There are three things I’ve said over and over about skincare:
- Skincare has become really important to me over the past year or so.
- I’m a sucker for cute packaging.
- I need to stop trying things just because they have cute packaging.
Case in point, the second worst thing I have ever used on my face: Holika Holika Lazy&Easy All In One Master Serum. The first place loser of this prize goes to a Korean BB Cream that gave me the worst cystic acne of my life that took a few months to clear up.
ANYWAY.
You’ve seen the meme…
And while I’ve been using Argan Wear™ Ultra-Nourishing Illuminating Argan Oil, it’s not recommended for night time, I think because of the glitter. Now, as far as moisturizer goes, I’m a huge fan of the Facial Lotion from Brandless, but I was running low so I figured “why not try this two in one situation in the super cute bottle and kill 2 birds with one stone?”
AND I’LL TELL YOU WHY NOT!
First of all, I’ve said this before a bunch too: don’t mess with what works! My skin was the best it’s been probably ever and I messed with success. I also broke my own rule about only buying things from Amazon with a solid 4+ rating. The 3.5 rating from 8 customers should not have cut it for me. However, it was the reviews that saved me.
A few days into using this stuff, my nose became so raw it felt like I’d been blowing it with sandpaper. I also broke out on my chin- not in my usual hormonal cystic way but whitehead zits that I hadn’t had since middle school. My face burned and felt grimy. It hurt to put on even my everyday face makeup and even using face wipes was incredibly painful.
At the time, I had also just started using a toner I got on the cruise, a scrub a friend gave me from a subscription box, and, funny enough, another Holika Holika product: Holika Holika Lazy and Easy Gudetama All Kill Cleanser Oil to Foam. (I actually love this stuff- it’s super gentle with a very light scent. 10/10 recommend if you’re looking for a nice cleanser.)
I asked my girls, thinking it might be the scrub, but Rox told me that it had a reputation for being rather gentle. So I started reading reviews of all the new products that I was trying. The one that got me was this:
While it wasn’t overnight, I had these same symptoms in less than a week. I immediately stopped using the “Master Serum” and sent it back, doubling up on my moisturizer and argan oil, trying to restore my skin as fast as possible or at least make it less painful.
Now I’m back to my regularly scheduled skincare, using Fourth Ray Beauty Rose Face Milk as a night serum, and not skipping any steps.
Have you ever had a skincare mishap? What did you do to sooth your skin back to normal?
Check out what I'm loving right now on Amazon!
