Reddit mentions of Thayers Alcohol-free Unscented Witch Hazel Toner (12-oz.) ( Pack May Vary )

Sep 17, 2019

Pre: Proraso Pre Shave
Lather: Tallow + Steel West Coast IPA
Brush: Parker Safety Razor Handmade Deluxe "Long Loft" 100% Pure Badger Shaving Brush 22mm
Blade: Lord Super Stainless (3)
Razor: Merkur 38C
Post: Shea Moisture Honey and Black Seed After Shave Healing Elixir
Fragrance: Tallow + Steel West Coast IPA AS

I just use Thayers brand Witch Hazel, unscented, I have very sensitive, oily, acne prone skin and very hard water.

I used this Thayer's witch hazel without issue! It's alcohol free.

https://www.amazon.com/Thayers-Alcohol-free-Unscented-Witch-12-oz/dp/B0045PCAI6/ref=sr_1_cc_1_a_it?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1510601632&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=thayers%2Bwitch%2Bhazel%2Bunscented&th=1

I always hear good things about this one

I had the same concerns about shaving and skincare, and I asked basically the same question you're asking. I recommend you to check out r/wicked_edge. It's an entire sub dedicated to shaving, and after a year of heading their advice I can vouch for the benefits of wet-shaving with a double-edge safety razor over cartridge razors (and its waaaay cheaper).

But I can list a few basic things that'll help:

• Wash your face before you shave. It's preferred if you use a soap or face wash that has a lot of glycerin in it. This Whole Foods soap is constantly recommended and I've used it for a year with no problems.
  
  
• When shaving, use a fresh, clean towel and pat your face to dry off. You can also just let your face dry on its own without doing anything.
  
  
• The thing about shaving and acne is how shaving causes irritation, so if you can limit irritation you'll be less likely to break out. That said, try using a pre-shale oil before you apply your shaving cream. You can use some of the oils that are used in OCM; like Jojoba, Castor, Almond, etc. I combine equal parts jojoba and castor oil just to mix it up.
  
  
• Map the grain direction of your facial hair, and shave like you're taking the razor in the same direction your hair is going. This will limit irritation but may not give you as close a shave as you'd like, so it'll be at discretion how you go about it.
  
  
• Use a non-alcoholic/non-menthol based aftershave. I recommend Thayer's Witch Hazel and Nivea Post Shave Balm for Sensitive Skin. Some more acne prone shavers have said that they use the Stridex in the red box in place of witch hazel or some other astringent, but I have yet to try that.
  
  
• Moisturize after you've applied whatever after-shave products you used and your face has dried. Then sunscreen. Always sunscreen.
  
  
• Scope out some non-irritating shaving creams/soaps.
  
  And there ya go. This ended up being much longer than I was expecting.

witch hazel before bed and when you wake up. Niacinamide/zinc at night.

The black pores on your nose are full of sebum and dead skin- it’ll never be gone forever. Witch hazel is a toner which removes excess dirt and dead skin. Niacinamide and zinc balances sebum production so your skin looks clearer.

Pore strips remove the surface issues but do not deep clean. If you want a quick fix, go with pore strips. If you want long term relief, consider a multi step cleansing process.

I use pore strips before weddings and social events if my nose is looking gnarly but I have a multi step skin cleansing routine that cut down my acne significantly. I’ve got a few nose strips hidden away that are probably over a year old.

Honestly, I like the MR11 for new(er) folks to start off with. It isn't ridiculously short, it isn't ridiculously long. It has a good neutral feel even though it is fully stainless (the handle).

Ummm, besides that.... the kit will come with an Alum bloc.

Back to the Amazon purchase, one thing that I'd recommend always having on hand from there that has been my favorite for the past few months or so are going to be:

Thayers

and

Tea Tree Oil

I can't really think of anything else off the bat right now.... I'd say that I am selling my Merkur Futur, but I don't think that I'd recommend that as a beginner razor at all. Maybe once you want to try something more aggressive and adjustable that is affordable down the road.

I really like Thayers Witch Hazel. I find that it's not as drying as other toners I've used, and is inexpensive. It feels really nice putting on. Just make sure you follow up with a moisturizer.

