Clear(er) Skin

I hate my skin. Okay, not all of it, just my poor, now acne-scarred, face. I had really bad acne a few years ago, managed to clear it up, and honestly, had never been happier. But only in the last six months or so have the horrible cystic pustules started returning (sexy), so I've been trying my absolute best to keep them at bay. I don't want to jinx it *touch wood* but I think I've been doing an alright job, so I thought I'd share what I've been doing, and hope that someone in the comments can share a miracle cure! (Also, the above photo is with no makeup, and in comparison to how it looked around Christmas time, it's amazing).

The first thing I've really changed is my water intake, I've upped it tremendously. I try to drink at least the recommend 2L a day, if not more. Doing such has definitely helped, and I just generally feel much better for it. This also feeds in well to my second point; I've tried to reduce the amount of sugar in my diet. Yes, I love desserts, chocolate, sweets etc, but I've (painstakingly) reduced the amount of such I eat. I've also stopped guzzling lemonade and juice, as the sugar content in those is pretty crazy. (Okay, I know I'm sounding like the fun police here, but these are just the things I've been doing to try and sort my skin out, I'm not forcing you into my subsequent dull diet!)

In my opinion, however, the thing that's had the best impact on my skin is the antibiotics I'm now taking. I know doing such sparks a lot controversy in the dermatology world, but so far I've had nothing but good results. I know it's not a long term fix, I mean, I can't take these tablets forever, but for now, I'm happy with the progress they're making. That being said, my face is pretty scarred so if anyone has any tips for smoothing out the texture and colouring of my skin, that'd be much appreciated!

Do you have a miracle acne cure?
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Summer Ready Pins

Do you ever find a perfect combination of products, and just feel like it's your duty to share them with the world? Anyway, that's what I'm going to be doing today. If you hadn't already realised, summer is definitely in full swing here in England, which means one thing: leg shaving season is upon us. It's definitely one of the dullest parts in any beauty routine, but it's just one of those things.

However, with this Soap and Glory trio, I feel like the whole process takes half the time. Plus my skin always feels perfectly soft afterwards. I tend to use Scrub of Your Life first, then Clean on Me as a shaving cream, and then I moisturise with Righteous Butter afterwards.

On a side note, while in Boots the other day I smelt S&G's new range; Orangeasm, and I think it could be the first scent of theirs I genuinely dislike...

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Garnier Micellar Water - First Impressions

I've been using L'Oreals Micellar Water for what feels like months, and to be honest I'd got sort of bored of it. (Not that cleansing waters tend to be overwhelmingly interesting.) I've used this a couple of times now, and so I thought I'd take the opportunity to write a little first impressions post...

The only other skincare product I've tried from Garnier is one of their body lotions - which I really love - so it's fair to say my expectations for this were rather high. Unlike the L'Oreal offering - the cap is really handy. It dispenses just the right amount of the micellar water, plus it's pink... What can I say?

This 400ml bottle claims to serve around 200 uses, which considering it's usually around £4, is such a bargain. So far, I've only used this for light base makeup - which it removed perfectly, and my general day to day eye makeup. It does an okay job at removing eyeshadow, but my mascara always seems to get left behind - boooo.

But as I've only tried this a couple of times, I'm not going to completely rule it out of my skincare favourites just yet...

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Soap & Glory Peaches and Clean

After hearing so many gret things about this cleanser, I was desperate to give it a go. My favourite body care brand is definitely Soap & Glory, so it seemed only natural to give this a go - especially as my skin currently isn't as temperamental as it has been in the past. I've been using this cleanser more or less everyday since Christmas and it's fair to say, I really like it. 

Personally, I use this as more of a face wash than a cleanser. But anyway, in the mornings I splash my face with water (read: flannel, not like they do in the adverts) and then massage a liberal dollop of this, all over my face. I then simply wash it off with a flannel and voila - clean, refreshed skin. The pump makes it even more suitable for those lazy mornings, as it makes the whole process a little quicker - but that might just be me being lazy.

Obviously, as I use this pre-makeup I can't comment on its makeup removal abilities. But anyway, it has a really fresh, fruity scent which is why I like using it in the mornings. Texture wise, it's just a typical white cream, but I like that it sort of tingles on the skin - but that might just be me.

I love this cleanser, and at only £8, I'm sure I'll be repurchasing in the future!

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If you like reading Becca's Fashion and Life, I'd love it if you nominated it as 'Best Teen Style' Blogger, in the Company Blog Awards here.

Magnitone Pulsar - My Thoughts

For me, skincare routines always end up feeling like a chore. Moreover, since I started double cleansing in the evenings, the motivation to actually leave my bed to do so, has been lacking. But, add a cleansing brush to the mix, and the whole process is so much easier. I've recently been using the Magnitone Pulsar* and I really like it.

So, first of all, my skin type: combination. It's quite sensitive, so I was a bit sceptical as to whether this bad boy would make it worse, but more on that later. I also have some stubborn scarring on my forehead, which I'd love to see the back of.

Anyway, the Pulsar has four settings; sensitive, pulselift massage mode, exfoliate and deep cleanse. At the moment, the sensitive setting is my favourite. My skin's quite new to this whole brush cleansing thing, so I found the exfoliate setting a little harsh, and I'm yet to try the pulselift massage mode, but it sounds rather intriguing. It apparently 'promotes skin stimulation and boosts blood circulation for improved skin tone and a youthful boost' - but I'll have to get back to you on that one.

I have been using my brush in the evenings with Superdrug's Vitamin E Hot Cloth Cleanser, and it's such a lovely combination. I don't wear any base makeup - so I can't comment on makeup removal - but it leaves my skin feeling really clean, but not at all sore or irritated.

One thing that I really like about the Pulsar, is that it doesn't need to be charged very often. I think one full charge lasts a couple of weeks, which is perfect, as nobody wants to faff around charging this everyday. As for the brush itself, it's a nice size and I really like the packaging.

Overall, I really like this brush, but at £129.99 it's quite an investment, so maybe not one to buy on a whim...

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