“Why doesn’t this product work for me?”
“Why does your shampoo make my hair feel drier?”
“You said this cream is so good for you but when I tried it I broke out!”
“I tried the products for acne skin/pigmentation but saw no improvement!”
Sound familiar? 🙂
Its a common lament when we are faced with advertising and the multitudes of products out there, many of which do the same thing. Raves from bloggers don’t help and let’s not even talk about the mind boggling array of products in department stores and drugstores or pharmacies. Just step into a pharmacy and leave, with your mind reeling and a bag of stuff in your hand.
I feel that way everytime. Every single product out there claims to be the best in its field, and we read platitudes and raves about this product and that product online. But have you tried them and gone… “meh!”In the case of skincare, its not unusual.
Skincare is something quite individual. A raved product might work for someone but not for others because our skins are different. We could share the same skin type but there are other factors we may not be aware of that might tip the balance. Lifestyle, work, stresses all play a part and so while product A might be a winner for me, it might just bum you out.
In my case, products loved by many like Asience Deep Nourish/Inner Shine hair care, Lancome Genifique serum and Teint Miracle liquid foundation were meh on my part.
So let’s share – What products work for others but not for you? What products have been raved about everywhere in ads and on blogs but which you find only so so or even worse, broke you out?
Paris B
l y n says
Oh, so many, many that I lost count on stuff that didn’t work for me 🙁
– Creme de la Mer > broke me out.
– Hada Labo SHA Lotion > all that patting / pulling motion wrecked havoc on my skin, it’s too sensitive. But I have tried soaking cotton pads and placing them on my cheeks and forehead as a treatment and it’s okay again!
Strivectin Eye Cream > didn’t do nuts.
Shiseido / SKII / EL / Dior / Lancome / H2O skincare > my skin cannot handle their products well.
Clinique toners > dried my skin out.
Sunscreen with SPF50 or higher > I get rashes on my face and I’ve tried many, so it’s not really a coincidence. Works fine on my body though.
ParisB says
The upside, you know you don’t have to look at those expensive brands! 😀 The downside is the sunscreen, that I can see. That said, they do say we don’t really need SPF50 so I guess you could always go for something with lower SPF
espenine says
I have acne prone skin but every time I try the acne/oily/problem skin range within a skincare brand, I break out even more and end up with red, dry, itchy skin.
I got so fed up with those so called acne busting products that I gave them all up. I switched to using skincare for normal/combination skin which does not irritate my skin and the acne flare up actually subsided.
I reversed the trend even further by using facial oil on my oily skin because all those oil control stuff made me even oilier once the matte effect disappears in few hours. It sounds weird, but my oily skin actually enjoys the oil and stop producing oil so much on its own.
After countless experiment and $$$ spent, I realised my skin does not like alcohol, AHA, silicones & its derivatives, chemical sunscreens. But since a lot of counter and drugstore brands carry these ingredients, its not easy for me to find skincare products that work for me.
I envy those people who can just go to any department store counter and buy a skincare product. For me, I have to constantly check the ingredients and even with that, I have to be careful that it doesn’t fit my acne-prone-but-do-not-like-acne-products skin!
ParisB says
Look on the bright side. You’ve identified what works and doesn’t work for you and you’re now adept at reading labels 🙂 Whilst some of us can just wing it with whatever brand, its always useful to know what goes into the product so if you happen to break out, you can work out the common denominator and stay away. I know Zinc Oxide is touch and go for me so I tend to be careful with sunscreens that contain zinc oxide 🙂
Stephanie/Yukaeshi says
SK-II Facial Treatment Essence- While it did not break me out, it did nothing for my skin 🙁 Even after finishing the whole bottle.
Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil- Broke me out.
Anything from Biotherm. Apparently it’s not just me- my boyfriend is the same haha!
Stephanie/Yukaeshi says
Oh, the list goes on, I forgot:
Lipbalms by Mentholatum- LipIce and the like, just doesn’t work on me 🙁
Kiehl’s Lip Balm- Doesn’t moisturise my lips either!
Foundations by Bobbi Brown- None of them seem to work well for me :\
Pressed powders by Laura Mercier- Same as above.
Laura Mercier Oil-Free Tinted Moisturiser- Broke me out.
ParisB says
Kiehl’s Lip Balm does nothing for me either 😛
ParisB says
Ok looks like I’m really not alone in reacting to Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil! 😀
Monstro says
Shu Uemura cleansing oils break me out, as does extra virgin olive oil for removing makeup. Boo! 🙂
ParisB says
EVOO breaks me out too!
lazeny says
I love Shu Uemura cleansing oils and cosmetics and I recently introduced my friend to it. When I tried their foundation on her she loved it and told me she didn’t get any problems in terms of allergies and such. After she purchased a considerable number of products (influenced by me and two Shu Uemura SA’s) she told me after a month or so that her dermatologist told her to stop using it because Shu Uemura uses Depsea water as one of its main ingredients and Depsea water has minerals and other good stuff that’s actually exacerbating her acne condition.
