★★★★☆
I completely agree. I am in my early 20s and I have mild rosacea along with some acne. For years in my teens I was using conventional face products like Oil of Olay and my skin was dry and of course acneic. I've read in a few places that when your skin is properly hydrated it is less susceptible to acne causing bacteria. My face was so bad a few months ago (inflamed, lots of minor acne scars, texture was very thick and I got those big under the surface pimples) that I actually considered going back to conventional makeup to hide my face. I swept up drug store samples of everything and went to Holts for the high end stuff. It looked awful on my face and my face was even worse. I was reacting to everything left and right. The natural moisturizers I'd been using just weren't cutting it. I did a lot of research and was just short of making my own, but I found that a few companies provided the perfect mix of actives with natural moisturizing factors to help me out. Also I could mix in my own actives to cater to my needs. I have used SkinActives since February, and this is not an advertisment for them. A few of their creams with the addition of niacinamide and white willow bark etc. have been AMAZING. Not only do they moisturize well (with water binding molecules and amazing antioxidant skin protection) I have seen an amazing reduction in acne, and facial redness. I love these moisturizers with facial oils and other serums on top.
This has not been the most amazing thing for my face by far though. I would say that manuka honey-from the first 30 minute topical treatment-I did with it, has shown by the fast the greatest improvement in my skin. I do not wash my face with anythiing else, though before this I was washing with my moisturizer and buttermilk powder. Honey is my new wash and mask. Another amazing mask is honey and seaweed powder. I feel as though in a couple of months I can go out without any makeup. I wear the tiniest amount of makeup since these amazing discoveries. Acne is viritually gone and scars are so light and my redness is faint, until the next time I get embarrassed. I use Sappho makeup which is a light-full coverage foundation, but I am going to be going to be adding Living Nature tinted foundation as I need viritually nothing these days. I hope this helps someone else, and may the experimenting for even greater ingredients continue. The Manuka honey I use is of a high MGO number.
