Q: Can I mix skincare products from different brands/regiments? Or is it better to use a matching products from one brand or one regiment?

It depends. Most cosmetics companies offer different regiments (complete sets of matching products) for different skin concerns and needs, and they claim that you get better results when you use the entire regiment because the products compliment each other. While there are certainly cases that it is just a gimmick for the cosmetics companies to create brand loyalty and generate bigger sales, in most cases the claim is true. Especially if the products share a certain “star ingredient”, an ingredient that is the selling point of the regiment. You might get better results due to:

• You get more of the “star ingredient” because it is in every products.
• Other ingredients in the products might be designed to enhance the effectiveness of the “star ingredient”.
• The chance of the “star ingredient” reacting to other ingredients in the products is smaller.

If a cosmetics company does not group its products into regiments, or if there is no “star ingredient” around which the products revolve , chances are there is no real differences in effectiveness whether you mixproducts and/or brands or not.  In this case, use whatever that works well for your skin.

The bottom line is trust your skin and do not blindly buy into the whole regiment thing. Regardless what the companies claim, if your skin does better mixing different products from different brands, stick with mixing the brands.  If certain product in a regiment is not working for your skin, stop using it.  Your skin will tell you what it likes and what it doesn’t.  Go with what your skin likes.