For skins with breakouts:

To prevent breakouts: Go easy on the use of harsh, acne products. Unless your case of acne is severe, most acne products can make it worse. These products can be extremely drying, and although they will help dry-up and heal the individual breakouts, they will over-dry other non-broken out areas resulting in dead skin cell buildup. The cell buildup will then act as a barrier to trap oil under the skin causing more clogged pores and breakouts. So your effort to clear up your skin will actually cause you to break out more! Read: Use low-foaming cleansing gels to wash your skin…

The three most important elements for controlling clogged pores and breakouts are:

Exfoliation – this will keep off dry skin cells to reduce clogged pores and also help fade red, post-breakout marks (Read: Did your blemish leave you with a red or dark mark?)

Disinfecting – it is important to eliminate bacteria to help prevent the spread of breakout as well as drying up infection

Hydration -water-based moisture to keep cells healthy to discourage dead skin cell buildup 

For skins with discoloration/brown spots: Brown spots usually come from sun, age, hormonal changes in the body, and genetics. And if untreated, these “spots” or “patches” tend to become more apparent and darken as the skin ages. Not to worry—if you start addressing this skin problem now, with the right skin care routine, some chemical peels, exfoliating facials and a little patience, you’ll be on your way to lighter, more even-toned skin.

How to: By combining exfoliation, skin lighteners and daily use of an SPF (like Renée Rouleau Daily Protection SPF 30), the pigmented cells will slowly start to break down and fade their color. Exfoliation (like Renée Rouleau Glycolic Serum) is beneficial for breaking up the pigmented cells and the use of a skin-lightening agent like Vitamin C (Renée Rouleau Vitamin C & E Complex) or Hydroquinone will suppress the melanin cells and accelerate the fading process. For those with discoloration, it will always come back if ignored, so it’s important to be ready to commit to proper care for keeping it under control. Both professional facials with a focus on exfoliation and a proper home care routine will also make a huge improvement. Read: One surprising cause of brown spots.

For skin with redness, sensitivity or Rosacea: Getting redness under control is easier than you think. You simply must use products that are specifically formulated for this type of skin. Using products with ingredients like Chamomile (like in Renée Rouleau Calming Chamomile Cleanser, White Tea (like in Renée Rouleau White Tea Soothing Complex) and Sea Whip (like in Renée Rouleau Phytolipid Comfort Cream)  all help to reduce inflammation to sedate redness. Many products formulated for sensitive skin simply means they removed the fragrance. But to actually reduce redness, you must look for anti-redness ingredients. Check out our nine skin types to have products recommended specifically for your skin.

See skin makeover tip #6 on Monday!

Get products recommended for your skin type by choosing one of our nine skin types.

Questions about your skin? Be sure to email us. We’re here to assist!

What are a few of the skin conditions where Glycolic Acid can benefit?

• Brown spots (Read more about skin discoloration)
• Post breakout red or dark scars (Read more about fading acne scars)
• Acne scars, blemishes, clogged pores
• Chicken Pox scars
• Fine lines and wrinkles

In each of these cases, the exfoliating action removes top layers of skin, forcing new collagen growth and improved elastin.   This creates more youthful, glowing skin.  Acne and fine wrinkles are essentially indents in the skin, and pigmentation is uneven color.  The refined surface after use of Glycolic Acid creates smoother, even skin tones because there is less of a visible indent and discoloration…

• Dry skin
• Keratosis Pilaris (the bumps that appear on the side of the face, backs of legs and arms)

Skin can’t effectively be moisturized until the dry skin buildup is removed, allowing product to penetrate.  Keratosis Pilaris is made less visible through exfoliation.  This is done easily with Glycolic Acid.

• Blackheads
• Oily Skin (Read tips to reduce oil production)

You will need to consult an esthetician for removal of blackheads, but Glycolic Acid is effective for prevention afterward.  The treatment lessens surface oils, and keeps the newly exfoliated pores cleaner, longer.

Try Renée Rouleau Glycolic Acid in three different strengths.

Glycolic Serum 10% (smoothes sensitive skin)

Glycolic Serum 17% (for smoother, clearer skin)

Glycolic Serum 20% (professional-strength exfoliation)

Note: It’s normal to experience a tingling sensation after applying Glycolic Acid.

Which strength of Glycolic Acid is right for you? See our nine skin types.

See other magazines we have been featured in on our press page!

