Trying Vitamin C for the Millionth Time + Skin Care Updates

I took a break from tret for my skin to heal (see my 1 week experience right here). In the meantime, I thought I would give a vitamin c product a try once again. I thought about purchasing a different product, but I decided against it. I wasn’t sure if it’ll be worth the splurge. Instead of shelling out on a new product, I remembered that I still have Melano CC Vitamin C Essence. Why not try this product?!!

I started using Melano CC Vitamin C Essence for the first time in the morning. The product felt nice on the skin. It absorbed quickly and didn’t feel sticky. I enjoyed applying it to my skin. I really miss this product now. 🥲 I’m excited about the results (if there’s any). Well, not much to say about the first day. On the second day, I also used it in the morning. The product was way too strong for my skin’s current state. I stopped using it after the second day. I waited for 4 days for my skin to become less sensitive. On the last day of the first week, I started using it again. This time, with a moisturizer. Let’s see how this goes!

Some other things I have been doing:

• Restarted tret. Only nights. When my skin is able to tolerate it.
• Moisturizing my skin daily, morning and night.
• Wearing sunscreen every morning. I’ve been using Vanicream Daily Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30. It’s not too bad for my skin at this moment. I’m leaning towards mineral sunscreens as well.

I do have a new skin care routine. I’ll post it up when I have a minute. 🙂

My Attempt At Using Tret Again.

I started using tret again. My skin was looking dull. It was lifeless. I needed to do something about those issues. Acne marks became more prominent as well. I can’t use too many skin care products, but I thought I could give tret another chance. So here I am using tret again. Here’s my 1 week experience using tret.

I was able to use tret 4 times this week. I used it back-to-back for a total of 4 days and took a break for the rest of the week. During my use of the product, I was using a moisturizer. It was the Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Face Gel Hydrator. It worked amazingly for my skin. My skin felt extremely moisturizing. At one point, I thought it gave my skin too much hydration. I thought about dialing back on the product. I didn’t. I just kept using it. Tret and this moisturizer went well together. I noticed smoother skin that’s brighter (probably the niacinamide in the hydrator). I was so happy that I was seeing results with this combination of products. Yesss! Finally! It’s working! Sadly, the moisturizer ended up breaking me out. I had clogged pores in areas that were acnegenic. I had to stop using it. Once I did, the breakouts went away. Once I stopped using the moisturizer, my skin couldn’t take tret daily anymore. It burned my skin. For the rest of the week, I took a break. I picked up another moisturizer called Cetaphil Rich Hydrating Cream for Dry to Normal Sensitive Skin. I purchased this to use as an eye cream, which works so much better than what I was using (Eucerin Q10 Anti-Wrinkle Sensitive Skin Face Creme). Eucerin wasn’t that moisturizing and did nothing for my skin. I noticed some fine lines and wrinkles underneath my eye area vanished with Cetaphil! It works better as a moisturizer! I’m switching!

So! The Cetaphil Rich Hydrating Cream helped to alleviate any scalding, burning, and redness. This is awful! I burned my skin again. I’ll have to use a moisturizer with tret. I hope Cetaphil Rich Hydrating Cream works! I’ve been using it for 3 days and night without any issues. No breakouts. Nothing yet. It leaves my skin feeling soft too. It’s a two-in-one product for me. It works as a face cream AND an eye cream. Hey! Let’s see what happens. So far, so good.

Stay tuned for what’s going to happen next! 🙂

Update: My 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)…I 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. 😀

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.

• La Roche-Posay Anthelios Melt-in Milk Face & Body Sunscreen Lotion SPF 100
• Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Face Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50
• Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen SPF 50
• Altruist SPF 50
• Vanicream Daily Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30

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 else…I don’t know…

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. 🙂

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.

Which Sun Care Products Am I Using Now? 🤔

I tried using mineral sunscreens, but it just didn’t work. So I’m still using Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Face Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50 (mainly around my eye area) because it doesn’t sting my eyes compared to a chemical-based sunscreen. I might even purchase it again since it’s pretty affordable for a mineral sunscreen/skin care product. It seems to work on my skin. I haven’t had any allergic reactions to it. As for Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen SPF 50, I stopped using it. Maybe I’ll use it as a makeup primer or something like it. It seems to work well for that purpose.

So what sunscreen am I using now? I went back to using a chemical-based sunscreen. Mineral sunscreens were so drying that it made my skin look parched and crusty. It made my makeup application look terrible. It accentuated every single dry skin and pore on my face too. Ugh! And fine lines and wrinkles. Chemical-based sunscreens are more moisturizing. SO! I started using La Roche-Posay Anthelios Melt-in Milk Face & Body Sunscreen Lotion SPF 100 again. It’s the most moisturizing without making my face appear too greasy. I tried using Altruist SPF 50 again, but that sunscreen made my skin look even more greasy. I prefer La Roche-Posay Anthelios Melt-in Milk Face & Body Sunscreen Lotion SPF 100 instead. My skin always looks good with this sunscreen. It’s a moisturizer + sunscreen in one. But, once again, I don’t use sunscreen every single day. I only use it when I’m outdoors exposed to UV rays.

All in all, it wouldn’t hurt to use up all of the sunscreens I have right now. I haven’t spent any money on sunscreens ever since I decreased my sunscreen use. Not that I’m not using it. I am. As I mentioned, I only use it when I’m exposed to UV rays…but also when my skin feels a bit dry from my acne cream. I really wish LRP would come out with a moisturizer like this (the SPF 100 sunscreen product) but without the SPF. I can only hope. Oh well. I’ll use whatever I have in the meantime.

Sunscreen Update: My Experience with Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Face Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50

I used Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Face Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50 this week in place of Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen SPF 50. Here’s my experience…

Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Face Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50 is a zinc, mineral-based sunscreen. It contains 21.6% zinc oxide. It’s a pure mineral sunscreen. The texture of the sunscreen was sticky and became easier to apply each time. Still, sticky. It doesn’t irritate the skin or dry the skin out. It does accentuate dry patches on the skin if there are any. I noticed that I had some dry patches on the skin along my jawline and forehead. Even with the dry patches of skin, the sunscreen left my skin feeling moisturized. It was the combination of moisturized skin and dry patches of skin coming to light when applied to the skin.

The stickiness of the sunscreen bothered me. My makeup products had a difficult time setting on my skin. It smeared and didn’t look good. The sunscreen made my face appear shiny and weird-looking. I didn’t like it. There was also an obvious white cast that I couldn’t tame. Every makeup product I applied appeared lighter than it was supposed to. That’s something I didn’t like either. But it is a pure mineral sunscreen that I’m willing to put up with.

Fortunately, I didn’t break out when using it. It felt like it could clog my pores, but it didn’t. I didn’t use it every day, but I used it most of the week. All went well when it came to developing breakouts or not. This sunscreen worked for me. I’m still not sure if I can keep using it on my face. The stickiness, and shininess of the product really get to me. If I can’t find anything else, I might just try my best to make it work. It’s a non-chemical sunscreen that’s non-drying. I can’t seem to find any other mineral sunscreen that’s moisturizing and doesn’t cause breakouts. This one should work for now. I’m not sure what the future will hold for it. We’ll have to see, haha. So far, it’s been alright.