My skin update and best recommendations for acne skin

Omg, it's been more than 4 years since my last update on the acne blog.  I want to let you know that my face has been in the best condition ever since my early twenties.  If you remember, my acne became severe in my early twenties (see pictures in my earlier posts).  Well, now, I'm in my mid thirties, :(.  My skin has been a lot better.  See pictures below.  And I will tell you what worked the best on my skin.

sorry about the lighting

still a little red from broken capillaries

My chin still gets a few pimples every now and then

1. Moisturizer - most of us with acne prone skin have either oily or combination skin.  Many products on the market targeted for acne skin concentrate on decreasing or even stripping your skin of its oils.  This is BAD.  I used to believe this as well.  But your oily or combination skin is really crying out for help.  The skin overproduces oil to compensate for the lack of moisture.  So what to do?  Start with a light moisturizer that don't clog your pores.  Apply in the morning first underneath the makeup to help the skin hydrate.  Overtime, you will notice that your skin will actually produce less oil during the day.  Less oily skin = less clogged pores = less acne.

2. Vitamin C serum (this is a somewhat recent discovery!)- There are so many serums and treatments sold in beauty stores that will tell you that they brighten the skin, make the wrinkles immediately disappear, and give you a super youthful look.  Well, don't be fooled.  Nothing in the beauty store will actually be able to do this overnight!  It's not possible.  Most active ingredients that they claim will turn back the clock on time are not actually backed by peer reviewed scientific papers.  However, vitamin C is proven to work for the skin when applied topically.  Namely, ascorbic acid is the best form of vitamin C for the skin.  However, you will have to pay attention to the pH levels.  Low pH levels are best for vitamin C to absorb into the skin.  I'm currently using Drunk Elephant C-firma Day Serum, pH = 3.5.  This stuff is really great.  Scientists discovered that Vitamin C will slowly heal sun-damaged skin, fade sun spots, and minimize the look of fine lines / wrinkles (note: not completely make them disappear but fade).  Drunk Elephant vitamin C serum is an oil and the added benefit is that it actually makes my skin less oily and more hydrated.  I love this product (although a little pricey) and I'm not sponsored.

I will continue to post in the future when I discover really good beauty products for the acne prone skin and for the skin in general.

Moisturizer for oily, acne prone skin?

I never used moisturizer in my life because of my skin conditions, oily and acne prone. I thought I never needed to moisturize my skin because it over moisturizes itself. When I was younger, every product I put on my face causes some more acne. So, I stopped using everything and just stick to Neutrogena's acne-prone soap for the longest time, maybe 4 or 5 years now.

With my most recent breakout, it made my acne skin care routine change for the better I think. The breakouts, red spots and marks made me want to use makeup for coverage.  The SA at Bareminerals gave me a sample size moisturizer which she says should not irritate my skin.

I use very little bit every morning on my face after I wash my skin in the morning. I feel like it has not made my skin breakout more than usual. The makeup feels better on my skin when I use this underneath. Overall, it is a pleasant experience I think. So I went back and bought the full size moisturizer which was 30% off. How cool is that? It comes in a very cute packaging and on the back it says" free of parabens, no synthetic fragrances, no artificial oils". So it is suppose to be all natural which means it won't irritate even my ultra sensitive skin.

Did it seem to improve my skin in any way? Probably no. If you have oily acne prone skin, you should also give moisturizer a try because it might actually help you produce less oil. I know it sounds crazy; but some people actually experience less oiliness with the use of the right type of moisturizer.