Pray for My Face, March 2019

I'm at a really terrible point in my stop-consuming-shit journey: while I can ignore just about every new release and raved-about product for months on end, I suddenly want to buy everything Jordan Samuel releases. And since it's cold as the ninth circle of Hell right now, I'm also tempted by every balm, ointment, and glow-promising serum out there. I've managed to tamp down those desires by using deluxe samples that were hanging around my bathroom, and being "meh" about two of them reminded me that you can spend a lot to find one product you love.

Jordan Samuel Hydrate: The Mist, $29 at JordanSamuel.com

I'm a sucker for facial mists, but I'm also weirdly picky about them. They have to provide light hydration without feeling sticky, they need to work under and over other skincare and my makeup, they have to have a fine mist, they must be "no-no ingredient" free, so on and so forth. I'm also loath to buy a mist if there's a similar, more concentrated product in the range. Jordan Samuel's Hydrate Serum is already one of my favorite products, and I use it regularly, so why buy a watered-down version?

Well, I had to repurchase my serum at the end of 2018, so I caved and tossed a bottle of Hydrate: The Mist in to my cart. And I am so, so glad I did. It is, indeed, a lighter, less hydrating version of the Hydrate Serum, and that makes it perfect for my morning routine. I can spray this all over my freshly-washed face in the morning, and it dries in a minute while plumping and smoothing my skin. All of my moisturizers and foundations smooth over it without issue. I especially love topping it with my Skin Laundry Daily Moisturizer SPF35 to lock in the moisture.

My one complaint is the smell: when I first spray it, it has a bit of a mildew scent. That dissipates after it dries, but it's always a little jarring.

Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask, $45 at Sephora

According to YouTube circa 2017, this is THE mask to get if you have dry, sensitive skin. Frankly, I have plenty of AHA exfoliants and lightweight hydrators already, but this appeared in a sample pack I bought, so I figured, "Hey, why not." Alas, I'm not impressed. I find that this exfoliates my skin just fine, but it doesn't do anything else, and it's certainly not so gentle or effective that it warrants a $45 price tag.

Now, to be fair, I don't leave this on my face all night; I rinse it off after about 15 minutes. That said, the instructions say you can wash this off after 10 minutes, most exfoliants will do their work within those first 10 minutes, and frankly, there's nothing in the ingredients list that suggests it will be enough to keep me hydrated throughout the night. I do appreciate the lightweight gel texture of this mask, but the strong, artificial watermelon scent erases any of the textural benefits.

Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask, $20 at Sephora

This is another YouTube darling, but unlike the faddish Glow Recipe mask, I think this lip balm is still quite popular and beloved. Karima McKimmie recently mentioned it in a favorites video, and it's regularly recommended on various skincare forums. I can see the appeal of this one: while it looks waxy and thick in the pot, it applies with a smooth, creamy texture and almost seems to blanket the lips. (I've photographed it against the waxier, dryer Nuxe Reve de Miel balm I use every night so you can get a feel for the texture.) It's very comfortable and works well under lipsticks.

Unfortunately, I don't find this as hydrating as other people do. When I wake up, my lips feel slightly dry, as if the balm sort of faded away instead of soaking in. Part of the problem may be the inclusion of denatured alcohol, which is halfway up the ingredients list and always seems to dry me out if I use it regularly. I'm sticking with my Nuxe balm for bedtime and keeping the Laneige pot on my desk, where it will serve as a lipstick primer or occasional "touch-up" balm.

Belif Moisturizing Eye Bomb, $48 at Sephora

I hate it when I really like an eye cream, partially because they're also so damn expensive, partially because I know they're not entirely necessary. And frankly, this eye cream doesn't do anything so spectacular that I would rush out and repurchase it when I finish this sample pot. But yes, I do really like it.

