Despite what many may call perfect photos or flawless skin, I have unfortunately always had acne-prone skin ever since I was a child.
It was something that I struggled with a lot while growing up, but as an adult, I’ve learned different ways to minimize my acne breakouts, especially those that are not hormonally based, and that I can actually control. Pretty much, I developed an acne skincare routine.
When does my acne-prone skin flare up?
So for me, my acne usually flares up when it’s that time of the month, when I’m under high amounts of stress, and then of course, when I’ve just been neglecting my skin. Since I can’t really control some of those factors, I take great care in making sure that I take care of my skin 24/7, so that when those factors do arise, my skin is not a warzone. I’m going to list out a few of the ways that I treat my acne-prone skin and sensitive face and my acne skincare routine that I guarantee will show results.
It’s really about keeping your face clean. I know, I know: People say this all the time, but you would be surprised how often we really are touching our faces and how unclean surfaces are touching our faces all the time. I make sure that I wash my pillowcases every week that I’m always wiping down my cell phone, even my headphones and the strings that might rub up against my cheek. After that, it’s about making sure that your actual skin is clean after you wash. So for me, I make sure that I wash twice a day, even though I have oily skin.
Nighttime Routine:
Let’s start with the nighttime routine first because that one is definitely more intense. I always recommend that you focus on your nighttime routine because as you’re sleeping your cells are going to be regenerating. That is when your skin is going to be doing a lot of damage control, a lot of repairing, and hopefully a lot of adjustments to any products that you introduce into your skincare routine.
Cleansers I love:
So for me, I really have been loving a few cleansers. The one that I’ve been using the most is the Peter Thomas Roth Glycolic Acid cleanser, which has both glycolic acid and salicylic acid in it. Glycolic acid is a chemical exfoliant that removes the top layer of dead skin off of the face, but the salicylic acid is what is used commonly to treat acne. I use this cleanser religiously and even use it on my neck and my shoulders where I might get bacne because I love how it really gets in and makes my skin feel super clean and refreshed without stripping me of all of my oils.
When I’m not using that cleanser, I will also go in with Caudalie’s pore purifying cleanser which has 100% natural salicylic acid in it. I’m really trying to get more into clean beauty and natural beauty skincare. But sometimes you just need that chemical to get up in there and really clean it out. And then when I’m not using either of those, I will use the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser, which does a great job of just keeping the skin clean without stripping.
Masks I love:
So after I’ve gone on and used my cleansers, I will then usually either just go straight into nighttime skincare routine which would include things like my serums, toners, moisturizers, or if I am in the midst of an acne breakout, I may go in with a face mask. If I’m going to go in with a face mask, I’m not going to use my more intense cleanser beforehand, just so that I don’t do too much to my skin. One of my favorite masks is the turmeric mask from Kiehl’s.
Turmeric is really great for helping with lightening dark spots. And usually, people will recommend a mixture of turmeric and things like vitamin C, to brighten dark spots and hyperpigmentation which is unfortunately sometimes side effect for those of us with acne-prone skin because pimples pop or you may pop them yourselves, whatever. So if I’m doing a mask I’ll let the mask sit and then I’ll wash the mask off.
A Serum I love:
Usually, my skincare routine is very minimal only because I feel like overwhelming the skin is going to do more damage than good. But some of the products that I love are the “buffet serum” from The Ordinary. I love almost everything that The Ordinary makes and it’s very inexpensive and you can get it online as well as an Ulta stores. I usually will go in with the buffet serum followed by a vitamin C serum. And then after the vitamin C serum, I’ll usually go in with a moisturizer.
My Moisturizers:
Now my moisturizer is where I can tend to get a little bit more luxurious, only because as a beauty editor I’m always trying new things and testing out new products. Currently, I really love the La Mer moisturizing cream, but when I don’t go in with a moisturizer, I actually will make my own at home using a mixture of vitamin E oil and raw shea butter.
I love to mix those together and use that at all my face and it makes my face feel very thick, but it’s really great for holding in hydration and moisture as I sleep at night. And just because you have acne-prone skin does not mean that you should sway away from moisturizing. In fact, if you do not moisturize you will actually overproduce sebum on the skin which only leads to potentially more breakouts. On top of all of that, I do take multivitamins and I do think that the multivitamins help regulate my hormones especially when it comes to that time of the month.
Daytime Routine:
So for the daytime when I wake up, I’m usually in a rush to go on and get my makeup started before I head out the door. So my daytime routine is not as intense but it is still intentional. Usually, I will wake up and then I will heat up some hot water and with a cloth, go in and wipe around my eyes and then put it over my face to open up my pores.
From there I might either go in with a light cleanser like the Kiehl’s cleanser, or I may just go in with my dove soap and lightly just get around places like my hairline and around my nose, my mouth area. Whatever it is, I don’t do a lot because overwashing can aggravate acne-prone skin quickly!
The reason why I do believe that you should still wash your face in the morning, even after you’ve washed it at night, is because your bed has germs and even if you’ve changed the sheets and you change your pillowcases, your face is still coming into direct contact with other things.
The need for primers:
Now if you do have acne-prone skin, I would definitely recommend that you look into various primers that can work for your skin type before going in with makeup. Even though some people think primers are all a big hoax, I always see a tremendous difference when I use a primer versus when I don’t, both in how long my makeup actually lasts as well as how my skin feels. The primer is supposed to act as a barrier between your face and the makeup, and it’s really good for making sure that the makeup doesn’t get deep down in your pores and aggravate your skin that could potentially lead to another breakout.
So in-between all of those things, it’s very important to just do good for your face whenever you can to keep acne-prone skin at bay.
