Zapping Zits!

4 easy ways to zap a zit:

Aspirin- dissolve a couple of aspirin in a teaspoon of water and apply the paste directly to the zit. Aspirin is anti-inflammatory so it will bring down swelling.

On-the-spot treatments- To dry up a zit try using a product with 2.5 benzyl peroxide or 0.5 salicylic acid. Don’t use anything stronger than 2.5 percent or you may dry up the skin which will cause you lots of other problems. They key is to not go crazy with the product; just dab a small amount on the problem area.

Ice- since ice can be irritating cover a few cubes with a washcloth and hold it against your zit for around 10 minutes.

Eye drops- eye drops are made to reduce the redness in your eyes, but they will actually do the same for a pimple. Just a couple of drops should do the trick. I like to use Visine.

Here are a couple of tips to prevent zits showing up on your face in the first place!

Keep your skin moisturized- I know it may seem logical to want to suck out every bit of oil from your skin with drying products and completely forgo the idea of using moisturizer but this is really not a good idea. When your skin is too dry the androgen hormone kicks into overdrive and starts to produce tons of sebum to compensate fro the dryness of your skin. This will most likely lead to clogged pores when most likely will lead to dreaded zits :s. so to avoid this make sure you always use an oil-free moisturizer even if you have oily skin.

Exfoliate- exfoliating removes dead skin cells from your skin which could possibly clog your pores if they are not scrubbed away.

Stop stressing- stress causes your hormones to go crazy which could also lead to a couple zits popping up. So be sure to take deep breaths, relax, and take some quiet time for you.

Acne-fighting face mask- once a week you should treat your skin to a mask that will help to fight clogged pores and breakouts. Clay masks are good because they suck up the excess oil from your skin and unplug clogged pores.

I hope this post was helpful for you!

XOXO,

Image from here

Proactiv refining mask review!

The proactive refining mask is a great Little product. Having used the entire proactive system twice it’s actually the only product I would recommend. This is because it’s the only product that has delivered long lasting results for me. Now I’m not saying slathering this over your face is going to cure acne forever, but it is a great product to use as a spot treatment to zap zits and keep them from coming back. I prefer to use this at night, I put a moderate amount on any spots I have and wait until morning. What this mask is going to do is completely dry out the zit. I have been lucky enough sometimes to have the spots be completely gone by the next morning! Some however require continuous use during a couple of days to totally dry up the spot. One of the things I love about this mask is the ingredients in it. Some of the most common acne fighting ingredients don’t really do much for me, one of those is benzyl peroxide which just doesn’t give me results. Sulfur and tea tree oil however are a whole other story, they work wonders to clear up my skin! The proactive refining mask includes them along with other amazing ingredients! It’s got vitamin E which is an antioxidant and will help to soothe your skin, lemon grass to condition it and omega-3 and 6 to retain moisture in the skin ( very important is you want to avoid zits!). The sulfur I mentioned before is in a concentration of 6% (this is what is actually drying the spot) and the tea tree oil is a great natural antibacterial. Though I mostly use this as a spot treatment I also sometimes use it a a full on face mask to get my oily skin controlled.

Bottom Line: If you are looking for something effective to clear up a couple of spots then you should really try this!

A post on more zit zapping ideas will be coming soon so stick around!

Have you used this mask before?

What is your favorite spot treatment?

XOXO Vanilla Pop <3

Bye!

Top tips to get rid of acne scars!

So having acne sucks, and as if that isn't enough you are left with ugly scars afterwards. I have had to deal with this several times so I have developed the best way for me to get rid of them. Since I know alot of people have the same issue I thought I would share my routine for eliminating acne scars!

Here are the steps:

1. Exfoliate!

This is crucial because by exfoliating you are getting rid of all the dead cells on your skin and uncovering newer, clearer skin.

You could use a stronger scrub 3 times a week but what I like to do is use a more gentle daily scrub everyday. This has given me much better results.

2. Use a clarifying lotion!

This is kind of like exfoliating as well but instead of manually you are doing it with chemicals. I use the Clinique clarifying lotion #2. When you use this with a cotton pad the first couple of times you will notice a brown residue on it. It's not dirt (if you have washed your face properly) it's actually dead skin cells!

3. Use sunscreen!

If you skip this step you will never see your scars lighten up! The sun's rays will darker those spots on your skin and make it extremly difficult to remove. Use at least spf 30. I like to use a sunscreen formulated for oily skin and spf 45. Not only is sunscreen a great tool for preventing your scars from getting darker but it's also great for preventing wrinkles, sun spots and skin cancer!

These are the thing that have worked for me but may no work for everybody else. What are your tips for lightening acne scars?

XOXO from Vanilla Pop <3

Bye!