If I was in my 30s… what would I be doing for my face?

First things first – 30 is young, ok? But not too young to be sharpening up your skincare routine and considering a few well-chosen tweakments. Here’s what I’d be doing – or what I wish I’d been doing, given that I didn’t start writing about beauty and tweakments until my late 30s.

Reaching for retinoids

I’d be introducing a retinoid into my nighttime skincare routine, because retinol or retinal helps with everything from skin oiliness to pigmentation and collagen production.

Collagen banking

I’d be ‘collagen banking‘ at every opportunity, increasing my reserves of collagen in my skin while I still had plenty of the lovely stuff, with energy-based tweakments like microneedling, radiofrequency, RF needling and ultrasound. This might seem a bit unneccessary when you are basically looking lovely – but if you’re into future-proofing your face, this is one way to go about it.

Keeping a lid on pigmentation

I’d be looking at light-based treatments – laser or IPL – to help keep pigmentation, rosacea or melasma under control.

Looking at wrinkle-relaxing injections

And yes, I’d be considering wrinkle-relaxing toxins for any worry lines that were starting to settle in on my face.

Plus – lifestyle improvements

I would also, with the benefit of hindsight, be more mindful of the lifestyle habits that promote better health and better skin – like getting as much sleep as possible, exercising regularly, eating all the healthy stuff… By your 30s, you don’t get away so easily with the late nights, excess alcohol consumption and stress-surges that twenty-somethings can just ride out. Instead, it all starts to show up on your face.

What I actually did in my 30s

Did I do this when I was in my 30s? No, because I didn’t begin writing about beauty and aesthetics until my late 30s, so I had no idea about any of this. My skincare routine consisted of cleansing and moisturising (sunscreen? only on holiday, and then only factor 15) and I would lie out in the sun at any opportunity.

Also, apart from a few dermatologists offering wrinkle-relaxing toxins, collagen-filler injections and heavy-hitting lasers, aesthetic medicine was in its infancy in the UK. But now it’s booming, there are endless choices and if you’re in your 30s and want to start investing in your face, the suggestions above are what I’d advise.