The reason why this happens is that the pore may have gotten damaged (especially if you picked at it) and keeps getting re-infected. Picking at a blemish can loosen the cell lining of the pore and cause the clogged oil to slip deeper into the skin, creating an inflammatory reaction. (Are you guilty of picking at your skin? Tips and tricks to stop picking at your skin.)

Your best bet is to use a preventative spot treatment in the area that you’re prone to getting the blemish. I suggest using our Anti-Cyst Treatment for preventing ALL types of blemishes, even if it’s not cystic acne. The Anti-Cyst Treatment uses a pure form of Lactic Acid along with a special carrier that delivers pore clearing, anti-bacterial benefits deep within the pores to prevent blemishes from occurring— or in this case, re-occurring.

If you use regular drying spot treatments, this only dries out the surface infection of the skin for when you actually have a blemish. The goal is to prevent a blemish, so our Anti-Cyst Treatment will do the trick…

How to use Anti-Cyst Treatment to prevent a re-occurring blemish: Apply a drop to clean skin at night and let dry. Keep on overnight and use several times a week.

Note: Good news! This product is also suggested for preventing blemishes anywhere, not only ones that re-occur in the same place!

Did your blemish leave you with a red or dark mark? Skin tips to fade acne scars.

Get products recommended for your skin type by choosing one of our nine skin types.

Questions about your skin? Be sure to email us. We’re here to assist!

Today, I’m featuring our skin type #1.

Do you have?

-Thick, extremely oily skin all over the face, not just in the t-zone

-Large pores on entire face, not just in t-zone

-Constant, severe breakouts that occur daily…

-Blackheads within the pores

-Cystic acne (the hard, sore bumps that develop deep within the skin) Read more about cystic acne.

-Post-breakout red, purple or dark marks that linger for weeks or months

The routine:

Oily, problem skin management requires a careful combination of AHA (Glycolic Acid) and BHA (Salicylic Acid), pore-clearing exfoliants, along with antiseptic botanicals like natural Tea Tree, Camphor and Eucalyptus. This routine helps to disinfect, control oil, exfoliate, and calm troubling breakout conditions, all without over-drying the skin. Your skin will be healthy and balanced, and with fewer acne breakouts.

Note: You must be extremely oily all over the face and get new breakouts every day to benefit from this routine. Skin type #1 is a common skin type for teenagers.

If you are someone who wants clearer and smoother skin and have ALL of these symptoms, then you are a skin type #1. If you have only some of these, but not all then you may be another skin type. Look at our nine skin types to find the perfect match for you.

See all the products suggested for skin type #1.

See our Basics skin care kit—a starter kit for those new to the Renée Rouleau line. See our Works skin care kit—for those who want to get serious about their skin and commit to a full regimen.

Read: Skin tips for oily, acne-prone skin.

Which skin type are you? See our nine skin types and get product recommendations. 

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Please choose ONE answer to the following question.

Here are solutions:

Do not pick. Despite being sore, you’ll never get that infection out.  If you attempt to, you’ll most certainly have a scar that will linger for months. The rule is: If a whitehead does not form (which they never do if it’s a true cyst) then hands off!

Prevent cysts by cutting out your intake of dairy. When you develop cystic breakouts, specifically on the chin, jaw line and neck area, it might be a sign that you’re getting more dairy in your diet than your body can tolerate. Your skin acts as an excretory system to get rid of things that your body is not in agreement with, so when you eat too much dairy (and since dairy is naturally harder to digest) it comes out in the form of cystic blemishes in the lower area of the face…

The best way to determine if your acne cysts are directly related to your intake of dairy is to completely cut dairy out of your diet for two weeks. If you don’t develop any new cysts and you normally would have by now, then this might solve your problem! It doesn’t mean that you cannot eat any dairy at all.  Slowly introduce dairy back into your diet, and if you start breaking out again, that’s your body’s tolerance level.

Treat the cyst immediately. Dab on Renée Rouleau Anti-Cyst Treatment as soon as the cyst forms and it will dramatically reduce the infection and cut the healing time, at least by half. The longer the cyst has time to develop, the more you’ll increase your chances of scarring the skin. You need to put the fire out—fast!

Apply ice to reduce inflammation. If you don’t have a bottle of our Anti-Cyst Treatment, applying ice to the cyst can help take down swelling to reduce soreness.

Optional: Get a cortisone shot. It can certainly work well, but who has the time to wait around at a doctor’s office? Plus, some people can experience injection atrophy, where the skin indents from the cortisone and can take up to 9 months to naturally fill back in.
Get products recommended for your skin type by choosing one of our nine skin types.

Questions about your skin? Be sure to email us. We’re here to assist!

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