Superdrug Naturally Radiant Glycolic Pads - LMB Cult 60

Why I think you should know about it? - easy to use, cruelty-free and won't break the bank

Avene Cicalfate - LMB 60 Cult Products

Sebaceous Filaments

It's so easy to get these confused with blackheads and they are very similar. A black head is a sort of keratin/sebum/dirt plug that's formed in the pore or hair follicle that has oxidised and turned black. A sebaceous filament are supposed to be there - they help lubricate the skin and are just more prominent in some skins than others. They look like a white, grey or yellow tiny thin hair like strand.

Your face is covered in tiny, fine hairs and there is a sebaceous gland attached to each hair follicle. Sebum helps keep bacteria out of the hair follicle and keeps the skin healthy. Sebaceous filaments are often more visible when there is an overproduction of sebum.

Acne - What it is and What Ingredients can Help

Acne is a common inflammatory skin condition consisting of whiteheads, blackheads, inflammatory lesions and spots. It includes increased sebum, irregular skin shedding, inflammation and an increase in propinobacterium. Successful treatment will aim to reduce oil production, speed up skin cell turnover, reduce inflammation and fight the bacterial infection. Reducing inflammation is particularly important in reducing the occurrence of scarring.

Initial treatment plans include topical application of products such as benzoyl peroxide, retinoids or antibiotics. Next there will be systemic treatments such as oral antibiotics, hormonal treatments (such as the contraceptive pill) or isotretinon.

If you suffer from acne it's always a good idea to go and see your GP and/or a dermatologist but if you are looking for products to help then these are some ingredients to look for. I know it's tempting to go from a strong cleanser and having clean skin is incredibly important, however, over stripping the skin is going to cause increased sebum production and more problems.

🎈 Salicylic Acid
This softens keratin, removes whiteheads and blackheads, is mildly anti-inflammatory and works as an exfoliant, encourages and regulates skin shedding and therefore prevents the clogging of pores and hair follicles. It also decreases the secretion of sebum.
Garden of Wisdom Salicylic Acid 
Mario Badescu Anti-Acne Treatment
Inkey List Beta Hydroxy Acid Exfoliant

🎈 Benzoyl Peroxide 
Reduces sebum, inhibits the growth of acne bacteria and gets rid of blackheads and spots. It takes around 4 weeks to start working and because it can cause skin irritation so it's best to build up your usage of it.
Acnecide 5% 

🎈 Sulphur 
This is used to treat various skin conditions as it's anti-inflammatory and it's antibacterial properties properties stops the growth of some bacteria. It also absorbs excess sebum. You don't want to overdo this as it can increase sebum production and can change the skin barrier.causes mild shedding of the top layer of skin. Helps clear away dead skin. It's a natural occurring mineral found in hot springs, clay and volcanic ash. Can soothe rosacea by reducing inflammation and killing bacteria. Its an essential part of collagen production.
Kate Somerville EradiKate Cleanser
Dr Dennis Gross Clarifying Collodial Sulphur Mask
Indie Lee Clearing Mask

🎈 AHAs 
Glycolic acid is the most frequently used as it induces desquamation and exfoliation of keratin. They also have antimicrobial properties and uses often see significant improvement by 45 days.
Superdrug Glycolic Toner
Garden of Wisdom Glycolic Toner 

🎈 Retinoids 
Dermatologists have agreed that these are essential in the treatment of acne. They regulate skin shedding, help reduce the amount of blackheads and whiteheads and are anti-inflammatory.
Garden of Wisdom 5% Retinoid 
Skinceuticals 0.3 Retinoid 

🎈 Niacinamide 
Helps keep your skin hydrated and firm. Soothes acne and rosacea as it's a great anti-inflammatory. Encourages the production of ceramides which for a protective barrier. Works best at a concentration of 5%. Helps prevent trans-epidermal water loss. Helps slow the transfer of melanin so helps with pigmentation.
Garden of Wisdom Niacinamide Serum

Recently for the Facebook group I did a chart of my favourite products for oily skin which might be helpful for you.

