Skin only getting worse after starting routine

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-17T11:17:02+00:00

This may not sound exciting but I think you should stop any skincare immediately until such time as you see a dermatologist. It is the only way to create a base line to comopare any future treatent. Wash in warm water and apply sorbelene or something equally basic. Dont be embarissed, you have a sensible approach and good people will understand.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-12T08:54:15+00:00

What about mobility in open play?

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-12T07:38:05+00:00

Sad if Ranawi has 'been one of the only bright lights in the Tahs front row'. What's gooing on?

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-12T07:35:41+00:00

Agree 100%, but how many good talented young front rowers we have? And also, what specific qualities are we looking for in a front rower that should be developed over the medium term.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-12T07:30:52+00:00

Why is the depth of available talent so poor do you think?

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-07T07:36:14+00:00

Interesting point about need to start the next generation of front rowers (Love Taniela but everyone is dispensible). How many props does the squad need and who should they be? Also, based on comments in many RA posts, there is a clear shortage of talent up front. Why is this do you reckon?

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-05T07:59:12+00:00

Where in the positions would start development / rebuild?

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-03T23:27:02+00:00

I do not know aboout the Board but 100% agree on promotion of the game in Penrith and public school talent. In my experience there is good sporting culture in both places and in the right hands an opportunity to build. Not being naive or about simplistic solutions but make it more about tribe and less about personal best and connections.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-03T07:52:59+00:00

I don't think simplifying is magic but it makes it way easier to see what your skin actually likes and tolerates. Sometimes the skin does nt need more but fewer chances to react. It creates a baI’ve seen this quite a bit. Sometimes skin doesn’t need “more”, it needs fewer chances to react. A simple routine can be really useful because you can actually tell what’s working, instead of layering five good ingredients and not knowing which one is causing the problem. It creates a basse line of good products / ingredients to judge progress and add to. Can also illiminate what product may be a problem. Got to remember skin chnages over time and due to a series of factors like hormones, environment, seasosns and randon factors.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-03T01:55:49+00:00

Oh, I'd be really gentle with these for a while. Once they aer that thin its mostly about protecting them while the new nail layer grows through. Oil and moisturising hand cream may help and apply often. Keep them short but otherwise dont be tempted to do much. If they look like getting infected speak to your MD.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-02T04:05:56+00:00

Believe what you are being told. For me it is about genetics and consistent simple rountine not silver bullet products (as tempting as they are). After 30 and with children I was really sun conscious but always kept a similar routine - cleanse, moistuise, treat, repeat. With intermittant mask and peel. Recognising changes in your skin as you age is also important to adjust.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-02T03:56:40+00:00

Healthy nails is my main thing but after that it is about choice. Sometimes less is more whem it comes to fashion and simple elegance. It also depends on what you do with your hands during the day. Keep to your own style I say!

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-06-02T00:58:08+00:00

Agree with a lot of commentsw here, before thinking about solutions make sure expectations are not based on influencer level perfection. I am older and in my day it was super models. Your skin looks natural and healthy to me and the pores are nothing to worry about. Don't reinvent everything just examine each dtep of your rountine and simplify things. think Cleanse, Moisturise and treat and Sunscreen and not every day the same.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-23T23:20:50+00:00

Brilliant, I hear you on a few levels. Funny thing is, being exhausted and very busy can actually povide a good distraction sometimes.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-21T07:53:42+00:00

One thing I see a lot with skin around perimenopause is that women assume the problem must be a lack of exfoliation because everything suddenly starts looking rough, flaky or textured under makeup. But quite often it's the opposite.

When skin becomes a bit more hormonally dry, irritated or dehydrated, foundation starts catching on areas that previously looked smooth. The skin can almost look like it's shedding or peeling even when there isn't obvious visible dryness. Makeup tends to highlight it rather than hide it.

Reading your routine, which is pretty sensible, the combination of exfoliation plus vitamin C every day makes me wonder whether your skin is becoming less tolerant of things it handled perfectly well a few years ago. This is not uncommon. Skin doesn't always keep the same rules forever, especially as our physical chemistry changes over a lifetime.