ParisB says
Gosh fortunately your friend worked out what’s irritating her skin, although its probably not such a good thing that she had bought quite a few products from the brand! I’m also leaning towards that theory for myself. I can’t use most of the skincare from the brand and I’m guessing its due to the Deep Sea Water and its mineral content. Not to say its bad, just that my skin doesn’t quite like it very much.
hany_iliana says
have you heard with yanko products from taiwan? this product work very good to my friend and even you also will suprised when you looking at her..then i try to use it for 2 weeks..n the results not as good as her.. can you do the review on the yanko product or try it to know the results.. hehe… tq:-)
but i really love how the clinique dramatically different moisturizing gel work.. i really recommeded this for those who has the oily skin.. its really good for you..
ParisB says
Nope I haven’t heard of Yanko products before this, nor where I can find them. If I come across them or am interested to, I’ll give it a go 🙂
Amanda says
Anything Lancome skincare products I’ve tried before never worked for me.
Bobby Brown loose powder – broke me out.
Vichy products – Never worked for me.
Kiehl’s lipbalm – The worst lipbalm I’ve ever bought.
ParisB says
Thankfully I’ve had quite good experiences with Vichy products so I’m quite happy with them 🙂 I gotta say I agree with the Kiehl’s Lipbalm thing!
Grace says
Lancome Genefique Serum works wonders for my skin while the Estee Lauder Advance Night Repair Serum broke me out 🙂 I stick to Lancome skincare (using the anti-stress line in pale pink packaging – forgot the full name!)
Oh and cleansing oil of any brand doesn’t work for me. Breaks me out every single time! 🙁
ParisB says
Oh good to know Genifique works for you 😀 Pity about EL ANR But since you’re using Genifique you won’t need ANR anyway! 😉
synical says
1. Shu Uemura cleansing oil – luckily I was only on samples
2. Body Shop Tea Tree collection – wasn’t helping at all, so stopped altogether.
3. Body Shop lip products, specifically the Vit E lipbalm and the Delipscious lipstick.
4. Neutrogena Dry Touch sunblock that we both like so much – fine on the body, just not the face, despite it designed for both face and body 😛
That’s just the partial list, I don’t want to bore everyone.
ParisB says
Hehe… you aren’t boring us, I’m sure there are many who will agree with you! 🙂 I think the Neutrogena sunblock is a bit heavy for the face. Ok for the body though.
Lisa says
Most Hyaluronic Acid products;
Clinique three steps basic care;
SK II;
Vichy;
Many Japanese Skincare;
Lancome Skincare are just many of many that don’t work for me.
Thank goodness my skin is not adverse to makeup Coz I can’t do without makeup.
ParisB says
Sounds like alcohol might be the culprit – Japanese skincare tend to be chockfull of them 😛 I too can’t use many Japanese skincare lines because of this.
yuki says
Same like you. Ascience made my hair silky smooth and sooo nice… That’s until I reached half the bottle… My hair was all frizzy and mcm hay… hahaha…
Another one, Skin Food’s Peach Sake line… lots of ppl were raving abt it and my itchy hands grabbed the set!! BREAKOUTS! The Face Shop’s Pearl essense mask made me itch when it worked nicely on my friend… Skin79 Hot Pink BB cream (HUGE HUGE RAVE) gave me breakouts and whiteheads 🙁
haisssss…. My mom spent like 10k on SKII and her skin wasn’t like in the ads! hahaha… that’s makeup… lol… but yea, she used it for more than 2 years and her pigmentation marks didn’t budge one bit…
ParisB says
Ohh I’ve heard a lot about that Peach Sake line too! And yes, I’ve heard of people breaking out from it too. I never really had good things to say about many brands of BB Cream. Until the western world sat up and produced their own, which I actually find myself liking, against all odds! Strange but true LOL!
Snow says
hehe lots! had to go through lots of trial and error before I found those that suit me.
Those that didn’t work
1)Urban Decay
2) Neutrogena cleanser
3) Shu Uemura primer
ParisB says
Urban decay? Are you allergic to their products? I used to be sensitive to Shu Uemura and Majolica Majorca eyeshadow. I haven’t ventured back to see if the sensitivity persists 😉
Kate says
Chanel Beaute Initiale Spray Serum left my face with horrid red bumps after 2 days of usage. And I thought I would love it as much as I did the discontinued Precision Eclat and Age Delay serums. Which just proves once again, new formulations are not necessarily better.