The best thing about this eye balm is the texture: it's a "gel lotion" texture, almost like a body lotion that has been thinned out with a little extra water. A small amount spreads pretty far, and it smooths over the eye area easily, softening the skin and providing a tiny bit of plumping. This definitely helps with my fine lines in that area, but it's quite temporary, of course. I've also used it in the morning and tested it under makeup, and it soaks in quickly enough that you don't have to worry about it borking your concealer.

Pray for My Face, November 2018

One of the benefits of store credit, company PR, and free samples is that you can try a bunch of new stuff without spending your money. It's especially nice when you end up loathing a product; you don't want to feel like you've wasted that $30. Unfortunately, one of these products went beyond being "meh" and actually ate my face alive. Pray for this face, friends.

Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Eye Creme, $38 at Sephora 

This eye cream got a stupid amount of hype recently. Bloggers and YouTubers insisted that this cream's yellow color helped it correct your undereye circles, and they claimed that it was the most moisturizing, smoothing eye cream they've used. I think it's this level of hype that set me up for disappointment. Yes, it is quite hydrating and smoothing, even more so than a lot of other eye creams I've tried. But this did nada on my undereye circles. The people saying that must've had the faintest circles known to mankind, whereas my undereyes are a very strong, dark blue.

Still, it's a nice eye cream that hasn't irritated my skin, and I've almost emptied the sample pot. It works well at night as a soothing treatment or before makeup to make concealer apply better. I wouldn't spend a full $38 on it because I still prefer the Kiehl's eye cream, but I wouldn't turn my nose up another sample of the Ole Henriksen.

Glossier Zit Stick, $14 at Glossier

I continue to be stunned by Glossier's recent focus on skincare. While their makeup is often right up my alley, their skincare rarely tickles my fancy due to the run-of-the-mill formulas and unnecessary ingredients designed to make it smell nice. The ingredients for the Zit Stick looked fine, though, so I purchased one and brought it to a conference shortly after it arrived.

Let's get the bad out of the way. First, this is nothing new or revolutionary; it's a 2.5% benzoyl peroxide treatment with a dash of salicylic acid and tea tree oil packaged in a cute pen. It's not strong enough to get rid of my most horrendous, under-the-skin blemishes, and if you rub it on a blemish without a head, it can actually make it a bit redder, which is typical of benzoyl peroxide.

There are some positives for this product, however. The tiny tube is very travel-friendly and fits in my small purse easily. The formula comes out slightly pinkish-white at first, but rubs in and dries down clear, so you can wear it in public. When I was on a break during the aforementioned conference, for instance, I noticed a new zit appearing on my forehead, so I rubbed the Zit Stick in to it and it was noticeably smaller by the end of the day.

DHC Lip Cream, $9.50 at Dermstore

Lena got me interested in this lip balm, and the non-stop 5 star reviews pushed me to pull the trigger. I've been running low on my Nuxe Reve de Miel lip balm, which is becoming scarce in the United States, so I was hoping for a replacement. I do really like this balm, but I don't think it's the end-all-be-all (sorry, Lena), and it certainly doesn't replace the Nuxe for me.

The DHC Lip Cream has a smooth, very slightly waxy texture. It provides light to moderate hydration and is relatively weightless. It's not super glossy unless you really pack it on, so it should work well for makeup-free people, too. I personally love this in the morning to lock in the hydration from my humidifier and help my lipstick glide on. It's nowhere near as hydrating as the Nuxe is, but it gets the job done.

The downside is that this is a teeny, tiny tube. You get 0.05 ounces of product, and a month of using it in the morning and at night saw me finishing half of the tube. I might continue to purchase this one, but only when it's on sale (Black Friday, I'm coming for you!), and I'll avoid using it at night so that it lasts longer.

