If you’ve been meaning to add a retinoid into your beauty routine but just haven’t gotten around to it, we can’t think of a better time. A retinoid, the umbrella name for all vitamin-A derivatives like retinol, can work magic on fine lines and wrinkles, acne and even hyperpigmentation. The best part? They don’t have to cost an entire paycheck. The best The Ordinary retinol products are actually priced at less than $10.

Generally speaking, retinoids are stronger, sometimes prescription-strength and retinol is over-the-counter and can take a little longer to work. But that really depends on the formulation. The Ordinary has been able to find that sweet spot of effectiveness without the extreme redness and flaking you sometimes hear about. Of course, you should always start slow and build up to using any retinoid all the time to see how your own skin tolerates it.

Retinoids work by speeding up cell turnover through chemical exfoliation or put simply, sloughing away dead skin cells. Even if you don’t have wrinkles or acne, many use retinol to get rid of uneven texture and skin tone. You’ll be surprised at how well they can brighten and smooth even better than a scrub you have lying around. The Ordinary has a few key retinoid products that fans are seriously obsessed with. Shop them all, below.

Image: The Ordinary.

Retinol 0.2% in Squalane

This water-free serum contains 0.2 percent of pure retinol plus squalane to balance any excess dryness.

Image: The Ordinary.

Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion

This stable serum emulsion promises to deliver a reduction in the visible signs of aging even better than that retinol you have in your medicine cabinet—all without redness and irritation.

Image: The Ordinary.

The No-Brainer Set

This skin-smoothing set includes all your dry and aging skin’s BFFs: Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA, Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion, and Buffet.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

It seems the debate surrounding facial toner is never-ending. There are some experts who claim it’s optional and others who say it’s the smartest way to put moisture back into your skin post-cleansing, thus leading to fewer breakouts and other skin setbacks. As someone who has tried both methods for extensive periods of time, I’m more inclined to believe the latter. Furthermore, I find the best exfoliating toner to be a worthwhile pick-me-up when my complexion can’t seem to break free of dullness, dryness or pimples.

Solutions meant to slough away dead skin cells, target dark spots and brighten the overall face are typically formulated with one or various types of acids: alpha-hydroxy acids, beta-hydroxy acids or the gentler poly-hydroxy acids. There are also exfoliating toners that may utilize fruit enzymes—the most popular being pineapple—for even gentler exfoliation. The ones I’ve had the most success with combine these powerhouse ingredients with counteractive ones that soothe and hydrate the skin as it’s being transformed. Think aloe, ginseng, and botanical oils.

Knowing how often to use an exfoliating toner depends on your individual skin concerns; whereas someone with resilient or excessively oily skin may get away with daily application, a sensitive skin type may have to try once-a-week use. Either way, below are some of the best exfoliating toner options you can add to your routine right now.

No B.S.

No B.S. Purifying Facial Toner

No parabens, sulfates, artificial fragrance, gluten or petrochemicals to be found in this oil-balancing solution.

Buy: No BS Purifying Facial Toner $30

Georgette Klinger.

Georgette Klinger Phytic Exfoliating Toner

A daily toner for oily and combination skin types made with rice-derived phytic acid, a gentle botanical exfoliant.

Buy: Georgette Klinger Phytic Exfoliating Toner $24

Mario Badescu.

Mario Badescu Witch Hazel & Rosewater Toner

Though witch hazel makes for a powerful astringent, it can also be irritating, making the counterbalance of soothing rosewater particularly effective.

Buy: Mario Badescu Witch Hazel & Rosewater Toner $14

Yes To.

Yes To Glow-Boosting Daily Exfoliating Tonic

Ten percent of this drugstore exfoliant is antioxidant-rich pineapple enzyme and alpha-hydroxy-acids for retexturizing the skin.

Buy: Yes To Glow-Boosting Daily Exfoliating Tonic $14.99

Benton.

Benton Aloe BHA Skin Toner

This gentle beta-hydroxy-acid-infused daily toner is a super mild solution for oily skin.

Buy: Benton Aloe BHA Skin Toner $14.98

Glytone.

Glytone Enhance Cleansing Toner

Oil-free and non-comedogenic, this refreshing toner is gentle enough for daily use on most skin types.

Buy: Glytone Enhance Cleansing Toner $32

Skinceuticals.

Skinceuticals Conditioning Toner

A synthetic fragrance-free clarifying toner alpha and beta hydroxy acids for exfoliation and eucalyptus oil for calming moisture.

