Review: Bye Bye Blemish

What They Say: "This overnight spot treatment rapidly reduces the size and severity of pimples. Salicylic acid exfoliates dead skin cells, allowing the all-natural drying agents to penetrate pores and treat infection.

Bye Bye Blemish Drying Lotion is a Hollywood celebrity skin care secret. Life in the spotlight demands the best spot treatment!

Features and Benefits:
* Proven spot treatment
* Reduces pimples overnight
* Safe for sensitive skin
* Maximum strength
* 10% Sulfur formula

Directions for use:
DO NOT SHAKE. Allow sediment to settle. Cleanse skin thoroughly before applying medication. Dip sterile cotton swab into pink sediment. Apply to individual pimples. Leave on overnight."

Melissa Says: Aside from the obvious fact that this is something you have to apply at night and that will leave a lovely pink dot of dried product on your face while it works (which are not negatives in my opinion but givens), it's hard to find anything not to like about how well this works. It doesn't make blemishes completely disappear overnight (although comes close with very small ones that are barely rising to the surface), it does definitely reduce redness and inflammation. Most are completely gone within two to three applications. I also don't experience any drying or irritation of the skin around the applied area.

This actually reminds me very much of Sonya Dakar's Drying Potion, which I used up long ago, and was quite sad that I wasn't able to replace right away because of the price. I'd say this one is MUCH more accessible and comparable in effectiveness, and the application process is the same. This will also last a very long time, as long as you make sure to screw the cap tightly shut each time so it doesn't begin to dry out faster than it should.

Retail Price: $9.99 (at ulta.com and currently on sale for $8.99 at drugstore.com)

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Review: von Natur Absolute Facial Crème Cleanser

What They Say: “Nourish dry skin while cleansing impurities out of maturing skin. With amazing antioxidants and moisture retention ingredients, skin will show a visible improvement. Besides the skin being the largest organ, it is also the largest organ of elimination, so cleansing is one of the most critical steps in maintaining a healthy complexion.”

*Note the Absolute Facial Line is “designed for women suffering from both wrinkles and acne. It works to help smooth the appearance of wrinkles and to clarify, soften, refine and rejuvenate the skin.”

What Lisa Says: This is an interesting cleanser. For those wanting a soap and water, lot o’ bubbles, squeaky clean kind of feeling, this is NOT for you but then, most mature clients aren’t looking for that. It looks, feels and smells like the green clay masks I used to use when I was 16 and my skin was oily. This minty green creamy cleanser does a great job of cleaning your skin and leaves it feeling extremely hydrated but not oily. You can actually see the difference in your pre and post wash.

The finer lines around my eyes and lips were diminished within about a week to 10 days leaving an over all softer look around my eyes. I don’t have acne so I cannot verify those claims but the ingredients in this product lead me to believe that there’s nothing in it that would hurt those who are acne prone. In fact, for the price, I would definitely give it a try if that were one of the things you want to address. It certainly has all the ingredients (including phytoestrogens) to clean and soothe acne prone skin. You can check them out on their website.

Also of note regarding this product: they are cruelty free, certified vegan, non-comedogenic/toxin free, sulfate/paraben free and are made here in the United States.

Retail Price: $37.99 4 oz. (at vonNatur)

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Review: Skyn Iceland Anti-Blemish Gel

What They Say: "Anti-Blemish Gel is that rarest of creatures, a blemish treatment that makes the ugly stuff disappear without wreaking havoc on your skin. this clear, non-sticky gel gets its punch from willow bark, a highly effective, natural antibacterial. But because it's also loaded with moisturizers, vitamins and green tea antioxidants, it manages to minumize flare-ups effectively without the drying and irritation that create those lovely flaky patches. Isn't that magical?"

Alissa's Opinion: I wouldn't call this a miracle product, but I found that it did a good job in reducing the duration of those random pimples. Like the description claims, it didn't completely dry out my skin. The thick,
clear gel was easily absorbed and didn't affect my makeup application over top of it. I love that I can treat the blemishes while still being gentle to the parts of my face that aren't misbehaving.

Retail Price: $25.00 (SkynIceland.com)

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Review: Skinsational Emergency Blemish Treatment

What They Say: “Stress, hormones and environmental factors can all contribute to a breakout. Unclog your pores and get rid of a blemish with this salicylic and glycolic acid spot treatment! Vitamin C, green tea and centella extracts help prevent scarring and reduce redness. Recommended for oily and combination skin types or anyone with occasional breakouts.”

