all grown

I know first hand how incredibly annoying and depressing it is to have adult acne. My skin was totally fine in high school and only went bonkers for the following … 2 decades. It’s mostly fine now, which is the major benefit of ye olde age, but I still have weird breakouts along my jawline and generally need to keep things in check.

Balmlabs is dermatologist-designed for adult acne-prone skin - which just cannot be bombarded with the acne fighters that work on oilier teen skin. With a guarantee of clearer skin in 4 weeks, 98% 5 star reviews, and natural ingredients including plant derived AHAs, CBD, niacinamide and squalane (2 of my favorites for balancing) … I was really excited to try this system. The product claims are obviously impressive, but moreover, I just wanted to simplify and use the same 3 products every day. It’s so easy to get away from that, and then you don’t even know what’s helping or hurting your skin!

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The 3 step system is a great way to get into the program. It starts with a gentle self-foaming cleanser that contains AHAs to cleanse, gently exfoliate and brighten. The Serum Hydrator was my choice for morning, because it’s super thin and light. It adds hydration while improving the appearance of aging (fine lines etc.) and minimizing redness and irritation with anti-inflammatory CBD. At night I did the Power Elixir on trouble areas like my jawline - it’s a liquid exfoliant that also hydrates, and you can use it under the Hydrator.

After a month on this system I definitely see a difference - my overall skintone is way more even and I haven’t had a real breakout… definitely had a few blemishes here and there but they seem to go away more quickly. I also have very red skin when it’s in the healing phase, kind of a hyperpigmentation issue which, with my pale skintone, reads as red … and I haven’t seen much of that at all.

It’s definitely an investment at $149 for the 3 items (a $179 value), but I like it because the products are designed to work together and streamline your routine while both fighting acne and other signs of aging (hyperpigmentation, fine lines etc.) - so it focuses your efforts and saves you from being distracted by other random skincare that might not really help you - and might even exacerbate - your adult acne journey.