Skincare is one part of my routine that I rarely think twice about splurging on. I have tried everything from over-the-counter acne treatments and cleansers, to prescription-strength retinoids without much success. I now have a prescription regimen from my dermatologist that I feel is really working for me, but it is most effective in combination with gentle products that help soothe and cleanse the skin. I also have had some recent skin issues like dark spots and redness that the prescription topicals I’m using can’t solve. That is where the addition of other products to my regimen come into play.
Desi Perkins is a YouTuber that I absolutely love. I watch every single one of her videos, and admire her both as a person and someone in the beauty community. Her realness has helped me come into my own sense of confidence, and the products she endorses I know are trustworthy. Ole Henriksen is a Scandinavian skincare brand that she swears by, and I have been eager to try their products for a very long time.
Due to my very sensitive skin, I like to keep my skincare very simple. I like clean ingredients and never like to have too much on my face at one time. There are a lot of products out there on the market that are not meant to be mixed, and especially for sensitive the results of mixing such products can cause a lot of burning, redness, and irritation. When first starting my new prescription skincare products (I use a separate one in the morning and at night), I knew my skin was basically going to dry up, peel off, and start anew. I have a gentle moisturizer that I use from Perfectly Posh (a company that I love, work for, and fully endorse), but it just wasn’t strong enough to really target the dry skin that the acne medication was causing.
My Ole Henriksen journey started with the “C Your Best Selfie” set, a vitamin C based “mini” set that includes a mini brightening eye cream (Banana Bright Eye Crème) and a mini deeply nourishing face cream (C-Rush Gel Brightening Crème). Vitamin C helps brighten, reduce the look of wrinkles, and has anti-aging properties. Using this set, I instantly noticed that my skin was not peeling nearly as much as it was. I also noticed how smooth my skin looked even under makeup, and now consider these products a staple in my morning routine. I have not noticed any pore-clogging from these products, and have had no significant new breakouts that I could link to the use of these creams. These creams have caused no irritation, and I make sure to pair it with my Cetaphil daily moisturizer with SPF to prevent added sun exposure that can be caused by both my acne topical treatments and the Vitamin C. Plus, SPF is very important in general and should be in everyone’s daily routine.
I began to explore the brand more, and had a bunch of their products on a wish list of mine. I was perusing the Ole Henriksen website this Memorial Day Weekend, and found that they were having two separate deals that included a bunch of mini and travel-sized skincare sets. I did a haul of a bunch of products I have been wanting to try, for only the price of two full-sized products. I feel that trying travel-sized items (also marketed as “deluxe” sized) is a great way to find out how products work for you, without committing to a full-sized bottle with the full-sized price tag. Because I haven’t tried these products yet, this is not a review. I did however want to share with you what I chose to purchase, and I will most likely do a future review on how these products have worked for me. I will also make a later post a few weeks from now when I run out of some of these items regarding which products I will re-purchase as full-size.
Here is the list of what I purchased! Check out the Ole Henriksen website here.
- Balance It All Set
- A skincare set that is specifically formulated for oily/combination skin. Included it the Find Your Balance Oil Control Cleanser, the Balancing Force Oil Control Toner, and the Counter Balance Oil Control Hydrator. This set was a great value at $32, and you get slightly larger products than the normal deluxe-sizes.
- Pore-Balance Facial Sauna Scrub
- A gentle exfoliant to use two-to-three times per week.
- Glow2OH Dark Spot Toner
- While the size of this toner in the deluxe-size was a little disappointing, I am still very excited to try it. It contains high-potency AHA’s that will hopefully enhance the look of my dark spots.
- Sheer Transformation Perfecting Moisturizer
- This product is a whipped-texture moisturizer that is meant to enhance the look of dark spots and improve skin texture.
- Banana Bright Eye Crème
- This came free with my holiday weekend purchase, along with the next three products. Because I already love with product, to get another little bottle was a great deal and is perfect for my upcoming vacation.
- C-Rush Brightening Gel Crème
- This was a second product that came free with my holiday weekend purchase, and again a product that I have already tried and loved. This is definitely something that I will be packing on my beach vacation.
- Truth Serum
- The third free product with my purchase, this serum brightens and firms that face while also delivering hydration. I am not normally someone who uses serums, but I am very excited to give this product a try!
- Goodnight Glow Retin-ALT Sleeping Crème
- A night cream with Retin-ALT, this product boasts characteristics of deep hydration, firming, and enhances the texture and color of your skin. This is again a free product that came with my purchase, and I am very excited to try this. while I am a little concerned with how this product might interact with my nighttime acne treatment, I will be sure to keep you posted on how it works and I am eager to see if it works.
- Ole Henriksen clear skincare bag
- This product came free with a $50 or more purchase, and it is so cute! I don’t have any clear, leak-proof bags for my skincare and this will store all of my products for travel perfectly and allow airport travel to be a bit more simple.