Alissa’s Opinion: It’s always hard to tell if a blemish treatment is actually working because even the most monstrous of spots will eventually disappear whether you apply something or not. I usually rate this type of product based on how much they reduce the length of time I have to live with my concealer in my right hand pocket. Based on that alone, this product falls short. I didn’t notice any difference when I used this product on my blemishes. Skinsational also claims that this stuff prevents scarring, but I think I’d have to use it a little longer to see if that holds true.

Retail Price: $49.00 (at skinsationalspa.com)

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Review: Avia Spa Instant Gratification Blemish Remover

What They Say: "Say goodbye to embarrassing and frustrating break-outs!! Oily, Acneic and problem skin types should use this highly effective and gentle formula without interfering with normal skin functions. Active Ingredients include cinnamomum bark extract (soothing and balancing) and Benzyl Peroxide (reduces level of free fatty acids & skin infection, inhibits pustular formation)."

Melissa's DeLush Downlow: This serum-type solution comes in a very generous-sized dispenser, especially considering how little you pump out at each use. While you can feel a slight tingle on blemishes, I didn't notice the significant shrinking that I hoped for. There was some reduction of redness, but I felt that after several applications throughout the day (tried on a few blemishes over a period of a several weeks), the blemishes were only mildly reduced a bit more quickly than if I had not used the product at all. Additionally, there was a bit of drying out of my skin on the areas where I applied it.

While this eliminated some rednesss and managed to reduce the size a bit after multiple applications, it isn't the miracle you may be looking for to eliminate the occasional blemish.

Retail Price: $25.00 (aviaspa.com)

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BeneFit Ka-Pow!

What They Say: "Battle blemishes while you sleep with Ka-Pow! Dab this avenging cream, with salicylic acid, directly onto boo boos before bed… and Ka-Pow! will take care of the rest."

Melissa's DeLush Downlow: I'm not going to pretend that at 28 I don't get the occasional zit. That would be nice, but it's just not true. So this new product from BeneFit piqued my interest. Of course, I did get a few opportunities to test it out (sad to say). I just wish I had more to say about it. I didn't notice much of an effect at all. Perhaps my few small pimples weren't the type that are best treated by this product, but I applied this pretty heavily at night, several times even, and didn't notice them retreating with any increased speed. I didn't even feel like it was penetrating much into my skin. Perhaps more surface-type blemishes like those more common on younger skin would be affected. I just wasn't all that impressed.

Retail Price: $18.00 (sephora.com)

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Mario Badescu Drying Lotion

I started reading about Mario Badescu a few years ago, and his magical drying lotion was mentioned in particular.   I've read about celebrities paying hundreds of dollars to have some Drying Lotion sent to them.  Mario Badescu runs a spa in New York City frequented by Sarah Jessica Parker, Ashley Judd, and Naomi Campbell to name a few, but also sells his products online (at very reasonable prices, I might add).

What They Say:  "Dry up whiteheads and surfaced pimples overnight with this effective, fast-acting potion. A few drops of our world-famous Drying Lotion before bed will heal unsightly pimples, and soothe acne-erupted skin. Will not irritate or dry surrounding areas. "

Jen's Experience:  The very first day I got my Drying Lotion in the mail, I had to test it out.  I applied it to a patch of aggravated whitehead acne on my chin, and the next morning, the acne was no where to be found.  It literally disappeared overnight.  Unfortunately, it also left a big dry patch on my face all around the area I applied it to.   And it took a few days to really replenish all the moisture in my face.  I may have applied too much solution that first day, because I have used this lotion twice since that first time and I've experienced the same disappearing action with much less drying.  One warning:  the first time you use this you may find it to be unbelieveably painful for the first minute or so.  Like, you may considering jumping out of a nearby window as a respite from your current agony.

Tips:  Don't shake up the bottle.  Use a q-tip to pick up some of the pink stuff from the bottom and apply it to problem areas on your face.  If you have very dry skin, make sure you moisturize around the area, and that you don't use any othr harsh cleansers before applying the lotion.  You don't need a lot.  I have had very good results with just a dab.

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