Day 60

After 2 months on Accutane here are my first before & after pictures. My skins feels and looks much more smooth. Here you can see my cheek (right next to my nose) with some major improvement. 

*   *   *

Após 2 meses de Orotrex (isotretinoína) aqui estão as minhas primeiras fotos de antes & depois. A minha pele está muito mais lisa. Aqui fica uma imagem da bochecha (zona lateral ao nariz) com melhoria significativa.

Back...

Yes, it's been a long time, but my blog's still alive...

So, after years of trying everything on earth to make my skin look flawless I decided to get on isotretinoin (Accutane/Roaccutane, Claravis - in Portugal it is called Orotrex). I don't have cystic acne or even severe acne - I have a moderate comedonal acne (with open and closed comedons, mainly on T-zone) that is very persistent (I think I have it for 12 years now) and resistant to the appropriate skin care and topical medication (Isotrexin, Differin, Epiduo...yes, I've been on all that).

After doing my homework (read papers, studies and do my online research) I did the blood tests and started my 6 month course on a 20 mg dose (contraception is MANDATORY and I was already on it). After 20 days I increased the dose to 40 mg/day.

Now, the aim my first post about Accutane (I'm calling it Accutane because is the most common name) is to talk about the side effects and how to minimize them. For those of you who are thinking about taking this drug:

1- Your skin will dry...

I started to get dry skin on day 3 - depending on the weather, on if I wear make-up or not or on how much liquids I drink, my skin flakes a lot or a little. When my skin is not flaking a lot I do my usual routine - clean my skin with a mild gel, spray it with mineral water, use a moisturize and, if i'm going out in the sun light, protect it with solar filter. If my skin is really dry, besides my usual routine, I use a richer cream, specific for extreme dryness, at night. When I get cracked skin, besides all that I apply a specific balsam (like Eucerin Aquaphor).

2 - Your lips will get miserable...

Prepare to spend lots and lots of lip balm - if you are careful enough you can overcome this side efect. When my lips are NOT chapped but are flaking I do a light exfoliation with my toothbrush or with sugar and apply lip balm after...it really helps.

3 - If you wax your upper lip, peel flaking skin, use pore strips, pull out black heads with your fingers or pop zits it will get a mess...

...so, DON'T do it.

4 - Your nose may bleed...

...but a nose hydrating spray/gel will take care of it.

5 - You may loss your appetite...

...but, unless your BMI is extremely low, I don't see a problem in that.


I'm currently on my 31st day of Accutane and I'm so happy I've started it! I didn't have that "inicial flare" yet, and I think that is because I don't have inflammatory acne. My skin has cleared up a lot.

My next post on Accutane will be on my skin routine while on this drug.


Have a nice week :)
 

On BB creams...

After months trying BB creams I finally felt prepared to write about them...

So, for those of you who aren't familiar with the term, what is a BB cream?

BB stands for 'Beblesh Balm' or 'Beauty Balm'.

First of all, a BB cream IS NOT a tainted moisturizer or a fond de teint...unfortunately many brands decided to launch 'BB creams' that are very similar to these products...but we'll get there.

A BB cream is mainly a cosmetic product that unifies the skin tone, making it look smooth and healthy - a 'baby skin' effect. The objective is a natural finish, like you don't have make-up at all. 

Most of them claim to have treatment proprieties - yes, they make the skin look good after some months but this is probably because they contain high SPF (sun protection factor) and hydrate the skin, not because some magic secret formula. 

Basically a BB cream is a well balanced mix of a moisturizer, SPF, primer and a little color (to even the skin tone, not to color it!).

Which one to choose?

It depends on your type and tone of skin and the amount of coverage you need.

There are hundreds of BB creams on the market, specially on the Asian one, the main producer and seller of these creams. Now the main European and American brands have launched their BB creams.

The Asian BB creams all have pretty colorful and sparkly packages, kind of royalty names and all of them have millions of proprieties, so it can be really confusing to choose one. For example, Skin79 (on of the top BB creams brands on Asia) has this pretty little board to help you choose the perfect BB cream for you.

The Western BB creams are much easier to choose: usually each brand has only one BB cream with two or three different tones (light, medium, dark).

How to apply it?

I use my BB cream as I would use a primer or a foundation. 

Although it has moisturizer, it doesn't give my skin the hydration it needs, so I apply it after my daily moisturizer. 

I use a small amount and spread it lightly with my fingers and then use a sponge to make it more even. Sometimes, when I have more time, I use a brush. And I don't use foundation on top of it. Some people use it, but I don't see a point in it, at least for me. So, If I need little coverage, I use BB cream, If I need more coverage I use foundation, without BB cream.

So, here are some BB creams I've tried...

