The Trials and Tribulations of My Skin

“Take good care of your skin and hydrate. If you have good skin, everything else will fall into place.” ~ Liya Kebede

The struggle is real

From the time I reached puberty, I had a love hate relationship with my face. Going between oil slicks to crater like break-outs like it was an intense tennis match between the Venus sisters. I would use benzoyl peroxide then switch to sacylic acid then right on back to the benzoyl. Nothing I used worked. Not even being on the pill for PCOS helped with my break-outs.

So at the ripe ol’ age of fifteen I started getting facials. Picture choir of angels singing! It was a coming to Jesus moment. It was a modern day miracle. It was Christmas every day!

That first treatment, I felt my skin tingling as the peel did its job, wiggling its way into all my pores and knocking the break outs out before they could raise a fist.

Monthly Facials

For the next five years, I received monthly facials, usually intense facial peels and cleanses to clear out my pores before any ickiness could form. Perhaps it is my sadistic side, but I received immense gratification every time I felt my skin tingle. It was war on my skin and I was winning!

Alas, while wars, might be won, battles are lost, and in the year since I was diagnosed with lyme, it has been one huge UFC of a battle. I have tried everything. And while I have yet to find a facialist I like in the city (and who doesn’t charge as much as rent) the periodic trips I take home do include seeing my facialist. Alas I needed something to tide me over in between.

Ole Henriksen 

I discovered Ole Henriksen through Sephora. Like with most amazing brands sold there, they were giving away samples. It was instant heart butterflies when I tried their Lemon Strip Flash Peel. While it is do it yourself, I was transported right back to the facial table with the tingling in my pores.

When I discovered they had a three in one kit. I immediately had to buy it. Alas I cringed at the price, (fifty dollars for six treatments) but with Sephora’s incredible return policy, I knew I had to try it.

Boy am I in love! While yes I still see my facialist, because nothing beats a specialist, this is just the thing to get me through the months in-between.

The Process

The three step process, scrub, peel, and cleanser, is so easy to use and boy can you feel it do battle on those nasty break-outs!

The first step is an almond polish scrub that I can actually get two to three uses out of. It exfoliates the skin better then any scrub I have used. After you scrub a dub dub to silky smooth skin, you use the sponge to rinse off.

Now comes the fun part. I love the Lemon Peel and have been using it for years. I love when I feel a product working and you definitely feel this without it being to much. Once again I can get two to three uses out of this. Once applied to your exfoliated skin, you wait a few minutes for the final step.

The chamomile comfort mask acts like a neutralizer for the peel and is applied on top of it about two (I usually do five) minutes after you apply the peel. You could get two uses out of it, but I usually apply it to liberally for the second to really count. I love this mask, everything from the smell to the smooth texture, feels like therapy for my skin. It really has a calming effect. I wish they would sell it separately and hopefully eventually they will.

After about ten minutes take the sponge and wipe off the mask revealing super clean, detoxified skin.

One trick I have found, is to use it at night so that my skin can breathe afterwards and it can really work its break-out fighting magic. This has made such a noticeable difference in my skin. I don’t usually ooh and ahh over a product, but for acne defying, smooth as silk skin? Sold!

Have you used this? What do you think? Do you have any do it yourself peels or masks that you love?