Greetings, skincare lovers. Have you ever suffered from a weakened (or completely destroyed) skin barrier? 

Cause I am at the moment and could really use your advice figuring out what product can save me from this flaky, dehydrated, angry looking skin hell. 

So: I’ve been struggling with mild to moderate acne (mainly a whole lot of pesky blackheads and some whiteheads) as well as uneven texture, hyperpigmentation and dullness for a couple months now - blame quarantine I guess? 

I freaked out and ended up popping pimples and terrorizing every single pore on my face (yes I know that’s a sin, I've already asked the skincare gods for forgiveness but they just ain’t listening), overexfoliating, and using way too many actives.

I’m trying to do some damage control but can’t decide which product would be better for me: Krave Beauty's Great Barrier Relief or Stratia's Liquid Gold? 

Any recommendations and/or advice would be greatly appreciated. 

Wishing y'all healthy, glowy skin!


Edit: I have combination/sensitive/dehydrated/acne-prone skin. Yay me 🥲

Battle of the Barrier Repairing Products: Stratia vs Krave Beauty

So, I’m struggling with a compromised barrier and read that cleansing only at night could help the repairing process. Do you avoid AM cleansing? If so, how has that worked out for you? I’m scared of clogged pores and breakouts. 

Also, I’d like to incorporate a cleansing oil/balm to my PM routine (unsure as to which one would work better for my skin type). Any recommendations? 

Ps: My skin is combination/sensitive/dehydrated/acne prone 🙃 

Ps 2: I used the CeraVe foaming cleanser for a while but it made my skin feel quite stripped, so I switched to their hydrating cleanser. It still feels a bit stripping though not as much as the foaming one.

Cleansing: so many options, so little desire to break out

Have you tried this ingredient? If so, what are your takes on it and what product worked for you? 

My barrier is pretty damaged so I’m backing off and giving my skin time to breathe and repair itself, but would like to address some PIE + PIH issues in the future - I heard azelaic acid is pretty effective for this!

Opinions on azelaic acid

Dear Picky community, 

My skin has been looking (and feeling) rough lately. It’s bumpy, congested and almost every pore in my face has become a tiny, pesky blackhead. 

I cut out exfoliators since I thought my texture concerns might have to do with overusing BHAs?

However, it’s been weeks now and nothing has improved. 

Any suggestions? Feeling kind of defeated and longing for smooth, supple skin :( 


Ps. I have combination, sensitive, and dehydrated skin. Current routine is the following: 

-AM: CeraVe hydrating cleanser, Barr Cosmetics centella toner, iUNIK tea tree relief serum, iUNIK beta glucan moisturizer, Supergoop matte SPF

-PM: iUNIK oil cleanser, same CeraVe cleanser as AM, Barr Cosmetics toner, Krave Beauty GBR serum, iUNIK moisturizer, Timeless squalane oil

SOS: rough, bumpy skin

Honestly, it can be kinda irritating. Young, naive 20 year old me used to think that if it stings or burns, then it must be working (newsflash: it&#39;s quite the opposite). 

I don&#39;t use this toner anymore cause I find it too harsh on my skin. I also think I got used to it cause it does nothing for me anymore :(

First AHA I ever used. For a while, it did wonders for my skin! I hate to admit this, but I&#39;d use it PM after a zit-picking-and-popping session (yeah yeah I know, guilty as charged!) and it did do some damage control - my skin didn&#39;t wake up as angry as it normally would. 

Also, I would turn to this product whenever I started breaking out and it did help my acne go away faster - my pimples&#39; life cycle definitely became shorter.

Honestly, I wanted to love it but just couldn&#39;t. Nothing wrong with it, but I saw no changes or benefits from using it (during +2 months). Also, it feels a bit tacky. Girl&#39;s got no range - it&#39;s a “meh” from me.

The price is great, the packaging is cute, and I love that the product is unscented. I experienced no irritation from it, neither did my skin resent me introducing this new serum to my routine (it usually does lol)

Lavender can be kind of a problematic ingredient for some. Haven&#39;t really experienced any side effects, but maybe approach with caution - specially if your skin is super sensitive.

I&#39;ve been mixing a few drops of this oil with my moisturizer (CeraVe Lotion PM) and it really does help enhance the lotion&#39;s emollient effect! Also, not sure why or how (probably has to do with the ingredient list - I&#39;m just too lazy to look it up lol) but after applying at night, my stressed, congested skin wakes up looking a feeling a little better. So that&#39;s a small win for me.

It’s quite pricey (I live outside the US and it’s way more expensive) - but overall, I don’t mind the price cause it feels like an investment on my skin’s health. Some people don’t like how it smells but I kinda enjoy the nutty scent.

AMAZING at healing my damaged barrier. I had been overexfoliating for months and this serum (along with switching to cleansing once a day and cutting most actives out of my routine) helped get my skin back on track *in just three weeks*. So soothing, nourishing, and repairing!

I really enjoyed using this serum! It helped hydrate my parched, flaky skin during winter. Feels light and silky. Might not be the ultimate, holy grail product in terms of hydration but it gets the job done pretty well.

ennairam