Updated Skin Care Routine! Only 4 Products!!

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. 🙂 I’m keeping my skin care routine to a minimum. My skin prefers a minimalistic approach.

Update: Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30

It hasn’t been too long since I reviewed Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30. But I’m ready to do another update on this product. 

I was hoping that Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30 would be my main moisturizer and sunscreen for mornings, but it didn’t work out like I thought it would. It’s moisturizing and provides SPF 30 with 19.5% zinc oxide. I love that it’s a true mineral sunscreen. That’s exactly what I was looking for! When applied to the skin, the sunscreen feels sticky and heavy. It’s moisturizing, but it left my skin looking very shiny. The more product I applied, my skin looked even more shiny. It wasn’t a pleasant look. I don’t want to walk around with an extremely shiny face.

That’s not the reason why I stopped using it. I would’ve kept using it even though it was shiny on my skin. The reason why I stopped using it was because it irritated my skin and caused breakouts. The sunscreen clogged my pores. It’s labeled as non-comedogenic, but it wasn’t on my skin. It’s way too thick on the skin and messed up my skin. I ended up with some breakouts and redness out of the blue. I didn’t think it was the sunscreen because I wanted it to work. I kept using it until I finally convinced myself that the new breakouts, redness, and skin irritation was from the sunscreen. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out.

Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30 didn’t work on my skin. I have a ton of product left that I can use…I guess…in my dry areas such as my eye area and neck. But I’m never using it on my facial skin ever again. The ingredients are nice in this product. Check out the ingredients right here:

purified water, C12-15 alkyl benzoate, isopentyldiol, squalane, glycerin, coco-caprylate/caprate, bis-octyldodecyl dimer dilinoleate/propanediol copolymer, glyceryl stearate, PEG-100 stearate, polyhydroxystearic acid, cetearyl alcohol, sucrose stearate, ceramide EOP, ceramide NG, ceramide NP, ceramide AS, ceramide AP, carnosine, phytosterols, hydrogenated lecithin, dimethicone, triethoxycaprylylsilane, polyacrylate crosspolymer-11, caprylyl glycol, 1,2-hexanediol

The formulation wasn’t compatible with my skin type. I love the moisture that it provided my skin. With my skin type (oily skin that’s acne-prone), it wasn’t happening. This sunscreen would probably work better on someone that doesn’t experience breakouts and have dry skin. I won’t purchase this sunscreen again. Very disappointed this time around. 

Trying Out Mineral Sunscreens…

I’m trying out mineral sunscreens again! I picked up some mineral sunscreens I used in the past to test once again. They are Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50 and Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30. I’ve been using chemical-based sunscreens for some time now consistently. I’ve been getting really bad migraines from them. My eyes would burn constantly even though I’d only applied the sunscreen to my face. It would seep into my eyes somehow. I even wash my hands before applying mineral sunscreen on the skin around the eyes. Still, my eyes would end up burning no matter what. Reapplying chemical-based sunscreens was terrible. It’s just so irritating. I’d have teary eyes all day. I’m over chemical-based sunscreens. I have a few more bottles of chemical-based sunscreens left. I will use them up eventually. I’m just not interested in using them right now. I think it’s time to switch back to using mineral sunscreens. So let’s begin with Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50…

I picked Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50 because it’s a thin liquid. I wanted a sunscreen that’s lightweight. I’m getting tired of thick sunscreens. I’ve used it before, but I wanted to see if it’s going to be different this time. My skin is pretty good right now, and it’s easy to detect if a product is working or not fast.

Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50 contains 12% zinc oxide. It has a SPF of 50. How? This sunscreen isn’t a true mineral sunscreen. On the ingredient list, it lists Butyloctyl Salicylate as the third ingredient. I’ve noticed that mineral sunscreens with high SPF that doesn’t feel heavy or doesn’t give off too much of a white cast contain this ingredient to boost the SPF.

This sunscreen is truly lightweight on the skin. That’s one of the main reasons why I chose it. When dispensed from the bottle, the sunscreen is a liquid. It’s white. It smooths over the skin nicely. It smells like plastic though. I hated the smell of it. Once applied to the skin, the white cast somewhat fades away, lol. It’s not too bad. It’s pretty easy to blend into the skin. The sunscreen is silky and smooth. As I said before, it’s truly lightweight.

