The IMAGE staffers share their hero skincare products

Helen Conway, Event Manager

First up, it’s got to be La Roche Posay SPF 50+. If I’m limited to just one product in the morning, it’s this holy grail SPF. Lightweight, effective, lasts all day and doesn’t leave any kind of cast.

Medik8 Retinol and matching eye cream — a little goes a long way with these. I use these products every second night and pair with a basic, chemical free moisturiser like CeraVe – they have improved my skin quality to no end!

The Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm feels great and smells amazing. It preps my skin perfectly in the morning, but is also super versatile as a luxurious second cleanse in the evening.

Amber O’Shea, Social Media Manager

Not so long ago I was rubbing Savlon cream on my face and praying for the best. I suffer with psoriasis on my face and around my body and in terms of trying out new products, you name it and I’ve tried and tested it. But I got some great skincare advice from Image Skincare, where Lauren Rafferty from the team gave me an incredible consultation and went through a tailored skincare routine for me. She taught me the tips and tricks of retinol and how it can actually help to aid the skin.

Finding a good skincare routine is pretty difficult and trying to trust the process has been very hard but I am finding this routine a game changer so far. I start with the BIOME+ Cleansing Comfort Balm, then use this BIOME+ Dew Bright Serum to moisturise instead of a cream (this has allowed me to hydrate my dry skin faster).

Then for my SPF, this Pure Mineral Tinted Moisturiser hydrates my skin and doesn’t pill with my skincare. Then, for my new retinol journey, I have begun introducing this Retinol Pure Liquid Retinol 0.1% at a very low dosage twice a week to see how my skin reacts to it. I also really like this Ormedic Balancing Bio Peptide Crème that helps nourish and repair my skin before bed. It feels like a nice treat and I’m obsessed with it. I’m already seeing results and am really excited to nail my skincare routine.

Sarah Gill, Features Editor, IMAGE.ie

Skincare, for me, appeared in my life very gradually, and then overwhelmingly all at once. My bedside locker went from Sudocrem and clay facemasks (more for the tactile experience than the deep cleansing effect) to a valley of serums with hifalutin ingredients promising to make me more radiant and, generally, more fabulous. I applied the kitchen sink to my basically fine-to-begin-with skin without any real knowledge of what anything did, resulting in breakouts, rashes and dry flaky patches. (I actually thought I could apply retinol under my make-up, as a base?! For shame!)

Finally, I removed my cranium from my posterior and unlocked a pretty solid skincare regimen. First up, exfoliating: I adore the Elemental Exfoliating Powder for a nice deep clean, and I use it in tandem with the Clarity multi-active cleanser from VOYA when I’m in the shower.

Post shower/cleanse, I spritz my face with the Refreshing Facial Toner from Dublin Herbalist to close up my pores, and then pop on my serum of the moment, which is currently the Ultra Brightening Serum from Ultraceruticals, and then I seal the deal with the Active Rosehip Day Cream from Kinvara Skincare.

For SPF, I always use the Skingredients Skin Shield and I love it so much I genuinely never leave the house without lathering my face in it. Have you noticed that my routine is entirely Irish-owned? Yes, I’m very smug about it. The one outlier is the Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Concentrate, which is potentially my best skincare purchase ever. I use three drops all over my face and neck before bed, and the scent is like the most gorgeous essential oil you’ve ever smelled.

All of this being said, it is important to note that when I say my days are sleeping in my makeup are behind me, I mean that that was last weekend and try as I might, tipsy Sarah just does not like a post-night out facial cleanse! Take it up with her.

Meghan Killalea, Marketing Account Executive

While some people are make-up or fashion mad (and don’t get me wrong, I’m also both of those things) my biggest weakness is skincare. Hands down, my number one skincare essential is a good SPF.

I will die on the hill that there is literally no point in doing your skincare routine without applying SPF during the day, because the sun will damage all your good work. I have three SPFs that I use consistently; for a lighter consistency, I either go for the Isntree Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Watery Sun Gel SPF50+ PA++++ or the SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Hyalu-Cica Water-Fit Sun Serum SPF50+ PA+, both of which are stunning and just melt into the skin. When my skin is a bit on the dry side, I reach for the Beauty of Joseon Sun: Rice + Probiotics which is so soothing and hydrating.

I am also a big fan of the classic combination of a soothing toner and hydrating serum. Recently, I’ve been loving the Anua Heartleaf 77% Soothing Toner and then, while my skin is still damp, applying either the Pestle & Mortar Pure Hyaluronic Serum or the Torriden Dive-in Low Molecule Hyaluronic Acid Serum. I love doing this in the evening before bed.

Finally, as someone with naturally dry lips, a hydrating lip balm has been a saviour in my routine. I love applying the Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask right before I go to sleep for an extra boost of moisture. I was also recently given the Limited Edition Vaseline Vanilla Daydream Lip Therapy and it is, dare I say, the tastiest lip balm I’ve ever owned, so I would highly recommend it.

