Beauty / 7 February 2025
Junior's round-up of the VERY best first skincare products for tweens and teens who need a little extra TLC for their ever-changing young skin
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When a quick going over with a flannel won’t cut it anymore and the odd pimple is raising its ugly head (pun intended), a simple skincare regime, featuring gentle products specifically designed for young skin will help keep breakouts at bay and kids feeling happy and confident. Here, we’ve rounded up Junior’s favourite teen and tween ranges for young skin aged 8 years+.
Spots & Stripes
This award winning skincare range – did we hear a Junior Design Award klaxon? – was developed by Beauty Editor Charlotte-Anne Fidler when her quest to find skin, hair and bath products for her then 12 year old daughter came to a dead end. Charlotte-Anne says, “scanning the shelves and searching online, I found there was almost nothing to bridge the gap between the baby/young child products – which weren’t working anymore – and the teen-acne and adult products that were way too harsh for her still delicate, child’s skin. In the end, I settled on a mismatched bunch of mostly natural or organic adult products – a spot stick from here, a body wash from there, a cleanser that was gentle, but full of ingredients that made me uncomfortable.”
Fortunately for Charlotte-Anne’s daughters and for tweens and teens everywhere, she decided to follow her beauty journalist instincts and create the products she wanted herself. The Spots and Stripes range caters for girls and boys specific skincare needs and really is a triumph in design and quality. As well as being ethically made, the products smell absolutely divine. Adults will definitely want to steal them.
What we love:
We love the whole range, but we especially like the Gentle Cleansing Lotion (the smell!), the All-Natural Deodorant (so gentle) and the Gentle Exfoliating Liquid (with a gentle 2% Salicylic Acid to unclog pores).
Ideal for:
7 years+
Indu
If you’re looking for a high quality skincare brand that your teens will love using and even proudly displaying, new kid on the block, indu is here. In fact, we’d go as far as to say that giving them indu products will up your cool points too. The range recently took Gold at the 2024 Junior Design Awards and was incredibly well received by our judges, who praised the non-greasy, gentle formulas developed to respect sensitive teen skin and the option to personalise skincare with a choice of Universal or Clarifying products. Cool packaging and efficacious products that help teens develop a routine and feel confident about their skin.
What we love:
The Cleansing Pads are ideal for quick swipes after school and sweaty PE lessons – loaded with cleansing milk they even remove make-up and SPF.
Ideal for:
13 years+
OY! by Green People
OY! Is the attention grabbing name of organic skincare specialists Green People’s skincare range developed especially for teenage skin. The O and the Y stand for Organic and Young and as you would expect the products contain fantastic natural ingredients which have been selected for their spot-zapping and skin clearing properties. Active natural ingredients like Black Willow Bark, Green Tea, Prebiotics, and Tea Tree combine to to control breakouts and balance young hormonal skin. They also scooped a Junior Design Awardfrom our esteemed judging panel.
What we love:
The Cleansing Moisturiser that helps reduce inflamed spots and kill bacteria and, the Blemish Concealer that help cover and heal small tween pimples and blemishes.
Ideal for:
8 years+
My Clarins
For older teens (this range is aimed at 18-25 year olds) who want products that work, with the kudos of a trusted, high-end skincare brand, Clarins’ My Clarins range is perfect. The packaging has been designed to reflect a younger customer, with bright lids and playful fonts, while the contents are reassuringly high quality as you would expect from this trusted skincare house that was set up in the 1950’s.
This vegan friendly, 88% naturally derived product range includes a fab smelling cleansing gel and a refreshing moisturizer for all day hydration amongst a range of fourteen products.
What we love:
The Re-Fresh Fatigue-Fighter Eye Care after those all-night study sessions and the Pore-Less Skin Perfecting Mask that spreads easily over skin, turning blue as you apply.
Ideal for:
18 years+
31st State
This is the skincare range devoted to boys. Or as founder Stephanie Capuano puts it “teenage boys in all their smelly glory”! When her teenage sons started having skin problems, Stephanie was so frustrated by the lack of quality skincare with no harsh chemicals that her boys would actually want to use, that she decided to create a range herself.
Inspired by the concept of effortless California clean and growing up in the state (hence the name 31st State) and with an emphasis on natural ingredients this is super cool range that has natural clean skincare at its heart
What we love:
The best-selling Overnight Clearing Pads tackle existing acne and prevent future breakouts with a quick pre-bedtime lazy teen boy swipe!
Ideal for:
10 years+
Florence by Mills
‘Stranger Things’ fans will know how huge Millie Bobby Brown Bongiovi is, and even though the Netflix hit has a 15 rating, the actress has a die-hard following of much younger fans who watch her every move. Little wonder then, that her cosmetics and skincare range, aimed at tweens and teens has done so extraordinarily well.
All those kids who have sneakily devoured episodes of Eleven, Mike, Will, Lucas, Max and Dustin are lapping up Millie’s brand Florence by Mills named after her inspirational Great Grandmother. Products are gentle and free from parabens, sulfates, dyes, animal testing and animal by-products and the packaging is super cool.
What we love:
The stretchy Mind Glowing Peel Off Mask is a huge hit for slumber parties but the whole range is effective. We also love the Swimming Under The Eyes Gel Pads – these cute lil whale patches re-energise the delicate under-eye skin.