♥ Skin79

I ordered this miniature set so I could try the main BB creams from this brand. It brings four 5 g miniatures (enough for a month, if used daily): Hot Pink Super BB, VIP Gold Super Plus BB, Diamond Luminous Pearl BB and Diamond The Prestige BB. Like I said, royalty names.

I found the Hot Pink Super BB to be a little thick. The other three creams were fluid enough for me, the tone being the main difference. So, the VIP Gold Super Plus BB was too yellow (certainly not ideal for european skin) and the Diamond Luminous Pearl BB was way too....pearly - perfect for a night out but definitely not for daily use. So, I felt in love with Diamond The Prestige BB. It has the perfect tone for me and is fluid, very easy to apply.

♥ Estée Lauder

I think this is the closest Western BB cream to what a BB cream should be. Differently from the Skin79 BB creams this one hydrates the skin much better. It has SPF 35 and is available in too shades, light and medium. A little bit overpriced.

♥ Dior

I wouldn't call this one a BB cream. It is somewhere between a tainted moisturize and a regular foundation. Too much coverage, almost no hydration. SPF 30. One (very dark) universal shade, and very expensive. 

♥ Sephora

Like I said, most Western BB creams are very similar to tainted moisturizers...this is another one that looks like one. It is available in two shades, light and medium, both of them very dark. And the SPF is only 15.

♥ Kiko

A pleasant surprise. I though it will be another disappointment, like Sephora BB Cream, but I actually liked it. It is not like the Asian BB creams, but the coverage is thin enough. Besides, it has a wider range of shades - light, natural, rose, medium and dark. And the price is fair enough. Unfortunately SPF is only 15. 

♥ Garnier

Not to much color, but yet, not a true BB cream. A little bit oily in my opinion. It is available in light and medium. SPF 15 only.

♥ Erborian

I really like this one, although it gives a little bit more coverage than those of Skin79. I bought it for those days that I need a little more coverage but I don't feel like covering my face with foundation. It is available in clair and doré shades. It has SPF 25 and leaves the skin really smooth.

♥ ♥ ♥

Still have lots of BB creams to try but, for now, I'm sticking with Erborian and Skin79 Diamond The Prestige BB. Yesterday I've purchased the latter here and they delivered it in less than 24 hours! (I live in Portugal and it cames from Spain). Besides that, it came beautifully packed and with samples from other products. I also bought a lemon mascara that smells heavenly.

Skin break ♥

I use this skin regime - the 'pink regime'! - when my skin is tired and sensitive from all the make-up, creams, deep cleansing...Also perfect for sun exposed skin!


- Bioderma Sensibio (micelle solution for sensitive skin) - make-up remover.

- Evian Brumisateur (Evian water spray) - spray it over the face and dry it with a cotton pad, instead of using a tonner.

- Uriage Toléderm (hydra-soothing cream for intolerant and hyper-reactive skin) - use it instead of serum and moisturizer.

Don't forget to use sun blocker if you are going to be exposed to sun light!

♥ ♥ ♥

I've been on this regime for almost a month and my skin looks pretty healthy!

C'est magique!

I found out the most wonderful night mask by Sampar. I only tried it once before realize I couldn't live without it...

Nocturnal Rescue Mask, by Sampar.

You can find Sampar at Sephora or here.

My skin routine

Cleansing

1. Bioré Marshmallow Whip Facial Wash - really gentle, soft whip. It doesn't dry the skin.

2. Sephora facial brush - also soft, but helps cleaning deeper.



Tonifying & Hydrating

1. Chanel Précision Lotion Douceur - anti-polution gentle facial toner. For me, the main purpose of using a toner its to help spreading the moisture and save it, as I said before.

2. Guerlain Secret Divin  - skin perfecting serum anti-ageing. I really love this serum, it makes my skin really velvety.

3. Chanel Précision Hydramax+Active (Cream) - one of my favorite moisturizers of all time. I've review it here.

4. Bioré UV Bright Face Milk (SPF 50+/PA+++) - very fluid sunblocker, pretty easy to apply. It doesn't make your face white, like some more thick SPF 50 sunblockers.


Weekly Deep Cleansing

1. Guerlain Secret de Pureté - gentle polishing exfoliator. I actually use it 2 or 3 times a week, 'cause it's really gentle and gives the skin a fresh look.

2. Kiko Scrub & Peel - new skin effect wipes. These ones are a little agressive, I use it only once a week. It makes the skin baby-soft!

3. Formula 10.0.6 Down to the Pore - I found this pore strips at Sephora. Seems like we have another brand besides Nivea and T-Zone in Portugal! They are pretty similar to those from T-Zone (actually I think the only difference is the package) but more expensive. You can read my pore strips reviews here and here. My favorites are definitely Bioré Pore Stripes.

