Tuesday, May 10, 2011

To Scrub Or Not To Scrub?


by Tina Garcia


I had a severe case of acne during my teen-age years which left me with acne scars impaled by the acne pricking treatment my old derma gave me. Of course, I never went back to that dermatologist with all the pain she caused me and I had to bear living with the scars for the rest of my life.

Fortunately, as time moved on there are a lot of modern derma treatments that were developed and all claimed to remove the pimple scars on my face. I tried at least 2 of them, skin peeling and diamond peel. Both were excruciating and painful that it never made me want to take them again. My friends told me to finish the treatment to see the true results. But who in their right mind would want to subject themselves to unnecessary pain just to become beautiful? Well, some would but I wouldn't.

I resorted to topical treatments which were much more for me. I didn't want to take anything orally because I believe it will alter my body system too much. There are medical ointments that claim they can reduce or remove scars. But they are way too expensive and they do cause some side effects. My skin is hypersensitive to anything so I experimented instead on using facial scrubs.

According to a dermatologist friend of mine, gradual scrubbing can reduce the appearance of facial scars and even signs of aging like wrinkles. It all depends on what topical solution you will apply on your face. I didn't want to be too drastic and apply just any chemical on my face so I started out by trying all the commercially made facial scrubs I can find in the market.

I've tried the likes of Maxipeel, Eskinol and St. Ives. What I noticed about them is that they leave a sense of clean after you wash your face but after a while you feel an oily film on your skin afterwards. What is so strange about it is that when I rub my face with a cotton ball dipped in facial cleanser, the ball still has some remnants of dirt on it. That's pretty annoying especially when you know you scrubbed your face well for a good ten minutes!

With our very humid climate, I tend to wash my face at least 3 times in a day. With these products my face is stripped of the natural oils and it tends to look dry. Imagine to my horror when one of my friends told me I was starting to look dehydrated. "Parang nanunuyo ka!" And there goes my brand switching again and hunt for the facial scrub that will truly work for me.

A very good friend of mine (Steph) started introducing organic products to me. I wasn't into using organic stuff that time because my initial reaction is that "Oh my! That's expensive!". During my scouting for beauty and facial stuff, most organic products are marketed as really pricey that it's so way out of my budget. I couldn't afford it. Plus there's this apprehension that I might be spending so much money on something I'm not sure will really work for me.

Knowing that concern, Steph sent me a few samples to try out. Imagine my delight when the LBC delivery man knocked on my door and handed my goodies! She sent me a small tub of the STRAWBERRY MOSCHINO. Upon opening the container I was greeted by a pleasing Strawberry scent that was truly yummy. It really smells like Strawberry shake! I dipped my finger and the texture of the scrub was soft and light to the touch. It had  fine grains in it. When I rubbed it on my face it felt really invigorating. It feels cool and the fine grains weren't harsh on the skin. After I washed it off my face felt softer, smoother and cleaner. I waited after a while anticipating that familiar oily film that normally appears after you scrub your face. There wasn't any! And the good news is, my face didn't itch which was a normal reaction for me whenever I try a new product.

I asked Stephy what was in that wonderful scrub. I love the way it smells and the soft texture of the scrub itself. The fine grains in it were not strawberry seeds but poppy seeds. It's highly effective as a natural exfoliant she said. It's so mild you can even use it on your entire body...which I did with my next bath! I let my daughter try it and she loved it as well. "Mommy can you order a bigger one next time?" she said.

I then tried another sample she sent...the ANTI-AGEING CREAM. It had a different scent, a bit lighter but equally refreshing. The scrub is colored white, has the same consistency as the Strawberry Scrub but the fine grains are thoroughly blended with the mixture. You can't see them but you can feel them when you apply it on your face. It thoroughly sloughs off the dirt and oils that clog up your pores at the end of the day. Intrigued by the fascinating scent, I asked Stephy what it was and she said it was "White Tea" scent.

After just using them for around 2 weeks what I noticed about my skin is that it looks fresher and my pimple scars got lighter. I believe if I use them a little longer my scars will eventually fade away. Stephy recommends I use some ACE serum to go along with it. I just started using the that the other night as I am still building my own facial cleansing regimen as I try out more and more of the LILAC Organic products.

In my next order I got 100ml containers of each of the scrubs. These products are so addicting that I use them everyday. Now I look forward to taking a bath...in fact i take a bath 3 times a day just so I could use the scrubs. My daughter and my husband are equally addicted to the scrubs that I foresee I'll be including them in my grocery budget every month. It's so affordable anyway so I'm willing to set aside for that little luxury. Besides, it's truly hard to find a product that's safe and truly works! I am looking forward to trying the other flavors. I heard that there is now a COFFEE SCRUB and a CHOCO LOCO.