As for irritation and breakouts, I noticed both. The sunscreen feels like silicones. It ended up irritating my skin. It made my skin extremely itchy, especially the neck area. I can’t recall this sunscreen giving me a rash in the past. I also noticed some clogged pores. Even though it feels lightweight on the skin, it does feel like plastic wrap on the face. I stopped using this sunscreen on my face immediately after noticing irritation and breakouts. I’m quite disappointed in the outcome when used as a face sunscreen. But, as a body sunscreen (on my arms), it works pretty well. It’s lightweight, doesn’t have a white cast, and absorbs quickly. It doesn’t stain my clothes either. Unfortunately, I’m not going to purchase it again for these reasons. It’s not a true mineral sunscreen. It irritated my skin and caused breakouts. The size of the sunscreen is too small for a body sunscreen. I know it’s not a body sunscreen. I’m currently using it as a body sunscreen but will not repurchase to use as a body sunscreen. I would rather go for a larger sized sunscreen bottle for the bottle to save money.

Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30 was another mineral sunscreen I chose. I picked it for its moisturizing properties. This sunscreen is a true mineral sunscreen with 19.5% zinc oxide! I remember this sunscreen being thick and heavy. It’s thick but absorbs into the skin very nicely this time. I actually like it. It feels very gentle on the skin. I didn’t experience skin burning, eyes burning, itchy skin. It’s soothing. It has a white cast that fades into the skin. My experience with the Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30 has been good. I haven’t noticed any breakouts. Just moisturized skin. This sunscreen is definitely for sensitive skin. We’ll see how it goes in the next week or so. Hopefully no new breakouts from this sunscreen! I think this might be my to-go-to sunscreen if it works out!

Those are my thoughts on Cetaphil Sheer Mineral Face Liquid Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50 and Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30! I’ll make an update soon. 🙂

My Acne Journey: 5 MONTHS!!

My 5 months experience! 🙂

Some thoughts that crossed my mind ~

Should I stop using moisturizer? Is Vanicream Daily Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin clogging my pores? Should I take a break from benzoyl peroxide?? Hmmm! So many questions!

So! I didn’t stop using a moisturizer this week. But, I’m going to try to stop using a moisturizer (Vanicream) next week. Why? I feel like it’s slowing down my progress. Possibly clogging my pores. I noticed some sections of my face that keeps on getting re-clogged even after using tret, benzoyl peroxide, and bha. Vanicream feels a little bit sticky and heavy on the skin too. I love the ingredients in the moisturizer and how it helps to heal and protect my skin, but it could be setting me back when it comes to acne. I never used a moisturizer before in the past. It’s not because I don’t like them. It’s because all of them (the ones I have tried, tons!!) ended up breaking me out. I think Vanicream may be one of them. As for benzoyl peroxide, I don’t want to use something as drying as benzoyl peroxide in my routine right now while my skin is without a moisturizer. I’ll have to wait until my skin adjusts to this new routine first before adding it back in. That’s if I need to. I’m still using tret and bha. Both of these products are drying enough for my skin. I’m also going to use both of them without a moisturizer. Let’s see what happens!

I tried some old or previous products too, haha! Oops.

I tried The Ordinary Resveratrol 3% Ferulic Acid 3%, The Ordinary Ascorbic Acid 8% + Alpha Arbutin 2%, and The Ordinary Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG again. The Resveratrol & Ferulic Acid serum and Ascrobic Acid & Arbutin serum was a mistake, lol. I haven’t used any The Ordinary serums on my face for a while. I was in for a surprise. Well, kinda. I should’ve known. Both of these serums felt extremely greasy on the face. It didn’t sink in my skin at all and left my skin feeling and looking sticky, heavy, and greasy. I woke up the next morning with red, irritated skin and clogged pores. It messed up my skin so quick. Lesson learned once again. I thought I would try it out again and this happens. Now I know once again that these serums simply do not work on my face. Another product I tried again from The Ordinary is the Caffeine Solution & EGCG. This one worked better. I kind of missed it, so I started using it again, lol. I’m only using it at night since it has a drying, tightening effect on the skin around the eyes. Also, it takes time for the serum to absorb into the skin. So far, nothing bad has happened.