(PART 1) I couldn’t fix my painful dehydrated skin until i incorporated urea and lanolin, and regular use of petrolatum into my skin care. But idk how you feel about those... It took me a good year or year and a half to fix my dehydrated skin from overexfoliation.

Also, putting on occlusives right away after you wash and put on humectants is super important. Otherwise it can dry you out more.

So what I do is use a very gentle, non-foaming cleanser (I use LRP Gentle Hydrating) and while my face is still wet, put on all my hydrating toners and serums. Then go into lotions and creams RIGHT AWAY. You can watch Dr. Dray on YouTube who describes why this works.

When my skin was SO full of pain, from extremely dry, tight skin and irritated acne-like cysts everywhere, the only thing that didn’t hurt like a mf was Vanicream. It took me hundreds of dollars and tons of trial and error and babying my skin to get it back to normal. Now I can use AHA, azelaic acid, vitamin c, and even tretinoin and hydroquinone without a problem!!!

It took me hundreds of dollars and tons of trial and error and babying my skin to get it back to normal. Now I can use AHA, vitamin c, and even tretinoin and hydroquinone without a problem!!! 

No one or two products fixed my dehydrated skin. It took a TON of research over the years learning which ingredients were the most healing, moisturizing, how they work, etc.. And an entire routine around hydrating and moisturizing as much as possible. 

And i know everyone raves about the cosrx snail essence, but it didn’t do shit when my skin was that dehydrated. But there IS some evidence of snail healing damaged skin. The point is to put in as much healing and soothing ingredients into your routine as much as possible. 

I always make sure to include ingredients like: panthenol (derivative of vitamin b5), allantoin, urea, hualuronic acid, glycerin, aloe, colloidal oatmeal, ceramides (huge!!!), niacinamide (especially useful for brightening and healing your skin), petroleum (there is NOTHING out there that reduces transepidermal water loss like petroleum can. I tried to be all ~natural is better~ for a while, but realized it wasn't doing anything to help fix my skin), etc.

And not just adding these helped fix my skin, but leaving things out was a HUGE step in finally letting my skin heal. I avoid these like the plague: fragrance, natural (essential oils) or synthetic, alcohol anywhere other than sunscreen, sodium lauryl sulfate (sodium LAURETH sulfate is the gentler one, but I avoid that for my face too anyways. Any surfectants can be aided to be milder by adding cocamidopropyl betaine), all acids until my skin could handle them (interestingly enough, vitamin c serum actually helped my skin hold more water instead of hurting me), and things that I know irritate my skin.

Things that were/are biggest contributors of keeping my skin moist and hydrated, in no particular order:

Thayers Unscented Alcohol-Free Witch Hazel - the first thing that goes on my skin after washing. It's just water, aloe, glycerin and witch hazel. It's so simple but idk why my skin likes it so much, lol. It's HG for me.

Hadalabo Premium Lotion - HG, must have. ALWAYS put occlusives on top, do not wait for it to dry. Hyaluronic acids, urea, algae. This is my one non-negotiable skin care item.

Aveeno Eczema Therapy Cream - Super moisturizing. Colloidal oatmeal, glycerin, panthenol, petrolatum, a ceramide, dimethicone. (Also, people demonize silicones, but they are not bad ingredients. They are actually really helpful in keeping in moisture, providing slip, and smooth feel for skin and hair. And no, they don't prevent other things from reaching the skin.) And Aveeno Eczema Therapy Night Time Balm for something heavier but has same ingredients. You can use both.

And of course, CeraVe Moisturizing Cream - ceramides, cholesterol, must have skin-identical lipids that dehydrated skin lacks, hyaluronic acid, petrolatum, dimethicone. This by itself didn't help a whole lot, but with an army of all the different gentle, soothing things, it helped tremendously.

CeraVe PM- same as the cream, but much lighter and has 4% niacinamide I believe. Niacinamide has been key to helping my dry-ass skin. It does SO many things. I DIY 6% niacinamide and 5% n-acetyl glucosamine to boost the niacinamide even further. But you can find this ingredient in loads of AB things and Olay products. Make sure the Olay stuff is fragrance-free if you get them. I like the Olay Anti-Aging Face Cream a lot. You can use the CeraVe lotion if you for some reason can't tolerate niacinamide, but want something lighter than the cream.

