Get Clear Skin With This Cocktail Trio

I am a light skinned Afro-Latina. That means I have melanin. I love it. It allows me to tan really well during summer months and rock a lovely glow. At least the compliments suggest that. There is a downside to being light skinned with melanin: I blemish incredibly easy and when I do, the blemishes are about 6x darker my complexion. The results are really unattractive marks. It could be as simple a scratch on my leg, a mosquito bite on my shoulder (yes, those annoying little bugs get me in the oddest places), to a monthly resurgence of that despicable breakout. Let’s keep it real. We all get them. At least once.

I had horrible acne in my early 20s. After many, many years of visiting dermatologists, I realized my case is all very much stress-induced. In addition to the normal hormonal changes women go through once a month, my stress factors have a visible effect on my skin. Certain medications have worked for the acne problem but few addressed the aftermath: the dark spot and blemishing. Glad the acne fixed itself after years of agony, I was still left with having to even my skin. And again, I tried this, that, and the other. Most recently, some prescribed yellow liquid that worked initially, just didn’t after one year. Plus, it smelled horribly. I ditched it and just started to give up. Thank goodness for makeup, right?!

But I am a relentless spirit and always try to find a solid solution. And I really wanted to give my skin a fair chance at living without makeup. While I love, love, love my beauty wardrobe, I feel like I can slip into its captivity. I don’t want to live enslaved to makeup everytime I walk out of my house.

Lo and behold, I have finally found a cocktail that works. Hallelujah! I can not even begin to tell you how incredibly amazing this combo has worked for me. It has taken me three solid months of faithful and committed use, day and night, to be able to concretely see a huge difference.

I fell onto it by mere luck. As you know, I get thousands of products to try. Some work, a lot don’t. A lot, I love, many I don’t. It’s just luck of the draw. But I always try them out before reporting. Always. I think it’s only fair to you to know how effective or not something really is. Especially if it’s on the pricier end.

These three products work. I promise you. For any skin complexion or type. Men, too.

At first, I was only using Lancome’s Energie de Vie Melt in Sleeping Mask. It’s decadent. Super creamy, super luxurious and smells really nice. I applied this only at night for about a month. My skin felt incredibly fresh and hydrated in the morning. I loved it. I then got my hands on the SkinCeuticals Advanced Pigment Corrector after trying a few other natural anti-blemish serums. None of them worked as they purported. This one was my last attempt before going back to prescription. I apply it in the morning before my moituruizer and at night right after I wash my face. I was still applying the Lancome night mask. It wasn’t until two weeks of this routine that I noticed a very notiveable difference in my cheeks — my main problem area. It hand’t occurred to me the combination, in tandem, was working. The mask alone was just hydrating my skin but when paired with the corrector, my skin reacted in an incredibly amazing way.

I didn’t take before and after pics because it all happened without a proper dedication to testing it. It just happened. But I did it for three months to see if it was really successful. I saw change after one tube of the SkinCeuticals Advanced Pigment Corrector. I tired a second and saw the blemishes fade more and more. I knew a three one would do it. And it did. Fully.

I now switched to the SkinCeuticals Blemish + Age Defense as an added dose of strength and to focus on attacking the small breakouts around that time of the month.  This little bottle is a light liquid in comparison to the corrector which is a light creme. In my opinion, it’s more potent and more targeted to really attack acne prone skin. It’s quite concentrated since it’s a salicylic acid acne treatment prone to breakouts.  Used alone, you’ll see a different after two weeks. Combined with the corrector, you’ll see a more accelerated fade. But the purpose of this is to keep your skin fresher and not so aged from breakout damage. The Lancome mask seals the two products and offers you a refreshed, even tone all around. When I tell you I am in love, I am in deep love. These three, individually and collectively are my absolute default skin treatment, every day. I swear by them. I travel with them, even if it’s a quick overnight tripe.

A targeted, oil-free approach to treat adult acne and signs of aging. This first-to-market acid blend combines 2% dioic acid with an optimal alpha- and beta-hydroxy acid formulation designed to fight the formation of acne, minimize blemishes, and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. — from the Website.

While 95% of my blemishes are completely gone and I am totally FREE from having to wear makeup to leave the house, I still use the cocktail to maintain. I still get the occasional monthly pimple, but they no longer blemish. That has been the biggest benefit, hands down.

To be transparent. The Lancome is affordable at $65 for 2.5 oz. Totally worth it. The SkinCeuticals will hurt you a bit. The Corrector is $90 for 1 oz. Yup. Totally luxe. The Blemish+Age Defense is $88 for 1 oz. Very pricey, yes. But completely worth it. 100% worth it. I wouldn’t think twice about spending that amount if I know my skin was going to heal, even out, look and feel healthy. And without seeing a derm or getting an Rx. The feeling of freedom in your skin is priceless. Trust me. I’ve lived with blemishes most of my life. I am freer now than ever.

I deserve it. You deserve it.

I was not paid for this post. I did receive product as I normally do as a beauty and lifestyle writer/editor. I spent 3 months working with these specific products in order to offer you an honest and real review. I only decided to share this personal post because I was so extremely pleased with the results. I think you will, too. 

Eat well, love unapologetically, pray with true intention, and take care of yourself.

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