Inside the Alchemist’s Workshop: Blemish Prevention (Rosemary's Wedding)

Three months before Rosemary had to slither into her grandmother’s wedding dress, she started the blemish routine.

Why? Because the blemish devil is a total bastard who doesn’t care if you’re getting married and will drop a zit on your face whenever.

Breakouts had been a part of Rosemary’s life since she was a teenager, but she’d gotten them under control. By thirty, they only bugged her occasionally.

She was getting married in Ireland and worried that her skin might not like it there and her skin would go crazy. 

This is the routine we put together.

She started with Control, our super gentle glycolic cleanser.

Next, a few sprays of Tighten+Glow Refining Mist for mild exfoliation/glow— thanks to the bacillus ferment. The niacinamide would work to blur any imperfections.

Then, a few drops of the quiet but powerful Restore+Repair oil serum, because oil is not the enemy. . . the right oils can help blemishes.

For blemishes, the right oil is tamanu, aka “green gold.” It’s like the sniper of oils and has never met a fungus or bacteria it didn’t want to destroy.

For a moisturizer, Clam Redness Relief Cream lives to destress irritated skin with its colloidal oatmeal and zinc and babassu oil, which has anti-microbial properties and smells yum.

But what should she do if a pimple started to surface?  Enter our Max Active Blemish Roller. It’s like a tank—something you get into only if necessary. This highly concentrated bath of salicylic acid is pressed onto any blemish that is attempting to rise to the surface. 

Even if you never need it, this roller is like money in the bank. Good to know it’s there. 

If you’re a person who lives with blemishes daily, this routine is a long-term keeper. If you only break out occasionally, at the very least you need Rainforest Restore+Repair Oil and the Max Active Blemish Roller.

The good news is that Rosemary didn’t break out beyond a few worrisome days when she arrived at Ballybeg House in County Wicklow. Her mother, however, felt a fearsome zit coming to the surface the night after she arrived.

Rosemary shared her kit and a generous pour of Tullamore Dew.  The zit retreated.

We can’t sell you whiskey, but we’re the place to go for a routine that will help keep blemishes at bay. 

 About the Routine: 

Focus on prevention of blemishes, healing of blemishes, proper hydration and protection and balancing the skin’s microbiome.

A.M. (bundle here)

• Control. Glycolic Cleanser.
• Tighten+Glow. Refining Mist. Mist on two-three spritzes and pat in.
• Calm. Redness Relief Cream.  Apply a small amount to your face. No need to avoid the T-Zone.

P.M.

• Control. Glycolic Cleanser.
• Tighten+Glow. Refining Mist. Mist on two-three spritzes and pat in.
• Restore+Repair. Rainforest Oil Serum. Warm a few drops in the palm of your hand and press onto face.
• Deep Refining Cream with Retinol+Bakuchiol. Massage a bit into your face.  (You may want to alternate with Calm Cream on the other nights.)

In a rush?

Just make sure you keep your face clean and massage a bit of the Restore+Repair Oil in before you go dashing out.

The ingredients in this routine that are so effective are Bacillus Ferment, which is the perfect enzyme to help with blemish control.  It provides a gentle exfoliation without harsh scrubs or alpha hydroxy acids, and it also keeps your microbiome happy by taking a swing at bacteria that may be lurking. It is in our Tighten+Glow Refining Mist.  The other ingredient that is new and wonderful in both the blemish world is Bakuchiol.  It is a botanical compound that helps regulate sebum production, and it has anti-bacterial and anti-fungal activity.  It is said to be just as effective as retinol and can be found in our Calm Cream and and also our Deep Refining Cream where it plays even more actively with Retinol.