Review: Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Face Gel Hydrator

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Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Face Gel Hydrator

I picked up a new moisturizer/hydrator. It’s theย Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Face Gel Hydrator! My skin was very dry from the acne products I was using. My skin was falling apart. Flakey, crusty, peeling. I needed a moisturizing product. I stumbled upon the Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Face Gel Hydrator and thought I would give it a shot. It comes in a large tube also (5.0 oz bottle). Maybe it might work. Maybe not. This is my experience with this product!

The texture of the product is a lightweight gel. It’s soft, smooth, and easy to apply to the skin. Once applied to the skin, it makes the skin look so much better. I loved how it made my skin appear softer and smoother after a single application. My skin felt hydrated, and it helped alleviate any dryness I was experiencing. The product does contain the ingredient dimethicone. Hmmm! That’s what’s giving it that silky, smooth texture, which I love very much!

So I used it for about a week. The first couple of days went well. The rest of the week? I questioned the product since I was noticing some breakouts in random places. My skin felt good, but weird things were going on with my skin. Since it contains dimethicone (a hit or miss for my skin), I thought it was breaking me out. I continued to use it because I was hoping for the best. Unfortunately, my skin started to get clogged up so fast. I really wanted this moisturizer to work! I can’t seem to find a moisturizer that works on my skin. On a good note, the 4% nicinamide helped to fade some acne scars and brightened my skin. My skin texture, pores, and acne marks looked SO much better using this product! But it didn’t do any good for my acnegenic skin. And the bottle says that it won’t clog pores too. That was a lie. At least for my skin. Back to the drawing board. sigh I’ll use the rest under my eyes or something. It works great as a makeup primer!

Update: My Skin Care Routine!

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skin care routine

Here’s another update on my skincare routine! This photo was one of my previous skincare routines. I’m still using the same face wash and benzoyl peroxide acne treatment. The 2 sunscreens pictured (LRP SPF 100, Altruist SPF 50)โ€ฆI still have it and use it. Read more about it in this post! Lastly, I finished the Clean & Clear Persa-Gel 10. I stopped purchasing it because I liked the Neutrogena BP product a lot more. It seems to work better on my acne.

Face Wash: Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid Fragrance-Free

I’m using the same face wash as before. Same old. It’s the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid Fragrance-Free. This product seems to work for me. It doesn’t help with acne, but it doesn’t break me out. It works to cleanse my skin. It’s fragrance-free. I love the big bottle. It lasts for months. I tend to be very generous with the amount I use also, haha. But at least I’m using it. If it works, why fix it? I guess I’ll stick with it. ๐Ÿ˜€

Eye Care: Eucerin Q10 Anti-Wrinkle Face Cream

Eucerin Q10 Anti-Wrinkle Face Cream is moisturizing and affordable. It doesn’t do much for wrinkles or fine lines. I like using it because it leaves the skin around my eyes moisturized. It’s perfect for that. Once again, it’s affordable. I don’t feel like spending that much on an eye cream anyway. From my experience, they don’t do much but keep the skin around the eyes moisturized. This is good enough for now.

Acne Care: Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Treatment 

I use Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Treatment as an all-over acne treatment and a spot treatment. I’m leaning toward a spot treatment. But I use it as an all-over acne treatment when needed. My skin loooveesss benzoyl peroxide. Possibly the only acne product that works on my skin over so many years!

Sunscreen: Whatever sunscreen I have. *See the list below*

I’ve been experimenting with sunscreens. Here’s a list of sunscreens I use. I switch it up.

I haven’t used Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen SPF 50 on my face in a while, but I thought I would toss it on the list of sunscreens to use. I like that it’s lightweight, a mineral sunscreen, and contains SPF 50. It’s not a full mineral sunscreen, but it’s better than nothing. This sunscreen works great as a makeup primer as well. It tends to dry out the skin a bit and accentuate dry patches though. That is why I’m not purchasing it again after I finish it.

