Review: Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions

Over the last year, my skin has got progressively worse. I've never had perfect skin, but it's never been this bad, it's mostly the stubborn under the skin spots, which I've never had before! Considering I'm 21 this is beyond frustrating. So around mid- October I went to Clinique to have a chat and a mini-consultation. I ended walking away with the Cleansing Foam and Clarifying Lotion. ( I didn't get the moisturiser as I'd recently bought a new Liz Earle one.)

My Skin Type

Combination/ Oily. Prone to break outs. Undereyes/cheeks can get dry.

My routine (mid October- end November)

Liz Earle Cleanse+Polish to remove make up

Clinique Cleansing Foam

Clinique Clarifying Lotion

Liz Earle Skin Repair Moisturiser Light

Cleansing Foam £13.00 125ml

Comes with a pump dispenser and I tend to use 1-1/2 pumps to a wet face, morning and night. 

Not only is it supposed to remove dirt, but also help to unclog pores and helps with excess oil production. I also read that it helps reduce redness, while it calms the skin. It does feel quite cool on the skin, and it definitely does feel quite refreshed afterwards. My skin didn't feel tight at all, which is always a plus.

Clarifying Lotion £16.50 200ml

This is the product I was most excited about using, I've been reading a lot about 'exfoliting' lotions/liquids. They clear old dried up skin cells, which basically if they remain on the skin can get trapped in the pores when mixed with excess oil and cause a spot to form. (This is a very brief, untechinical explanation, and is my basic understanding. There's loads online if you want to understand spots and exfoliating lotions, which I would recommend reading.) It also contains a powder which settles at the bottom, so you need to shake it up before use. This is supposed to be oil absorbing to help reduce shine. The smell might put people off, it is quite a strong almost chemical smell.

My Results

Unfortunately, I didn't notice any improvement after 5/6 weeks concerning my break outs. However, I've been doing a bit of reading about my pill, and a lot of people have commented how their skin got progressively worse while they were on. So, I've just come off it and will see if it makes a difference. And I don't think it would be fair to judge blemish control, if there's another factor which I don't believe the product will help.

One major major plus for me is that I no longer have oily skin in the slightest, which I am super happy about. My foundation lasts so much longer on me, and I don't have to worry about blotting/ powdering at all. But, my skin also dried up, the instructions do warn to reduce usage if drying occurs, which I didn't. So maybe that's my fault! The over all texture of my skin has definitely improved though, the appearance of my pores reduced and my skin definitely feels a lot smoother. So, I was very impressed by that.

Would I rebuy?

I think I would rebuy the toner and use it once a day instead of twice a day. I feel like a need a something a little more hardcore than my Liz Earle tonic (which I do love), but does nothing to help my break outs. I'm unsure about the foam, if my break outs control even though I'm off my pill, I might try it once more so it would be a bit more of a fair test. I am definitely impressed with the results in terms of texture though.

It is definitely worth trying out, and I would recommend it to anyone suffering with break outs, or looking for something with good oil control. Clinique also offer a 4 week returns policy, if you don't see any improvement then you can return and get your money back. Which is great especially when you're investing quite a lot of my money.

My skin at the moment

At the beginning of December I decided to stop neglecting my Clarisonic, I've stopped using the foam cleanser, even though I have a bit left because the dryness was doing my head in. I'm impressed at how long the product has lasted me though. I'm still using the lotion a few times a week. Been off my pill for 2 weeks and starting to notice a difference. I bought myself some Philosophy and I will do a review after a few weeks use.

Thanks for reading :)
Nic xxx