Blackheads are a pain. They are stubborn, usually sit at the most obvious parts of our face, and are hard to conceal with makeup.
This is why when we found these photos posted by a Redditor, who goes by yoofka on the platform, about how she got rid of blackheads, we had to know what she did. According to yoofka, she said that she stepped up her basic three-step routine to a new seven-step one and managed to bust her blackheads in one month.
Thankfully, she shared the routine and it sounds like it’s pretty easy to follow.
What’s the Redditor’s blackhead removal regime?
Step 1: Remove makeup
She removes her makeup using the Lancome Energie de Vie The Smoothing and Purifying Cleansing Oil.
Step 2: Exfoliate
She used Neogen Bio-Peel Gauze Peeling Pads to smooth over her skin in order to get rid of dead skin.
Step 3: Cleanse again
While most people remove makeup, cleanse, and then exfoliate, the Redditor shared that she reversed the second and third step. She uses Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser to cleanse again after exfoliation.
Step 4: Apply retinoid
She uses Differin, an over-the-counter retinoid treatment after she has dried her skin. This product is usually used to treat acne.
Step 5: Moisturise
She uses the Aquafor Healing Ointment, a treatment moisturiser that is usually used on severely cracked skin to moisturise and protect it to enhance healing. This is usually used on irritated and chapped skin and lips, as well as over cuts and scrapes.
Step 6: Tone
We would usually advise you to tone before moisturising, and also to use products that have thinner consistency first before layering over with something that is thicker. But yoofka does the opposite from conventional skincare wisdom by doing the opposite. She tones her skin with Akaran Moisture Lotion.
When Redditor asked her about this strange step, she explained that her Korean mum and her mum’s family had always taught her use a moisturiser before toner and while she’s tried toning before moisturising, she notice that her skin was brighter, softer, and more supple if she followed her mum’s recommendation.
Step 7: Mask
She occasionally uses sheet masks from The Face Shop.
Does her routine make sense?
Our conventional knowledge of skincare would tell us that her regime is kind of strange, and the use of the Aquafor Healing Ointment on clogged pores (hence, blackheads) just don’t seem to gel well.
According to Allure, who spoke with dermatologist Shari Marchbein, the star of the routine could be Differin. The dermatologist said that retinoid, which is a great treatment for unclogging pores and combatting acne, could have helped improve her skin.
Another dermatologist, Sejal Shah, also told Allure that a thick moisturiser like the one she uses may not be good for her skin. In addition, she said that it could be the exfoliating products that she had used that helped her achieve better skin. She emphasised that toning before moisturising would also help the user get the full benefits of the products.
Would you try her routine?
From a logical point of view, the steps don’t make sense. However, from the photos she shared, it seem to be working wonderfully for her. And the proof is in that – so who are we to say otherwise?