I wish LRP SPF 100 was a mineral sunscreen. Too bad that it’s a chemical-based sunscreen. This sunscreen seems to work some days. On other days, it doesn’t. On the good days, it leaves my skin moisturized, smooth, and protected. I have no issues with it. On the bad days, it gives me really terrible headaches that it’s making me think if I should continue to use it. I haven’t used it since, but it’s there. I most likely won’t stick to this sunscreen when I finish it. Something is off about this sunscreen. The headaches are just so bad. Maybe it’s something elseโ€ฆI don’t knowโ€ฆ

I’m only using Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Face Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50 only on the skin around my eyes. It doesn’t dry it out or make it look bad. It works. I think I may have found a sunscreen for the eyes. Just not my face because it accentuates skin dryness, makes my skin flake, and just makes it look awful. I tried. It just didn’t work for me. It’s an affordable sunscreen to use around the eyes. Hey! Even my neck. And it’s a 100% mineral-based sunscreen. ๐Ÿ™‚

Sometimes I use Altruist SPF 50. It’s a bit heavier on the skin. It leaves my skin greasy when used often. I might as well use it so it won’t go to waste. It’s a lot more moisturizing compared to my mineral sunscreens. It doesn’t give me a headache like the LRP SPF 100 does. Seems to work better during the colder months since it’s dryer.

So I haven’t spent a single dollar on a new sunscreen. I really still don’t feel like it. I think it’s a waste of money, especially when I have a bunch of sunscreens to finish. I’ll try my best to use what I have before I try another new sunscreen. This works for now, I guess.

Updated Skin Care Routine! Only 4 Products!!

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Skin Care Routine Update

My new routine…

Face Wash: Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid Fragrance-Free

I’ve thought about switching face washes since forever. But I’m still using the same face wash. I haven’t had any issues with it yet. I guess I’m going to stick with it. It’s a gel-type, foamy, non-drying face wash that gently removes excess sebum from my skin. It doesn’t strip my skin. It’s also affordable. I love that it has a fragrance-free version.

Skin Treatments: Neutrogena Stubborn Acne AM Treatment & Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid

Benzoyl peroxide is still a part of my skin care routine. It’s an awesome acne treatment. If it weren’t for benzoyl peroxide, my skin would be a mess right now. I think it’s a huge part of my skin care routine. Helped tremendously with my acnegenic skin. I use it as much as I need to, especially to keep my oily skin at bay to prevent new breakouts or diminishing existing breakouts at a faster pace. The best over the counter benzoyl peroxide I have used so far! It absorbs into the skin quick for mornings!

Another acne product I started using is Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid. When I started using this product again, my skin broke out a bit in my blemish-prone areas. After breaking out, my skin cleared up. It didn’t take too long for my skin to adjust since my acne issues were very few. I like using this salicylic acid product to decrease sebum and clear up difficult to treat areas of my skin. Just like benzoyl peroxide, I use it as often as I need it. Sometimes, I even use it at the same time as benzoyl peroxide. I haven’t had any issues with dry skin. My skin is tolerating both pretty well.

Sunscreen: Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30

I have purged chemical-based sunscreens from my routine. I stopped using Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30 for a while. I started using it again and actually finished a bottle of this stuff recently. It seems to work when I use benzoyl peroxide underneath it. I haven’t experienced major breakouts compared to my experience before. Maybe it might work. I know it’s only SPF 30, but I’m using whatever SPF that works on my skin for the time being. With this sunscreen, I also noticed that it feels moisturizing on the skin, but it doesn’t truly moisturize the skin compared to what I was using before (La Roche-Posay Anthelios Melt-in Milk Face & Body Sunscreen Lotion SPF 100). La Roche Posay SPF 100 moisturized my skin upon application and afterwards. My skin was left feeling soft. With Vanicream Mineral SPF 30, my skin doesn’t feel moisturized whatsoever. The product is shiny on my skin, but it’s terrible at keeping my skin feeling nice, soft, and moisturized. But I’ll keep using it since I can’t find another mineral sunscreen that is suitable for my skin at the moment. This is it for now, haha. We’ll see how it goes.

That’s all I’m using to maintain healthy acne-free skin. ๐Ÿ™‚ I’m keeping my skin care routine to a minimum. My skin prefers a minimalistic approach.

