Lately I've noticed certain spots on my face seem to be dryer looking than normal when I've got foundation on. It's not a normal dry by any means: no flaking or itching but it's noticeable enough to me that I'm hunting for a great moisturizer. I usually have oily skin but I've got plenty of moisturizers aimed towards oily skin and they don't quite cut it for medium-full coverage makeup (not with setting powder so that my foundation will make it through the whole day). I'm acne prone and very oily pretty much every where except my jaw and outside corners of my lips. 
I'd love to hear everyone's favorites moisturizers that will keep my whole face nicely hydrated. Preferably something not too heavy for my oily spots but enough to balance the "dry" ish spots, and acne safe please!
Should I also be looking at different primers? Currently I use smashbox photo finish control primer and usually skinfix barrier + gel cream moisturizer or first aid beauty oil control moisturizer 
Thanks guys 💕

holy grail moisturizers for combo skin?

Alright so it's not quite a haul, but I was excited about my trip and had to share 😂
Mini haul?

**Brought to us in part by acne and breakouts! Because life's not already tough enough!

Innisfree Pore Clearing Matte Moisturizer with Volcanic Clusters (can't tag this or fenty... Fenty is new so I'm requesting tag, but I don't think the Innisfree is very new...? Who knows!)

Fenty Blemish Defeatr
This guy is newer and I've been dying to get it! It's a BHA spot treatment that dries down to create a base for better and smoother makeup application.

Dermalogica clear start breakout clearing Booster is definitely one of my favourite acne products I've found! If I could only take one product to a tropical Island I'd probably have to take this! Kidding, I'd need to have a few more than this I guess but this is absolutely top of the list!

Blume Meltdown moisturizer- gel cream moisturizer that hydrates for 72h. This is at a similar price point to the clinique moisturizer, maybe I should do a face-off? 🤔

Paula's choice 2% BHA Solution 

Clinique Moisture Surge 100h Auto replenishing moisturizer- this is a gel like cream and it was more than I wanted to spend on a moisturizer but it sounds very promising. Apparently many people do not need to use this often at all! They actually only apply it every few days, believe it or not... I'll let you guys know if it holds true 😂


If anyone has any tried and true acne secrets they love please share them below!! 😍

Renee 
Ig-Renolekiw

Sephora haul 😍😍

Hey guys!
I'm on the hunt for great wash off Masks to use before I start my makeup application to help plump, hydrate and make application smooth and last all day (or night). 
My skin is combo oily and very acne prone so please nothing to aggravate acne lol but other than that I think everything is good to go. Well other than sheet Masks, I don't like using sheet masks I just don't find they do anything for me and they're uncomfortable to wear while doing something until it's time to remove the mask.
For example, my current go to is Aceology green tea mask. But it's more hydrating than Brightening or anything else. I've been looking at the Masks in the last three photos but haven't used them so I'd love to hear everyone's favorites before I buy something.
Thanks!!
Renee 💕

Looking for pre-makeup wash off Masks!

Hey guys! How everyone's doing great! 
So I've been fairly disappointed to find that my oil cleanser Purito cleansing oil will not remove or dislodge any sebum or keratin plugs, even after 15, 20+ minutes of massaging oil on my face. Has anyone else experienced this? I mean I definitely have them to dislodge.... And I massage for so long I start to lose feeling or circulation in my arms and hands. Is it purito? It is an oil to cleansing milk type oil (it doesn't foam but it definitely does turn into a milk colored, cloudy consistency when water is added). I also have Burt's Bees Cleansing oil in going to try that on a dry face but am I don't something wrong? I've watched countless YouTube videos that say to massage on dry face which is what I do.

Thanks guys! Any help would be great!

Oil cleanser not pulling sebum plugs?

About two months ago I had a horrible reaction to dermaplaning (I kid you not it was two days before I started a new career too!)  and I'm looking for product recommendations to not only restore my skin but to raise my skincare game all together. 
I'm not sure what the issue was but I'll never dermaplane again! I have acne prone skin and used to be very oily, my skin seems to be "better" (less oily) but I'm wondering if it's just dehydrated from this incident still as suddenly I'm really noticing the fine lines on my face when I've never noticed them this much ever before. 
I just purchased an oil cleanser for my first cleanser and am waiting for it to arrive but in the meantime I'd love to hear everyone's go-to products that relieve irritation, help dull skin, and maybe most importantly that will not make me break out more than I already do!
I'd love some options for serums, spot treatments, and moisturizers! I definitely prefer gel, gel-cream, water-cream etc consistency for moisturizer but I think that's my only limitation (that and "acne safe"). I have tons of pimple patches though and I'm not really a fan, other than that please let me know what you love, how you use your holy grails, and any advice you rely on.

Thanks guys!

Products & advice for acne prone, dehydrated skin

As with pretty much all Paula's choice products, the price is on the high side but theyre all made so well the value is there because of the benefits Ive gotten from using it. 
Has a slight vinegar ish smell to it but I only notice it initially, as soon as I apply it its gone. A little goes a long way; it seems to definitely go much further than the bha solution.

Supposedly a gentler option to the super popular Paula's Choice 2% BHA Solution but my reason for choosing this is for the benefits mandelic and lactic can have. I also wasn't having the results I wanted and hoped for by using the common choices with salicylic which I do have other products I could use in my routines with salicylic. 
Mandelic acid is antibacterial in addition to bring a more gentle exfoliant. 
Recommended for uneven texture, dullness, Hyperpigmentation, acne, and fine lines & wrinkles. 
Still a newer addition to my routine but seeing better progress than other exfoliants already.