Buy: Skinceuticals Conditioning Toner $58.88

Versed.

Versed Weekend Glow Daily Brightening Solution

Four different acids can be found in this potent (vegan) toning solution for correcting uneven skin tone and targeting acne scars.

Then I Met You.

Then I Met You Birch Milk Refining Toner

Just 1% of this birch juice solution is a concentration of powerful alpha-hydroxy acids and gentler poly-hydroxyacids.

Pixi by Petra.

Pixi Glow Tonic

A cult favorite formulated with five percent glycolic acid, as well as aloe vera, ginseng and botanicals to nourish and brighten the skin.

Paula’s Choice.

Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant

Paula’s Choice’s top-selling product is a gentle salicylic acid solution that sheds dead skin cells and minimizes the appearance of large pores.

OleHenriksen.

OleHenriksen Glow2OH Dark Spot Toner

This nighttime toner is a potent blend of glycolic acid, lactic acid and witch hazel water for reducing the appearance of dark spots in as little as one week.

The Ordinary.

The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution

Though this formula is 7% glycolic acid, the addition of aloe and Tasmanian Pepperberry also eases the redness and irritation typically associated with acids.

Glossier.

Glossier Solution

Glossier’s derm-tested, vegan and hypoallergenic skin exfoliant is 10 percent AHAs, BHAs, and PHAs to “unglue” dead skin and visibly brighten your complexion in a few short weeks.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

As a woman over
60, are you alarmed at the slump in your shoulders? Have the upper shelves at
the grocery store become a stretch too far? Does a painfully stiff neck account
for your straight-ahead view of the world?

If you’ve answered yes to any of those questions, we have some great news! In the second of Sixty and Me’s Gentle Yoga for Seniors videos, yoga trainer and teacher Cat Kabira focuses on restoring flexibility to your aging shoulders, neck and jaw.

Even
better, she does it without a single one of those impossibly intimidating
poses. If this sounds like the kind of yoga for seniors you could love, read
on!

Achieve healthy aging and even add years to your life! Get moving again with our gentle yoga video series.

Have You Been Carrying the World
on Your Shoulders?

As women in our 60s and beyond, we’ve seen more than our share of challenges. Nurturing families, choosing to stay single in couple-centric world or managing successful careers and then starting all over in retirement all take a physical and emotional toll.

If
you add the time we spend hunched over our computers or smart phones to years
of storing stress in our necks and shoulders? It’s only natural that so many of
us have trouble turning our heads or lifting our arms.

 And that’s where Cat’s low-stress,
limit-respecting approach to yoga can help.

Yoga After 60: “Staying Within Your Limits Is the Best Thing”

 When it comes to yoga for older adults, Cat is the voice of experience. She’s studied under teachers in their 70s and 80s. And in her 14 years as an instructor, she’s understands how yoga can overcome the effects of aging on our joints.

 As she puts it, “From stress, through habit
over time, we have our shoulders lifted up towards our ears. So a really great
habit is to start to learn how to train our muscles and slide the shoulders
down away from the ears.”

Has disease or injury has hampered
your flexibility? Cat has them covered! Early in her career, one student
approached her complaining that a rare illness prevented her from twisting,
bending or raising her arms above her shoulders.

After running out of other answers,
her doctor had recommended painkillers. Cat’s advice? “It’s okay. Show up, do
what you can, breathe. If you focus on your breath with your body and you don’t
push yourself, if you really just stay within what feels right, that’s the best
thing.”

About a month later (and without any
special coaching), the student was raising her arms and twisting. As she told
Cat, “I just did what you said! I just breathed, did what I could and suddenly
I stated to get all this other movement!”

And four more months later, she
managed a headstand!

If You Need Props, Use Them!

Right now, doing a headstand may be the last thing on your mind. But that’s the point! In this video, you’ll hear again and again how important it is to stay within your body’s limits. If you need a strap (or belt, scarf or sarong) to link your hands behind your back, use it!

Cat’s suggested variations on the
movements accommodate varying degrees of flexibility. As you learn to breathe properly,
your core and ribcage muscles will start “shouldering” their fair share of the
load.

You’ll train your shoulders to relax
downwards as your shoulder blades fold back into their natural alignment. You’ll
start feeling taller and lighter.

And eventually, your straight-ahead
view of the world will simply mean you’re staring down your next adventure!

How do your shoulders and neck exhibit age-related stress? What have you been doing to counteract the problems they cause? Please share your thoughts about letting your limits dictate your yoga practice in our conversation!