Katie Brady, Marketing & Memberships Executive

My holy grail skincare product has to be Sculpted by Aimee’s CloudCream. I have been using it for years now and love how hydrating and gentle it is on my sensitive skin. I would also like to give an honourable mention to my satin pillow case from Voduz. Not a skin care product per say, but an essential for me in my bid to be high maintenance, in order to be low maintenance…

Emily O’Neill, Marketing Account Executive

There is one skincare product that I can not live without and that’s Ella & Jo’s Wide Awake Eye Gel. Since the day it launched, it has been a staple in my routine and I always have a backup in the drawer. It is a product that literally does what says on the tin — brightens and hydrates!

When it comes to bodycare there is also one product I am truly obsessed with and it’s Body Drench from Ealu. I recently ran out and had to hunt it down online as it was out of stock on their site! A true testament to how good it is. I suffer from really dry skin on my legs and it is a miracle worker. It is a gorgeous lightweight moisturiser that feels like nothing I have ever tried. I’m off to stock up on as many bottles I can get my hands on!

Dearbhla Lovett, IMAGE First Activations Freelancer

My biggest non-negotiable skincare product is an SPF. At the moment, I’m loving the La Roche Posay Cicaplast Baume with SPF 50, a heavy moisturiser which hydrates your skin. I also love the Sculpted by Aimee Beauty Base Protect Primer, whether I’m wearing makeup or not, this gives the skin a lovely glow and protection with SPF 50.

I like to keep my skincare routine down to five or six products; toner, serum, eye cream and moisturiser, so I love when I find a serum that really works. I recently got the Byoma Phyto Mucin Glow Serum and I have noticed a huge difference in my skin’s brightness and complexion! I pair this over the Pestle & Mortar Pure Hyaluronic Serum for extra hydration.

For my toner, I got the Rhode Glazing Milk back in January, and I couldn’t go without it now! My skin feels super hydrated and plump after using it and it also creates the perfect hydrated base for your makeup.

Megan Burns, Editor, IMAGE Interiors; Deputy Editor, IMAGE

For years I’ve been repurchasing Lixir Skin’s Vitamin C Paste – the difference in my skin when I started using it was dramatic, so I’ve been hooked ever since! Promising to brighten, protect and correct, it’s a quick morning mask that just needs to be left on for a few minutes. If this sounds annoying, I’ve built it into my routine in a way that I leave it on while I get dressed, and then rinse off. It’s a really simple step that I feel helps my skin enormously.

I also use a hyaluronic acid serum – my skin doesn’t love moisturiser, but this provides just enough hydration. I love Skin Veg from Skingredients, but at the moment I’m using La Roche-Posay’s Hyalu B5 Serum, which I’ve also found to be effective. I always finish with SPF, and I’ve never found anything better than La Roche-Posay Anthelios UVMune 400, specifically the Oil Control version. It absorbs well, and doesn’t leave any shine or white marks.

Shayna (Sappington) Healy, Branded Content Editor and Wedding Editor

I am a chronic alarm snoozer, so I try to stick to an easy, 10-minute morning make-up routine. To combat my chronically dry skin, my essentials include Simple moisturiser – it’s the only cream that doesn’t break me out – and Sculpted by Aimee’s Beauty Base, which glides on like a dream, has SPF50 and is a great base for make-up.

Then for concealer, I slather Bare Minerals over my sunken undereyes and on top of blemishes and watch it work its colour correcting magic! And finally, for a natural-looking glow, I dab Dr Hauschka’s bronzing tint on my cheekbones, forehead, nose and jaw line and blend. While other foundations, powders, mascaras and serums come and go, this is the make-up crew I always keep stocked for a natural, radiant look.

Édaein O’Connell, Contributing Editor, IMAGE.ie

I like to keep my skincare simple, and I am very much a cleanser, serum and a drop of moisturiser girl. Right now, I’m on my fifth bottle of Caudalie’s Vinoperfect serum. There is sorcery in that bottle, and I want to continue being bewitched. My skin has never looked better. My complexion is clear. Redness has been banished, and dark spots are invisible. I put this on in the morning and at night; it always makes me look like I’ve just had the best facial of my life. Another must in my skincare arsenal is the Poco Beauty Universal Glow Treatment. I love that it has SPF in it and the glow it gives is unbeatable.

Lizzie Gore-Grimes, Editor-in-Chief

I am embarrassed to say I have only started using SPF religiously in the last five years, but fingers crossed better late than never! Undoubtedly, one of the key factors in encouraging me to use it every day has been the discovery of Skingredients Skin Shield SPF 50 – it’s a mineral based SPF so offers even more protection for pale skin like mine, and it glides on like a primer, unlike other gluey-chalk mineral-based SPFs I have tried.

For cleanser, toner and moisturiser I am finding the Obagi Nu-Derm range, excellent – (recommended for my skin by Jade at The Fitzgerald Private Clinic). She also introduced me to Microbiome Booster serum by Irish company Sásta which is packed full of prebiotics and postbiotics to help strengthen the skin barrier.

Before bed, I love to use Kinvara Rose Hip serum for its delicious zen-spa smell and skin-soothing texture, with Boots No 7 Future Renew eye serum applied for an extra nourishing treat.