Spot Free Skin (Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions Spot Treatment Gel)

Member Name: blonde_girl774

Product:	Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions Spot Treatment Gel
Date:	10/03/08 (311 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Does the job.

Disadvantages: Slightly pricey.

I've recently started using a lot of Clinique products, largely because I've finished University and can actually afford to spend a lot more on my skincare regime. However one product that has been firmly kept and replenished in my make up bag for over five years now is the Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions Spot Treatment Gel. It's probably been the only product that I used when I was 17 and am still using to this day.

The Brand

Clinique is actually an off-shoot of the Estee Laudir company and was established in 1968. It is advertised as a premium brand of make up and skin care products which is currently stocked at Boots, Debenhams, Selfridges and other department stores. The range includes basic skin care as well as make up, hair care and specialised skin products such as the one I'm reviewing here. The range is quite exclusive and at the higher end of the market with prices ranging from £10 to £30 roughly; eye shadows retail at around the £11 mark and foundations at around the £18 mark to give you a couple of examples. All products are allergy tested and fragrance free so it's really good for sensitive or troubled skin.

The Product

The gel comes in a small green tinted plastic bottle with a pale green lid, this packaging seems quite symbolic to the Clinique brand in general. It's quite simple yet effective, the screw on lid means it's easy to open the bottle and the plastic packaging means it's easy to squeeze out a little of the product.

The product itself is a clear gel, it's a similar consistency to a liquid foundation or a cleansing gel. There is quite an astringent smell to this gel, despite all the Clinique products being fragrance free there is always an accompanying natural smell. It smells very slightly like weak nail varnish remover, this smell does fade though once you've applied the product and I've never found it particularly off putting.

Application is really straightforward; simply squeeze a tiny bit of gel onto a clean finger and apply it to the blemish and surrounding area. Clinique recommend that you "cleanse skin, apply thin layer to blemish, use one application daily, if needed and no dryness occurs, increase to 2 or 3 times daily."

I tend to apply the gel at night once I've washed my face thoroughly and find it soaks into my skin in about 20 seconds. I've also applied it a couple of times in the morning and although it does give a slight sheen to the skin it can easily be covered up with make up.

The Result

So how does it actually work? It contains salicylic acid which is proven to reduce blemishes as well as witch hazel which is a natural antiseptic. It also contains ingredients that prevent blemishes from growing in size and also soothing elements which calm down any redness on the skin.

And does it work? It certainly does! If I ever get a little red spot or a white head I'll simply dab a little bit of this on before going to bed and on 9 out of 10 occasions it will have disappeared by the next morning. On the odd time that the blemish is still visible it's always decreased in size a little and will generally have gone by the next day if I use the gel again.

My only warning would be to watch how often you're using this product as if you find yourself using it on a daily basis it will dry out your skin quite noticeably. I use it once or twice a week and find it doesn't affect the moisture of my skin at all but on the odd occasion I've used it 3 or 4 nights on the same area I've found it's made my skin quite dry and flaky.

The Conclusion

As I said before I've had this in my make up bag for over 5 years now and I can honestly say I wouldn't be without it. It retails at £12 for a 15ml bottle and on average I'd say a bottle lasts me around two years depending how often I use it. I bought my current bottle at Christmas 2006 and I've still got just under half left. I tend to use the gel about once or twice a week on average. Therefore it's costing me around £6 a year to keep this gel in my make up bag which is a small price to pay for the wonders it does!

Thanks for reading.

Summary: An anti-blemish spot treatment from Clinique... one that works!