7 things to help with maskne: My skincare adventures

Overall, this title is way more positive than I felt most of the time I dealt with maskne (acne that you get from wearing a mask) but it CAN be managed! I realized that I was spending a lot on new skincare products, some of which worked better than others, so I am sharing these 7 tips with you. For reference, I have combination skin that is generally clear, sometimes get a pimple or two on the forehead or chin, sometimes dry cheek/nose/eye area but plenty to blot on my forehead. When I started breaking out, I was freaking out because it was so foreign and I thought it was hormonal but quickly realized that 1) it was lasting longer than hormonal acne would; 2) the areas were the parts covered by a mask; and 3) it started getting worse when it became mandatory to wear a mask in ALL indoor public spaces.

I don’t have any affiliation with these products, purchased them all on my own, and found them through internet searching / recommendations. Honest opinions only!! I’ll be going through what I bought in different categories (i.e. cleansers, pimple patches, serums, spot creams, etc.) and what worked for me, so read on if you’re interested!

I do want to take a moment to highlight two women-founded, Toronto-based brands that have really stood out in terms of product quality, commitment to natural ingredients, and outstanding customer service. Rosé Toronto and Three Ships have some amazing products and I highly recommend trying them out! I stumbled across both of them through Instagram and decided that I could indulge in my skin while buying local and I don’t regret it. Honestly, I could see myself committing to only local and female-founded brands for all my skincare in the future because I realized that big, splashy branding (which we pay a lot for at Sephora!! $$$$$ I am now a Rouge member iykyk) isn’t what matters. If you have any other local skincare brands that I should try, please send them my way!!

My original skincare routine that I had been using was as follows:

1. Shu Uemura Ultime8 and Anti/Oxi+ Skin Purifier oil cleansers for makeup removal and cleansing (would use Anti/Oxi on days when I had been outside a lot since it’s more for pollutants)
2. Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser — basic cleanser
3. AmorePacific Treatment Enzyme Peel Cleansing Powder — a gentle exfoliant that makes my skin feel bright and soft!!
4. Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Toner — milky toner, very gentle
5. Glossier super bounce and super glow serums — hydrating
6. SK-II Facial Treatment Essence Pitera — I’d only use this at night but very hydrating and make the skin super soft
7. Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cream — I’ve sworn by this for years now!
8. Etude House Sunprise SPF 50 sunscreen — liquid-y texture that just melts into skin, high SPF is also great

This was working pretty well for me so I never thought to change it up. Fast-forward to August, it’s hot and sweaty and the mask just traps all of that on your skin… Some pics below comparing my skin, all no makeup, unfiltered (yeah I was hella tan in August). Now onto the good part —

I took my good skin for granted :( Not back to how it was before but getting there!

7 things that helped me get my skin back to normal.

Detailed review of every product below! I’ve also added some charts where I rated products on a comparative scale from 1–5 on their acne-fighting and hydrating abilities.

1. Washing my mask every, single day; this can be tedious but it makes such a difference for me!! I use a drop or two of facial cleanser, scrub it in, then rinse it with hot water
2. No makeup underneath my mask and if I do, just SPF with a bit of tint
3. Using pimple patches at night (or even during the day!) to prevent myself from picking at them — I tried both Starface and Corsx
4. Paying attention to ingredients! Having a lot of different products is great but not using them all at once is KEY. I had to research this but the most common combinations to stay away from AHAs / BHAs with vitamin C / niacinamide, retinol with basically anything else, etc
5. Changing up my face moisturizer to something more hydrating to prevent more breakouts — First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream is amazing!
6. Targeted spot treatment serums that also soothe and moisturize, rather than ones that are drying — Kiehl’s Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Solution and Rosé Toronto’s Clarifying Serum both worked really well for me
7. Staying away from products that make my face sting!! Some astringent toners and spot creams I tried were so drying that I would be reapplying moisturizer through the day because I was peeling so badly.

Detailed Product Reviews

Cleansers & Oil Cleansers

1. ✔ Vichy Normaderm Phytosolution Intensive Purifying Gel — Loved it, made my skin feel very clean but not dry
2. La Roshe-Posay Effaclar Purifying Foaming Gel — This one was just ok, the scent is a bit strong and I didn’t feel like it cleaned my face as well as Vichy’s; I’d use it occasionally but wouldn’t buy again
3. ✔ Three Ships Purify Aloe + Amino Acid Cleanser — My new favourite cleanser because it’s so gentle and refreshing. Three Ships is really big on natural and affordable products and I tried a number of others as well
4. Cerave Foaming Facial Cleanser — Honestly nothing special to me, it did the cleansing job without drying and it comes in a huge container that is under $30 but I probably wouldn’t buy again
5. GLAMGLOW Supercleanse Cleansing Cream-to-Foam Cleanser — I do like this a lot because I do see the pore-reducing benefits but on the downside I feel like it dries my skin a bit. I try to spread out my usage of this one to 1–2 times a week
6. ✔ Three Ships Clarify Tea Tea + MCT Cleansing Oil — I really enjoy using this for the tea tree benefits but find that I need to use a cleanser after to get the oil off; it’s perfect as the first step in a double cleansing routine for me!

