Clarins - You've Saved me from my Workouts!

The Issue
I have gone through skin hell in the past 8 months. Having increased my workouts to five times a week (from three to four times), I started to breakout severely. I went from the skin that my friends fawned over to one riddled with cystic acne. These painful muttertruckers were along my jawline, cheek, chin, and forehead. One of those suckers would pop out, and I could feel it throbbing on my face, mocking me.

Don't think that I wasn't thoroughly cleansing, because I was. After every workout, I'd immediately hop in the shower and get into my skincare routine - but it wasn't working for my face anymore.

TIP: It's very important to shower or give yourself a wipe down with an astringent pad or towelette after you work out! When you're working out, your body is producing a lot of your body's natural oils. Once these oils cool, they harden, and lead to plugged pores. (I learned this from Runner's World Complete Book of Women's Running) .


I tried just about everything, until my gf, Steph, recommended Clarins. In particular, she recommended their One Step Facial Cleanser.

Photo taken from Clarins website

I kid you not, upon using this product, my cystic acne ceased immediately.

Ingredients
Who cares? It works! Just joking! There really isn't much to it. According to their website, the ingredients are as follows:

• Ultrafine oils: thoroughly cleanse the skin.
• Moringa seed extract: neutralizes the effets of pollution and purifies the skin to restore its natural radiance.
• Orange extract: refreshes, tones, revitalizes. 

Directions (as per the Clarins website)

Shake well before use. Soak a cotton pad and begin by gently dabbing over face to dislodge impurities. Turn pad over and gently smooth over face. No need to rinse off.

How I Use It
I use it in the evening after my shower and follow up with moisturizer (Clarins Hydraquench for Normal to Dry Skin - Also awesome btw)

What to Expect

• I don't wear a lot of makeup (concealer and blush only). If I wear more makeup than I usually do, (i.e. mineral foundation), I use two cottonpads of the cleanser.
• There will be an oily residue on your face. HOWEVER, your skin will drink this up within a minute or two. This oil is quite fine and didn't break me out. In fact, it has minimized the bumps on my face.
• Pleasant, light, orange smell.
• I've been using this cleanser for 3 months, and still have more than 1/4 of the bottle left.

Overall Rating
5/5  - Hi, it's a Miracle in a Bottle!