My thoughts on some of my sunscreens…

Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30:

I’m almost done with this sunscreen. It’s a thicker and heavier sunscreen, and it does has the tendency to sit on top of my skin. Ahhh, I love the ceramides in this product. It helps to moisturize, heal, and protect my skin. I haven’t noticed any breakouts from using it daily either or from reapplying. I can reapply this sunscreen without the product pilling. It works great as a moisturizer and contains ingredients that I like. I use it when I’m indoors or when I need my skin to heal from exfoliants or actives. I think it’s much more moisturizing compared to Vanicream Daily Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin too. The Vanicream Mineral SPF 30 is making me have second thoughts about Vanicream Daily Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin. Hmmmm! So I’m still on the fence about this product. It just feels a bit too rich for my skin type. But it could work. I’ll finish the rest of the product and think about it.

Canmake Mermaid Skin Gel UV SPF 50+ PA++++ (Clear):

I tried to use this sunscreen up on my face. I really tried. It’s just too drying on the skin, and I couldn’t stand the dryness any longer. It ruined the moisture levels in my skin. My skin looked cracked, felt super tight, and painful. I tried using it with a heavier product underneath too, and it still didn’t work. I guess I could just use it on my body. I won’t repurchase again. I know I’ve said this many times, but I hate this product. 👎🏻

CeraVe Hydrating Mineral Face Sheer Tint:

A product I grew to love this week is the CeraVe Hydrating Mineral Face Sheer Tint! It’s a tinted mineral sunscreen (SPF 30) that contains niacinamide. I was really shocked and am still shocked that it brightened my skin. I noticed a clearer and brighter complexion after rinsing it off for the day. I’m really, really liking this product. I’m using it as my face makeup product (foundation) too. It doesn’t provide any coverage, but it’s best for my skin to not have anything thick and heavy on it. Also, too many products just causes more acne issues. My skin just looks better after rinsing it off at the end of the day. I’m really enjoying applying this product to my face too. It blends into the skin without leaving a white cast behind. Perfect for sunscreen reapplication.

5 months in and now on to a new week!!

My whole acne journey is right here! Enjoy! 🙂

My Acne Journey: 1 Week In…

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 Results…

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!! 😃

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 I’m Doing to Maintain My Clear Skin. 🙂

My Acne Journey: 4 Months + 3 Weeks! What I’m Doing to Maintain My Clear Skin. :)

I’m nearing 5 months on this journey soon!! My skin officially cleared up after 4 months. I’m just in maintenance mode now. All I’m doing is the basics. I’m glad I got rid of all of those excess amount of skin care products. Currently using them on my body. I have to use them up somehow. It’s still taking forever! 😭 But, lesson learned, I guess, lol. I feel like I should know this already since my skin thrives on a basic skin care routine plenty of times before. I guess it’s called a skin care addiction. 😂 Well, let’s check out what went on this week!

What’s new this week?

I stopped using a moisturizer in the morning. Yup, I don’t have a dedicated moisturizer for mornings anymore. I feel like I was using too many products even though it was just this single product. It just felt too much applying that moisturizer on my face in the morning, lol. I noticed more blackheads and sebaceous filaments when I started using a moisturizer in the morning too. It felt like a waste of product and money when I didn’t really need one for AM use. What’s the point of using a product when it’s not necessary? I have oily skin, and it just makes things worse. So I started using a more moisturizing sunscreen instead, so it’s more like a two-in-one deal. The product is La Roche-Posay Anthelios Melt-in Milk Face & Body Sunscreen Lotion SPF 100. I was using La Roche-Posay Anthelios Body & Face Mineral Sunscreen Gentle Lotion SPF 50, but it was too drying on my skin. I got really tired of the white cast and how drying it is. It’s my favorite sunscreen (right now) for touch-ups, but I want a sunscreen that’s more moisturizing. And that is, the La Roche-Posay SPF 100 since I still have it. Here’s my experience with this sunscreen this week!

