I think we’ve all been there. We want to be that girl who never wears makeup, who never puts on weight even after eating a mountain of fries, or who attracts a horde of new friends with just a smile. Realistically though, the rest of us have to make an effort, be it with our skin, weight or social skills. Even today, I feel a knot of anxiety when I enter a roomful of strangers. I’m what you call an extroverted introvert. But, I digress. I wanted to talk about exfoliation, or lack thereof. I wanted to be one of those girls who never had to exfoliate, who went about her life without a single bump enroute (pun intended). If you read some of the posts by green beauty bloggers, they say that one must allow ones own natural bacteria to exfoliate the skin. So I decided to give my face a break. I tossed my beloved peel pads aside and let my skin do its work.
I waited for a month and a half, during which time I felt positively reptilian. Even though my skin looked okay, I could feel the bumps multiplying under the surface. Slowly, you could see tiny whiteheads around my face. Even as I waited for them to dry and dissolve, they just kept multiplying. During my quest for clean beauty, I completely forgot that I was on two sets of hormones to keep my endometriosis in control. The last time I was on them, they had given me the worst set of breakouts.
So what’s a girl supposed to do? Feel like a crocodile, or pick up a beloved peel pad? I chose the latter option. After over a month of feeling congested, I decided to chuck my green ambition and follow mainstream beauty again.
I must say though, while exfoliation does have its benefits, over-exfoliation can quite often be harmful. And I’ve been there, too. A few years back, I was using retinol every night with a vitamin C serum in the day and peel pads every so often. That made my skin thin and sensitive. It is possible to use all these three potent ingredients together, but in limited dosage. If I were to begin retinol again (seriously considering it as I write) I’ll use it only once or twice a week. Even now, as my skin is slowly becoming happy again, I’m using a glycolic acid peel pad only once in seven days.
The ones that I use are called Rexaline Line Killer X-treme Peel Pads, which are available in European pharmacies. They contain glycolic acid, soothing aloe vera, cucumber, and hyaluronic acid to moisturise the skin. My only gripe with them is that they’re fragranced. At this point though, I don’t really care because they make the skin extremely refined and remove dry bumps in just one use. You can feel your face becoming smooth as soon as you use them. I’m also on the lookout for something with salicylic acid because it is known to decongest pores. Zelens PHA + Bio-Peel contain polyhydroxy, lactic, citric and salicylic acids to clear, resurface and brighten the complexion. Zelens is a brand I really trust; my friend who had a lot of sun damage saw a transformation in his skin by just using their Power D Serum. I have my eye on their Power C serum, which contains a whopping 20% vitamin C.
But coming back to exfoliators, the most underwhelming ones I’ve tried are from Dr Dennis Gross. Sure, they’ll give you a bit of a glow, but they don’t really get rid of blackheads. If you really just want some brightening and don’t have a problem with blackheads, then even Dr Jart’s Micro Milk Peel works really well. The other pads on my list are Peter Thomas Roth Unwrinkle Peel Pads — they have a score of 4.4/5 from 236 reviews on makeupalley.com. I also used to love their Max Complexion Correction Pads before the brand was discontinued by Sephora India. Actually, the Indian Sephora discontinued a lot of wonderful skincare brands (Filorga, Nuxe and PTR), and replaced them with a whole lot of makeup. I hope they’re reading this and will bring back some great skincare.
Anyhow, point being that everyone’s skin is different. Some people love chemical peels, others don’t. I fall into the category of those who cannot do without a peel pad. Maybe my skin is addicted, maybe it’s the hormones, who knows. But for now I’m sticking to what feels best. A peel a week that will definitely keep my glow in place.
A fortnightly column to remind you about all things skin deep.
