Skincare SOS

Image

I’ve mentioned a few times in the past month that my skin broke out really badly, and it is only now that it has fully cleared. I haven’t been blessed with flawless skin, so it took a lot for me to label a breakout a ‘Skincare SOS’ as my skin is never totally ‘perfect’ anyway. My usual tea tree oil and Savlon combo wasn’t doing me any favours, so I really upped my skincare routine and tried to find products that worked to get rid of my blemishes. I’ve had some of these products a while, and rooted them from the back of my press. Others I bought along the way. The result? A routine that cleared my skin and had noticeable results.

Vichy Normaderm 3in1 – This product is specifically targeted towards acne prone skin, and Vichy is a very reputable skincare brand so I had high hopes for this product. It’s a cleanser, mask and scrub all in one – can it get better than that?! I used this as a scrub more than anything else as I had other products to use as a cleanser and mask. It worked really well to slough away dead skins cells and boost the radiance of my skin, as well as unblocking pores. I use this product once to twice a week and the results (combined with the other products) have been brilliant.

Savlon – I’ve mentioned my love of Savlon as a skincare saviour before, it’s an oldie but a goodie. As it’s an antiseptic, it fights infection, so I apply it directly to my blemishes with an ear bud at night to make sure that they don’t get worse. Savlon also has healing properties, causing blemishes to reduce in size and redness.

E45 – Another oldie but a goodie, I’ve been using E45 for as long as I can remember. I don’t have very dry skin, but using products targeted at spots and blemishes can be quite drying so I used E45 as my face moisturiser during my skincare SOS. It’s a really gentle cleanser, so I didn’t have to worry about it irritating my skin further.

Super Facialist by Una Brennan – One of the first products I turned to when my skin broke out was this deep clean pore purifying clay mask by Una Brennan. It was pretty affordable in Boots, and I credit this a lot for my skin clearing up the way it did. ‘A detoxifying mask to unclog pores and restore skin balance’, this mask does exactly what it says on the tin. I use it twice a week and can really see the benefits. I’d definitely recommend picking this up if you’re on the hunt for a new face mask, I can’t wait to try more products from Una Brennan in the future!

Grease Lightning by Lush – I posted a full review of this last week, so I won’t ramble too much about it. Long story short – I love this product and don’t think my skin would have cleared up without it. For more, read the post here.

Biore Blemish Fighting Ice Cleanser – While Clinique’s Take the Day Off Cleansing Balm is my favourite cleanser of all time, my skin needed something with blemish fighting properties this month. Hello, Biore Blemish Fighting Ice Cleanser! This cleanser contains salicylic acid, which is targeted to fight acne and is non-comedogenic, which means it won’t block your pores – exactly what I was looking for! It worked really well to remove all of my makeup, as well as clearing my skin. Love. This. Product.

Clinique Clarifying Lotion – I use this product like a toner after I’ve removed my makeup, and on it’s own when I wake up in the morning. I use it solely to make sure that I’ve gotten every piece of makeup off my face and totally cleansed my skin. 9 times out of 10 there’s always a little bit of makeup left, no matter how much I’ve cleansed, so using this ensures that no pesky bits of left over foundation are going to break me out even more!

I used these products in conjunction with each other over around a 10 day period before my skin had totally improved, however from Day 1 I could see results, even if they were only minor! If you have any products that you use if you have a skincare sos, please leave them below, I’d love to hear them!

Happy Saturday everyone, make it a good one!

*Surround yourself with people who are only going to lift you higher*

5 Comments

  1. Fiona
    02/03/2014 / 1:05 am

    Can you recommend anything for very dry and dehydrated skin I’d really appreciate your help I always only use baby wipes on my face and it’s showing now, a beautician told me my skin is dehydrated I need to feed it but I’m clueless to any good products
    Thanks 🙂

    • 02/03/2014 / 11:08 pm

      I’d recommend Origins Gin Zing moisturizer, which I use, it’s not too heavy but is moisturizing and brightens the skin. I’ve heard great things about Clinique’s Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion, and I know that Kiehl’s offer a fantastic range of moisturizers. E45 is a great drugstore substitute. Nivea’s Regenerating Night Cream is one of my favourites, it’s thick and moisturizing and skin feels really plump and hydrated the next morning, plus it’s affordable! I’d stick to products that are creams and milks, not gels or mousses as they can strip the skin. Heavily Fragranced products can also irritate the skin, so try to avoid them if at all possible. Hope this helps 🙂

    • 02/03/2014 / 11:11 pm

      I’d also recommend trying a facial oil if your skin is really dehydrated, Clinique and The Body Shop have some great ones if you’re interested 🙂