Ideal for:
10 years +
Bubble
There aren’t many brands that can boast the bouncy, feel-good factor of Bubble. This US based skincare brand is all about fun-looking, super tactile, Instagram-able products designed for young skin. Products are developed in-house and are good quality, yet relatively low in price. Wehighly recommend the cute Solar Mate Invisible Daily Mineral Sunscreen SPF30, which was specifically formulated for acne-prone skin and is easy to spot in that backpack.
What we love:
The viral Slam Dunk Hydrating Moisturizer is the perfect everyday moisture hit for young skin. And, we also hear (from the teens in our house) that the Water Slide Hydration Boosting Serum gives them baby-soft skin, and can reduce the intensity of active treatments like salicylic acid.
Ideal for:
14 years+ However, there are many products in the range made for skins of all ages and there is a dedicated section of their website showcasing products suitable for anyone under 14.
Dermalogica Clean Start
This system of ten serious products that utilise medicated ingredients and soothing botanicals was created to address the skin needs of teens. With 29 years of expertise under their belts, Dermalogica set about creating a range of skincare products that don’t contain harsh and inexpensive ingredients that strip the skin of oil.
They also wanted to create a range that was free from artificial fragrances and colours – ingredients that can irritate and strip oil from skin, causing more problems than you started with. With a fantastic line up of products that specifically target breakouts and blackheads, this range has teenage skin and body (check out the Clarifying Body Spray for spot-prone chests and backs) issues covered.
What we love:
The Blackhead Clearing Fizz Mask fizzing formula effectively clears pores and helps target blackheads and the Cooling Aqua Jelly skin which leaves young skin feeling fresh and lightly hydrated and the lightweight feel makes it ideal for school days.
Ideal for:
6 years+
Nip + Fab Teen Skin Fix
This teen focused range was conceived to tackle those dreaded unwanted blemishes and breakouts with powerful ingredients such as Wasabi Extract and Salicylic Acid which penetrate deep into pores to remove impurities.
Especially suitable for blemish prone and problematic skin, this range is fantastic for giving teens a fresh, shine free complexion and a sense of control over their skin.
What we love:
We particularly like the Teen Skin Fix Pore Blaster Wash Day and Teen Skin Fix Pore Balster Wash Night – helpful for instilling a good twice-daily routine.
Ideal for:
11 years+
Dandy Dill Way
The gorgeous Junior Design Award winning Dandydill Way range now includes some starter skincare products including a Wild Hawthorn Berry Cleansing Mousse and a face Moisturiser that really nurture and protect young skin, leaving soft clean faces smelling of their gorgeous natural hawthorn berry scent.
A fantastic first rung on the skincare ladder for children who have dry skin concerns or just want to start taking a little bit of extra care when it comes to cleansing in the morning and evening.
What we love:
The Cleansing Mousse is a creamy, soap-free foaming wash that cleans without tears or dryness and ideal starter wash.
Ideal for:
6 years+
Sam Farmer
This cool looking range gets straight to the point with clearly labelled products that deliver a no nonsense approach to caring for adolescent skin and hair. The founder of the brand is, you guessed it, Sam Farmer who as a stay at home dad was so underwhelmed by the products available to his own children, he went back to school to study cosmetic science and then created his own range.
“Having seen the rows of products, pink, pouty and submissive packaging aimed at my daughter and steel grey, macho stuff intended for my son, I left determined to do something about it.”
What we love:
The Quick Cleanse Face Wash is so effective for adolescent skin – as it soothes redness, irritation all without removing to much of the natural oil content in young skin.
Ideal for:
10 years+
Oùate
French skincare range Oùate, which literally translates as ‘wadding’, was created to protect the delicate skin of young children up to 11 years old. When founder Astrid Mauduit became a mother she wanted to find products to protect her children’s skin an increasingly polluted and aggressive environment.
Having become aware that children’s skin is particularly vulnerable between the ages of 4-11 years while it is still developing she decided to create her own range of safe, natural and dermatologically tested formulas that would protect young skin, like soft cotton wadding(!) and that would adapt as children grew (products come in ranges aimed at ages 4-6yrs, 7-8yrs and 9-11yrs).
With fun pastel hued packaging, easy to dispense products – with no wastage and, this is the perfect collection to get kids interested in skincare from a young age.
What we love:
The My Gentle Cleanser is a wonderful smelling natural micellar water with an easy to use ‘pot-buzzer’ top that helps younger children use just the right amount.
Ideal for:
4 years+
Teen-Skin Actives
Developed by the world renowned aromatherapy skin care expert Eve Taylor OBE in 2014 – Teen-skin Actives is a unique product range just for teenagers to help improve their skin and treat everyday skin issues. Its approach is simple ‘to treat the skin using natural plant ingredients that not only smell great but also have a direct benefit on the skin’.
With 8-products that offer a natural, no fuss yet, highly effective solutions to help control and correct young skin. The perfect range to help teenagers establish a solid routine for life.
What we love:
The Overnight Skin Support helps soothe irritations, draw out impurities and tighten pores overnight for brighter skin come morning.
Ideal for:
12 years+