Toners & Exfoliating Pads

1. ✔ Kiehl’s Clearly Corrective Brightening & Soothing Treatment Water — Soothing and contains salicylic acid to help clear up pimples
2. Stridex Maximum Acne Pads — Hated these! Made my skin sting, didn’t see any noticeable difference, would NOT buy again and I probably won’t even continue using them
3. First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads — Gentle exfoliating pads, they were much softer on my skin compared to Stridex but I don’t really use them… Maybe I will try to add them to my daily routine and see
4. La Roche-Posay Effaclar Astringent Lotion — Made my face sting, was pretty drying, would not buy the full size (I got a small travel size as part of a kit I bought)
5. ✔ Three Ships Awake Rose Hydrosol Toner — LOVE this and I use it every morning and night right after washing my face, before hyaluronic acid. Such a gentle scent and I definitely think it helps with breakouts since it contains witch hazel

Serums & Spot Treatments

1. ✔ Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate — Very moisturizing!! I liked this a lot but there are no active ingredients for acne control so I only use it when my skin clear
2. Bruno Vassari Corrective Cream — this was a small sample I got from my facial lady, I felt like it was too drying for my skin so I wouldn’t purchase the full size
3. ✔ Kiehl’s Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Solution — I honestly didn’t think this would work as a spot treatment but it does AND it is very hydrating, feels like a lightweight serum with subtle scent, a little bit goes a long way (I use about 1.5 drops for all the acne marks along my cheeks and chin). Also can be used on ingrown hairs; whenever I see one I just put the tiniest drop of this and it’s gone by the next day!
4. La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo Global Action Acne Treatment — I really wanted to like this but didn’t see much result from the moisturizer… Perhaps it’s better for acne scarring so I’ll continue using it on some scars but no immediate effect for active pimples
5. Mario Badescu Drying Lotion — Meh on this one, it’s pink sediment suspended in alcohol which is apparently not very good for your skin so I don’t use it anymore
6. ✔ The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid — Amazing product for the price point but I did notice pilling when I used during the day then applied sunscreen; now I only use it at night
7. ✔ The INKEY List Hyaluronic Acid — Liked this product a lot and in a direct comparison to the Ordinary, it feels silkier and smoother so I use this in the daytime; would purchase again!
8. ✔ Rosé Toronto Organic Clarifying Serum — AMAZING honestly, this helped so much with my acne and is an integral part of my nighttime routine now. Rosé is also a female-founded, Toronto company and their ingredients list is so short it actually fits on the bottle!

Masks

1. Herbivore Blue Tansy — I really really wanted to like this after hearing so much about it but honestly I didn’t feel like it did anything for me. I still use it about once a week but probably won’t repurchase considering the steep price tag
2. ✔ GLAMGLOW Supermud Clearing Treatment — This mask works wonders and I use this a few times a week or whenever I feel like I have some pimples cropping up. Also can be used as a spot treatment overnight!!
3. Saturday Skin Yuzu Vitamin C Sleep Mask — Did not immediately love it but will give the mask a few more chances before I leave it for good; there are little chunks (yuzu pieces I think) which makes it hard to sleep soundly if you’re worried about turning and then smearing it all over your pillow.

Moisturizers & Creams

1. ✔ First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream — Love this and use it every morning when I feel like my skin needs a bit of extra hydration. Texture is thick but not oily and I feel like it’s a basic moisturizer that seals in hydration after I treat my face with serums
2. ✔ Sephora AHA Firming Night Cream — Really like this one as well, it’s a good night cream. Since it’s made with fruit acids, it’s not as strong as other chemical AHAs and keeps my skin moisturized all through the night
3. Indeed Hydraluron Intense Moisture Lotion — I was disappointed with this product, it didn’t moisturize my face as much as First Aid Beauty and didn’t have any other acne benefits either

Face Oil

1. ✔ Blume Meltdown — I really like this face oil and honestly don’t mind the herbal scent. It’s a small bottle but I’ve already repurchased because it’s that good!
2. Rosé Toronto Organic Face Oil — I got this in a set with the Clarifying Serum but honestly don’t like it as much. I’ve seen a couple of videos where they say this is a really good primer but I never wear face make up so I haven’t tried that yet!

Sunscreen

1. ✔ Kiehl’s Skin Tone Correcting & Beautifying BB Cream — Here’s the awesome: SPF 50. Do I need to say more? I like this sunscreen for its light coverage and sun protection but can’t say that I have seen a lot of impact from the vitamin C.
2. ✔ Shiseido Urban Environment Tinted UV Protector Broad Spectrum SPF 43 — Not quite SPF 50 but still a great tinted sunscreen. Less prone to pilling than the Kiehl’s (I try to be very careful and tap it gently after moisturizing) and I feel like it is slightly lighter coverage.

Pimple Patches

1. Starface Hydro-Stars Pimple Patches — Learned about these through Instagram ads and decided to go for the purchase; they worked well on smaller pimples that have the white head at the top, almost ready to pop!!
2. ✔ Corsx Acne Pimple Master Patch — These worked well for me and I use them to suck the gunk out of pimples that are near the surface but also use them on up-and-coming pimples to protect them, especially when it’s underneath my mask. Very satisfying to take them off and see all the nasty it has pulled out!! I have repurchased these already and prefer them over Starface
3. Corsx Clear Fit Master Patch — Didn’t like these as much as the Acne Pimple ones above since they didn’t work as well. I feel like the Acne Pimple ones are already discreet enough to wear (especially since we are living in an era of online meetings only)

If you made it through everything, thank you for reading! If you do decide to try anything that I’ve written about, please message me as I’d love to hear if it works for you too :)