Sunday Riley Ceramic Slip Cleanser, $35 at Sephora

Shortly before I received this cleanser from Influenster, Sunday Riley got itself in to a bit of hot water when a former employee revealed that the company had planted positive reviews. This didn't change my opinion on their products that much, to be honest, because their high price tags and iffy ingredients lists never appealed to me. Still, Ceramic Slip has always been a popular cleanser, and it seemed like it would be right up my alley. I patch tested it for a week and had zero problems. When I used it all over my face, I noticed that it felt soft and was relatively scentless. It didn't strip my skin. That's...about it. Nothing terrible, nothing amazing, just a run-of-the-mill gentle cleanser.

I woke up the next day asking, "Man, why is my face so itchy?" I've been on medication and vitamin D supplements for my chronic hives for almost 2 years now, and it's worked marvelously, so I've forgotten what it feels like to wake up and immediately scratch my face off. I looked in the mirror, and...

...HOLY FUCK, WHAT HAPPENED.

These pictures don't do the rash justice, as they were taken about an hour after I woke up, took Benadryl, and worked an hour at my online job while barely resisting the urge to scrape my face off of my skull. It was twice as unsightly, purple, and huge when I first woke up. I've had some reactions to skincare products in the past, but rarely one this intense. It was so bad, I had to call off work at my on-site job. And when I thought it was getting better, it started to puff up the skin around my eyes--see the middle picture.

Suffice to say that I threw the cleanser back in its box an tossed it under the sink. I have no idea what to do with it, since I don't want to give it to a friend and unleash the same horror on their face. A huge thanks to Sunday Riley and Influenster, though, for proving that I really don't need to spend that much money on overhyped skincare.

Pray For My Face, March 2018

There's a lot of skincare that hasn't made it past patch testing for me recently, and that's a shame. But the few items that haven't completely eaten my face from the get-go have ranged from solid to stellar. Even the things that didn't really work for me are still passable. (I almost called them "C+ fare," but I think that's a little too much teacher at 8am on a Thursday.) Fair warning: we're slowly leaving the depths of winter, so hydration has been the name of the game these past few months.

Hada Labo Gokujyun Premium Lotion, starts ~$11.50 on Amazon

The darling of skincare forums across the net, Hada Labo's Gokujyun "lotions" are almost constantly recommended to people looking to combat dehydration without breaking the bank. I put "lotion" in quotes because these aren't milky, creamy products in the traditional western sense, but rather watery serums meant to be used under moisturizer. Hada Labo's Premium Gokujyun Lotion is slightly thicker than their original formula, and it contains more forms of hyaluronic acid for better hydration.

I found the texture of this serum to be a bit sticky; I always had to wait about five minutes before putting moisturizer on top of it, or else it just wouldn't spread correctly. If you have oily skin or you dislike "feeling" your skincare in the slightest, you'll want to stick with the original formula and its more watery texture. Despite this unpleasantness, I always woke up with glowier, less dehydrated skin after using my Hada Labo. Alas, I also began waking up with pimples, too. After experimenting with product combinations and doing a bit of product elimination, I realized that this serum will break me out if I use it for more than a day or two at a time. Still, it's beyond affordable and works, so if you're dehydrated and the texture and the ingredients list don't freak you out, give it a shot!

Jordan Samuel Hydrate Facial Serum, $29 at JordanSamuelSkin.com

When every affordable hyaluronic acid serum I tried freaked out my skin, I decided to give it one last shot with this Instagram famous luxury edition. No lies, I kind of hoped I'd hate it. It just has such a simple ingredients list for a $29 product! Who wants to spend that on a basic serum every 3-4 months?

...but damn, does this stuff work for me.

I didn't think it would, though, because it's even thicker than the Hada Labo Gokujyun Premium Lotion. As weird as it sounds, imagine hair gel thinned with a drop of water. That's how viscous this stuff is. Despite this thick texture, three drops of Jordan Samuel Hydrate absolutely melts in to my slightly-damp skin; I can apply my moisturizer within a minute of application. And for whatever reason, this seems to plump up my skin even more than the Hada Labo did. It's almost like I can feel my skin holding on to the water.

