Big pores and uneven skin tone

The ordinary brand have changed my skin care game!
Effective products for great prices! There’s a lot of products that could help check out the Facebook group there’s an endless wealth of info!
Goodluck
X

I use Clear Skincare 2% salicylic acid (from Priceline) as a toner – wipe it over the face with a make up pad. I’ve been trying a lot of different combinations of products for my oily skin and large pores over the last few years, and have found this one to make the most consistent of a difference. You don’t have to do this much – maybe like 1-2 times a week, even. Afterwards I usually use a super basic, well-priced moisturiser like the Swisse Rosehip Oil one, because my skin deals a lot better when I’m doing one thing at a time, rather than exfoliating then adding a ton of serum for other reasons on top of it.

I also make sure that I clean my face properly of suncare/bb cream/foundation or whatever at night. I think my skin has been a thousand times better over the last few months simply because I haven’t been putting make up on it cause of isolation.

Would also highly recommend Lab Muffin (I see someone linked her blog above) as this is where I’ve learnt the majority of my skincare knowledge over the last few years. She is a scientist will explain exactly what to use and why, and what works/doesn’t. Good luck!

Since puberty I’ve had large pores and it was always something I reluctantly accepted and tried to ‘sweep under the rug’ when it came to my perception of myself and my personal hygiene. I was passively anticipating that as I progressed through my twenties my skin would magically take on the smooth, polished aspect of balanced, adult skin.

As I am approaching my 26th birthday I decided months ago to invest in a plan to resolve my large pores and blackheads… Indeed, no adult likes bad skin! What I have learned is that there is no sure-fire product that can take care of this for me. Rather, the maintenance of large pores and blackheads requires commitment!

Here is what I have done to transform my skin:
Manual extraction. In my opinion there is no way around it! I soften the oil inside of the pores with a hot shower and then steam in a bowl. I put on a thin layer of thick face/ night cream and then use cling wrap to form an occlusive barrier by stretching it tightly across the face in a few pieces. Then I press a hot towel against my face for a minute. I remove the cling wrap and with tissues wrapped around my fingertips, make manual extractions of every pore! the prep makes the blackheads slip out very easily. I used to randomly prod and squeeze without adequate preparation and this damages the pores and causes them to fill up again quickly. Afterwards I cleanse with salicylic acid.

Stopped using facial oils. I used to cleanse and nourish my skin with oils because I believed that using ‘good’ oils on my skin like argan, almond, rosehip etc. Would prevent ‘bad’ oils from filling up pores and forming hard lumps.

Stopped exfoliating my face regularly. When the pores are blocked it is tempting and momentarily rewarding to exfoliate excessively but this was exacerbating the problem of enlarged pores for me.

Gentle cleansing. I changed to gentle cream and gel cleansers that are not abrasive to the skin. I found that used regularly they are a slow but steady solution to breaking down the build up that can’t be extracted.

Face masks. If anything these are the holy grail! The effect is not long term, but clay masks, charcoal masks, egg white masks… many masks, have helped me draw out the impurities and tighten up.

Nutrition. Probiotics, biotin, zinc, B vitamins… This component of my strategy is the newest but I think it’s helping. Sometimes my skin, although young, seemed to be too be stretched open at the level of the pore. All things combined, it’s bouncier and more elastic now and those pores want to be tight and impenetrable!

Consistency. A regular and routine combination of these strategies has changed my skin. However if I am slack with the maintenance of my pores for a few days then I see my old skin creeping back.

Goodluck!

I’d check out the Andalou brand, natural too. I’ve tried some of their products and like them. Blue or orange range, they have a quiz on their AU website to help narrow down the best products 🙂

Hi alexd , could you tell us a bit more about your current routine or what you have tried in the past? I think using chemical exfoliants could be really helpful for you( you can read more about them here https://labmuffin.com/how-to-exfoliate-2-all-about-chemical-exfoliants/