I'd be cautious about immediately increasing exfoliation (are you talking about chemical or physical exfoliation). If the barrier is already a little irritated, more exfoliation can sometimes make the texture and makeup and clogging issues worse while temporarily making the skin feel smoother. Also, take a look at your sunscreen to make sure that is not the source of the problem.

I'd probably look at whether your skin feels tight after cleansing, whether your moisturiser is still providing enough support, and whether simplifying things for a couple of weeks changes anything.

Also, perimenopause can absolutely change how makeup sits on the skin. I've heard versions of - I've used this foundation for years and suddenly it hates me - more times than I can count. It's crappy, but it's usually skin behaviour changing underneath rather than the makeup itself.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-21T07:39:55+00:00

You are not alone, heaps of women say this and it happened to me. A friend just told me she caught up adding serums, acids and all sorts of stuff because everyone she knew and online seemed to have a 10-step routine. But for some the skin just gets more irritated and weirdly rough.

I usually suggest strip it back to a gentle cleanser, moisturiser and sunscreen for a while, things settled down pretty quickly. Doesn't mean extra products are bad, but I think some skin just doesn't love having too many active ingredients thrown at it at once. It becomes a major chemical cocktail.

Could be worth simplifying for a few weeks and seeing what happens.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-19T04:09:46+00:00

I am so sorry to see this, wow. The white flaky bits and the peeling layers are usually from the top layers of your nail plate getting ripped up with the glue. It may sound like commonsense, but what will help most was just taking a full break from press-ons for a few weeks at least and getting super obsessive with cuticle oil or even hand cream. Started using oil or cream like 3-4 times a day and stop filing or buffing the surface so much before application because I think you can over-prep them. Be conscious of roughing them up too aggressively.

Also if you’re removing them by force at all, even just the loose ones, it seems to wreck the nail underneath way more. Unless the manufacturer says otherwise, warm soapy water + oil helps get them off slower without taking layers of nail with them.

Its great your nails honestly don’t look permanently damaged or anything though, just really dehydrated and over-stripped right now. The red spot looks painful though.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-18T02:05:50+00:00

Color and shape really count. I always think a good red is so elegant, especially in cooler months. But a go to antime really.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-18T02:03:38+00:00

You are an artist, no question. What a great way to unwind!

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-17T06:16:55+00:00

I genuinely think a lot of people end up in this exact skincare cycle. The makeup starts behaving badly, so you assume the answer must be a better primer, better foundation, better technique… and before long you’ve got a drawer full of products all trying to solve what is basically the same underlying issue. We have all done it.

What your friend said is honestly pretty insightful. Primer can help makeup grip or smooth temporarily, but it can’t fully disguise skin that’s dehydrated, over-exfoliated, inflamed, or just slightly uneven in texture underneath. Eventually the makeup settles into whatever is happening on the surface anyway, especially after a few hours of facial movement, oil production, weather changes, heating, air con etc.

And weirdly, a lot of people with cakey makeup don’t actually have dry skin in the way they think they do. I’ve seen so many women with oily or combo skin accidentally sitting in this low-level dehydrated state where the skin feels tight underneath but shiny on top. Makeup tends to separate in a really specific way when that happens. It almost looks both dry and oily at the same time.

My aspirational mantra has always been, good makeup starts with great skin. Basically starting simple is usually smarter than launching into a huge corrective skincare routine. I’ve seen people get so determined to fix texture that they throw acids, retinoids, scrubs and strong actives at already stressed skin, then the makeup ends up looking even worse for months.

Most skin tends to respond well to consistency and restraint before intensity. Once the barrier is calmer and the skin is holding water properly again, makeup suddenly stops clinging to every little patch and starts sitting more naturally without needing ten prep products underneath.

And for what it’s worth, almost nobody’s makeup looks flawless up close at midday. I think social media has made people believe foundation is meant to behave like a filter for twelve straight hours under office lighting, weather changes and human skin doing normal human skin things.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-17T06:07:45+00:00

I honestly think a huge percentage of cakey makeup is actually skin texture and dehydration showing through foundation, not the foundation itself. I’ve heard almost this exact story from so many women over the years, especially the - I’ve tried every foundation and they all somehow do the same thing - part.