Beyond the price, my biggest complaint about Hydrate is its rather musty smell. It fades a few minutes after application, thank goodness. I also dislike glass bottles because I'm a klutz, but I know that's what most people prefer and it's totally functional packaging, so I won't whine too hard.

Paula's Choice RESIST BHA 9 Treatment, $43 at Paula's Choice

I don't deal with true blue acne, and I don't get a ton of giant zits--most of mine are of the "inflamed red bump with a clear white head" variety. But when I do get those deep-in-the-skin monsters? Oof, they're doozies. They're so weirdly smooth and darkly colored that it's hard to cover them with concealer, and they swell so much that I often have to take ibuprofen for the pain.

Because I don't get these sorts of zits often, I figured the $5 "travel size" vial of BHA 9 would be perfect for me. It's smaller than most perfume sample vials, aka "ludicrously tiny," but I've dipped a q-tip in it about a dozen times so far and it's still over half full. I like to put this stuff just on the blemish before going to bed so that I wake up with a much tinier, easier-to-treat white head. Just check out the images above: I spotted that honker on my chin after my shower one night, I dabbed on the BHA 9, and I woke up with that itty bitty white head. That's magic to me.

Two notes. One, Paula's Choice can't outright state that this is an acne product because it contains 9% BHA and there are regulations about that, so they say it's for "stubborn skin concerns" instead. Po-tay-to, po-tah-to. Two, my big, red blemishes pretty much always have a white head somewhere, though it may take a magnifying mirror to see it. If you suffer from actual cystic acne deep under your top layers of skin, I don't know how much this product will help you.

It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Eye Cream, $48 at Sephora

I'm not sure It Cosmetics needed two instances of the word "eye" in this product name--if you say it's a "bye bye under eye" cream, most of us are going to get where it goes. Then again, we have curling irons and electric knives with labels screaming "DO NOT USE INTERNALLY," so maybe I'm optimistic.

It Cosmetics claims that this cream will "instantly brighten and reduce the appearance of dark circles, puffiness, fine lines, and wrinkles." As somebody with very deepset eyes and fair skin, no cream is going to get rid of my dark circles, but I'm all for the promised brightening and smoothing effects. I didn't think I'd get them from a stiff blue concoction that needs to be warmed between the fingers before you can really pat it in to your eye area.

But I did get some of those effects. This definitely made the skin around my eyes feel softer and look a little smoother, though it certainly didn't erase my fine lines entirely. The brightening was very subtle and probably came mostly from the fact that this is moisturizing, but hey, I'll take that over glitter any day. A little of this goes a long way, too; I've been using the same deluxe sample for over a month and it's still half full.

This is the one product on this list that I wouldn't wholeheartedly recommend, but to be totally honest, I'm probably not their ideal customer, and I think most eye creams are a load of hooey. Somebody with puffy eyes, please test this and report back!

Belif The True Cream Moisturizing Bomb, $22 at Sephora

Easily confused with its thinner, more gel-like cousin "Aqua Bomb," Moisturizing Bomb is basically everything I like in a moisturizer. It has a rich, emollient texture, it packs on the hydration without feeling filmy or heavy on my face, and it works wonderfully under makeup. It must share a dash of magic with the Jordan Samuel Hydrate Serum. And in fact, my current dream trio is Jordan Samuel Hydrate under my moisturizer at night, a humidifier running while I sleep, and a thin layer of Belif Moisturizing Bomb in the morning to lock it all in. The glowy skin you see in the picture above is 75% due to this combination. (I also exfoliate regularly.)

Weirdly enough, I would say that this actually has a slightly thinner texture than most equivalent moisturizers; it's more like a true unguent than a cold cream. It's still plenty thick by most people's standards, however, so if you have oily skin or you dislike anything even remotely greasy-feeling, you'll want to reserve this one for night time or just skip it.

