My skincare routine has evolved over the years as I've blundered through life sampling across drugstore and high-end products (Dermalogica, Philosophy, etc) trying to find my holy grail items. I should start with saying that I have combination oily skin that is acne prone. It has been slightly less acne prone than when I was a teenager, but that may be due to a better understanding of how to care for skin instead of changing hormones. I used to have the worst misconceptions about skincare, e.g. don't use moisturizer for oily skin! Wrong! Oily skin needs moisturizer because it is often oily due to being too dry underneath, and the body tries to overcompensate by producing too much sebum (oil).
About two years ago I believe, my bestie Jenn, gifted me a starter set from Murad: Acne Complex Kit
$60 from Sephora
For the longest time, I kept repurchasing the set or full-sized versions of certain items within the set when they ran out. My favorite was definitely the Murad Acne Spot Treatment:
$18 from Sephora
It was my holy grail treatment for acne because it, without fail, always worked for me. During my teen years, I had gone through various salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide treatments from the drugstore (e.g. Neutrogena, Clean & Clear, and Aveeno come to mind), but while they would work initially, they always stopped working after a while. I chalked this up to my skin getting used to the chemicals, and there wasn't much I could do about it. I had also tried tea tree oil spot treatments from various brands, and they do "kill" the zit, but tend to be too harsh on my skin and make it dry, red, and flaky. That's why I was so impressed with the Murad spot treatment.
Then, Birchbox came into my field of vision because of Ingrid from Missglamorazzi on youtube. She would always do birchbox unboxing videos, and it got me really interested in the birchbox service. e.g.
Sidenote: Ingrid's one of my fav youtubers to watch, here's a recent fav of mine (Feb Favs):
Anyway, so I decided to sign up for Birchbox to see what other options there were out there besides what I could discover through Sephora or youtube. Then, in July of 2012, my birchbox came with a bonus item: Suki Balancing Regimen
$40 from Birchbox
At first glance, I thought, "Wow, a whole set of samples within my samples box!" Then, I noticed it was organic, made with all natural ingredients, so yay! My only complaint with the Murad set was that it was very "chemical-ey" as it would be since the whole line was developed by doctors in a lab. So, I was actually on an active hunt for a natural alternative to my Murad addiction. God answered my unspoken prayers in the form of the Suki skincare line!
Suki skincare is my new addiction. The balancing moisturizer, exfoliating scrub, face serum, and facial peel are my holy grail items now. The few other items I've tried are good too, but aren't must-haves from their line.
First, their balancing day lotion is exactly what it says it is. It helps me balance my combo oily skin by keeping it hydrated, but it's not thick at all, so my skin stays happy. The active ingredient is natural salicylic acide from white willow. I've tried products that contain white willow before, but they were never effective, so I thought natural stuff just didn't work well on me. Boy was I wrong!
$35.95 from Suki or Whole Foods!
Their best-selling item is actually their exfoliate foaming cleanser. This just goes to show that skincare is a constant learning curve because I used to think that since I use the Clarisonic everyday, I didn't need to use any additional facial scrubs. I was afraid of over-exfoliating my skin, which could cause an adverse effect. However, this scrub is amazeballs. I'm sure it helps that the scent is one of my favorite scents in the whole world: lemongrass (ever since my trips to Thailand). To an untrained nose though, it just smells like lemon, so no need to be wary of unusual scents. What I love about this is, you wet your face, and then take a tiny bit of the sugar, and rub it into your face, section by section. As I rub, the sugar crystals gradually dissolve into nothingness just like how sugar dissolves in hot tea. Now, I've seen DIY sugar scrubs from Michele Phan by using just sugar, honey, and olive oil, but there's something extra with this scrub. After you've rubbed it all over your face, you rinse off with warm water, and your skin feels soo smooth AND hydrated without any residue left on your face. I'll admit I've never actually made a DIY facial scrub a la Michele Phan, but now I never have to because I always have this at hand:
$32.95 from Suki or Whole Foods!
Now, we're heading into my last two holiest of holy grail items. They're pricey, but absolutely worth the high price tag. The bio-active purifying face serum is a must have in my regimen because it helps prevent future acne and makes ready my skin for my moisturizer for optimal absorbtion. I tried using a cheaper alternative, the Juice Beauty Blemish Clearing Serum, which basically has the exact same ingredients as far as I could tell from reading their labels, but I'd say the potency is about half as effective. The consistency of the Juice serum is more watery, and it doesn't leave my skin extra smooth like Suki's does. Suki's serum leaves my skin so smooth, it's as if I had just put on a makeup primer!
$82.95 from Suki only
My #1 must have from the Suki skincare line is their renewal bio-resurfacing facial peel. The name sounds a bit scary, and I don't actually remember using it so much as a peel (mainly because of the cost - don't want to waste it!), but don't be alarmed. This is hands-down the BEST acne spot treatment I've ever tried in my life. Now, you're going to wonder, if I'm already using the serum and the scrub to keep my acne at bay, why would I need a spot treatment? Well, sometimes you just do. There's those hormonal acne breakouts that come once a month, or particularly stressful days on the job that bring out the worst in my body. This works even better that Murad's spot treatment because not only does it stop any new growth, it practically erases any spots overnight without any harsh effects. It banishes my spots, and gets rid of them for good. I have never had one of those huge, painful zits ever since I started using this. The only acne I get these days are those small ones that are just under the skin, but almost rarely even get red. Because they never become big problems, I don't get acne scars either. Win-win!
$82.95 from Suki only
Because this post has gotten ridiculously long, I'll try to cut the rest of it short. My current favorite face wash is still Philosophy's Purity Made Simple cleanser with my Clarisonic at night, and my fav sunscreen is the 'Diorsnow' White Reveal UV Protection during the day.
Please tell me what your skincare holy grail items are! Like I mentioned before, it's a constant learning curve, so I'm always open to try new things ;o).
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Informative skincare post! I may try Suki line after I finish my skincare stuff.
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