I don’t know what the problem with my skin is lately, but it definitely hates me. I have tons of blemishes and pimples on the face, especially in the chin and forehead area, not to mention the casual blackheads. Therefore, I decided to stop mixing all kind of products because it doesn’t help me and I’m struggling with acne for a month now.

So, I decided to start a skin care routine with La Roche Posay products because I need something that is still affordable and I found all kinds of good reviews online. I bought three products from the Effaclar line, for a simple skin care routine because these are products for oily and sensitive skin. I found a sales offer in an online pharmacy, so I got a kit containing a washing gel and a correcting cream and then I got a mattifying cream because I wanted to use something different for the morning and for the evening.

I got my products on October 5th, so I started using them on October 6th. Before anything else, here are some pictures to know what I’m dealing with right now.

My skin – day 1 of the trial

I have some pimples on the chin, as well as some scars from previous pimples that look pretty bad. On the forehead I have a large scar from a pimple that I got right on the place where I already had a large clogged pore that I decided to just leave alone because otherwise I have like a small hole in my skin. I don’t think I will be ever able to fix that.

So, now let’s talk a little bit about the products and give you my first impression on them.

La Roche Posay Effaclar Purifying Foaming Gel

This tube contains 200 ml and it’s a foaming washing gel to be used in the morning and/or in the evening. I decided to use it both times, just because I want to really stick to a skin care routine this time. I bought the washing gel and the correcting cream for about 18 euros, and the washing gel on its own costs about 10 euros here in pharmacies (that’s where most la Roche Posay products are sold) and in some online shops.

Ingredients:

AQUA / WATER • SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE • PEG-8 • COCO-BETAINE • HEXYLENE GLYCOL • SODIUM CHLORIDE • PEG-120 METHYL GLUCOSE DIOLEATE • ZINC PCA • SODIUM HYDROXIDE • CAPRYLYL GLYCOL • CITRIC ACID • SODIUM BENZOATE • PHENOXYETHANOL • PARFUM / FRAGRANCE

The ingredients is very simple. the key ingredient in this is Zinc PCA which we all know by now it’s for acne. I don’t mind the fragrance in skin care products, especially since it’s the last thing on the list.

The gel is very thick, so I only need a small amount for each use and does produce some foam, but not too much. My skin doesn’t feel dry and it doesn’t have that tightening feeling to it after using it. I also like that there’s no alcohol in this.

La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo (+)

Ingredients:

AQUA / WATER • GLYCERIN • DIMETHICONE • ISOCETYL STEARATE • NIACINAMIDE • ISOPROPYL LAUROYL SARCOSINATE • SI L I CA • AMMONIUM POLYACRYLOYLDIMETHYL TAURATE • METHYL METHACRYLATE CROSSPOLYMER • POTASSIUM CETYL PHOSPHATE • SORBITAN OLEATE • ZINC PCA • G LY C ERY L STEARAT E S E • ISOHEXADECANE • SODIUM HYDROXIDE • M Y R I S T Y L M Y R I S T A T E • 2-OLEAMIDO-1,3-OCTADECANEDIOL • ALUMINUM STARCH OCTENYLSUCCINATE • MANNOSE • POLOXAMER 338 • DISODIUM EDTA • CAPRYLOYL SALICYLIC ACID • CAPRYLYL G LYCOL • V ITREOSCILLA F E R M E N T • X A N T H A N G UM • POLYSORBATE 80 • ACRYLAMIDE/SODIUM ACRYLOYLDIMETHYLTAURATE COPOLYMER • SALICYLIC ACID • PIROCTONE OLAMINE • PARFUM / FRAGRANCE.

The key ingredients in this are the niacinamides, the proceramides ( to help with the scarring and hyperpigmentation caused by acne scars) and the APF Complex to help the skin regenerate.

They say that after 12 hours from application, the blemishes are reduced and after 8 days skin imperfections are reduced. I use this in the evening, because I see it as a skin treatment and I want to help the skin regenerate over night. It has a gel-cream texture that absorbs fast into the skin. The tube contains 40 ml and it’s sold for about 12 euros.

