Saturday, 4 February 2012

Helping Blemished Skin: Part Three - Finding What Works For You

Walking into your local Boots or Superdrug in order to find out that perfect skin care routine can be exceptionally daunting. Typically, there are hundreds of products each telling you that they are the latest 'wonder product' and if you use them, your skin will be 1000 times better and you'll never look back. Chances are, the product won't make that much of a difference to your skin or it'll leave it a complete mess. I wish I could tell you that it's easy to find your perfect routine but I've been searching for years and finally, I feel like I've found it. And I may surprise you by saying it includes a lot of products (as you could probably see in part two of this series).


Let the products 'settle.'
You're better off taking your time in choosing your skin care routine and changing one product at a time to see how your skin reacts. For me, if I change a product in my skin care routine I'll more than likely have a little breakout. But don't panic - sometimes this isn't the products fault and it's just your skin getting used to it. So wait a week or two and see what happens; chances are, this product could be your wonder product. If your skin continues to react though, throw it away!
Visit High End Counters.
You may not want to pay a lot of money for something that you know might not make a difference but it's worth taking a visit to a high end make up counter. When I first had bad skin, my mum used to take me to each different counter and see if there was anything they could do. Most of the time I'd leave with a few samples and a lot more confidence. Sometimes the women behind the counters can be intimidating but I've actually met some lovely women behind those counters who sometimes made me want to cry happy tears. It's worth a visit as there is nothing to lose and perhaps, quite a bit to gain!
Research, research, research!
Nowadays I will never buy a product unless it has good reviews. When I first got bad skin my initial reaction was to go into Boots with my mum and buy every Clearasil product. I had no idea about skin care routines and I didn't even think that the products would make my skin worse, I just hoped for the best. Don't panic if you get bad skin, stressing about it will only make it worse. Make sure you do your research beforehand as finding your right skin care routine can end up costing a fortune. I dread the think about the amount of money both me and my mum have spent making sure my skin looks okay. So yeah, look up the product before buying and make sure it has generally positive reviews. And if it doesn't? Try and steer clear. Or try and get samples.

image from Google
What's on the inside...
Don't just think about products to put on your skin. Think about products that you consume as well. I've tried out the Works With Water Help Clear Skin sachets before and they really did work well in clearing up my skin. You can read my full review here. And the great thing about them is that you don't have to worry too much about whether or not they'll react because they won't. They'll either work for you, or they won't. For me they did work. But since my skin has gotten better I don't really see the point for them. But don't just overlook vitamins, sachets and minerals. Speak to a pharmacist (or your GP) and see what they can recommend for you.

So there are my top 4 tips in finding your perfect skin care routine. I'll just add now that it will take time but in the end, it will be worth it. I've already mentioned this but I'm finally happy with my skin care routine - I'm now 19 and I had my first breakout around the age of 12-13. But be persistent and don't get up because it will get better!
xxx