Beauty and Fashion Tech

Bioelements and DDF: Two Good Acne Masks

I’m starting to get fed up with my adult acne, so I made a dermatologist appointment. In the meantime, I am trying out some treatment masks, both as spot treatments and as all over masks. There are two that I highly recommend: Bioelements Amino Mask and DDF Sulfur Therapeutic Mask. Each are good, but also slightly different. Notably, the Biolelements mask includes Salicylic Acid and less Sulfur, while DDF is a higher concentration Sulfur Mask

The Bioelements mask is described as follows:

For All Skin Types Medicated facial mask helps prevent and clear acne blemishes. Draws-out pore-clogging debris, soaks up excess oils, calms inflammation and promotes fast healing of existing breakouts. - Medicated acne treatment mask - Contains 3% anti-bacterial sulphur and 2% salicylic acid - Unclogs pores, destroys acne bacteria, controls excess oils and helps heal existing blemishes No artificial colorants, synthetic fragrance or animal by-products. Not tested on animals.

When I used Biolements Amino Mask, I found that it worked well– both as an all over mask, and as a spot treatment. It feels like any other clay type mask and does a good job at absorbing oil and removing the gunk in your pores. But I particularly like this one as a spot treatment. Put a bit on a blemish and leave it on overnight. The Salicylic Acid helps dissolve the gunk, while the Sulfur provides good anti-bacterial acne treatment. Meanwhile, the mask as a whole absorbs oil had helps draw everything out.

DDF Sulfur Therapeutic Mask Acne Treatment

DDF’s mask contains 10% Sulfur. For those who want maximum anti-bacterial agents, this one is great. I tend to use it more as an overall face mask once each week, although it will also work as a spot treatment.

One thing to note. Sulfur doesn’t smell really good, and because these masks contain it, they obviously have an odor. I don’t mind it at all, but if you are sensitive to sulfur smell, you might not care for these.

Comparison Shop for Acne Treatment Masks

By Carleenp Posted in Acne products, Skin Care | 11 Comments

Review: New Clean and Clear Soft Acne Treatment

Clean and Clear has a new acne treatment line out and the daytime moisturizer has quickly become a big favorite for me.

For some time I have been wishing for a fairly light acne treatment, or at least acne safe, drugstore moisturizer. It seemed that whenever I looked at ingredients on various brands, there would be something I was concerned about or the product would be too heavy. Well, Clean and Clear came through for me with their Clean & Clear Soft Oil-Free Day Moisturizer, SPF 15!

The moisturizer is pretty light and absorbs quite quickly, so it is perfect for oily skin. It does not contain harsh treatment actives such as Salicylic Acid or Benzoyl Peroxide, which is fine by me because I would rather add those as needed myself using separate products. Instead it has various fruit extracts. I found nothing of particular concern in regard to pore clogging in the ingredient list, and it adds SPF 15 through three different chemical blockers. Best of all, it carries a decent price!

Clean & Clear Soft In-Shower Facial is another favorite from the line. This unique mask is applied in the shower, left on for a minute or two, and then washed off. It is basically a heat activated scrub that I would place in the medium range of exfoliation. It is a heavier scrub than the other Clean and Clear acne scrubs that I have tried, but it isn’t a strong as something like Dr. Brant Microdermabrasion in a Jar (Read Review) or Bioelements Pumice Peel (Read Review).

Personally, I like a strong scrub because I don’t have particularly sensitive skin. At the same time, I had been looking for something a bit more gentle because I wanted to exfoliate a bit more often, without risking worsening my acne by over doing it. Clean and Clear’s new offering has been just about perfect for that and I have been using it twice each week.

There are two more items in the line that I have not tried, but examined at the store. Based on my impressions of the daytime formula, Clean & Clear Soft Oil-Free Night Moisturizer should be a nice nighttime compliment. Clean & Clear Soft Scrub, Purifying Cleanser also looked interesting, although I tend to avoid scrubbing cleansers. I like to keep my products separate.

Clean and Clear is available both online and at a wide variety of drugstores, grocery stores and big box retailers.

Shop for Clean and Clear Acne Treatments

By Carleenp Posted in Acne products, Skin Care | 1 Comment

Dermaquest Anti-Bacterial Cleanser

When I started having some unusual problems with acne a few months ago, I started researching products. My goal was to find a set of skin care items that would not be likely to contribute to acne, would treat the condition, and would also work with my melasma treatment regime. Dermaquest Skin Therapy Anti- Bacterial Enzyme Cleanser - 8 oz. was my choice in cleanser.

After quite a bit of consideration, I chose Dermaquest because it did not contain any ingredients likely to contribute to acne and it had anti-bacterial functions to help treat it without being too drying. I have been pleased with my choice.

Dermaquest’s Anti-Bacterial Cleanser is a very low foaming cleanser that does a decent enough job at cleaning without drying. It also removes makeup sufficiently well, although I suggest using a separate eye makeup remover. After 6 weeks, I am still happy with it. At first blush the price seem a bit high, but considering that the bottle is 8 ounces, it actually is a pretty good value.

Comparison shop for Dermaquest skin care products

By Carleenp Posted in Acne products, Cleanser, Skin Care | No Comments

DDF Moisturizing Dew

DDF Ultra-Lite Oil-Free Moisturizing Dew provides light oil and fragrance free moisture with antioxidant Grapeseed extract and Vitamins A, C, E. It is free of acne causing ingredients, and a tiny amount is sufficient to give light moisture to the entire face.

I have been using DDF’s Moisture Dew for some time and find it perfect when my skin is on the oily side. Although when I am dry, I need something a bit heavier. This is by far, my all time favorite moisturizer for oily skin and acne treatment, and it comes highly recommended for those who need some light moisture as part of an acne treatment system.