La Roche Posay Effaclar Mat Face Cream

Ingredients:

AQUA / WATER • GLYCERIN • DIMETHICONE • ISOCETYL STEARATE • ALCOHOL DENAT. • SILICA [NANO] / SILICA • DIMETHICONE / VINYL • DIMETHICONE CROSSPOLYMER • ACRYLAMIDE / SODIUM • ACRYLOYLDI METHYLTAURATE • COPOLYMER • METHYL METHACRYLATE • CROSSPOLYMER • BUTYLENE GLYCOL • PEG-100 STEARATE • COCAMIDE MEA • SARCOSINE • GLYCERYL STEARATE • TRIETHANOLAMINE • ISOHEXADECANE • PERLITE • CAPRYLOYL SALICYLIC ACID • TETRASODIUM EDTA • PENTYLENE GLYCOL • POLYSORBATE 80 • ACRYLATES/C10-30 • ALKYL ACRYLATE CROSSPOLYMER • SALICYLIC ACID • PARFUM / FRAGRANCE

The face cream claims to mattify the skin, make it look less oily or shiny and to reduce the appearance of enlarged pores. I use this in the morning and I find that it does hold up to the promise of keeping the skin matte throughout the day without making it feel dry. The tube also contains 40 ml and it’s sold for about 10 euros.

Update week 1

It’s October 13th today and I’ve been using the products for an entire week. The only thing I added to my routine was a face mask on Saturday but that’s about it.

I can definitely see some improvements on the big blemish I had on the forehead, but the scars on my chin are still very much visible, although maybe a little less red.

Unfortunately I still get whiteheads on regular basis in my T-zone which is weird because that is my oily area, so I don’t get why it doesn’t work there. However, I didn’t had any other big pimples.

My skin feels very dry. It’s getting colder outside and I can feel the cold air in the morning, and I think the face cream is just not hydrating enough. I feel my skin is dry and it’s not radiant at all. I don’t want to look oily, but this is a bit much. The mattifying cream would have been great during summer, nut now I’m not so sure.

I will try to keep this up as much as I can, but if my skin gets worse, I will have to rethink this skin care routine and introduce at least another moisturizer in the mix.

Update week 2

It’s October 20th and this time I didn’t take any pictures because my face basically looks the same. The spots on my chin are still there, plus I have two new pimples on my forehead, just above the right eyebrow.

The only update is that my skin doesn’t feel as dry as last week. I think I’ve gotten used to the product or something because now I’m feeling comfortable. I know skin care lovers all around the world would probably shake their heads and say that I should have stopped using the products or include another moisturizer since the first signs of dryness, but I want to go through with the trial since I spent my money on this skin care routine.

I have to try and stop picking at my skin because those little whiteheads are bugging me and I just make it worse by squeezing them.

Update week 3

It’s October 27th and I’m almost ready with my trial but still no change. The preventing part of the Effaclar Duo + thing doesn’t work because I still get pimples, some of them that are swollen and painful to the touch. So much for the no picking rule because I just can’t stop myself. The two scars on the chin are still visible although they did fade a little but I think that would have occurred naturally. I have two extra pimples on my right jaw line and a couple on the forehead, so….yeah, I’m really not impressed with the products so far.

Update week 4

So now it’s November 3rd, and it’s been exactly 4 weeks since I’ve been using the products, exactly like it says on the packaging and how I found it on their website. As you can see, my skin is not better. The scars on the chin and forehead are still visible, I still get pimples and I have that huge red pimple on the chin because I had it for 3 days now and it was swollen and painful so I had to do something because I couldn’t stand it anymore.

Conclusions:

Over the last week, I changed my routine a little bit, in the sense that I used the cleansing gel only in the evening because it also helped remove my makeup and I washed my face only with water in the morning. The skin was not as dry. The Effaclar Duo + cream was used as a targeted spot treatment and I didn’t apply it all over the face like it says on the packaging. Instead, I used the Effaclar Mat face cream both in the morning and in the evening after I applied the spot treatment. I didn’t have anymore whiteheads, and the skin felt a little more hydrated, but the pimples would still appear.

The Effaclar cleansing gel – after 4 weeks I still have more than half of tube left because you really don’t need much product so I will use it up, but I wouldn’t repurchase it because I think I need a cleanser that is more gentle with my skin.

Effaclar Duo + – I think it helps to dry out some of the pimples faster but it doesn’t help prevent anything. I have more than a quarter left of the tube and I will keep using it as a spot treatment, but it didn’t impress me.

Effaclar Mat face cream – the only product that I would repurchase but for the summer, because it does a great job at mattifying the face. For the cold season, I need a moisturizer that is more hydrating because if the skin is too mat (too dry in my opinion) all the fine lines and wrinkles are accentuated. But like I said, for the summer I think it would be a good face cream for my combination skin. I still have about a quarter of the face cream tube as well and I will use it up.

So, the trial was a disappointment for me because I expected to see some results. it didn’t help my skin at all and at some point (during week 2) I felt like it looked worse than before. Of course, everyone’s skin is different and it doesn’t mean that if something doesn’t work for me the products are bad. Unfortunately, it’s all about trial and error and there is no guarantee when it comes to skin care products.