Outside of a few minor skin issues, I’ve been blessed to have pretty good skin all of my life. As I get older, though, I notice the subtle changes in my skin, one of them being a little blotchiness + skin texture. My skin is relatively clear, but it hasn’t been as smooth as I’d like, so I wanted to try a few products with glycolic acid in them since it’s known to help with resurfacing.
I decided to ease into it by picking up Nip + Fab’s Glycolic Fix Cleanser and Glycolic Fix Serum. I didn’t want to try a product with too high of a concentration without knowing how my skin would react (we all remember that episode of SATC with Samantha), and I tend to do better with face washes and serums as opposed to peels or face masks. Nip + Fab is a relatively new product line from the UK (they originally launched Winter 2011 exclusively in Target but have expanded, so I picked mine up at Ulta); they’re touted as being a premium skincare line at an affordable price, and they’ve been building up more mainstream steam since naming Kylie Jenner as a Brand Ambassador. I’d passed their products before, but it wasn’t until I started looking for cleansers with glycolic acid that I had a reason to try them.
The Glycolic Fix Cleanser ($7.99) is a deeply penetrating foaming cleanser that draws out impurities while gently exfoliating and retexturing skin. It’s a thick gel, so a little goes a long way, and it has a light, citrus scent. Skin is clean, but because it contains olive oil, it doesn’t strip it of all its oils. Sometimes I use it alone, but if I’ve worn heavy makeup that day, I’ll use it with my Clarisonic for extra exfoliation. The glycolic acid percentage is only 2%, so some people think that’s too low for it to be beneficial (3%-10% is recommended for at home treatments), but after the recommended 2 weeks of use I could see a difference in my skin. It wasn’t as blotchy and definitely smoother than before.
The Glycolic Fix Serum ($14.99) is designed to help improve skin texture, smooth the appearance of fine lines + wrinkles, and reduce the appearance of pores. It contains aloe vera + 4% glycolic acid, so it’s able to sooth skin while still exfoliating. It’s thicker than normal serums (the bottle has a pump) but still light. The directions say to apply on damp skin and then rinse with lukewarm water, but I actually just leave it on and let it soak in.
I’m going into week 6 with these products and there’s definitely been a change in my skin. I asked a friend if they could tell a difference, and they could tell that it was brighter and more even, but more importantly, my skin looked smoother. I will always have larger pores on my cheeks (technically one cheek, which is weird), but this combo is helping a lot. I use it twice a day and make sure to apply a moisturizer with sunscreen and my skin has been loving it.
There are a ton more skincare and body-care products in the Nip + Fab line, and with them being very affordable (nothing is over $20!), I will be testing out more. I picked mine up at Ulta (lucked up on a BOGO event), BUT, if you’re a student, they offer a 15% discount on your purchase on their website.
Have you tried any products from Nip + Fab?