1 Week Experience: Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid Fragrance Free

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Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid Fragrance Free

I have a new face wash! I’m running low on Olay Regenerist Hyaluronic + Peptide 24 Revitalizing Facial Cleanser and needed a new face wash. I finally came to the conclusion and chose Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid Fragrance Free. Neutrogena facial cleansers aren’t too bad. I’ve had some success with some of their facial cleansers in the past. Ugh! My favorite face wash was the Neutrogena Visibly Even Daily Face Wash. It was discontinued, and I still can’t get over it! It was an amazing cleanser that did a darn good job at cleaning my skin without stripping my skin, not causing breakouts, and who knows if it brightened my skin. All I know is that I stuck with it for so many years until it was gone. It didn’t clog my pores or irritate my skin. Just an amazing face wash that worked well with my skin type. It was also a cream cleanser. It’s so hard to find a good cream cleanser that works on my skin nowadays. I’ve been using gel cleansers ever since after moving on from it. ๐Ÿ˜ข

So what is Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid Fragrance Free? This is a gentle face wash that thoroughly cleanses the skin while boosting hydration in the skin. It’s fragrance free. It contains hyaluronic acid to lock in moisture. It effectively washes away dirt, oil, and makeup without leaving the skin feeling dry or tight. It’s dermatologist-tested, hypoallergenic, non-comedogenic, gentle even on sensitive skin including eczema-prone, atopic dermatitis-prone, and acne-prone skin. Cleanser was formulated without soap, parabens, dyes, phthalates, and alcohol. So I’ve been using this face wash for 1 week. Here’s my experience and thoughts on it!

My 1 Week Experience with Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel with Hyaluronic Acid Fragrance Free:

Texture & Application

This cleanser is a gel. It comes in a pump bottle. I chose the big bottle (16 fl. oz.). They have smaller sizes of this product, but I just took a chance and went with the 16 fl. oz. bottle, haha! Who knows what might happen!! This product doesn’t have fragrance, but it has a scent to it. It smells like chemicals to me. I think I just have a very good nose. The smell isn’t bothersome, and I was able to use the face wash without any issues. With this cleanser, 1-2 pumps is only needed. I try my best to stick with a single pump to save a little bit of money. Sometimes I use 2 to get a more thorough cleanse. But I usually stick to one pump. It’s more than enough for the whole face including the neck and chest area. I cleanse all of these areas of my body when I’m washing my face, especially at night. The product lathers and foams up nicely. I haven’t had this foamy experience with a cleanser in a while. The foam from the Neutrogena face wash is pretty exciting, lol. I love how it lathers up as I’m washing my face. It feels like it’s doing something and removing dirt, oil, debris, and other gunk from my oily skin. I love it. When rinsed off, my skin is left feeling moisturized and clean. It didn’t strip my skin. I would say that this face wash is a gentle, moisturizing cleanser that worked very well on my oily, dry-prone skin.

Cleanses the skin without leaving it feeling dry.

This facial cleanser cleans the skin without leaving it feeling dry. Even when my moisture barrier was impaired, it didn’t burn my face. It washes my face so much better than what I was previously using (Olay). I can feel the difference in my skin. It just feels cleaner and more fresh afterwards. I love the way it makes my skin feel…clean and moisturized. That’s what a cleanser is supposed to do, right??? Yeaaapppp!

Breakouts?

I didn’t get any breakouts from this face wash. It actually helped to remove excess sebum without irritating my skin. I noticed less blackheads on my nose. It hasn’t gotten rid of my blemishes, but it hasn’t done anything to make it worse. It cleans my skin well without over drying it. I’ve said this many times now. This face wash is the perfect combination of cleansing and hydrating the skin. I think that’s the best aspect of this face wash. It doesn’t dry it out, so it doesn’t irritate it and cause more issues to the skin. For acne, my skin tolerated this face wash pretty well. It’s a simple, basic, moisturizing face wash without any actives (if that’s what you’re looking for).

Final Thoughts

I’m glad I gave Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel a try. It worked so much better on my skin than I expected. Much, much better than the cleanser I was using before (Olay Regenerist Hyaluronic + Peptide 24 Revitalizing Facial Cleanser). I didn’t feel like Olay was cleaning my skin well enough. It did, but it could’ve been better. That’s when I noticed a huge difference in the cleanliness of my skin when using Neutrogena vs. Olay. Maybe I just have super oily skin that Neutrogena products just work better for me. Using Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel twice a day has been awesome. I always look forward to using it too, since it lathers, foams up, and cleanses the skin very well without making the skin look and feel stripped of its natural moisture. I feel that the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Cleansing Gel is a good cleanser for oily, acne-prone skin people that want a product that cleanses (has that foaming texture) and doesn’t irritate the skin. After using it for a week, I’ve made the switch to Neutrogena (from Olay). It’s working better on my skin. It helps to remove leftover makeup too. Even though I use oil to remove my makeup. This cleanser helps to remove that same oil + other excess dirt, debris, and makeup from my facial skin. I don’t have any negative thing to say about it as of yet. I’m only 1 week in. I’m loving the results so far. It’s a good cleanser. Look forward to a new update within a few weeks or months in!