Two quick whines, because that's how I roll. First, because Moisturizing Bomb is packaged in a jar with a small-ish opening, it can be kind of hard to pull out every last bit of product hiding in the nooks and crannies. Second, you'll get smacked with an intense herbal smell every time you open that jar, and it will linger for a bit after application. The results are worth it for me, and I've actually come to like the smell, but it was a real shocker when I opened it for the first time.

Pray For My Face, December 2017

Despite the fact that I am not a skincare expert and my face tends to hate All The Things, I decided that I'd shift my focus to skincare in 2018. This doesn't mean I'm not going to buy makeup--lipstick still exists and I am weak--but it does mean I'll be trying to get my base in order so that makeup application is all the easier. And if I'm going to invest time and money in to something, I also want to write about it for my blog, even if my reviews are not especially technical or wildly helpful. Hence, I'm starting a mini-review series called Pray For My Face.

Why that title? Well, if you've been here for a while, you know that testing a new product makes me a little leery. My skin can be very reactive, and many of the ingredients that are supposed to be beneficial for dry skin (shea butter, caprylic triglyceride, etc.) break me out. So when I post a picture of the next contender on Instagram, I usually add the hyperbolic caption "pray for my face." I use that caption so often, in fact, that I didn't think there was any other appropriate title for this series.

I'm happy to say that the first post in this series features a slew of winners and a decent variety of products. I can't guarantee that future posts will always be this happy, and in fact, I'm sure there will be some wailing and gnashing of teeth when a moisturizer or a mask inevitably turns me beet red. But for today, ah, there is only joy.

With some criticism. I may be more exfoliated and better moisturized, but I'm still me.

Clarins Liquid Bronze Self-Tanning Lotion, $38 at Sephora

One of the things that always drives me nuts is how much whiter my neck and chest are than my face. There are plenty of days when I want to do my brows and dab on some blush, but skip the foundation, and the stark color difference in my skintone can really ruin the effect. I've actually gotten comments on Instagram about how I need to learn how to match my foundation...when I'm not wearing any foundation.

There are plenty of self-tanning lotions on the market, many of them cheap and effective, but I was told that this Clarins one gave the most natural color and wouldn't stain my pillowcase. Clarins recommends applying a small amount of this lotion to clean skin with a cotton pad, so I spread a little on to a Shiseido cotton, then wiped it down my jaw and neck. After two nights of this, I got nice base color somewhere between my NC5 chest and NC15 face, and I began to use it every other night. There was no streaking and the overall effect was really natural. There is a bit of a self tanner smell, which is unpleasant, but it usually fades within the hour.

Unfortunately, I don't think this product is quite right for me. The photo above is very forgiving, but in natural light, the color this self-tanner produces is...well, it's off. It's not that my neck ends up looking orange; rather, it looks a bit bright and peachy compared to my more muted face. I'll be returning the Clarins Liquid Bronze, but if you're light skinned and looking for a natural, lightweight face and neck tanner, this one has a truly beautiful formula.

Neutrogena Light Therapy Acne Spot Treatment, $19.99 at Target

I don't have clinical acne, but I usually have a pimple or two on my face, and I like to treat them as thoroughly as I can. The problem is that most spot treatments are incredibly stripping, which can actually make you break out more and is not optimal for my bone dry face. Enter the Neutrogena Light Therapy Acne Spot Treatment, a pen that promises to speed up the healing process with blue and red light therapy.

Using this pen seems easy: you just place it on your spot, press the button until the lights turn on, and hold the pen in place for 2 minutes. (It will beep and shut off automatically when it's done.) I say seems because it can actually be a bit uncomfortable to hold your arm up for 2 minutes at a go, and there isn't a large surface area on this pen--it's easy for it to slip a little on your face without you realizing and miss the blemish entirely.  Also, the pen is powered by a AAA battery, and each battery seemed to give me just a month's worth of use. Thankfully, rechargeable batteries seem to work just fine.

