Sparkled Beauty

I have been on the look out for the next best thing after my beloved Marcelle AC-Solution was discontinued. Acne treatment is frustrating! Lush came to the rescue by sending me a few targeted products to try.

Let's talk about the Grease Lightning Tea Tree Blemish Treatment ($12.95 for 1.5oz/ 50ml) first - bottom right corner in the pic.

This is a clear gel to apply on top of blemishes to stop them from growing/ getting red. The antiseptic and calming properties (from witch hazel, thyme, rosemary and tea tree) helps spots disappear fast. Lavender oil regulates oil production, grape juice cleanses the spots, aloe vera calms the skin.

Ingredients: Thyme (Thymus vulgaris), Rosemary and Tea Tree infusion (Rosmarinus officinalis, Melaleuca alternifolia), Organic Aloe Vera extract (Aloe barbadensis), Sea water, Grape juice (Vitis vinifera), Lavender oil (Lavandula angustifolia), Witch Hazel extract (Hamamelis virginiana), Limonene, Perfume, Methylparaben.

On me, this works well. Definitely saved my face a couple times when a spot threatened to expand. Some were gone overnight, some took a few days, but they all looked less aggressive than they really were. This made foundation application a lot easier, not so patchy over bumps. I applied it first thing, then let it dry while I did my eye makeup, then came back with face makeup after.

The pump helped with sanitary (I kinda miss the brush application though), and the bottle is recyclable, but it being black makes it hard to tell if the product is about to run out, which I don't want to be caught off guard about.

Next is the Fresh Farmacy Soothing Calamine cleanser (sold by weight, $9.75 for 3.5 oz). I'm not one that often uses soap to clean my face, but I was open to try this cleansing bar.

Fresh Farmacy has chamomile extract to calm, rose and lavender to soothe and tea tree to fight bacteria that cause blemishes. Calamine is a mixture of zinc oxide, to be used as an anti-itching agent and a mild antiseptic.

This soap was gentle and did not dry out my skin, good for days that I just want a gentle wash for my face. Like with most soaps, it gave you the squeaky clean (but soft) feeling. It does have a mild scent, which I found pleasant. Note that it did not totally remove all my makeup, especially with long wearing foundation and waterproof mascara.

Ingredients: Calamine powder, Chamomile decoction (Anthemis nobilis), Elderflower decoction (Sambucus nigra), Sodium Stearate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Glycerine, Lavender oil (Lavandula hybrida), Chamomile oil (Anthemis nobilis), Tea Tree oil (Melaleuca alternifolia), Rose Absolute (Rosa centifolia), Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate , Limonene , Linalool, Perfume, Marigold Flowers (Calendula officinalis).

And lastly, Herbalism Facial cleanser (sold by weight, $11.50 for 3.5 oz/ 100g). This provides a more heavy-duty wash - detoxifying, purifying and exfoliating, for oily, sensitive skin.

Kaolin removes excess oil and cleans pores, ground almonds and rice bran exfoliates dead skin cells, sage and chamomile calm troubled skin, and marigold soothes inflammation. A powerful decongestant for your pores!

I reached for this cleanser normally after a long day at work when my skin felt gross and clogged, followed up with Grease Lightning for spots. It did take some work, as I had to make a paste out of the almost-solid pieces with water, quite messy. And the herbal scent, I tell you, it is overwhelming, be warned, but cleaning gotta be done. The skin felt great after, I just wish Herbalism was a bit less herbal :)

Ingredients: Ground Almonds (Prunus dulcis), Kaolin, Glycerine, Chlorophyllin water (Aqua), Nettle, Rosemary, Rice Vinegar extract (Urtica dioica, Rosmarinus officinalis), Rice Bran (Oryza sativa), Gardenia extract (Gardenia jasminoides), Rose Absolute (Rosa centifolia), Chamomile oil (Anthemis nobilis), Sage oil (Salvia sclarea), Perfume.

All in all, I'm happy to have a little routine here for my acne-proned skin. None of these products were too abrasive or caused further breakouts. My skin is calmer (less irritated), spots still appear here and there but they don't last as long as before.