If you missed out on my acne journey, don’t forget to check it out!

My Acne Journey: 1 Week Inโ€ฆ

My Acne Journey: 2 WEEKS!! 

My Acne Journey: 3 Weeks Results!

My Acne Journey: 4 Weeks Results!

My Acne Journey: 5 WEEKS IN!

My Acne Journey: 6 Weeks Resultsโ€ฆ

My Acne Journey: 7 Weeks Results

My Acne Journey: 2 MONTHS!! 

My Acne Journey: 2 Months + 1 Week Results!

My Acne Journey: 2 Months + 2 Weeks!

My Acne Journey: 2 Months + 3 Weeks Results!

My Acne Journey: 3 MONTHS!! ๐Ÿ˜€

My Acne Journey: 3 Months + 1 Week Results

My Acne Journey: 3 Months + 2 Weeks Results

My Acne Journey: 3 Months + 3 Week Results

My Acne Journey: 4 MONTHS!!

My Acne Journey: 4 Months + 1 Week Results.

My Acne Journey: 4.5 Months + Clear Skin!!

My Acne Journey: 4 Months + 3 Weeks! What Iโ€™m Doing to Maintain My Clear Skin. ๐Ÿ™‚

My Acne Journey: 5 MONTHS!!

My Acne Journey: 5 Months + 1 Week Results

My Acne Journey: 5.5 Months Results!

My Acne Journey: 5 Months + 3 Weeks

My Acne Journey: 6 MONTHS!!! ๐ŸŽ‰

My Acne Journey: 6 Months + 1 Week!

My Acne Journey: 6.5 Months

Review: Australian Gold Botanical SPF 50 Tinted Face Sunscreen Lotion (Fair-Light)

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Australian Gold Botanical SPF 50 Tinted Face Sunscreen Lotion Light to Fair

I picked up Australian Gold Botanical SPF 50 Tinted Face Sunscreen Lotion in Fair-Light. I’ve been hearing about this sunscreen for so many years. I thought, maybe I should just try it out. What put me off from trying this sunscreen out in the first place is that it contains red algae (Porphyra Umbilicalis Extract). And my experience with algae in general in skin care products have not been good. It clogs my pores. But, anything can clog anyone’s pores. It really depends on how the person’s skin reacts to the ingredients/overall formulation of the product. So, I’ve read so many reviews raving about this product! Am I missing out on something?? Hmmm! Now, here I am, with a tube of this stuff. Here are my thoughts on it!

My Experience with Australian Gold Botanical SPF 50 Tinted Face Sunscreen Lotion!

Texture & Application

The texture of this sunscreen is a mousse-cream. It’s a very different type of texture and consistency that I didn’t expect from a bb cream/tinted lotion. It’s soft, lightweight, and souffle-like. It glides over the skin very easily and smoothly. It was very easy to use this product. Very easy to blend into the skin without tugging at the skin. I didn’t have any problems with application. It was a simple process that didn’t take a lot of time. I loved using it around my eyes. It didn’t burn my eyes. But, the sunscreen looks a little greasy and shiny upon application at first. I used the required amount for sunscreen too, which is a lot of product. After about 30 minutes, the product looked matte on the skin. The next 15 more minutes, my skin looked even more matte. It is truly a matte sunscreen as it states on the bottle (matte finish).

Fragrance-Free?

The product is fragrance-free, but it does have smell to it. When I first opened it and sniffed it, I thought it smelled like tanning lotion. After smelling it again just now, it smells like plant extracts. Maybe a combo of both? I’m not too fond of the scent, but it didn’t bother me too much.

Shade (Fair-Light Skin Tones)

I wasn’t impressed with the shade of this product. It says it’s for fair to light skin tones. The color of this product is literally orange when dispensed from the tube. On my skin, it was orange if I used too much. ๐ŸŠ๐Ÿ˜‚ I didn’t like that at all. ๐Ÿ‘Ž๐Ÿป If I use it as a makeup product rather than my main sunscreen, it works out pretty well. It doesn’t turn my skin extremely orange, but there is an orange tint to the skin. That tint eventually fades away a little bit, so it wasn’t too bad. There is no coverage. It seems to work very well as a makeup primer. It seems to coat my eyelashes too. Eyelash primer as well? lol. So this product works out if you’re searching for a mineral sunscreen that is tinted (no white cast). I actually used it on top of my mineral sunscreen (that gives a white cast) to eliminate the white cast. Worked very well. Cast begone! ๐Ÿ‘‹๐Ÿป

Great for oily skin!