Skin Confidence

It's weird what life throws at you. I'm not superstitious (except for bloody magpies) but every now and again something will happen and I'll wonder if it's the world playing tricks on me. A really lovely friend of mine has seen the return of her cystic acne and I have been talking to her about it, wanting to get further into my skin science diploma to discover what I can to help her. Then, during the most amazing two weeks working at the Trinny London pop-up store in London where I met woman after woman with low skin confidence all of whom has lovely skin. Yes they had problems but around those problems they all had beautiful skin.

Figs & Rouge Hydra-Activ Vital Moisture Day Cream

Gina is my go-to if I have a question for oily skin, need something testing or in fact just need an honest opinion. You can find her here on Instagram.

Being an oily skin type is exhausting. Forever searching for products that don’t intensify the slick is a never ending process.
For years I believed moisturising would make my excessive oils worse and completely skipped using moisturisers, little did I know, not moisturising was making me oilier than ever and with age it was getting increasingly worse.

Recently I came across Figs & Rouge Vital Moisture Day Cream in a subscription box. I of course tried it straight away. As someone that is constantly looking for products that work for me I immediately LOVED IT because it soaked straight into the skin, leaving no residue or stickiness/oiliness - another issue I find with having oily skin is I don’t want to feel tacky or a slip after applying moisturiser as I battle with textured skin too, I can’t have my foundation sliding around on top of a moisturiser. This one doesn’t leave any residue and leaves the perfect surface to then apply your primer, foundation etc. Another thing it does not do is ball up, you know when you layer products sometimes a moisturiser can kind of pill ? Well it absolutely does not. The skin thoroughly absorbs it. Yay!

Benefit The Porefessional - The Civilian Report

I am in constant battle with my nose pores. I’m sure no one else thinks they’re that massive but I feel like my face is a supermassiveblackhole of nose pores, just waiting to suck in all environmental foulness, getting ever bigger, till my face is nothing but one giant nose pore, scaring people and making them cry. 

This product is very smooth and light and, unlike some other pore minimisers and mattifiers I’ve tried doesn’t feel like it adds another layer of product to your face – my pet hate – and rather just kinds of disappears into the skin ether, taking a good percentage of nose pores with it. It improves the appearance of my pores without erasing them so entirely that I looked like a plastic-faced Hollywood wannabe, but with a slap of of tinted moisturiser on top even by the end of the day I’m not delivering any significant shine, and nor are my pores snapping hungrily at any passing person.  

Recommend. 

What You Need to Know - Benefit The Porefessional

• £24.50 
• 22ml
• Can be used under or over make-up to reduce the appearance of pores
• Oil-free
• Colourless
• Other products from Benefit: Bad Gal Lash, Hello Flawless Foundation, Benefit Speed Brow, 
• Available in the UK from Feel Unique, Benefit, Boots, Asos 

Philosophy Hope in a Jar - The Civilian Report

Another one from Bree...

This is my daytime moisturiser, discovered after a chance encounter with the Philosophy concession at Westfield Boots. I’m in constant battle with forehead shine throughout the course of any given day, and the idea of a moisturiser that moisturised without oiling, and is not so light as to dry me out like an aged husk, was a beguiling one. I bit. I bought a jar.

I’m now onto my third jar. The formulation seems to have changed somewhat between jar 2 and 3, maybe there was a recipe change or maybe it’s just a weird batch, but either way it does the job.

The texture takes a little getting used to – it’s definitely not the same as the creams you might otherwise be used to, and it goes on and in almost too easily. And for about 5 minutes after you’ve applied it you might find yourself thinking, as I do almost every day, ‘dammit I should’ve put more on’,  but give it time and your skin feels lovely and cool and nourished and smooth and not at all heavy. I shove on my standard issue tinted moisturiser straight on top on work days – no problems with drying out, no problems with shine. It’s an odd little thing, but a good one.

Philosophy Hope in a Jar - What You Need to Know

• £34.50 or US$44
• 60ml/2oz
• Lactic Acid to help exfoliate
• Can be used twice a day
• Available in the UK from Boots,
• Available in the US from Sephora, Ulta