This @neutrogena Light Therapy Spot Treatment makes for hilarious pictures. #neutrogena #skincare #skincareroutine #spottreatment #lighttherapy #beautyblogger

A post shared by Renee (@reneesanatomy) on Nov 15, 2017 at 10:04am PST

That said, I do like this product. If I rest my elbow on my desk and watch YouTube videos while the pen runs, I can usually keep it in place just fine. Neutrogena recommends using this on each blemish three times a day, but I think twice a day is just as good. After two good zaps with this pen, I find that my blemishes are reduced and healing faster than usual. Most importantly, this product doesn't burn or sting, and it won't interfere with any of your other skincare.

I will note that this doesn't seem to work on cysts. They're most likely too deep under the skin for the light to penetrate.

First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads, $15 for 28 at Sephora

I was having a rough time finding a less-than-5% AHA product that didn't have a scary ingredients list or cost a kidney, so an industry friend offered up a jar of the First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads. I'd heard wonderful things about these pads for months, but the citrus extracts and the cost made me avoid them.

"Just patch test them first," my friend said, "and cut the pads in half."

"Cut the pads in half? Will there even be enough to do my entire face? I've got a really long face."

"No, really," she insisted, "they're big enough. Just cut them in half."

She's right: half a pad is definitely enough for my entire face, partially because they're a nice sized pad and partially because they're quite saturated with product. (If you have a larger face or you like to do your neck, you'll still want the full pad.) The actual liquid contains a mixture of glycolic and lactic acid. Paula's Choice says there's a total of 5% AHA, while FAB apparently told this Reddit user they contain "1.760000% of Lactic Acid and 1.400000% of Glycolic Acid," which is hilariously specific. Regardless of the exact number, it's clearly a gentler exfoliant. I will note that the citrus extracts haven't bothered me, but that may not be the case for you.

I like to use these right after cleansing and patting my face dry. I run half a pad over my face, avoiding my lips and eyes, and let it sit for about 5 minutes before moisturizing. One of the nicest things about these pads is that they don't leave any sort of residue on the skin and there's no strong scent--that's a welcome change from a lot of stronger AHAs. I use half a pad about twice a week on my dry, dehydrated, reactive skin, and they give me a subtle healthy glow.

Rohto Skin Aqua UV Super Moisture Milk, ~$11 on eBay (ingredients translated at Ratzilla)

I envy bloggers who show off collections of well-loved face sunscreens. While I've found a number of body sunscreens that I truly love, I haven't been so lucky above the shoulders. Most of the face sunscreens I've tested have broken me out, parched my skin, or gone geisha white on my already pale complexion. The few western sunscreens with viably light formulas were loaded with denatured alcohol, which always wrecks my face in the long run. So I turned to Japan for a face sunscreen I could love. After trying a handful of options, the Rohto Skin Aqua UV Super Moisture Milk emerged as the clear winner.

The Skin Aqua Super Moisture Milk is an alcohol-free sunscreen with a thin, liquidy texture; you can see just how thin it is up against Blue Lizard Sensitive in the photo above. It's a translucent white when it first comes out of the bottle, but it rubs in totally clear and feels weightless on my face. This doesn't dry my face out at all, and I can use it all around my eyes without any irritation or watering. (People with normal to slightly dry skin will likely find this lightly moisturizing, while people with oily skin should probably avoid this particular formula and go for a gel texture instead.) It's also a tenacious sunscreen: it kept me from burning during a sweaty trip to the zoo, and I had to use oil to remove it at the end of the day.

This sunscreen has been getting rave reviews across the internet, but it's not without its faults. For one, it's more expensive than any other Japanese sunscreen I tried. $11 doesn't sound like much, but the bottle is only one ounce. Also, you'll most likely have to order this directly from Japan, which means a longer wait if you live in western hemisphere. And lastly, this isn't fragrance free. I can't actually smell anything when it's on my face, but if your skin is sensitive to fragrance of any kind, take a pass on this one.