La Roche-Posay Anthelios Melt-in Milk Face & Body Sunscreen Lotion SPF 100:

I chose this sunscreen because I remember it being moisturizing. I can just skip moisturizer and go straight to using sunscreen in the morning. This helps to cut down my morning routine too. I’m only using a single product on my face. It makes things even simpler. So this sunscreen is very moisturizing on the skin. It feels lightweight without any other products underneath (serums, essences, moisturizers, creams, gels). It made my skin appear a little greasy, but that didn’t bother me too much. It sat comfortably on my skin. I liked that it didn’t dry my skin out. I needed the moisture. But, with this sunscreen, I can’t use it near my eyes. Yes, it burns like hell. It must be the smell of this sunscreen. It has a strong sunscreen/chemical smell to it. Yuck! Not a fan. But even with the negatives, I’ll still use it until I find something else that’s better. It moisturizes my skin and protects my skin. That’s what matters most to me. It hasn’t irritated my facial skin. It works for what it is.

Here’s my experience with some other sunscreens I’m trying to finish up. 👇🏻

Vanicream Mineral Facial Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30:

This sunscreen feels very soft and soothing when applied to the skin. It rubs in nicely and doesn’t leave residue behind. I didn’t notice a white cast this time either. With this sunscreen, it never sets on the skin. It sits on top of the skin. It leaves my skin shiner and greasier. Since it’s only SPF 30, I’m using it as an indoor sunscreen. I prefer to stick to SPF 50+ sunscreens for everyday/outdoors. It works very well as a moisturizer. It saved my dry skin when it was cracking and peeling. Works well on sensitive skin. It contains ceramides, and I really do love my ceramides. 🥰 Keeps my moisture barrier happy. This moisturizer with sunscreen is actually even more moisturizing compared to the Vanicream Daily Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin, in my opinion. It leaves my skin feeling soft and smooth after I rinse it off for the day. So it helps to improve the quality of the skin. I didn’t notice any breakouts after using it this time. Keep in mind that I didn’t use any other products underneath the sunscreen. I feel that this sunscreen has some good qualities, but I don’t like the way it leaves my skin looking shiny and greasy. Plus, it’s only SPF 30. I need a higher SPF for my skin type.

Canmake Mermaid Skin Gel UV SPF 50+ PA++++ (Clear):

I tried this sunscreen again. I still have a few bottles of it left to finish. Applying this sunscreen to the skin was nice and soothing at first. But after it absorbs into the skin, it leaves the skin feeling dry and super tight. It felt like my skin was going crack. I couldn’t move my face. Yes, it absorbs quickly. Yes, it feels lightweight on the skin rather than thick and heavy. But, I’d much prefer a sunscreen that’s thick and heavy than a drying one. My face hurts using it. Reapplying was not fun. By the third application with this sunscreen, my eyes started to burn and the sunscreen pilled near my hairline. So the only way I’ll be able to finish this sunscreen is if I use it with another sunscreen that’s moisturizing. I’ve been using it with Vanicream Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30. Not mixed together, but I layer them. Vanicream helps to lessen the dryness. I only use Canmake when I’m indoors. It didn’t work for me at all. I tanned, burned, and freckled using it outdoors (including reapplying). This sunscreen is so overhyped. It didn’t protect my skin at all. Thinking about it pisses me off, lol.

When I can’t use a sunscreen near my eyes (La Roche-Posay SPF 100!), I use another sunscreen that I still have (trying to finish it). It’s the Neutrogena Sheer Zinc Face Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50. This sunscreen doesn’t burn my eyes, so it works for the eye area. I can’t use it on my face due to it clogging my pores.

I love how my morning routine just consists of sunscreen. 🙃 It’s so simple. 👌🏻 I don’t need extra products. My skin’s good. ✅

New Products??

I thought I wasn’t going to add any skin care products, but I decided to add vitamin c powder. I know, I know, lol. I said I wasn’t going to, haha. I needed an affordable, easy-to-use antioxidant in my routine. Using vitamin c went well this week. No orange 🍊 face. I woke up to a brighter and more even-toned complexion. By the way, I only use it at night. I don’t use anything else on my skin besides sunscreen in the morning. It’s too extra for me. Also, I haven’t worn makeup for a few weeks now. I started wearing makeup then stopped. Might pick it up back up again whenever.

That’s what I did this week. I really didn’t think I would ever use vitamin c again. But, knowing me, I love trying out previous/new products out. 🤷🏻‍♀️ See everyone next week! I can’t wait!

If you missed out on my acne journey (more like maintaining clear skin journey now, haha), follow the links below!

My Acne Journey: 1 Week In…

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 Results…

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!! 😃

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!!