Benefits:
Improves sun damage, dullness & fine lines
Reverses a compromised skin barrier 
Renews skin below the surface for healthier cell turnover & radiance 
Gentle & effective for all skin types

Not sure whether this one should get 4 it 5 stars but we will start at 4. its still a relatively new addition so ill give it more time before i award it 5 stars.

I was very disappointed with this. It didn't do anything BAD, it just didn't do anything at all (which is bad on its own, but it didn't hurt me beyond hurting my wallet). Absolutely nothing special and very overpriced for zero benefit. I've had much better results with "generic" or "bargain" type products that come at much lower price tags. 
Innisfree has so many great products, this however is not one of them! 

It might be worth noting that there are atleast two different packaging variations available; I know that certain brands will manufacture slightly different products specifically to be distributed through a mass market/big box store and those products are different from their other "true" products. The version I have from Walmart has a different looking pump than we normally see on products (I'll attach photos of what it looks like) which to me could very well be a tell tale sign, but it's just a theory.

If you absolutely have your heart set on trying this product, I'd recommend stearing clear of the one sold by Walmart (or the one that I bought) as maybe they're different formulations? Innisfree is great, every other product I've tried from them I've been quite impressed with, so for this to be SO different and disappointing.... I gotta wonder. For example, in Canada we have Sport Chek (a sporting goods store...) the brand Burton has an entire line of Snowboard, skis, and other equipment that are lower quality and specifically made to only be sold through sport check. These lower quality products still carry the "Burton" brand and logos but they have different materials and different quality; they're basically knock-offs that only look like the real, genuine article. 
I added a video of it to show the consistency; it's very watery and other hydrating serums that look and feel like the same texture do not run that drastically. For comparison the first video is innisfree (0.08 seconds) the second video is vichy mineral 89 serum (0.13 second video) both are two full pumps of product for reference.
Just food for thought... 

I picked this up when I was hunting for a great hydrating serum that would really support and encourage strong barrier function and health. I can't say I am impressed by it unfortunately. 

The "good" thing about this product though is that it's very accessible to the majority of consumers (or atleast anyone with access to Walmart I guess) but it was around $36cad if I remember correctly which is not cheap!  

Ive only seen it available on amazon and between the amount their prices fluctuate and concerns of some skincare and makeup sold by Amazon being fakes I was a bit hesitant initially to order it buy im glad I ultimately ordered it. I dont think we need to worry about Amazon skincare authenticity until looking at higher price point products. 

Currently (February 4/24) available on amazon for $18 with $2 off coupon for a 8oz bottle vs the $38 for 4oz tower 28 = for uber half the price (maybe exactly half with tax) you get twice the amount. 
Take a look at the screenshots Ive added from skinsort; these products are ingredient twins atleast in the ones that they are composed of. They each contain three ingredients: water, sodium chloride, and hypochlorous acid. The amounts and processing is likely different but I dont think Ive ever found this exact of an alternative until this one.

So if youre considering trying the tower 28 but the price is holding you back, I cannot recommend this enough! 
I love tower 28 but I cant justify buying it when I can get the e11ement for half the price to get double the amount! 

An amazing alternative for the Tower 28 SOS spray (I hate to use the word "dupe" here as it implies a lower quality- which it is not at all - but its an amazing dupe). 
I was a bit concerned that id end up wasting alot of product with it being in a spray bottle but that doesn’t seem to be a factor, a little goes a long and because its in a spray bottle Ive never seen the need to use a cotton; any loss from the spray is made up for by not needing to soak a cotton. 
This has really made a great impact on relieving the severity and duration of my breakouts! 
I use it everytime after I cleanse my face (day and night) then follow with Paula's choice mandelic acid solution.

This is about $60 and change Canadian, its not super affordable but I use so little daily I hope itll last as long as im thinking it will. Regardless ill absolutely be forever re buying this, its hugely helped! 

I usually have fairly high expectations when it comes to skincare in general and do plenty of research prior to buying anything. With "premium" or more expensive brands (like murad) my expectations are definitely pretty high;
This exceeded my expectations!!!

My target or goals behind buying the mini haul this product was part of, was to (hopefully) smooth out some of the "orange peel" texture on my cheeks. Ive been trying to smooth it out since this past June (2023) which was when I first noticed it had gotten really bad; to the point I became really self conscious about it, even with makeup. Since June, its taken about 9 months to see any noticeable and (so far!) consistent improvement. 9 months of consistently and "actively treating" my acne, with no improvement gets so disappointing, emotionally draining and it absolutely impacted my confidence, whether anyone else noticed it or not.

Enter Murad's clarifying daily peel! Maybe two or three weeks ago I went to return something at Sephora and had previously seen this on their website but due to its price had intended to probably not buy it this trip. Thank God I did! 

To use this I give it a real good shake (its two weights of liquid, one an oil like, the other maybe water based- so it does need to be shaken) and pour a very small amount into the palm of my hand, and apply it after cleansing and after my hypochlorous acid spray (another big saviour but I dont think as much of a great impact as this). I try to use this only at night as it does have a low concentration of retinol but small enough I can use it with another salicylic acid typical treatment. It doesn't leave any oily residue at all, it absorbs perfectly.

Its amazing!!! Ill add photos and you can see for yourself!!


The other products Ive been using with this that have really helped Ive added a photo of as well because Ive never seen this great an improvement ever, led alone this rapidly.

(Dont mind the bandaids on my neck, im trying to self treat skin tags lol)

Other than my current financial position making this not the most "responsibile" purchase, I have nothing bad to say about it! 

I've tried SO MANY lip treatments, lip balms etc and until this one I'd had no luck effectively and consistently keeping my lips moisturized and chapp-free!
I've tried others that I've had fairly good results with but they are too thick and occlusive for use other than over night. Also with those comes risk for my oily and acne prone skin! But not this one!!!

ReneeEgan