I’m going to bring it back to basics in this post. The first thing I ever learned about skincare was knowing your skin type . There’s 4 categories:  Normal, Dry, Oily or Combination. Here’s a bit of a breakdown of each:

I found this photo on Sephora’s website . If you are near a Sephora store head on over and they’ll do this amazing test for you! They use this device called a “Skin IQ” and seriously, it’s amazing. Go in there barefaced and they’ll hold this stick up to you and place it on 3 or 4 different areas on your face (forehead, cheek(s), and chin) and the device will tell you what your skin type is and some skincare recommendations. It will also tell you what your skin shade is, giving you a number ID and a list of foundations that will match your skin perfectly based on shade.

My Story:
Let me tell you a little bit about my skin type. I started getting acne when I was in college and boy that was rough. Everyone had clear skin in college, except I was a pizza face and an oil slick. Throughout high-school I used proactive as a preventative measure- and it worked….until it stopped. I read a bunch of reviews and people said that proactive stopped working for them, randomly and then their acne got worse. I was part of that statistic. I tried acne kits from Walmart, CVS and other stores but nothing worked. So then I started going to a dermatologist, who gave me about 3 creams, a wash and wipes to use daily/every other day. I’ve been on that regiment since I was 20/21, I’m now 25 and I’m finally starting to simplify my acne routine to one cream 3 times a week, one wipe a night and a face wash nightly.

Makeup throughout those years consisted of me trying to cover up my acne and ALWAYS trying to make me look less oily. Nothing worked. Makeup would come off my boyfriends shirts (sorry boys), or it would cut and crease. It was horrible. My mom would always tell me how her face used to be oily, and looking back she sees it as a GOOD thing. “You’ll have less wrinkles when you’re older” her and everyone else would say. (Let’s hope you’re right guys).

Well, my oily face resulted to me wiping my face with a tissue every time I went to the bathroom, or powdering my face every 2 hours just to make my face look normal. That got old, especially once I started my career.

So I went to Sephora during the winter of 2018 determined to change my skincare and makeup routine (this trip was long overdue). I always tried new “matte” products but nothing worked. (This is how my love for makeup and trying new things started). I asked if Sephora could do the Skin IQ test on me- they did and I was shocked with the results! They said my oil slick of a face was actually dry. They explained that my acne medication was actually drying out my face, making it produce more oil! I didn’t know that was a thing. They also told me my exact foundation shade (making online shopping easy). They helped me find skin care products that suited my skin type first, then helped me find makeup products I liked/could test.

Don’t forget, Sephora gives free samples of any product. It is a lot easier to do that over buying and returning unwanted products.

So the moral of this story folks, is to make sure you know your skin type, it helps with makeup in the end. Talk to your doctor about your concerns, and let them know what makeup brands you’re using (things can counteract). I’m trying to cut back on acne creams but I know it takes time, just like finding great products. Don’t give up hope!

XO,

Melissa