Since the sunscreen is matte, it works amazingly on oily skin. I have very oily skin, and this sunscreen was perfect on my skin when it comes to taming excess oil. It makes my face appear very clean compared to the dewy, oily look, haha. If you have dry skin, you might want to apply a good moisturizer underneath. This sunscreen is definitely aimed towards people with oily skin. I’m not saying it won’t work for dry skin. It’s truly a matte lotion sunscreen. I didn’t think it was drying at all on my skin.

It stays in place.

Most sunscreens swish around my face when I reapply. That might be the reason why I was developing more freckles! When I went in for a reapplication, I can feel that this sunscreen did not shift at all on my face. It stayed in place. Reapplying was not a pleasant experience since it felt like I was applying on top of more product. The sunscreen feels lightweight when applying, but it leaves a layer, film of product on the skin. I can feel that there’s product sitting on my skin. It’s quite annoying.

Breakouts? Clogged pores?

I was dreading using this sunscreen on my face because of the red algae. The other ingredient, shea butter, is a hit or miss on my skin. I thought this sunscreen was a tad too rich on my skin, which is odd because I thought it would be drying (from the reviews I’ve read). It leaves a sticky residue on my skin and just feels too moisturizing. I noticed closed comedones, some blackheads, and milia in my breakout-prone areas. That’s when I stopped using it. Could it be the red algae? Shea butter? Who knows. My skin didn’t like it. It feels very occlusive on the skin, especially when reapplied. By the way, I started noticing breakouts by day 2, but I didn’t stop by day 3. By day 3, it became more obvious that my pores were getting clogged.

How to remove.

This is one of the most difficult sunscreen products to remove from the skin. It does not come off by simply cleansing with a face wash. To remove this product, oil cleanse (leave on for a few minutes) and wash with a facial cleanser. I do have a facial brush too to help remove the sunscreen off of the skin. If the product does not budge, oil cleanse, oil cleanse, oil cleanse some more. Just make sure the sunscreen is all off. If you do not remove the sunscreen off properly, you’ll in up with residue on your face, which can lead to clogged pores. I removed the sunscreen off properly and made sure my skin was squeaky clean, so my breakouts were from the ingredients in the product. It’s not compatible with my skin type.

Final Thoughts

I was so excited to try this sunscreen out. It’s affordable, comes in a 3 fl. oz. tube, has SPF 50, and it’s a mineral sunscreen (4% Zinc Oxide, 4% Titanium Dioxide). The smell of the product isn’t too bad. I got used to it after a few uses. The shade of the product could be better. I wish it wasn’t orange. ๐Ÿ˜‚ Fair to light isn’t fair to light. I could see the drastic difference in my skin color when using this sunscreen. Too bad that it clogged my pores too. I wished my skin didn’t react the way it did, but it did. *sigh* I wanted it to work. It would’ve work well for outdoor workouts, hikes, pool days, and going to the beach. It sticks to the skin like crazy. If you want a sunscreen that stays on your skin, this will do it. For everyday use? It’s not for my skin type. Like I said before, it feels too heavy, sticky on the skin. It’s weird because the sunscreen feels lightweight when applied to the skin. After a few hours, it takes on this sticky texture, film that I dislike. I don’t like it and my skin doesn’t like it. It gets in my hair. It’s difficult to remove. The breakouts killed it for me. All in all, I won’t repurchase. This sunscreen has been hyped up so much that I thought it would be amazing. It’s a nope for me.

What Australian Gold Botanical SPF 50 Tinted Face Sunscreen Lotion in Fair-Light looks like:

It looks more orange in person. It has a whipped-mousse texture to it.

Australian Gold Botanical SPF 50 Tinted Face Sunscreen Lotion Light to Fair

This sunscreen was sealed when I purchased it. ๐Ÿ‘Œ๐Ÿป

Australian Gold Botanical SPF 50 Tinted Face Sunscreen Lotion Light to Fair

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