My Mum Is 73 and Loves Expensive Skincare—Here’s Her Review of The Ordinary

December 05, 2021 at 06:30AM

By now you all might know my mum. She’s fabulous, she’s 73, and she knows her way around beauty. In fact, she might own more makeup and skincare products than I do—which is equal parts impressive and terrifying. So you can see why she’s the ultimate guinea pig when it comes to trying out the latest, greatest or buzziest products in the biz. I love that we both represent different generations and have different skincare needs and goals (me: breakouts and dark circles; her: fine lines and pigmentation), and I firmly believe bringing in other age demographics for product reviews really ups the ante when it comes to fishing for efficacy. After all, how the heck will someone like me with 26-year-old skin know if an age-pegged serum is helping? Right? Right.

Enter The Ordinary, the affordable skincare baby of megabrand Deciem, which launched to a very high, covetable status within the skincare-and-beauty industry. Not only are the products priced right around £10 and under, but the brand also boasts potent concentrations, top-notch quality and consistent, exciting new launches. People, and largely, millennials, understandably flip over the brand, which ultimately marries all of our most pressing product wants. 

“The Ordinary is an evolving collection of treatments offering familiar, effective clinical technologies positioned to raise pricing and communication integrity in skincare,” the brand states on its website. “It was created to celebrate integrity in its most humble and true form. Its offering is pioneering, not in the familiar technologies it uses, but in its honesty and integrity. The Ordinary is born to disallow commodity to be disguised as ingenuity. The Ordinary is ‘Clinical formulations with integrity.”’

So when we were discussing the brand and five of its top-selling formulas during a recent editorial meeting, I couldn’t help wondering what my 73-year-old mum would think. Even though she loves a good bargain and does swear by certain pharmacy brands and formulas, for the most part, she’s extremely picky with skincare and uses an impressively expensive product spread. To put The Ordinary to the ultimate, non-millennial test, I asked my mum to use six beloved products from the brand for about a week when I was home visiting recently. While you definitely need to give skincare a good chunk of time to work its magic, it’s also safe to say many of us know quite quickly whether or not we’re going to like a product or incorporate it into our regular routine. Therefore, I knew my mum would either love The Ordinary or hate it after day one. 

Ahead, a brief synopsis of my mum’s skincare routine and concerns, in addition to her honest thoughts and feelings about The Ordinary. Keep scrolling! 

“Before I go walking in the morning, I use Bioderma’s Sensibio H2O (£11) on a cotton pad to wipe off my face, and then I apply Australian Gold’s Botanical SPF Tinted Face Lotion SPF 50 (£22).

"When I return (and am sweaty!), I wash my face with Avalon Organics Intense Defense With Vitamin C Cleansing Gel, do another sweep of Bioderma, and then wash my face again in the shower with Jason’s Aloe Vera Body Wash (£12). (The mineral SPF is very hard to get off and the body wash has great ingredients that are gentle enough for my face!) If I don’t go walking, I just use the cleanser from Avalon Organics to cleanse my face.”

“Then, I usually alternate between using several different skincare items: La Prairie Skin Caviar Essence-in-Lotion (£235) or RéVive Intensité Complete Anti-Aging Serum (£380). I also sometimes use these three products: SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic (£140) or Timeless CoEnzyme Q10 (£27) and Matrixyl Synthe’6 (£27). I follow with Essentiel by Adele Essentiel Moisture ($39) to moisturise my face.”

“I cleanse with Avalon Organics Cleansing Gel (above) if I haven’t worn makeup. If I’ve worn makeup, I first use one of Simple’s Facial Cleansing Wipes (£2), followed by cleansing with Avalon Organics. If I feel like I need it, I’ll do a double cleanse, but the second time around, I’ll use my Clarisonic Brush to make sure every last stitch of my makeup is removed.”

“Next, I use either the La Prairie Skin Caviar again, the RéVive serum or the three Timeless products mentioned above. Two or three times a week, I’ll cleanse my face and only use SkinCeuticals Glycolic 10 Renew Overnight (£80), which helps promote cellular turnover. No matter what, I always complete the nighttime routine with the Essentiel by Adele moisturizer.”

“Even before Erin asked me if I’d try some of the products, I’d definitely heard of The Ordinary, but I’d never tried anything from the brand. I knew it was a very popular, very affordable brand but wasn’t knowledgeable about specific products in its line. To be quite honest, I was a little sceptical about a brand titled The Ordinary. Why would a brand bill itself as basic? Because of the brand name, and the cheaper prices, I also assumed its products were more geared toward skincare concerns of younger women rather than my age demographic.”

The new a.m. routine: “After cleansing (as indicated above for my previous a.m. skincare routine), each morning I’ve been applying the brand’s Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 (£6), followed by the Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% (£5). I follow this with Essentiel by Adele, sunscreen and then makeup.”

The new p.m. routine: “After cleansing (see number one above), I apply the Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution (£7) to a clean, dry face. (I know this is one of Erin’s favourites!) Next, I apply the Granactive Retinol 2% Emulsion (£8) before applying the 100% Organic Cold-Pressed Rose Hip Seed Oil (£9).”

The twice-per-week add-on: “The AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution (£6) used after cleansing at night and before serums.”

Author Erin Jahns | Whowhatwear
Selected by CWC