Beauty Tips For Body Care
Hey everyone! I'm a longtime lurker in this sub. About 2 years ago (Summer 2016), I got a huge waxing burn on my face. It was absolutely terrible. I started looking into remedies to fix it and went to a dermatologist that prescribed some heavy duty hydroquinone cream. It cost me about ~$100-200 and BLEACHED my face (no joke). I wear 415 in Lancome Teint Idole foundation and G+60 in Cover Fx, to give an idea of how dark I am.I also have dry/dehydrated skin and an oily nose/eyelids.I realized that I couldn't really go to a dermatologist for this--I'm dark skinned and all the dermatologists I knew are white. So, I put my battle armor on and decided to go to war with my hyperpigmented dark mark.At first, I bought everything Drunk Elephant. I got the C-Firma serum, Lala Retro Whipped Cream, and a couple other products. I hated all of them. Nothing worked. My dry skin somehow became even dryer! This was kind of like when Napoleon invaded Russia--a horrible idea with terrible consequences.Eventually with a lot of purchases and returns, TO/Sephora experimentation, and a couple tears, I finally got a routine down. See below:Cleanser: Cerave Hydrating Cleanser OR Sum:37 Miracle Rose Cleansing Stick OR Glossier Milky Jelly CleanswerIf I had to rank these, I would say Sum:37 is absolutely brilliant, but alas, it is out of stock everywhere currently. I'm using milky jelly now and I love it! Cerave is what I use when I'm on vacation and want to travel with a cleanser. I never own more than one of these at any time because if I fall down the "buy everything!" rabbit hole, I will never come out.Toner: Isntree Hydrating TonerRelatively cheap and effective. Can't say much more! This replaced The Ordinary's Hyaluronic Acid for me. I also tried the Hylamide Hyaluronic Acid and NIOD's Hyaluronic Acid complex. This is still better (and cheaper!).Exfoliators: The Ordinary Lactic Acid 10% OR Paula's Choice BHA OR Sunday Riley's UFO OilWhen I was in the "ultra brightening and need all the care I can get stage" (see: early days of the dark black burn on my face), I used The Ordinary 10% Lactic Acid. Keep in mind that I have pretty thick skin--it can handle a lot of wear, and so I'm able to use a ridiculous amount of exfoliating products and not have reactions (I do not recommend going ham on the AHAs). I also tried NIOD's exfoliating serum and didn't really like it--it did nothing for my skin. I need that glow for the gods without a highlighter.Sometimes I get small breakouts and that's when I whip out the Paula's Choice BHA. It's super useful even though I have dry skin. I use the lotion formula.I've recently started "upgrading" my skincare (See: using expensive products that I know have only two upsides--luxurious texture + finish). I fell in love with Sunday Riley's UFO oil back when I tried the sample from Sephora and now I'm hooked. Send help for my poor, addicted self.Serums: See List BelowWhen I was originally trying to lighten my scar, I used The Ordinary's Alpha Arbutin and The Ordinary's Niacinamide. These were my secret weapons--my surprise attack against my dark spot. It stood no chance and went down faster than Troy after Agamemnoninvaded. Now that the mark is 100% gone, I use Sunday Riley's CEO Vitamin C Serum (guys, I haven't found another Vitamin C serum that compares) and I'm looking into a couple others, such as the iUNIK Propolis Serum.I've tried a couple other serums and I'd be happy to do a full on review if you're interested.The alpha arbutin from The Ordinary is one of those silent actors--you really don't know how big of a difference it makes until you stop using it. It took a long time for me to finally quit it because I felt it was one more unnecessary step in my already frantic morning ritual. I reincorporated it when I got another facial scar (my poor face :( ) and I have absolutely ZERO pigmentation around my new face scar, even though I had to get stitches for it AND I'm prone to hyperpigmentation. If you're dark skinned and struggling with hyperpigmentation, I highly, highly recommend this little serum.Oils!Oils terrified me for a long time. Being Indian, my mother would slather my hair in coconut oil and cover my face in Neem oil and make me wander around the house doing chores for 5 hours. It was borderline traumatizing. I ordered a couple