Skin Issues…

Here we are again…a new beauty post! This is not actually a beauty post as my skin right now is anything but beautiful but these miracle products help keep it under control, and being the honest bunny that I am, I wanted to keep you updated on the downsides of my pregnancy. I do agree that ‘downsides’ is a big word taking into consideration that I’ve been feeling great so far, but there is no other way of describing my not-so-cool face right now.

I am not among those lucky ones that get glowing, magnificent clear skin during pregnancy, quite on the opposite end, actually, meaning that my face is either oily and my chin is filled with zits – nightmare for my foundation, either it develops extremely (really!) dry patches around my mouth and nose and still has a few zits here and there to brag about – again, nightmare for my foundation. This did not really occur during the first trimester of the pregnancy, only maybe mildly, but it has gone wild the moment I started my forth month – right about the time I was trying to enjoy myself at Untold festival. Needless to say that I was in denial as I really loved my former beauty routine (read about it here) and I could not accept the fact that those beloved products that have done an ocean of good for my face are now making my skin so horrible. As a matter of fact, the hormones were the big contributors to horrible skin.

Current skin heroes: La Roche Posay : Effaclar Cleansing Gel; Effaclar Micellar Water; Effaclar H Face Cream; Uriage : Hyseak K Face Cream; Bio Oil; Clarisonic Mia 2 Face Brush

The situation got so bad that my face actually felt like it was terribly sunburnt, itching and hurting and all… Luckily for me, a very good friend of mine is a great dermatologist and the moment we got back to Bucharest I asked for her opinion on the matter at hand. The downside with this period is the fact that I can’t really treat my skin with chemical-infused treatments, but rather have to go with over-the-counter dermatological products. Which got me in the current situation where, to D‘s surprise, my entire beauty routine doesn’t reach the cost of one of my three formerly used serums. Not that I am complaining, I am actually glad that by the end of the pregnancy, I will probably put away enough money solely form this beauty change to buy a new pair of Louboutins. Who knows, I might not change my beauty routine ever…

On to the products… The facial cleansing gel is lovely, both in texture and smell! Dare I say that I love it more than my usual Chanel foaming cream? The jury is still out on that verdict! I love the pump bottle as it gives you just the perfect amount of product to throughly cleanse your entire face and neck. The foam is soft and delicate and leaves your face feeling fresh as a cucumber! I use it morning and evening with my Clarisonic brush set to level 2 (the stronger vibrations). You can find this La Roche Posay Effaclar cleansing gel in any pharmacy, but I have to warn you that finding the pump bottle is a real struggle as most pharmacies tend to sell the tube version.

La Roche Posay –  Effaclar Cleansing Gel

Not that my face needs much cleansing after the gel, but I like the fresh feeling on my skin that a tonic water or a micellar water (in this case) leaves behind. For some reason, no mater how good my cleanser is, ever since I can remember, I’ve always used some kind of tonic water. Right now I opted for this very gentle micellar water from La Roche Posay because, at the moment I switched products my skin was extremely dry and irritated and I do not think it could’ve handled anything harsher. This just feels so amazing both while using it as well as afterwards, your skin just feels squeaky clean and ready for whatever cream comes next. I also use this product morning and evening using a cotton pad to distribute it evenly.

La Roche Posay – Micellar Water

As opposed to a few months ago, when this was the moment for the serum in my beauty routine, nowadays it is time for the face cream. I use two different face creams one in the evening and one in the morning. Despite the fact that they are not specifically made for the two different times of day, they each address a different problem and help me look rather normal under the circumstances – read – my foundation can make me look normal! For day I use the Effaclar H from La Roche Posay witch helps my skin maintain normal levels of moisture while protecting it from unwanted zits. This one feels amazing on my skin, seriously, I think it feels better than my Chanel cream. It’s delicate, it hydrates without leaving a greasy after-feel, it protects it from getting dry-pats and smells divine, I think it smells like tulips. The nigh cream is a bit more hardcore and this is actually the one that fights zits and needs a more moisturising partner during the day. It is the Hyseac K from Uriage and I honestly have to give this one credit for being able to not wear foundation from time to time and not scare D away! You can really see the difference in the appearance of your skin from the first two uses, it diminishes pimples, helps you get a better skin texture and, as much as a cream can, keeps new zits at bay. It had a divine light texture, that is not really drying and smells like fresh-cut grass. To be honest, I can’t wait to put it on every single night.

La Roche Posay – Effaclar H Face Cream

Uriage – Hyseac K

That’s it! That is my entire beauty routine for my face. I think it has diminished in time by about 5 minutes and where the cash is concerned, the difference is colossal. I am really happy with these face products and I waited an entire month before I shared them with you simply because I really wanted to give you my true and honest opinion and see if they really work on the long term. They do! You can seriously trust these products as they will change your perception on cosmetics! I can’t promise you that I will not go back to my expensive creams after the pregnancy, but I can promise you that before I do that I will try the pharmacy sold wrinkle solutions as I have a feeling I will be impressed by those as well – I will keep you updated on that!

I’m sure you are wondering by now what is the bottle of Bio Oil doing in the photos… Well, this is yet another product that I am currently using for my skin – my body skin, that is – that I love and want to share with you. I have been using Bio Oil for a while now, even before I got pregnant and loved it a lot. The thing about using it before I got pregnant means that I used it during my first two months of pregnancy as well because I wasn’t paying attention to the finely written instructions on the back, apparently it is ok to use it after the first trimester. Thankfully, and I really want to put this out there, nothing bad happened and I came to the conclusion that most of the stuff is not really tested on pregnant women and therefore you have no way of actually knowing if it is good for the baby or not. I have used it during the first two months and nothing bad happened, so there you have it, Bio Oil is safe! I did switch to coconut oil once I read that Bio Oil might not be good and had a terrible experience with it. Well, not dramatic, but I did develop some sort of allergy to it, which did not happen before (I used coconut oil numerous time during my life and loved it), meaning that my skin was itching a lot even though there weren’t any actual irritation on the skin. I also noticed that it sank into my skin a lot slower than before and overall I hated it. Once my first three months ended I happily went back to my beloved Bio Oil that in my opinion is a miracle worker for skin: it does not feel greasy, it hydrates wonderfully, it diminishes spots and scars, it smells amazing and it is yet to be decided if it prevents stretch marks – currently I do not have any new ones, but I will keep you updated. I apply this twice per day, in the morning and in the evening and my skin feels and looks amazing. I am very meticulous about applying this oil twice daily as I have a really big tattoo on my right ribs and I really hope that it will not get ruined during pregnancy.

Bio Oil

This is it! This is my entire beauty routine during pregnancy! Nothing more! I can say that I’ve switched Sephora for my local Pharmacy and that my bank account is rather happy about the change right now! My skin seems to dig the changes also therefore I am one happy mama-to-be! I will keep you updated in case any changes appear!

L.