Q&A: Skincare/Makeup Basics - Where to Start? (Part 2)

Assalamualaikum and hello my lovely pipul!


Okay sambung. Now where were we?
(bajet tanya where were we padahal sembang pasai cleanser je)

Anyways, this week we're gonna talk about scrub/exfoliant. I thought I can fit in some moisturizers stuff but heh even story story about the scrub/exfoliant pon dah panjang hahaha >_<

Pic source: HERE

First of all. Must put disclaimer. I copy pasted from the Part 1.
(Please read Part 1 first if you haven't!)

So for your information, I have oily combination skin. Oily in the T-zone, dry around my mouth/jaw area. I used to stick to products for oily skin but now campoq-campoq je. I think I also have acne-prone skin, kalau salah makan ke salah pakai product ke mesti breakout and mesti dapat cystic acne, the most annoying acne. Dalam bahasa Melayu, jerawat batu. Annoying kan? Dah la besar pastu takde mata nak picit macam mana. LOL.

Disclaimer: Whatever products that I recommend to you, that does not mean the product is suitable for your skin. You have to really use them for more than 10 days and if after 2 weeks you still get breakouts, it could mean you are allergic to one of the ingredients or your skin just do not want to cooperate with the skincare. I suggest you guys to go to any skin clinic or beauty salon just to see what your skin analysis. I honestly think going there helps a lot because you can't really self-diagnose stuff right? Haha.

*****

So my must-haves are cleanser, scrub (chemical/physical), moisturizer, sunblock, night cream/serum. Now we talk talk about scrubs.

How exfoliation works?

Your skin naturally sheds millions of skin cells every day, but this shedding process can come to a screeching halt due to sun damage, genetics, or various skin disorders. The not-too-pretty results are unmistakable: dull, dry, or flaky skin; clogged, enlarged pores; blackheads; white bumps (milia); wrinkles; loss of firmness; and uneven skin tone.

(Source: Paula's Choice - How to Exfoliate Skin)

There are 2 types of exfoliating products in the market - physical exfoliant and chemical exfoliant. Whoa, chemical? Like Clorox? No maam. Will get into that. Let me story first on the physical exfoliant.

Physical exfoliant is actually what we always use in our skincare routine. Of course you've heard of scrubs, the most popular one would be the St. Ives Apricot Scrub (granular kind). Granular scrubs are not that bad, well it has so many types actually. Nut shells, oatmeals, sugar but watch out for sugar scrubs. They can be super harsh and quite abrasive on the skin that can tear up your skin, not like luka la but little micro-tears which is not very the good for your skin. Usually with physical exfoliant, it only "exfoliates" the top layer of your skin, like it does not go deeply as you would think.

I've read in some countries they are actually trying to ban microbeads. Microbeads are basically plastic and if I'm not mistaken, they are not bio-degradable (aka not environmental friendly). Anyways, please read more here for why we should ban microbeads and stuff okay? I don't want to story long long on that.

There are exfoliation devices, Clarisonic and Foreo. Of course there were others, I'm just mentioning popular brands. Pffft. You can always find a cleansing device in any beauty stores nowadays. So these cleansing devices are known to clean and exfoliate your skin as well, and some people actually use muslin cloth or any cloth if they were super sensitive to physical exfoliants. Cheaper alternative would be the konjac sponge. To be completely honest, I never tried konjac sponges. Would really love to try one day but I don't know where you can get one other than Sephora. (well of course I don't wanna buy at Sephora, they're pricey as f sometimes)

I have tried quite a few physical scrubs but few years back, I have sensitive skin. Well not that sensitive lah, just tak boleh pakai anything yang harsh. I used the St. Ives Apricot Scrub and man, my skin hated that scrub. Then I didn't really use scrubs and then I couldn't really remember why I bought The Body Shop Seaweed Pore-Cleansing Facial Exfoliator. Since I used that, I just can't be friends with other scrubs. It's one of the best "almost" gentle exfoliator I've ever used. It's quite gentle and a bit perfume-y but I don't care. Coz it's so good. It is quite effective if you have little dry patches on your skin, like it removes them completely and it is so great to use before applying makeup. Smooth, clear skin. Perghhh powder weh.

Now onto chemical exfoliants. What are these chemical exfoliants? Is it harmful? Well depends on what you're putting on your skin lah. Some acids are good for your skin but please do not put sulfuric acid. That's not the acid that we wanted to put on our skin okay? I actually just jumped in this chemical exfoliation bandwagon like few months ago (like 2 weeks before I got married LOL - I have a full story on that here)

I know most common acids for exfoliants are AHA and BHA. AHA is alpha hydroxy acid such as glycolic and lactic acid - more suitable for sensitive skin as it only exfoliates the top layers of your skin. BHA is beta hydroxy acid such as salicylic acid - more suitable for acne prone skin. For acne peeps, I think you guys are familiar with salicylic acid and you guys only know that they can help with acnes and whatnot. True, true but they also quite helpful in treating/reducing blackheads, milia (whiteheads), large pores etc.