different oils from The Ordinary just to check them out--first I got the Argan Oil and I was kinda like "eh, this is nice, but let's see if something is better!" and I got the Rosehip Oil and Marula Oil. Ironically, even though I have dry skin, my face was not thrilled with Marula oil and it showed it's displeasure by breaking out the day before a major photography event (*cue all the tears*). I went back to Argan Oil and realized that what I wanted was the airbrushed, Miranda-Kerr-Supermodel-Omg-I-eat-all-my-veggies look, which is just not realistic. After I adjusted my expectations, I realized my skin really loves Argan oil, so I still use The Ordinary's formula.MoisturizerOhhhhh boy. There's a huge list here. For the winter time, my HG moisturizer will always be Kate Somerville Dry Skin Saver. I've tried so many and loved so many too.-Lala Retro Whipped Cream from Drunk Elephant: Don't bother. Stuff was terrible for me. Clogged my pores and made me look far older than my early 20s.-Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream: This little baby packs a huge punch of niacinamide. When I was at war with the burn mark on my face, I used this religiously. It helped so much.- Josie Maran Whipped Argan Face Butter: I didn't want to love this because it's so expensive, but my skin LOVES argan oil and this was no different! It's just such a beautifully formulated cream and the texture is absolutely heavenly. A little goes a long way.Sunscreen: Murad City Age Sunscreen.My soulmate, Bae. HG. Godsend. Happy ending (*badoom* *tshhh*). Whatever you want to call it, this is the one constant through my entire routine. I didn't want to use a chemical sunscreen and I wanted all the benefits of an awesome physical sunscreen without the whitecast. This is the ONLY physical sunscreen on the market I have found that works on my dark skin. I love it and I've repurchased it roughly 5-6 times. I cut my bottle in half when I can no longer squeeze it out and scoop it out because this stuff is expensive and I'm not wasting a drop.For any dark skinned ladies out there, please go for this sunscreen if it's affordable. It is so, so good. The peach tint hides everything and it even brightens my skin. I credit this with destroying most of my hyperpigmentation--It led the vanguard in my little war.So, what am I doing now that the war is won? Simple, I'm just enjoying skincare. I love this sub, the different YouTube channels I follow, and helping other people customize routines. I'm super ingredients focused--and I took a lot of college-level chemistry courses back in the day so I follow most papers relatively easily. Below is my current routine. Yes, I know, some of you may only see dolla dolla signs, but I've got a NEW scar on my face and this time I'm prepared with some awesome goods! This thing doesn't stand a chance.AM:- Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser- Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Toner- Sunday Riley's CEO Vitamin C Serum- The Ordinary's Argan Oil- Josie Maran's Whipped Argan Face ButterPM:- Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser- Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Toner- Sunday Riley's CEO Vitamin C Serum- Sunday Riley's UFO Oil- Josie Maran's Whipped Argan Face ButterI don't like using a heavy-duty AHA during the summertime (I figured I don't really need THAT much glow) and I'm thinking about incorporating a few new items into my routine too! My skin has been feeling a little more dehydrated lately so I've been eyeing cheap propolis serums (because the good lord knows I don't need more expensive items in my current routine). I've recently gotten really into masks :)So, as a closing note to this very long and rambling post: Thank you so much to all the amazing ladies, gents, and those that classify as something else on this sub. You guys helped save this angry, helpless 20-something year old's skin and restore her confidence after a terrible burn and a second accident requiring stitches. I'm grateful for the awesome advice and positivity here and I hope my story helps somebody out there. I made this overview very general, so please feel free to ask me detailed questions. I'm happy to help in any way I can!
Girls Blog 2015
Submitted by FineCaramel
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