First let's define Melasma. The brown blotchy stuff on your face that's made worse by sunlight and makes you feel ugly. Well, at least it made me feel ugly and self conscious!. My Melasma came after my daughter was born, in 2008. I guess that happens to many women after pregnancy and sometimes it goes away. I however, was one of the lucky women it decided to take up permanent residence on! I was tired of waiting for it to go away on it's own, so I decided to cover it up with makeup. I spent about $400.00 on different products, trying to find the magic coverage. There just wasn't one. Next, I tried Microdermabrasion. This worked really well. But the cost at $100.00 per session, with at least two sessions per month wasn't something I could continue to afford. I had to find another solution!
So, Here is my personal cure!
Step 1 - Exfoliate, Exfoliate, Exfoliate! Get all the dead skin cells off of your face! The place where I was getting Microdermabrasion also recommended that I purchase a manual microdermabrasion for home in between treatments. I have watched people purchase some drug store kits that pale in comparison to this little bottle of pure bliss. Bioelements Pumice Peel works by using a small amount of the product and rub it in circular motion all over your face. Of course avoiding your eye area. As the product starts to dry, keep rubbing in a circular motion until the product traps your dead skin and miraculously sloughs off all the dead skin cells on your face and they fall into the sink! I love it! How cool is that? You get to actually see those yucky old cells falling. Maybe I'm sick, but I like to know that a product I am using is working and that dead skin falling of, is the best evidence I could have! So YAY! Love it.
Step 2 - Get rid of the brown stuff! My favorite step!
Obagi Nu-Derm, CLEAR Skin Bleaching & Corrector Cream. This stuff is my lord and savior of skin care products. It reduced my tears and brought back my self esteem. Yes, that may sound a little pathetic. But I was pathetic and desperately wanted my brown spots to fade! It took about three weeks to see a major difference. But for me this stuff started working within a few days! I love this product. I have to say, I didn't go to a dermatologist to get this product. But you probably should! This is the first product I use on my skin after washing and drying it. I then moisturize and put a good sunblock on! After all, the sun is what makes the condition worse!
Step 3 - A good foundation!
Estee Lauder Double Wear - Absolutely Amazing stuff. It glides on well. Gives a nice natural look with great coverage and stays put under many conditions! I Love it. I like to put it on with a makeup brush. It works so much better than using your hands and goes on more evenly. They aren't cheap, but work fabulously! Get a good one! I like Clinique's foundation application brush. Below is a video of the before and after of foundation makeup application and the products I use!
Step 3 Foundation Application Video
