To Tone Or Not To Tone .......

[thatu]

Thank you all for your replies here. I'm definitely going to try one of those products, just have to decide which one.

 

[Akimbo]

I'll use a toner if it comes in a set but only if it's in a spray bottle; if I have to faff with cotton pads when I half asleep I can't be @rsed. So currently DD and I have a Liz Earle Instant Boost on the go but we've also used Elemis, Lavender, Apricot and Ginseng but I can't say there's any difference with or without or between those for prescribed skin types.

 

[louise66]

I don`t buy a commercially branded toner but i buy lavender hydrolat which is the condensed water left over after lavender flowers have had the lavender oil extracted. I use it as a toner, also on insect bites in the Summer and its also very calming if your skin becomes upset with a product or procedure. The hydrolat is chemical and additive free and I buy it in a litre bottle and decant it. It can be mixed with other floral waters such as orange blossom, geranium, rose etc but I prefer to just use it alone. It costs me just £10 for a litre which lasts me months and it makes my skin feel lovely. Here`s the link if you`re interested.
http://www.naturallythinking.com/categories/Aromatherapy/Floral-Water-{47}-Hydrolat/

Vienna, thank you so much for bringing this site to my attention. Having been vegetarian for thiry years (God, I'm getting on a bit!), and the reasons for being so, ethical attitudes and operational execution, is extremely important to me, and this company seems to tick all the boxes.
I have extremely sensitive skin; from your experience, would you say I ought to give this a try? Obviously, I will patch test first.

 

[Vienna]

Vienna, thank you so much for bringing this site to my attention. Having been vegetarian for thiry years (God, I'm getting on a bit!), and the reasons for being so, ethical attitudes and operational execution, is extremely important to me, and this company seems to tick all the boxes.
I have extremely sensitive skin; from your experience, would you say I ought to give this a try? Obviously, I will patch test first.

Louise I have sensitive skin too and the slightest thing can set it off. I`ve had no trouble at all with the lavender hydrolat and the website do a range of plain and simple skincare, bodycare and hair care bases which have nothing added to them, no esentials oils in them and can be used just as they are. Here`s the link.
http://www.naturallythinking.com/categories/Aromatherapy/Cosmetic-Bases/
http://www.naturallythinking.com/products/Simple-Facial-Cream.html

 

[Nora]

I've never used one!

 

[boffy]

i have an oilier skin so use soap to thoroughly clean my skin hence no need for a toner. cream cleansers would leave a residue so I suspect would need a toner.

 

[whitesnake]

My skin definitely doesn't feel right if I don't use a toner. I used to religiously use the Clinique three step (cleansing bar, toner and dramatically different lotion) but when I hit 40 I felt it was stripping my skin. I now use Liz Earle Instant Boost skin tonic but I vary my cleansers and moisturisers. I find it nice and gentle and really seems to work for my skin.

 

[Marina]

I don't use the same one all the time, I've got quite a few in rotation because my skin's a bit mad due to hormonal imbalance (oily, very sensitive, acne prone, rosacea, recently eczema and related dryness and flakiness at the same time as the oil, wtf.) My skin seems to want different things depending what day it is so I swap between washes and more creamy cleansers and that. I like a few from Paula's Choice, the Body Shop aloe cream cleanser, Clinique take the day off cleansing balm, Cerave hydrating cleanser... The rest of my skincare stays the same but my skin complains if I use the same cleanser continually.

It seems that EH Moringa balm may help to balance your skin srhgts, but I may be wrong. Someone with similar concerns said it cleared dry patches on combination skin.

 

[miss molly]

I have got a Gatineau one on the go at the moment it smells like tea and stings my eyes.

 

[LADY TIA]

Ooo interesting thread. I can't use any toners with essential oils such as hydrolats. I can't use Parabens, that MI and MCI preservative anything with fragrance etc (I've had patch testing).

What I use regardless of what skincare I'm using is colloidal silver to keep my skin clear and calm, I've been doing this, mmmm must be for around a year now and its my staple product above everything else.

I have problematic skin, eczema prone, dermatitis prone, allergic, reactive and if my skin is misbehaving I will get spots too although not if my skin is fine with something, then its rather dry so I know its get set off by the wrong skincare.

Colloidal silver has just been a wonder for me, I tried it because I also get lots of infections and I've found it a marvel for my skin

 

[srhgts]

It seems that EH Moringa balm may help to balance your skin srhgts, but I may be wrong. Someone with similar concerns said it cleared dry patches on combination skin.

Ah, I can't use anything fragranced (it does smell lovely though!) There's a list as long as my arm of stuff my skin won't tolerate, sadly. Thanks though. :nod:

 

[Scout]

What I use regardless of what skincare I'm using is colloidal silver to keep my skin clear and calm, I've been doing this, mmmm must be for around a year now and its my staple product above everything else.