Here I copy pasted from the Paula's Choice article on what the acids do:

- AHAs are preferred for those whose chief concerns is sun damage because they primarily exfoliate skin’s uppermost layers.
- BHA is ideal for treating acne-prone skin, blackheads, enlarged pores, and milia due to its ability to penetrate the oil that’s clogging your pores.
- BHA has anti-inflammatory and antibacterial action. That’s two more reasons to use a BHA exfoliant if you have acne or sensitive, reddened skin.
- BHA is preferred for those struggling with rosacea. Not everyone who has rosacea-prone skin can tolerate an exfoliant, but those who can will see reduced redness and smoother skin. (Salicylic acid’s antimicrobial action also may benefit rosacea because there’s some research suggesting that certain microbes on skin may be causing or contributing to the disorder.)

Let's be real here, I know shit about these chemical-y stuff. I only read some articles on it, did a bit of research and to be honest, I myself, didn't really know what's best for my skin. I asked Dr Riza's (from Ariana Ming Beauty) opinion on chemical peels and whatnot and she said my skin wasn't that bad and didn't really need to do chemical peels. That is when I started doing my own research on these chemical peels/exfoliants and what are the side effects and whatnot because to be honest, it sounded so fricking scary kan. Chemical peels/exfoliants? Oh hell no. But after doing some research on it, I feel like it is the best way to really have that beautiful glowy skin before my wedding day ya know? Then I also tweeted something about chemical thingy and a friend on Twitter (shout out to my peep @oimagenta) said it is really a great product if you're battling acnes, blackheads and whatnot and I'm like, bij, I have all of that problems! So I asked her what products she would recommend and she said the Paula's Choice BHA exfoliants (posted a review a while ago) are quite good and if that is super pricey for me, she said I can try the Hada Labo Mild Peeling Lotion. I was quite skeptical of course, you're putting acid on yo face, bij, I freaked the f out. (over kan)



I actually have the Alpha-H Liquid Gold in my wishlist because I know some Youtubers using it for gentle chemical exfoliation. I didn't know anything about it and now I was like relieved I did not buy that one because it is a AHA exfoliant. Like I said, I have large pores, blackheads blablabla and BHA is more suitable for my skintype. The Alpha-H Liquid Gold also have some good reviews. If you guys do not want super exfoliating stuff, maybe you guys can try it. The price is almost lebih kurang with the Paula's Choice so do your own research dulu baru boleh decide which one is the best for your skintype okay?

Chemical vs Physical Exfoliant

Honestly, go with whatever you feel works for you. I cannot say which one is better but for me personally, I prefer chemical exfoliant. My skin has been so much better ever since I started on this chemical exfoliation bandwagon. Some dermatologists said chemical exfoliants are better because it is more gentle than the physical ones - based on consistency and all.

I feel like the chemical exfoliant works so much faster than the physical ones. I see immediate results, like the next 2 days, I can see my skin has brightened up. Like I said, the physical ones only remove whatever we have on our face, like dry patches and whatnot.

For physical exfoliant, you can't really use it everyday as it is going to be quite harsh on your skin, usually beauticians will advice you to scrub only 1-2 times per week. But for chemical exfoliant, there are some products that you can use everyday and girl, trust me I tried using it everyday and I have dry patches ALL OVER my face. I didn't know you have to moisturize well if you wanted to use it every single day so yeah that is why I have dry patches all over. I only use it like one every 3-4 days because I do not want my skin to be super drying and whatnot. I noticed if I used the chemical exfoliant, my skin will feel tight but after a few days (make sure to moisturize well / use hydrating mask), perghhh feels like a new person weh.

It's hard to recommend what kind of scrub or exfoliant to use because it's totally based on what you like. If you prefer physical, then go with physical or vice versa. Either way, you need to scrub your face 1-2 times per week okay? Or else you skin will look so dull and old and mehhh. You don't want that kan. Hoho.

So that is all for scrub/exfoliant. I thought I could masukkan a bit on moisturizer but fuhh this one also so damn long hahaha.

So yeah. I hope you guys find this helpful in any way.

If you guys have anything to add about scrub/exfoliant, please share it in the comments below okay?

Thank you for reading!


.iffahs.


2015 Skincare Favourites
Current Skincare Routine - February 2016
Paula's Choice: Alcohol in Skincare: The Facts
Paula's Choice: How to Prevent Acne
Paula's Choice: The Oil Cleansing Method
How Paula's Choice BHA Exfoliants Work
How to Put Together a Skincare Routine
Parabens: Are They Really a Problem?
Better Skin in Less Time: How to Perfect Your Skincare Routine
Skin Irritation: Your Worst Enemy
Allergy-Prone or Sensitive Skincare
Why Products Cause Negative Reactions on Skin
Dry Skin Around the Mouth: Causes & Treatments
How to Understand Cosmetic Ingredient Lists
The 15 Most Shocking Beauty Myths Busted
What Type of Acne Breakout Do You Have?
Cystic Acne Agony
Tea Tree Oil for Acne and Other Alternative Treatments
Different Types of Exfoliants
Demalogica - Exfoliant