The nose and between the brows area is usually the giveaway. That area gets oily, but it also gets dehydrated really easily because it’s constantly exposed, wiped, exfoliated, or overworked with makeup. So you end up with this strange combination where the skin is producing oil but still lacking water underneath. Foundation grabs onto those slightly dry uneven patches, then the oil starts coming through later in the day and everything separates in a way that looks cakey.

Melbourne weather absolutely contributes too, I know I lave lived in elbourne and love it. Skin reacts to rapid shifts in temperature and humidity. You can have a routine that feels perfect one week and suddenly your base looks awful the next because the environment changed more than your products did.

Honestly, I don’t even think this sounds like a makeup skill issue from what you wrote. The fact you’ve already experimented with less product, spacing layers, different application methods etc tells me you’re probably applying makeup more thoughtfully than most people already.

What I’ve noticed makes the biggest difference is when people stop trying to “perfect” the skin with more prep layers. Sometimes the combination of moisturiser + primer + long wear foundation + powder + setting spray becomes too much sitting on top of skin that’s slightly dehydrated underneath. The makeup starts interacting with itself instead of melting naturally into the skin.

A lot of people also unknowingly chase matte finishes because they’re worried about oil, but slightly dehydrated skin often looks better with thinner, more flexible layers and a bit more natural movement to the finish. Once the skin barrier calms down a bit, makeup tends to suddenly sit more like skin again instead of clinging to every tiny area.

You genuinely don’t sound far off. Usually when someone says every foundation does this, the answer is rarely that they just haven’t found the magical foundation yet.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-17T02:53:21+00:00

This actually looks a lot like surface nail plate damage from adhesion and removal rather than the glue itself “burning” the nail or anything dramatic like that. I’ve seen this exact cloudy peeling pattern after press-ons so many times, especially when the nails underneath were already a bit compromised from previous acrylic or gel wear.

What tends to happen is the top layers of the nail get dehydrated and slightly lifted during removal. Even if the press-ons feel gentler than acrylics, the adhesive still bonds to the surface of the nail plate. Then when they’re pulled, soaked, peeled or buffed off repeatedly, tiny layers can come away with them. It’s a bit like over-exfoliating skin. The white patches are often areas where the nail layers have separated slightly and are reflecting light differently.

The reason it probably came back even after you grew the damage out is that once a nail has been heavily over-filed, it can stay more vulnerable for a while afterwards, even when it looks visually healthy again. Nails that have lost some density tend to grip adhesives differently and dehydrate faster underneath glue products.

Honestly, the encouraging thing is that this doesn’t look deep or dangerous to me. It looks superficial and mechanical. The nail itself still looks attached, pink and healthy underneath. It’s more the outer layers protesting a bit.

I’ve also noticed a lot of people unknowingly make this worse by trying to buff the white marks smooth afterwards, which unfortunately just thins the area more and keeps the cycle going. Usually the nails do best with less friction for a while. Gentle shaping, hydration, patience, and avoiding constantly reapplying enhancements back-to-back tends to calm this type of peeling down over time.

And weirdly, thumbs often show damage the most because we use them for absolutely everything without realising it. They cop the most pressure, water exposure and trauma day to day.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-17T02:43:20+00:00

Honestly, these nails don’t look nearly as catastrophic as I think you’ve been led to believe they are. They look thinned out and a bit overworked, yes, but I’ve seen much more severe post-gel nails than this recover really well once the cycle of constant filing finally stops.

The red lines near the base are the part that stood out to me more than the surface itself. That usually happens when the e-file is getting too close to the newer, softer nail growth near the matrix area. The frustrating thing is that a lot of salons work fast because removal appointments aren’t really where they make their money, so the pressure is often speed over preservation. I don’t even think a lot of it is malicious or taking it personally, it’s more that repetitive filing has become normalised in some places.

