance, she found she couldn’t fit into her skintight dress. Unbeknownst to her, overdosing on vitamin D causes bloating, says Dakar. Too much of any supplement can have unpleasant side effects.
Getting your exercise is also part of the equation, says Gupta. Indeed, when ELLE met Andie MacDowell (now 50) a few weeks ago, she swore her regular workouts were the key to her looks. Even up close, her skin looks amazing.
Exercise gets your circulation going, which brings more nutrients to your skin and improves its appearance, says Gupta. It also prevents you gaining weight, which as you get older can lead to the kind of hormone changes that bring on adult acne and hyper-pigmentation.
But whilst breaking a sweat is good, again, don’t become obsessive. Dakar is regularly doling out injectables to her gym-bound clients who’ve unwittingly sacrificed collagen in the name of burning fat.
But perhaps the derm’s most chilling announcement: Nothing bloats and lines your face like alcohol. So be warned – this party won’t last forever.
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