Aquaphor Healing Ointment - SLUG LIFE is a MUST if you have dehydrated skin. You can use Cerave healing ointment too, but it's redundant if you use the cream or lotion. It's not as occlusive as aquaphor. Aquaphor isn't just a more pricier Vaseline as people suggest. It does have white petrolatum that is oh-so helpful, it also has healing ingredients like panthenol and bisobolol, and also lanolin alcohol and glycerin for humectants. I put on a THICK layer of this when I go to bed.

If you wanna go a step further and go super saiyan, and you aren't sensitive to lanolin, you can use Lasinoh Lanolin before or after Aquaphor. I can't stand the smell of lanolin, but this one is medical-grade and doesn't have a smell. Lanolin is SUPER helpful because of it's crazy humectant properties but it also acts as an occlusive.

For just uber Panthenol healing, you can get something that stars Panthenol as the main star ingredient, like DML Forte Cream or Timeless Skin Care Vitamin B5 Serum. I don't use the cream anymore, but I do still use the serum. It looks expensive, but if you get the refill sale, it's about $7/oz (idk what country you live in, but this is the price for me in the U.S.). I HIGHLY recommend their vitamin c, e, ferulic acid serum as well when your skin can handle it. It works out to about $8 an ounce if you get it during refill sale. It stays good for a while in the fridge. I wrap it in foil and transfer it to a 1 oz dropper bottle for using it in my bathroom. It gives glow to your skin like NOTHING ELSE, and boosts your sunscreen (the antioxidants slow the degradation of sunscreen ingredients, giving a huge boost to your sunscreen) and has helped me with water retention. If you can't get it on refill sale, use the HotandFlashy (I also recommend her Youtube channel) code hf5off to get $5 off. It's a forever coupon code.

For a drugstore toner I would recommend Dickinson or Thayer's Witch Hazel. I personally really like the rose petal witch hazel, but if fragrance bothers you then just use plain witch hazel.

Here is my routine with items and products that work for me.

DAILY Morning:

1. Scrape tongue; rinse with water; brush teeth for 2 minutes; floss; rinse 1 minute with alcohol-free mouthwash and then gargle 30 seconds with a little more mouthwash; brush tongue with vegetable glycerin.
   
2. Shower with warm- not hot- water; shampoo (every other day) and condition (every day); wash pits, feet, in between toes, crotch and crack with antibacterial soap and washcloth; wash rest of body with loofah and body wash of choice.
   
3. Wash face with warm water and a gentle face cleanser; shave; apply witch hazel to face, neck, and forehead; apply moisturizer with SPF
   
4. Dry off completely, especially pits, in between toes, crotch, and crack; apply Fresh Balls , deodorant, foot cream or powder , and hand cream (as necessary).
   
   DAILY Night:
   
   
5. Step 1 of morning routine
   
6. Wash hands and clean under finger nails * with antibacterial soap
   
7. Wash face with warm water and face cleanser; apply moisturizer.
   
   WEEKLY Sat or Sun: (In addition to daily routines)
   
   
8. Use a face scrub in the shower, gently, especially to the areas you will be shaving; clean under toenails with a nail brush*
   
9. Soak feet, particularly in summer and/or you have to wear work boots;
   
10. While feet are soaking trim fingernails * and clean under them with pointed end of a nail file*, carefully; dry feet.
    
11. Trim toenails* and clean under them with nail file*.
    
12. Check nose, ears and eyebrows for any hairs that need to be trimmed or anything in between eyebrows that needs to be removed.
    
13. Shave back of neck and around ears
    
    * Use separate tools for hands and feet to avoid spreading any potential fungus to your hands
    
    BI-WEEKLY Sat or Sun:
    
    
14. Manscape after the morning routine.
    
    I have a few resources that have specific guides, I will post them later. I hope this is somewhat helpful and if you have any questions, let me know.