DDF products tend to run a bit on the expensive side. However, the amount of product needed is tiny, making it more of a value than it seems. There are some decent drugstore light moisturizers, but I have yet to find a comparable drugstore product than can provide oil free moisture in a formulation that is as light as this one.

Comparison shop for DDF Skin Care

By Carleenp Posted in Acne products, Skin Care | No Comments

DS Labs Trioxil Acne Treatment Gel

When I first read about DS Labs Trioxil (bisazulene gel) I was rather curious. I came across it on several message boards and it seemed that about half of the people who tried it loved and half hated it. After more reading, it became clear that many reported an increase in acne when they first began using the product, followed by significant clearing. So there was a trend where those who stuck with it, liked it, while those who quit during the first week or two hated it.

I decided to purchase some and try it. Using an antibacterial and anti-inflammatory compound from chamomile that is encapsulated in nanosomes for time release of the active ingredient, Trioxil is advertised as being as effective as Salicylic Acid and Benzoyl Peroxide, without the drying and irritation that those can cause.

I have been using Trioxil for about 6 weeks, but alternating it with another product, so it tends to get used every other day. Consistent with the reports that I read, I experienced an increase in acne the first few weeks that I used it. My theory is that it probably exfoliates to a certain degree, which will bring some of the underlying acne to the surface. Regardless, after a couple of weeks, I cleared up significantly, and while my acne isn’t gone, it is definitely improved 6 weeks later. Unfortunately to get full clearing, I think an appointment with a dermatologist for a prescription is in the cards for me.

Trioxil tingles a bit when used, so those with sensitive skin should be prepared for that. But it does not tingle any more than many salicylic acid products that I have used, and it is not drying or overly irritating. It has a bit of a yellow/tan color to it and a slightly odd scent. Neither is overly problematic, and I don’t notice the scent after it has been on and absorbed, but I would prefer it to be scent free.

I am inclined to repurchase DS Labs Trioxil once my tube is gone, although I might go to using only the Dermaquest Dermaclear formula (read review) that I have using in conjunction with it. I haven’t quite decided yet. At $34 for a tube, Trioxil is cheaper than the Dermaquest product, albeit for a smaller amount of product. But I like Dermaquest Dermaclear quite a bit as well.

Shop for DS Labs skin care products

By Carleenp Posted in Acne products, Skin Care | 10 Comments

Review: Dermaquest Dermaclear Acne Treatment

DermaQuest Skin Therapy Dermaclear (aka Rejuvaderm) has been my acne treatment of choice for the past six weeks. I chose it after careful research, searching for products with treatment ingredients that might also assist in treating melasma and that were non-comedogenic. Amazingly many of the drugstore acne treatment products, and some of the expensive ones as well, contain acne causing ingredients of fairly high concern.

I have been very pleased with my choice. As active treatment ingredients, Dermaclear contains Salicylic Acid 2%, Azelaic Acid 5%, and Glycolic Acid 10%. This is a fairly strong combination, especially with 10% Glycolic Acid, so those with sensitive skin might want tobe careful with this one because of the strength. Irritating your skin can actually cause acne. Personally, I like the high amount of Glycolic Acid and the addition of Azalaic Acid, because these do double duty for me by also treating melsama. The formula also contains ingredients to soothe inflammation, which makes the strength more tolerable. I have not experienced any issues with irritation or drying from the Dermaquest formulation, but my skin is not particularly sensitive either.

In my six weeks of use, my acne has cleared quite a bit. It hasn’t disappeared, and unfortunately I don’t think it is going to completely clear without a visit to the dermatologist. But I have seen a very large improvement. In addition to Dermaclear, I am using a Dermaquest cleanser and am alternating in Retin-A and DS Labs Trioxil as my other primary acne treatments. I also rotate in DDF Fade Gel for melasma and acne treatment (read review). I will be posting a review of Trioxil in the next week or so.

At $60, Dermaclear is definitely on the expensive side. I find that I need very little, so it lasts fairly long though. I have found it worth the price and will repurchase this item when it is gone.

Comparison shop for Dermaquest skin care products

By Carleenp Posted in Acne products, Skin Care | 2 Comments

Paula’s Choice Skin Relief Treatment

Out of curiosity and because they were available, I bought a bunch of samples of Paula’s Choice skin care products and cosmetics. So watch for various reviews over the next few weeks or months.

If you are not familiar with Paula Begoun, she is the author of the book Don’t Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me. That is a big fat book that rates more products than you could ever try in a lifetime. Generally people love the book, but it isn’t without controversy. I suppose I should write more on it at some point.

Anyway, Paula Begoun also has a line of skin care products and cosmetics. The ingredient choices in many of the products appear to be sound, and the website sells samples of nearly everything for .80 cents to $1 each. I wish more sites would do this!

The first sample I tried when my box arrived was Paula’s Choice Skin Relief Treatment. For unknown reasons, I had a pretty bad breakout recently, and treating it left my already dry skin rather irritated. That of course made me break out a bit more. Argh! So needless to say, I wanted to try a skin relief product!

Paula’s Choice Skin Relief Treatment is interesting. It contains aspirin, plus antioxidants, and it has willowherb extract as an anti-inflammatory. I did find it rather calming on reddened areas of my skin, but it didn’t do much for stopping pain associated with my blemishes.

I also, rather unfortunately, got the chance to try it out on a sunburn as well. I spent last week in south Texas and forgot to put sunscreen on my chest when I wore a V-neck shirt. The skin releif treatment did a pretty good job of soothing the resulting burn. So this is a good sunburn treatment, but of course you all should be wearing your sunscreen to begin with, so you shouldn’t need it for that!