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The Basics: The 6 Best Skincare Products- I Actually Use for Good Skin

Writer: Mercer
Mercer
Sep 12
5 min read

Updated: Sep 21

The number one compliment I get is about my skin, which is convenient because I spend a truly unnecessary amount of time thinking about skincare. Today I’m breaking down the products and habits that have actually made the biggest difference for me — the tried-and-true things I keep coming back to after testing far more skincare than any reasonable person probably should.


And the good news is: great skin does not require 17 products.

My routine really comes down to a few basics: cleanse gently, use ingredients that actually do something, keep your skin barrier healthy, moisturize well, and wear sunscreen like your life depends on it.


That’s the foundation. There’s also a complete shopping list at the bottom with the products I actually use, love, and repurchase.


1. Cleanse — Gently


Gentle Cleansers for all skintypes

Your face should feel clean. It should not feel like a freshly Windexed countertop.

At night, I almost always double cleanse:


Oil cleanser → gentle cleanser


The oil removes makeup, sunscreen and the day. The second cleanse actually cleans my skin. In the morning, I keep it simple. If your skin feels tight after washing it, your cleanser is probably doing too much.


2. Vitamin C in the Morning

Vitamin C is one of my staples for antioxidant protection, brightness and keeping my skin looking more even.

I use it after cleansing in the morning.


Cleanse → Vitamin C


No 14-step ceremony required.


3. Azelaic Acid



I love azelaic acid. It helps with redness, breakouts, texture, pigmentation and uneven tone without turning my routine into a chemical-peel experiment.


I actually use two strengths.

Morning: 10% azelaic acid.

Non-tretinoin nights: 15% azelaic acid.


It is one of the quiet workhorses of my routine.


4. Tretinoin

Now for the heavy hitter. I use 0.05% tretinoin about twice a week.

It is one of the most established topical ingredients for improving things like fine lines, texture, acne and uneven pigmentation over time.


My rule with tretinoin: More is not more.


At night:

Cleanse → let skin dry → lightweight moisturizer→ pea-sized amount → moisturizer

If you are sensitive or tend to peel easily, you can buffer tretinoin with a milky toner, lightweight hyaluronic acid serum, or a thin layer of moisturizer before applying it. You can also add moisturizer again afterward — commonly called the “sandwich method.”

The goal is to make tretinoin tolerable enough that you can use it consistently and still get the benefits of increased cell turnover over time.

You do not win an award for peeling.


What If You Don’t Use Tretinoin?

You do not have to jump straight into prescription tretinoin to get the benefits of a retinoid.

Over-the-counter retinol and retinal work by converting in the skin toward retinoic acid, the active form your skin can actually use. In very simple terms: retinal is generally a step closer to retinoic acid than retinol, so it tends to work faster while still being easier for many people to tolerate than tretinoin.


If you are newer to retinoids, sensitive, or simply do not want a prescription, I would look for a well-formulated retinal product rather than a random low-strength retinol.


A few I like:

EPI retinal formulas — a good option if you want a more approachable retinoid step.

Dr. Reju-All Mela Retino — one I like for people who are also focused on pigmentation, tone and overall skin quality.

Medik8 Crystal Retinal — probably one of the easiest retinal systems to understand because it comes in graduated strengths, so you can start low and work your way up instead of declaring war on your face on night one.

Start slowly — usually a couple of nights a week — and build up based on how your skin responds.


The goal is not to peel. The goal is to use it long enough for it to actually work.


5. Peptides + Moisturizer

On my non-tret nights, I add a peptide serum before my 15% azelaic acid and moisturizer.

And then we moisturize.

A lot of people spend hundreds of dollars on actives and approximately six dollars maintaining the thing those actives need to work properly: your skin barrier.


I love ceramide-rich moisturizers and rotate them depending on what my skin needs.


Your Barrier Is the Assignment

You cannot bully your skin into being beautiful. If your barrier is broken, the rest of your skincare routine is basically expensive decoration.

If everything suddenly burns, stings, flakes or makes you red, stop trying to fix it with another active.


Your job becomes:

Cleanse gently. Moisturize. Protect. Repeat.

Think of your skin barrier as the foundation of a house. If the foundation is cracked, we are not shopping for chandeliers. Fix the foundation first. Then bring back the fun stuff.


6. Sunscreen. Every Day.



This is the non-negotiable.

You can buy tretinoin.

You can buy peptides.

You can get lasers.

You can microneedle yourself into another dimension.

If you are not protecting your skin from UV exposure, you are making everything else work significantly harder.

I rotate between several sunscreens depending on what I'm doing that day, but SPF 50 is the final step every morning.


The Actual Routine


  • Morning

    • Gentle cleanse↓Vitamin C↓10% Azelaic Acid↓Moisturizer↓SPF 50

  • Non-Tret Night

    • Oil cleanse↓Gentle cleanser↓Peptide serum↓15% Azelaic Acid↓Ceramide moisturizer

  • Tretinoin Night

    • Oil cleanse ↓Gentle cleanser↓Tretinoin 0.05%↓Ceramide moisturizer


That is the foundation.

Everything else is where skincare slowly becomes a personality trait.


SHOP MY ROUTINE

CLEANSE

MORNING TREATMENTS


NIGHT TREATMENTS

  • 15% Azelaic Acid- My non-tret night treatment.

  • 15% azelaic acid is commonly available by prescription in the U.S., including as Finacea.

  • Dr. Reju-All Advanced PDRN Copper Peptide Serum-My peptide step on non-tret nights.Shop Dr. Reju-All Peptide Serum

  • Tretinoin 0.05%- My twice-weekly retinoid. Prescription only in the U.S.


MOISTURIZE + REPAIR

  • Dr. Reju-All Advanced LC-Ceramide Barrier Cream- One of my favorites when barrier support is the assignment. The correct product name is the Advanced LC-Ceramide Barrier Cream. Shop Dr. Reju-All

  • AESTURA ATOBARRIER 365 Cream- Rich, ceramide-heavy and great when my skin needs extra support. Shop on Amazon

  • ETUDE SoonJung 2x Barrier Intensive Cream- Simple, calming and easy to keep around.Shop on Amazon


SUNSCREEN


THE SHORT VERSION

If you are overwhelmed, start here:


1. Gentle cleanser

2. Vitamin C

3. Azelaic acid

4. Tretinoin if appropriate for you

5. Ceramide moisturizer

6. SPF 50


Get your barrier healthy.

Do that consistently.

Then we can start getting weird.


Peptides, PDRN, French pharmacy, lasers, microneedling and all the other things I have absolutely no business enjoying this much are coming next.

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