recent skincare heroes (and zero)

Picking and choosing skincare items to incorporate into your routine can be a gamble. Will you break out? Will it clean thoroughly enough? Will it improve or maintain your skin's current health? Should you pick a budget friendly option or splurge on a more expensive option? Maybe I am the only one that over thinks skincare purchases, but I believe the skin is most definitely a worthy investment and worth the drawn out thought process.

Recently I have won out in this gamble since there are a couple new skincare heroes that I have been really digging. I have also bumped into a skincare zero but I'm not complaining too loudly. Two out of three, the odds are still in my favor.

HEROES
I bought the Sunday Riley Ceramic Slip Cleanser half hoping I wouldn't be wowed by it because it costs $45 USD. Well that was a failed attempt because it is a pretty awesome cleanser. I have noticed my pores on my nose and inner cheeks have been flushed out and I haven't had any new breakouts whatsoever. I'm waiting to see if this good bout of skin will last before giving this cleanser my full praise but so far it has me impressed. And yet I am appalled at myself that I like a $45 cleanser so much! Ack what have I done...

I originally purchased this La Roche Posay Mela-D Pigment Control Serum as a gift for my mother as she has sun spots she wants to be rid of. Turns out she was allergic to this so she gave it back to me to return. I figured I might as well give it a go to see if it has any effect on my hyper-pigmentation. This smells straight up like alcohol, which makes sense as unfortunately it is the second highest ingredient. The horrible scent evaporates after a few seconds (thankfully) and this sinks in quickly with no stickiness.

I think both these items paired together has made a real difference in my skin complexion. Or perhaps only one of them is responsible for the healthy skin. I can't be sure as I started using them at the same time. If I didn't have such bad acne scars I would totally forgo foundation since my skin has been looking really clear and radiant. We will see if they can battle my hormonal acne, that would have me shouting my love from the rooftops.

ZERO
The lone zero: Murad T-Zone Pore Refining Gel. This smells decent enough and has a nice gel texture that absorbs quickly. I really wanted to make this work but I had to stop using it. It was making my skin feel and look very congested. I used this at night and woke up looking hideously oily like my poor pores had been working over time during the night. I tried using a small amount, a large amount, only a couple times a week to no avail. Not for me! I stopped using it and immediately my skin felt relieved. I have over half a bottle left and I don't know what to do with it. I wouldn't feel comfortable giving it to anyone since I don't recommend it or believe in it.

Have you had any skincare woes lately? Or have you found something that has really made a difference in your skin? I hope the latter. I am going to live up this new complexion of mine until every last drop of the expensive items are gone. Beauty really is pain, but in this case a pain in my wallet...