Sephora

@danielledanielle it's definitely thicker like a gloss, I love it!! Thank you

🤣, I'm up for that test. Color theory is a fun thing @jaaayp Yesterday was a pure swatch day only, so no purchases. TBH, I was more interested in NARS Powermatte High-Intensity Long-Lasting Lip Pencil Midnight Rider - 195 , but now that I've swatched it, it's a pass. If something's too pinky-mauvy, it gives me this weird overblown lip effect.

Oh wow! I haven’t tried Guerlain makeup yet but I love their perfumes! I’ll keep an eye on that, thanks for the recommendation!

@sister13 My eyes are angry angry..I think I have allergies🤧😔, so the focus was more lips and skin today. Instead of setting with setting spray and powder, I just used spray and let the foundation and Fenty moisturizer do it's thing.. We will see if that was wise for today, 🤣 Lip is Urban Decay Vice Lip Chemistry Lip Stain - Wired Collection Gravity Technique: No setting powder all over, just a yellow powder for brightening and nasal folds Highlighter on the eyes, cheeks and cupids bow with fluffy brushes

@MBeauty55 welcome to BIC!

@Rosej12345 what is your skin type? You tagged dry skin but is it combo, oily or dry? Some of the products you are using maybe drying out your skin more.

@108316 @What is your hair type?

Hello @MBeauty55 ! My “holy grail recommendation” is to see a dermatologist (if you can) for skin diagnosis and personalized treatment options. Aside from that, the usual blackhead treatments are: Retinoid - this vitamin A family includes tretinoin (available only by prescription in the US), adapalene, retinaldehyde, and retinol. Of those 4, the first 2 are FDA approved for acne treatment. Adapalene’s available OTC in the US as Differin Gel, La Roche-Posay Effaclar Adapalene Gel, and a few other brands. You’ll find Differin and LRP at your local drug store or Target. Be sure to start slooowly with adapalene: use it just 1-2 times a week (never twice on the same day) for a while, then increase to 2-3 times a week, and keep gradually increasing frequency like that. Retinoids in general can be very irritating, so you don’t wanna start off using it daily. You might notice lots of new acne pop up during the first month of use; that’s probably “purging,” as retinoids speed up your skin cell turnover cycle; think of it as adapalene evicting crud from your pores. Make sure you have a good moisturizer on hand, because adapalene can also be drying. Salicylic acid (BHA) - gets down into your pores to degunk ‘em. If you’ve already tried 2% salicylic acid (not “willow bark extract” which won’t do the same thing as SA), it might just need an acne-fighting partner (like adapalene and/or the next ingredient I’ll list). SA’s a reliable go-to for several types of acne. Benzoyl peroxide - if your skin will tolerate it, this can be very helpful for blackheads. I recommend trying it in cleanser form: at your drugstore/Target, look for PanOxyl 4% Acne Wash. (Also comes in 10% strength but you might not need that.) Or consider The INKEY List SuperSolutions 5% Benzoyl Peroxide Cleanser Acne Solution 5 oz / 150 mL (another cleanser). You can wash with either of those once a day—maybe start off using it just a couple days a week at first—and then apply BHA. If you want to try all three of those, consider using adapalene at night and the other two (benzoyl peroxide and BHA) in the morning. That’s a good way to reduce irritation. You might also wanna pick one (I’d start with adapalene), use it for a while, then introduce a second one (I’d probably pick salicylic acid) and use it alongside adapalene for a while, and finally add the third to the party. You mentioned having tried masks, so I didn’t mention clay masks. But that’s another option to consider. Definitely don’t use pore strips: they do nothing for blackheads. If strips pull up gunk from your nose, those aren’t blackheads, they’re sebaceous filaments—and you can’t permanently remove those because they’re a natural function of human skin (they bring sebum up onto the skin surface). If that’s what you have instead of true blackheads, then ignore my 1st and 3rd bullets up there and just stick with BHA. 😉