ParisB says
Yikes! That sounds painful! New formula is never all its cut out to be and I hate it when brands reformulate and then it kills our skin. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it!
Iza says
SKII Miracle Water just don’t do it for me
ParisB says
Such a love-hate product!
Mari says
Well, I can tell you one thing that devastated my skin: Hada Labo Super Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizing Cream. Worst product ever! It made my otherwise resilient skin turn into a mess of dry patches and lots of white/blackheads. Well, it’s been over a year now and my skin is baby smooth again, but it has become very sensitive so I had to look for a different range of products.
Oh, and MAC’s lipsticks. They’re so horribly drying! Beautiful colours though.^^
ParisB says
Ooh I find MAC lipsticks drying too even the Lustre ones but no one seems to agree with me till you did 😉 So sorry to hear the Hada Labo broke you out. It seems to work well for most
Crisitna says
Nivea Soft Cream (or whatever is called) – I don’t like the smell, takes ages too absorb and doesn’t do much. All Nivea products (with the exception of their body sunscreen) never worked for me.
Neutrogena and Clean & Clear cleansers – hated them, too harsh and made me breakout
Other Neutrogena products are just OK. They are overrated. LRP and Avene are much better and only about 1 euro more expensive per product (where I live).
Clearasil – made me break out
LRP sunscreen Spf 50+ – after a few days of using it, my skin hurts when I have it on. How the heck people say that this does not leave a white cast? Well, maybe if you are Nicole’s Kidman shade. Otherwise, only if you use foundation on top! All the European sunscreens (that I tried) with a spf>20 leave a white cast, unless they are tinted or come in a light beige colour. BTY, I am a NC20..
ParisB says
Aww I love La Roche Posay sunscreens! I don’t get the white cast on most sunscreens but perhaps its an individual thing for most of us 🙂 I’m about a NC15-20 too 🙂
Alene says
ahah! i might be a lil late in this, but it doesnt matter cause u already know what im gonna say!
but of course me lurve ur blog. before this my skincare routine cost loads. i was using lancome serum, kanebo moisturizer, dior makeup base and sunblock, dior foundation, MAC concealer.
then i went thru hormonal and stress related havoc. and my skin went nuts, rejecting EVERYTHING i tried.
now it’s settled down, but it hates all branded products!
so i’m using the bio essence birds nest cleanser, bio essence hydrating serum, Daiso RM5 moisturizer, the Rm27 for 30ml Sunkiller sunblock from watsons and maybelline concealer.and smy skin looks great!
whee!
ParisB says
Your skin knew to switch now that you’re back to being a student! 😉 But its good to know that the cheap stuff can be good for you too.
min says
Shu Eumura cleansing oil and The Body Shop tea tree oil make me broke out!
irenekay says
I’m pretty lucky most counter skincare I tried doesnt break out on me… except for clinique but that was ages ago.. Never get myself to try it again. ( haven tried LA Mer tho) but Expensive product works on my skin.. esp LA Prairie caviar range-leave my skin damn smooth and silky (only tried their samples, cannot afford full size) , Peter Thomas roth Vit C Serum-damn good tightening serum, i felt my cheekbones ;)- and SKII works wonder esp their masque!!! Bought box of 6 to use 3 weeks prior to my wedding and boy my skin glows!!!
But then again, those were the days…. plus I dont have super problem skin so i decided not to spoil my skin so much with those super expensive product cuz at the end of the day, when u stop using, your skin went back to N-O-R-M-A-L ( most of the time) or I heard if you stop using SKII your skin will look dull and sallow??? Lucky mine was back to normal…
Either that wateva product I tried like Estee Lauder ANR, or Lancome whitening range, or even Dior Snow they are jus ‘meh’…no result… I’ve tried Hada Labo Hyaluronic cuz i have very dry cheek area but doesnt do justice…
I even tried organic product (Mukti) and it doesnt do much either…
So currently I’m using majority Kiehl’s product as its semi natural and just as long no break out or leave my skin superdry, I’m pretty satisfied!!! I kinda like their Acai Berry Range…plus I find them cheaper compare to counter brand…
oh ya…Shukobutsu bathing range leave my skin very very very dry..but I love their smells tho .esp for cheap shower gel usually smells kinda generic… unfortunately…:(
lydia says
I would say that basically all cleansing oils breaks be out. Have tried DHC , Fancl and Innisfree (Korean brand) . They all broke me out quite badly.
Resorting to using cleansing wipes now 🙂