My skin is totally out of whack - advice?
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Tue Apr 29, 2008 3:19 pm

I usually have quite oily skin. Over the winter, my skin became very dehydrated and I now have a lot of clogged pores because my skin isn't releasing anything.

I've had to stop using cheap cleansers (i.e. Clean & Clear / Neutrogena) and have started using Pevonia's phytogel cleanser recently after using a free sample that my skin loved.

I don't have a lot of money to spend until I get home this summer (my parents are willing to give me money at home, but are tight-fisted when I'm away at college).

Is there anything I can do to help hydrate my skin without spending a ton of money?

free skin care · Tue Apr 29, 2008 9:12 pm

Hmm...I've had some luck with La Roch Posay in the past. I'm not sure where you are, but you can buy it at SDM, and I believe EDS carries it.

Avene is pretty decent as well...

Cetaphil moisturizer was great for me a couple years ago, also facial spray/mists have helped rehydrate my skin while I'm in the office (very dry office air...reciruclated...argh).

Also, make sure that you aren't piling on the moisturizer. Whatever you used may have been way to rich for your skin resulting in clogged pores. It can be a vicious cycle.

free skin care · Tue Apr 29, 2008 9:23 pm

First of all, drink plenty of water!

When my skin is dehydrated a honey mask helps a lot. It's cheap, too. I would exfoliate first, then slap on some honey and leave it on for a few minutes (I once forgot and went about my business for a couple of hours but when I washed it off my skin felt amazing!).

I also found Dermalogica to be heaven sent. The line (IMHO) is too mild to show any drastic improvements, but when I was having dehydration problems it was the only thing that helped. (I used it for several years) - especially the Essential Cleansing Solution and Skin Hydrating Booster underneath Skin Smoothing Cream. When I was broke these three were all I used. I would buy the large bottles/tubes so it would last me months.

Now I am using other stuff, but I always go back to Dermalogica to help my skin 'recover' if it has had any ill effects from other products. HTH some! Smile

Oh you might want to try OCM for your clogged pores (check out the DIY thread for OCM info). If you don't like it enough to make it part of your routine, then at least try it for a week to unplug your pores. Dr Hauschka Cleansing Cream has also been raved about as a good pore 'unclogger'. There's even a homemade version of it that works just as well, if you are game to try it.

free skin care · Tue Apr 29, 2008 9:28 pm

I agree with drinking plenty of water, and take fish oil and Vit E softgels, too. Have you tried MSM supplement? It's good for skin as well as hair. I take the powder one I bought from bio-alternatives. It's bitter, so I add it to my morning coffee to hide the bitter taste.

free skin care · Tue Apr 29, 2008 9:37 pm

The same thing happened to me! I'm still trying to find my perfect moisturizer, but the thing that totally changed my skin 100% for the better is the Oil Cleansing Method (OCM). I use a 25/75 mix of castor oil and grapeseed oil, and some essential oils, and my skin has never been better. It's far less oily, and retains moisture SO much better now.

And definitely make sure to drink lots of water!!

free skin care · Wed Apr 30, 2008 1:28 am

I had the same problem when I moved from a country with usually 80-95% humidity to a polluted cold environment with about 30% humidity... my entire face aged about 10 years!

The best thing is to use a water based spritz with some nice humectants like sugars, glycerine, sodium PCA etc... if you want to be low budget, buy some floral hydrosols or distilled water and add about 1% glycerine (or even honey, xylitol etc) and spritz on the face after cleansing.

You could try a richer moisturiser on top in the evenings, something like Atopalm, or get some of the Clinique samples to try.

free skin care · Wed Apr 30, 2008 7:37 am

I second the Dermalogica recommendation. The skin smoothing cream is a good one, and affordable in the large size.

Another option is cold pressed jojoba oil. It's natural, affordable and is not supposed to clog pores.

I love ultra refined emu oil, which I also think is moisturizing and non-clogging. It makes skin very smooth. Smile

free skin care · Wed Apr 30, 2008 7:50 am

Hello my dear! Looks like you've gotten a lot of good suggestions so far. Here's what I would recommend:
First, start with a good exfoliant. My fave by far is EpidermX, which you can get atwww.greatnewskin.com. You only need a pea-size amount so it lasts forever, and it will go a long way toward getting rid of the flakes and helping your skin get rid of all the nasties.

Next, I agree with some of the other ladies--- you want to make sure your moisturizer isn't too rich, because then it's going to be clogging your pores. Also, watch out for anything containing any kind of silicones (basically any ingredient than ends in -cone) because these form a barrier on your skin, which prevents moisture from coming in and bad stuff from coming out. My skin improved DRAMATICALLY when I quit silicone-based products cold turkey. For moisturizers I would really recommend checking out Zenbiotic's Moisture Enrich. It's made of botanical oils, but they have some way of processing it that makes it water-soluble, so it provides intense hydration without greasiness, clogged pores, etc. I totally swear by it. The only trick is that you have to apply it to a damp face, so you have to spritz with something first. I generally use either Caudalie's Grape Water or Zenbiotic's Oxytone which is nice because it doubles as a nice, soothing toner as well. Hang in there and please keep us updated!

Wed Apr 30, 2008 11:24 am

Thank you very much for all of the great suggestions! I'll research them all and try a few out. You're all wonderful Smile

Wed Apr 30, 2008 12:14 pm

Just an update - I've decided to start out with the OCM method. I found some excellent organic castor and evoo oils at a website called baar Smile

free skin care · Wed Apr 30, 2008 12:49 pm

Hi!

Yes you can! The regular use of honey transformed my skin from good to virtually perfect, I think it'll help you too! Get some honey in bulk, I get an 80 oz container at Costco for around 7$. I don't know if you can use Costco though... Anyway honey is awesome- it is antibacterial and cleansing and also hydrating. It's a beauty miracle product. Check out the honey thread in the DIY section.

In the DIY section, I also posted about making a honey, green tea, and lemon based cleanser. Check it out! Honey, green tea, and lemons are all cheap and it's up to you what the 4'th ingredient is- could be a high quality cleanser, could be a super cheap hair conditioner.

I see you just got some castor and olve oil. As long as they're both cold pressed and cold precessed, without any additives, and are fresh, that's awesome! I don't do OCM but I do put a little oil on my face in the evening sometimes. I use castor oil. Oil is great. You have to get over the aversion to putting oil on your face, it's actually really good for the skin.

Mon May 05, 2008 12:04 pm

My oils for the OCM came today and I tried it out. My skin looks wonderful but feels slightly tight. I used a blend of 30% castor oil and 60% evoo. Should I use less castor oil next time?

free skin care · Mon May 05, 2008 6:57 pm

You could, or you could also do the OCM only once or twice a week, just so you could routinely unclog your pores without risking a purge or overdryness that some people have experienced with daily OCM.

I love OCM I think it has done wonders to my pores (incl the size!), it is also relaxing as you massage your face but I do it only three times a week max.

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