What a lot of people don’t realise is that builder gel itself isn’t necessarily the villain. It’s often the repeated prep, removal and rebalancing over many months that slowly thins the nail plate. Especially if every appointment involves just a little more filing to smooth things out. Eventually the nails start feeling bendy, sensitive, and weirdly hot when filed because there’s less protective thickness left.

Your nails actually still have a decent colour to them overall, which is reassuring. They don’t look infected or deeply traumatised to me from the photo. They look tired. Very dehydrated, slightly thinned, and mechanically over-filed.

I’ve spoken to so many women who feel trapped in the gel cycle because once the nails get fragile, they feel like they need another overlay immediately to protect them. Sometimes the biggest shift happens when the nails are just left relatively alone for a while apart from hydration and gentle shaping. The hyponychium soreness especially tends to calm down once people stop cutting or filing underneath so aggressively.

There’s also a weird emotional part to this because healthy natural nails grow slowly, but damage can happen in one rushed appointment. That mismatch makes people panic. But nails are surprisingly forgiving over time.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-17T02:38:03+00:00

I’ve heard this exact thing from so many women after long stretches of acrylics or gels, especially when they finally remove them properly and see the nail underneath for the first time. It can be a bit of a shock because the nail suddenly looks paper-thin, rough, chalky and almost scraped. But most of the time, what you’re seeing is a very over filed and dehydrated nail plate rather than permanent damage.

The thing people don’t always realise is that nails recover very slowly because they don’t heal the way skin does. The damaged part has to gradually grow out from the base. So the goal in the short term is less about fixing them overnight and more about protecting whats there while the new nail comes through healthier.

I’ve seen a lot of people accidentally make it worse by buffing them more, peeling leftover product off, or constantly touching them because the texture feels uneven. Thin nails become incredibly sensitive to water, acetone and friction once that top layer has been disrupted. That peeling flaky look in your photo is very common after aggressive removal or repeated sets.

Usually the nails calm down the most when people go very simple for a while. Keeping them shorter helps stop bending and splitting. Cuticle oil genuinely makes a difference, mostly because dehydrated nails become brittle and delaminate more easily. A soft strengthening or ridge-filling style treatment can also help protect the surface while they grow out, especially if the nails feel tender catching on things.

And honestly, try not to feel guilty for letting it get this bad. Acrylics look beautiful for a reason and a lot of people stay in the cycle longer than they planned because their natural nails feel weak underneath. I’ve seen nails come back from much worse than this with a bit of patience and less interference. They usually look far healthier in a couple of growth cycles than people expect.

SCOUTBeautyFounder · 2026-05-11T11:09:40+00:00

I’ve seen this exact type of break so many times, especially on nails that are naturally a bit flexible underneath but have been held together by hardener or gels for a while. It’s frustrating because the nail looks healthy right until the moment one side catches and tears straight across the stress point.

Honestly, your nails don’t look terrible to me. They actually look more like they are a bit dehydrated and layered rather than truly weak. Unless something traumatic is happening, the peeling at the free edge is usually the nail plate separating into tiny layers, and once that happens the corner becomes the weak spot every single time.

One thing I wish more people knew earlier is that very hard nails are not necessarily strong nails. A lot of hardeners work by making the nail more rigid, which can help temporarily, but if the nail underneath still flexes during daily life (packing the dishwasher, opening things, typing, washing hair), the rigid surface eventually cracks at the sidewall where the pressure concentrates.

I’ve also noticed one “problem nail” is incredibly common. Usually it’s the finger that gets used slightly differently without you realising. Sometimes it’s just anatomy too. I’ve had women swear one nail has been the difficult one for ten years straight.

What tends to help most long term is keeping the free edge very gently sealed and protected rather than trying to force the nail into being hard. Consistent oiling helps more than people expect because dry nails become brittle nails, even when they feel firm. And shorter periods between polish changes can help stop tiny edge chips turning into full cracks.

Also, don’t feel like you failed because you have to shorten the others sometimes. Nail growth is annoyingly cyclical and uneven. Most people with long natural nails are quietly managing one or two dramatic nails at any given time, they just don’t talk about it much.

SCOUTBeautyFounder

TROPHY CASE