We're all making cuts to our budgets this winter and beauty is no exception. Sales of cosmetics and high end beauty products have already started dropping as people start to prioritise their spending.

However, having less money to spend on your skincare doesn't necessarily mean your skin will suffer. Getting radient skin on a budget requires a more simplified, progressive and patient skincare routine that prioritises simple but effectuve products to boost the skin’s natural resources rather than applying several different products that offer a short-lived impression of better looking skin but in the long run cost you more money while achieving less fundamental results for your skin.

"When it comes to skincare, products that claim to work in a few days or even a few weeks are not really worth their price tag if you want to spend less on getting better skin. Frequently swapping and changing products to try and get faster results will only cost you more money and potentially even delay your skin's improvement at the same time, especially when it comes to problem skin such as acne, rosacea and dry skin types," says consultant dermatologist Dr Eva Melegh.

"To improve problematic skin conditions or prematurely aged or damaged skin takes time rather than money via a fundamental and regular skincare routine with products that progressively preserve and boost the skin's structural process."

Dr Eva suggests three core things in your skincare routine to focus on for getting the best return on your money when it comes to achieving better skin on a budget.

1.  Impair Inflammation

It might be tempting in hard times to get  your natural glow from the sun. It’s true, the sun does give the skin a lovely glow, momentarily, until the damage sets in. For plumper and more luminous skin, keep it protected from UVA and UVB rays at all times and don’t ever let it become inflamed.

One of skin’s greatest enemies in inflammation.  A cornerstone to retaining a more youthful and radient skin tone as well as slowing down the signs of aging is controlling inflammation of the skin. The first and most crucial daily skin care essential is an SPF. As a dermatologist I can’t express strongly enough how important sun protection is. I recommend daily protection rain or shine, winter or summer, for all skin types, not just fairer complexions. The first thing you should look at in any day cream is its SPF factor, the rest is less important.

I also prefer mineral blocks as opposed to chemical filters for SPF products. Ideally you don’t want any rays getting through and a mineral block is the most effective way to achieve this. A mineral SPF20-25 is the equivalent of a much higher chemical filter and is sufficient to protect even the most sensitive skins.

Talking of sensitive skin, mineral SPF’s are preferable for reducing the incidence of skin reactions as when in direct sunlight they remain more stable than chemical filters .The two main mineral SPF’s are zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. Both are good but I have a preference for zinc oxide as it’s even more stable than titanium dioxide and so is very good for reactive and sensitive skin types and skin prone to redness. It also has anti inflammatory action on skin so is beneficial for controlling any inflammation or redness as well as reducing acne. Zinc oxide is a simple and relatively cheap ingredient that does many wonders for skin.

Antoxidants are an added bonus when it comes to controlling inflammation of the skin. If you can find a mineral SPF of at least 20 with added antioxidants, you have yourself a winner.

I also favour skincare products without perfumes and with minimal preservatives and chemicals (such as SLS or MI) in order to reduce the risk of minor skin reactions. Even small reactions to a perfume or chemical ingredient (which are very common in all skin types) causes inflammation in the skin.

Try Kalme Day Defence SPF25, a day cream with pure micronized zinc oxide SPF and anti-inflammatory ingredient Derma Sensitive formulated from young caper buds plus a super antioxidant and free from perfumes, SLS and MI 

2. Deter Dryness

Aside from reducing inflammation, the second biggest skin enemy is dryness. Dry skin appears dull, flaky and blotchy, but you dont need to spend a fortune to combat it as it's about retaining the moisture rather than paying for complex and costly products to add to it.

An effective skincare routine should focus on retaining as much moisture in the skin as possible, which means reducing everything that tries to  scrub away or remove the skin’s natural oils and sebum, not only saving your skin but also saving you money.

How you clean your skin can significantly add or detract from your skin’s natural moisture.  Cleansing oils or water-free cream cleansers are preferable to facial washes ( and avoid facial cleansing wipes at all times)  and make up removal should use these methods before resorting to (if at all) make up removers that contain solvents as they are not kind on skin. By using these methods for cleaning skin the skin’s natural oils are retained while the dirt or cosmetic is removed, keeping skin more resiliant and more elastic.

Depending on skin type, exfoliation with a gentle and natural exfoliant helps re-generate skin cells faster which can improve the luminosity of skin and are just as effective as expenisve AHA products. However, if skin is dry, exfoliation should be less frequent, 1-2 times a week. If skin is oily and more prone to congestion then exfoliation can be increased to once every 1-2 days. You can monitor how much exfoliation you need from the dryness or your skin, if it appears to becoming a little drier or more sensitive reduce exfoliation.

Try Clarol Silver & Birch Exfoliating Wash, with naturak birch bark and rice bran exfoliants.

After cleansing, moisturisation is key no matter what your skin type is and should be done both am and pm. A thin coating of a highly hydrating serum under any daytime SPF or cosmetic product helps maintain the skin's moisture throughout the day. At night again a thin layer of hydrating serum with a richer and repairing night cream layered over the top and a light anti-inflammatory eye product is an optimal overnight routine.

The hydrating serum should be simply that and the simpler the better. The night cream should be adapted to your skin type. The eye product should always be a light simple formula to avoid puffiness  and, if possible, anti-inflammatory. One of the biggest mistakes in skincare is over doing it on eye products. They are also one of the more expensive items in many skincare regimes. Less is more when it comes to eye products.

Try Hydrosil Dry Eye Gel, a light hydrating eye gel containing an extract of cardiospermum halicacabum, a natural phytosterol for calming puffy and irritated skin around the eyes and on the eyelids.

3. Boost Bacteria

In the quest for more radiant and resilient skin another crucial cornerstone is the maintenance of optimal skin microbiota. The skin, like the gut, has both good and bad bacteria living on it. The key to radiant skin is similar to a healthy gut, keep the levels of good bacteria high and the levels of bad bacteria low.

Skin that is overrun with bad bacteria from external pollutants and dirt will appear redder, drier and duller and require more products to try and counteract the damage. Skin that is teaming with good bacteria has a much stronger resistance to many problem skin conditions including rosacea, acne and dry skin issues, while for normal skin a high level of good skin bacteria improves radiance and skin texture.

Skin prebiotics are food for good skin microbiota, quite simply put. A twice daily application of a skin prebiotic serum under other skincare products or cosmetics can offer far more benefits than  complex formulas offering promises of luminosity or cell renewal. Building the fundamentals of more resilient skin rather than treating the symptoms of weakened skin results in an aesthetically younger looking complexion as well as helping reduce eruptive skin, reactive skin and improving barrier function in dry skin on a long-term basis.’

Try Kalme TeQ Serum (this can be used as your anti-dryness day and night serum under other products), a skin repairing prebiotic serum containing extract of blue agave and pure plant-based squalane which is effective for replenishing damaged skin microbiota for rapid repair of red, dry, senstive and eruptive skin