4. Kiko Purifying Mask - remineralizing mask that matifies skin. It works perfectly with the scrubbing wipes...the skin gets really smooth and soft.

   ♥ ♥ ♥

Besides having good quality products I think discipline in skin routine its very important to keep it flawless and glowing! If you don't have time or if you are lazy to use so much stuff everyday, at least protect your skin with sun blocker (or, even better, a moisturize with SPF) if you're going to be out in the day light. It's the best way of preventing skin aging and, more importantly, other skin related issues, like cancer. Have a nice weekend!

An update on pore strips...

I'm really glad I ordered Bioré's pore strips...!

I got the green tea/sakura pore pack - the two kinds of strips do exactly the same, they only differ in color and scent. They dry really quickly and pull out even smaller blackheads. I'm really sad that they aren't available in my country - the shipping costs makes them a little expensive!

You can read my pore strips' review here.

Pore strips

Pore strips have been part of my skin routine since forever. I use them once a week or every two weeks depending on how much my blackheads have "grown" - if I use the strips when they are small (although visible) it won't work so well. 

What I usually do to make them more effective is to do a steam facial first (for about 5 minutes) and then I put the strip directly on the top of the area I want to clean, since it is already wet from the steam.

Although there are many blackheads that don't come out, the pore strips are still the most effective way to get ride of them, at least for me. Never, ever pull out your blackheads directly with your hands specially if you have long fingernails - besides hurting your skin, you will be increasing the chances of turning a blackhead into an infected, much more visible and painful pimple and, worst of all, it can leave a scar if you insist frequently in the same area. My mum was right.

So, here are some pore stripes I've tried:

NIVEA VISAGE CLEAR-UP STRIPS

Unfortunately in my country (by the way, it's Portugal) we don't have a wide range of pore strips (actually we don't have a wide range of lots of stuff) and for many years this was the only pore strip available on national market. They work fine but you must be very careful with the amount of water you put - a little more and they simply won't dry (or it will take too long) and won't be very effective. The box contains strips for all T-zone (nose, forehead and chin) which is an advantage for me, once I use them basically all over my face (cheeks included).

T-ZONE PORE STRIPS

I really love these T-Zone pore stips. They are a little more "agressive" than the Nivea ones - my skin burns a little after using them - but they do the job better (more blackheads pulled out). Also, they dry faster. They appeared in our market recently so I start using them not too long ago. They are a little more expensive than the Nivea ones and the box only contains nose strips (but I still use them in other places). The brand also haves another strip shape (rectangular) for other areas, but it is sold separately. 

BIORÉ CLEANSING STRIPS (pore pack Sakura/Green tea)

This week I ordered these Bioré strips (among other Bioré stuff). We only have Nivea and T-Zone pore strips available on market (as far as I'm concerned) so I'm really looking forward to try these ones. Besides, I'm really into japanese culture, literature, food and beauty products. They didn't arrived yet so more on that later.


HOMEMADE PORE STRIPS

On Michelle Phan's youtube channel you can find a recipe to make your own pore strips at home with milk and unflavoured gelatin (she uses powder gelatin but it will work with gelatin sheets, if you cut them in small pieces). It's quite effective for something made at home and I use it when I'm out of pore strips. Since it is liquid before it dries you can easily apply it with a brush in the areas where is difficult to use the traditional strip. It smells bad (nothing unberable though) but sometimes desperate times calls for desperate measures. Click here for the video!

♥ ♥ ♥ 

At this time you already noticed that pores and blackheads are a main concern to me. I'm currently testing some products for this particular problem - both cosmetic and treatment stuff - and intend to review them later.

What are your favorite products to minimize blackheads and pores? Do you have any specific routine to deal with them? Feel free to share it!

Moisturizers

In my opinion, the most important product to invest is the moisturizer. Personally (having combination skin) I prefer cream instead of gel, once it makes the skin more comfortable and the hydration lasts longer. 

At the moment I'm using Chanel's HYDRAMAX+ACTIVE cream - excellent hydration, super comfortable texture and delicious smell. It doesn't have SPF so it is very light and I use it as a day and night cream.

Chanel's HYDRAMAX+ACTIVE cream, for more information click here.

Another great option is Guerlain's Super Aqua-Day Comfort cream. I used it for the last 3 years but I found out that Chanel's HYDRAMAX+ACTIVE supplies my skin's hydration needs better (my skin is really picky). It has SPF 10 which is not much but it's better than zero (I use SPF 30 all year long so I still had to apply it after the moisturize). The texture and smell are also great.

Guerlain's Super Aqua-Day Comfort day cream, for more information click here.

A great tip to save cream and make the application easier is to use a generous amount of alcohol-free tonic before the cream (more on that topic later).