Sorry to be the voice of doom, but please be very careful with Colloidal silver LT. A friend of mine used it and developed Argyria, a result of long term use of Colloidal silver where your skin, nails, internal organs etc. turn a kind of ashen blue/grey. And it's permanent, doesn't revert back to normal when you stop using the silver. So now she has to deal with looking like a corpse all over as well as what she was using the silver for. She now takes antidepressants because she looks so weird, even with makeup. Even her gums are blue/gray so she doesn't want to smile. l gather from her that colloidal silver is not used medically in most countries since the advent of antibiotics, but caused Argyria in millions of people before that. Something to do with silver deposits getting into the blood and being held all through the body, basically silver poisoning. Is mainly only available nowadays from alternative health outlets. Please read up on it before using it long-term.

 

[LADY TIA]

Sorry to be the voice of doom, but please be very careful with Colloidal silver LT. A friend of mine used it and developed Argyria, a result of long term use of Colloidal silver where your skin, nails, internal organs etc. turn a kind of ashen blue/grey. And it's permanent, doesn't revert back to normal when you stop using the silver. So now she has to deal with looking like a corpse all over as well as what she was using the silver for. She now takes antidepressants because she looks so weird, even with makeup. Even her gums are blue/gray so she doesn't want to smile. l gather from her that colloidal silver is not used medically in most countries since the advent of antibiotics, but caused Argyria in millions of people before that. Something to do with silver deposits getting into the blood and being held all through the body, basically silver poisoning. Is mainly only available nowadays from alternative health outlets. Please read up on it before using it long-term.

Hi, did your friend take it internally, I don't ingest just a spritz couple of times a day as my skin toner, the amount I use is nowhere near enough to cause the blue tinge, I have read up on it and you would have to consume a fair amount for the blue effect to take place but thanks for mentioning as I know its probably not something people are aware of. I feel for your friend it must be terrible for her and the fact that it can't be something that eases over time is very distressing.

 

[Scout]

Hi, did your friend take it internally, I don't ingest just a spritz couple of times a day as my skin toner, the amount I use is nowhere near enough to cause the blue tinge, I have read up on it and you would have to consume a fair amount for the blue effect to take place but thanks for mentioning as I know its probably not something people are aware of. I feel for your friend it must be terrible for her and the fact that it can't be something that eases over time is very distressing.

You don't have to consume it to get argyria LT, external use can also cause what they call 'localised argyria' where just the skin area where it's being used turns blue/grey, or it affects the eyes if eye drops are being used etc. The silver salts are absorbed by the skin, eyes etc when applied topically, and when used regularly localised argyria of that area can result.

 

[spartacus]

Most of the toners I've had came in kits rather than items I've purchased on their own. I do love the scent of the Liz Earle Instant Boost Skin Tonic, and Natroma orange blossom hydrolat.

I tend only to use a toner if I'm doing a full routine when I've got time at a weekend, ie including exfoliation & mask. Toners do have a nice fresh feeling on my skin, but I don't usually bother with a toner on a day to day basis since I use a face wash in the morning and hot cloth cleanser in the evening, so I usually just go straight to moisturiser after that.

 

[iloveshopping]

You don't have to consume it to get argyria LT, external use can also cause what they call 'localised argyria' where just the skin area where it's being used turns blue/grey, or it affects the eyes if eye drops are being used etc. The silver salts are absorbed by the skin, eyes etc when applied topically, and when used regularly localised argyria of that area can result.

Scout I don't use it but having read your post I can assure you I never will, so thanks for your post.

 

[LADY TIA]

Scout I don't use it but having read your post I can assure you I never will, so thanks for your post.

Hello, I'm happy to keep using it as useage that causes the blue tinge is due to an accumulation of the silver particles and is from excessive or chronic use (too frequent for very long term) and regularly doesn't really constitute excess or chronic use.

The amount I use and the frequency of usage is something I'm absolutely comfortable with but thanks for the information

I love it, love what its done for me but take your point - to be one the safe side I might just swap to once a day but I can't envissage stopping using it

 

[Fruity Pebbles]

I'm going to use a toner I'd use one with additional benefits ie exfoliating and brightening. Clarins Exfoliating Toner is excellent for this but I wouldn't necessarily use it every day, I would mix with other similar products.

 

[louise66]

To tone, or not to tone....

Do you ever get the impression, that the expert guests quite often assume that our gullibility, will persuade us to believe whatever they tell us? Now, obviously, skincare is a very personal, and subjective, regime. What suits one person, mat not be appropriate for another. When it comes to toning, I don't. When I first began a skincare routine, I would do the 'cleanse, tone, moisturise' thing. Keeley, in this hour, has just responded to Sara's blatant attempt to convince us we DO need a toner; paraphrasing it, she said that she cannot understand these 2 in 1 cleanser/toners. Why should a cleanser need water to tone? That, Keeley, is not the point of the 2 in 1 product; the USP of this product, is the fact that it saves time and , they tell us, money. It is formulated to do two jobs in one go.
She has been doing an Ali Young today, reminding us in each show that I've seen (granted, I haven't caught them all) that she has been a beauty expert for 20 years!
As a QVC presenter, surely Sara shouldn't have been opining that she can't understand these companies who don't do a toner, as the Q sell these ranges! Either get your brain and your mouth in sync, or use a bit of nous.

 

[Loveinamist]

I tone, always have. It cools my skin down for primer and makeup preparation.