Time to preach: Acne is annoying. We all know it. We all feel it. As performers, we feel this pressure to be our best selves at all times, and acne really crushes that dream.
My skin after 6 months of serious stage makeup (Disney stage makeup to be exact) was a wreck. I had a million gigantic white heads all over my face, and after each one went away, it left a red spot on my face. I felt hopeless. Here is what I looked like: (no makeup other than mascara and brow gel)
After I came home, I immediately researched as much as I could about acne and what prevents and treats it, and these 10 things are what helped me get clear skin. Here is me now: (no makeup other than mascara and brow gel)
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There’s a basic list of products; the base of my skin routine, and an additional extra-credit list; the stuff that makes the healing process go quicker. I’ll also include what part of the day I use it, so that none of the products conflict with each other. This article definitely contains affiliate links. When you see something you want, just click the link! You can get it right then, right there!
1.) Cosdna.com
This site saved my skin! All of the products on this list are cleared with cosdna.com. You type the product (or individual ingredients) into the site and it will tell you which ingredients in the product are harmful for your skin. The columns are: Irritant, Acne, and Safety. They rate them on a scale of 10 or something like that. 10 being very harmful, 0 being not harmful.
I input all of the products that I used on my skin into the site, and over half of them were rated 5 or higher in the Acne column. Needless to say, I found my problem. I threw away all of those harmful products, and now whenever I see something I might want to get for my skin, I look it up on cosdna.com first.
Make sure that when you’re looking up products, you type in the exact name. It’s very literal. If you can’t find the product, you can go to the product’s website and copy/paste the ingredients into cosdna.com.
Would highly recommend. (Did highly recommend.)
2.) Incredible by Nature African Black Soap
This stuff is magic. Seriously. No face wash has ever made my skin feel so clean. Other face washes made me red immediately after use or left a film on my face that was probably clogging my pores. I use this once in the morning and once at night before bed.
It should look like dirt if it’s the real deal. The one I order is shaped into a thick bar of soap, which I cut into smaller bars, because it’s a real big block of the stuff. Then I put one slice in its own personal soap dish, and it lives there until it’s completely gone and I replace it with another slice.
On the package, it says not to use the bar directly on your skin, but to work it into a lather and then wash your face. For this, I use silicon facial brushes.
It really helps with making a lather out of a very dense soap. I’ll use whatever kind I can get my hands on, but for your ease of access, I’ve included some cost-efficient and highly-rated silicon facial cleansing pads here.
3.) CeraVe Moisturizing Cream
This is a staple for me. It’s got everything you’d want in a moisturizer: noncomedogenic, eczema-safe, hyaluronic acid, all the goods. It even has this soothing property about it, so when you put it on, your face (or literally anywhere you put it) just feels so relaxed and soft. It’s also amazing for dry plane flights. I use it every night (you can use it any time of day though)!
It comes in a big tub and I kid you not, I’ve had my tub for over a year and it hasn’t run out. This stuff is awesome. It also comes in the form of a tub with a pump, if that’s your sort of thing!
If you get anything from this list, make it the CeraVe Moisturizing Lotion. I only have good things to say about this product and this brand. Which brings me to:
4.) CeraVe Facial Moisturizing Lotion SPF 30
It’s the SPF version of the CeraVe Moisturizing Cream. Slightly different feel and not as creamy, but it’s still noncomedogenic and just the best. I use it every single morning (you can use it all throughout the day, but don’t use it at night—you aren’t supposed to sleep with SPF on)!
5.) Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water for Waterproof Makeup
I love this stuff because it’s noncomedogenic (my buzzword) and is pretty gentle on my sensitive skin. If you can’t take off your makeup for the day, none of your other skincare products are going to do much good! I use this every night before bed if I wore makeup that day (you can use it any time of day that you want to take off makeup, and I do not use it as a cleanser—just a makeup remover).
These are also amazing for taking off mic tape residue.
This works the best with cotton rounds, and you can find them in any drug store or Walmart or Target, but I get mine from Costco! I get them in bulk so that I don’t run out easily. I’ll saturate two cotton rounds at a time with the micellar water and put one on each eye to soak my eye makeup off, and then do the rest of my face.
That concludes the necessities list. On to the extra credit!
6.) Glossier Solution
https://re.glossier.com/83bb460c
Solution is what’s going to make your leftover acne spots go away. My main skincare goal as of December 2018 was to get rid of the red spots and dark marks caused by my acne. This product is amazing at dissolving those spots. 6 months into 2019, my skin has drastically changed. I use this product once every night before bed.
You’ll get 10% off your first order and shipping is free past $30 if you order straight from Glossier using the attached link!
And let’s face it: who doesn’t love that packaging???
7.) Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay
When it says Deep Pore Cleansing, it means it. This is the mask of the millennium. No other product helps prevent acne and blackheads better, in my opinion. Whenever I use this, the pores on my nose shrink dramatically. I use this mask 3 times a week (you can use it any time of day).
The Indian Healing Clay mask works the best when mixed with apple cider vinegar! You can mix it with water as well, but it’s easier to mix with ACV. It has this creamy, smooth texture with ACV as opposed to with water, where it has more of a thick, clumpy consistency. It’s really a matter of preference!
Here it is, if you don’t already have it!
8.) CeraVe Skin Renewing Cream Serum
This product is actually taking away some of my fine lines, and just making my skin look softer in general. I noticed some lines forming on my face a little while ago. Pollution? Age? Funny faces? (I love making faces! What can I say? My face is expressive.) So, I looked for a wrinkle cream to diminish fine lines and prevent new ones from forming. I use this product every night before bed.
9.) Neutrogena Rapid Tone Repair Dark Spot Corrector
This Dark Spot Corrector hurried up the process of fading my acne spots. My main issue with my skin was the spots I was getting because of my acne. It seemed like I would get a pimple and it would stay there on my face for months! It was a little bit of a nightmare! I use Neutrogena Rapid Tone Repair Dark Spot Corrector every morning.
This helped! I’m telling you, these spots weren’t cute. I’d try to tell myself that they looked like freckles, but they really didn’t. I just wanted them gone. More and more, I’m realizing that I may have inherited my grandma’s keloid skin.
10.) The Body Shop Vitamin C Glow Boosting Microdermabrasion
This face scrub makes my skin so soft and glow-y. You can see the glow through my makeup, it’s that glow-y. It also really helps with the blackheads on my nose. I use The Body Shop Vitamin C Glow Boosting Microdermabrasion 3 mornings a week.
This tube never runs out. It’s another one of those products that is so powerful and efficient that you don’t need a whole lot of it to make a difference on your skin.
That’s the sitch!
Make sure to Email Subscribe and check out our Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for all the rest of the cool tips and tricks I’ve got up my sleeve for you! I really hope that you enjoyed this article and that these products help you. They drastically changed my skin and because of that, I really wanted to spread the word. I love sharing my stuff.
