oh that's a toughie! all the products that I know of and use are for combo skin so I can't help you there. But I'd suggest that you read the labels very carefully before using anything because the usual products to even out skin tone contain alpha hydroxy acid, retinoids or hyluronic acid that can irritate dry/sensitive skin types. Good luck!

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'tis the season to be kinky falalalalah

Thanks for the tip Shi! I'll be sure to look out for that!

sounds like you have sensitized skin...probably from environmental factors and products you've been using on your face. my skin is really sensitized too. it gets blotchy and itchy, dry, sensitive, and just icky. lately i've been using dermalogica's kit for sensitized skin. the face wash is super calming and helps taking redness away. and the toner really calms everything down. you can get a kit that will last at least a month for around $30. it has the face wash, toner, barrier repair (you can use it like a moisturizer to protect your skin from all the crap in the environment), and a teeny little tube of eye cream. i'm 25, and i just started using eye cream. never too early to avoid wrinkles! so yeah. dermalogica is great. it's the only thing i will use. all the ingredients are natural and never ever make me break out or cause an allergic reaction. you can get their stuff at beauty supply stores (like ulta) or most places you can facials done. sorry! that was a lot!

link to the kit:
http://dermalogica.com/default2.asp?region=?&location=?

Bio oil is a cheap and really good way to even out skin tone. You can use it for almost anything.. stretch marks, scars, uneven skin tone, its great.

I'm going to look into dermalogica Jasi, sounds awesome!

yay! it's seriously the only stuff i can use. my skin is allergic and sensitive to everything. blech.

hmmmm I always distrust those snake oils that promise to cure and heal everything, Karma.... have you tried it yourself?

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'tis the season to be kinky falalalalah

Thanks for the suggestions gals! I'm looking into them now!

Yeah I bought some about a month ago because I had heard about it and happened to see some at the grocery store.. It seems to be working really well. I've been using it just on random scars, etc. but it hasn't upset my skin at all so.. I'm assuming it would be OK on the face. Obviously you should test it out on a small patch or somewhere other than the face first.

what kind of scars have you tried it on? like what color are they? (kinda weird question i know!). is it fading the color and how drastic has the change been? have you tried it on sunspots? sorry for the question barrage!

I am 33 and still have these problems (breakouts, scars). Overall, my skin is not terrible but I want to not have to use concealer. That would be so nice!!! I can't say I found THE product, but maybe seeing a derm for a prescription retinoid cream would be ideal for you. I have used Dermalogica also and like their products a lot. I am curious to try the desensitizing stuff Jasi talked about. Right now I am pregnant so I can't use a whole lot of products because of the ingredients so I'll have to wait.

yeah, i'm actually waiting until i'm done with accutane to try anything like that. i'm not allowed to use about a million products right now because of the medication. i have invested so much into clearing up my skin that i might even go the cosmetic surgery route to get rid of any scars that might remain...i don't even know yet if i'll have that many.

maybe you should consider accutane when you're done breast feeding. it could be the one thing that rids of you of breakouts forever...even if they are just minor. i was really afraid to do it, but it was the last thing left for me to try. i love it! it started drastically working the first week, and it's supposed to clear me up for good.

So far I've really only tried it on stretch marks.. and it seems to be working. I'm sure I'll try it on random scars as well..

I used to take bc pills for my skin and it was awesome.. then I stopped because I smoked and was worried about mixing the two. Now that I quit I'm thinking about starting up again

I have used this great bar soap. I buy it at Sally's Beauty Supply. It is a Tea Tree soap a generic that is similar to a Paul Mitchell soap. And it is wonderful. I have my sons and daughter use it as well and my oldest son has acne and it clears it up. I have found that my skin tine is even and that I don't have to wear foundation when I use it. It doesn't dry out my skin either. I love it!!! It is only about two and a half dollars. And it is a pretty big bar.

The new Olay X7 vits that I got are supposed to even out your skin tone!

SueBree - Do you know what the name of the soap is? You've peaked my interest!

Hmm Suebree, I used to use teatree oil and soap and didn't notice much difference.. but that was year ago! I'm interested as well, can you order online??

It is just Tea Tree Oil Soap. It is in a white box with black lettering and it says Generic similar to Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Soap. It is a tall box. It works wonders. My sister in law and her daughter both suffer from acne as well and she swears by it too. She is the one who told me about it and to tell you the truth you can see the difference in her skin as well. It looks more hydrated and even. My kids skin looks great too.

I tried to see if you can order it online but it says it is only sold in the store. At any Sally's beauty supply. The site doesn't show a picture of it either.

It has other stuff in it too, like lavender oil, which is wonderful for the skin.

My mom goes to Sally's all the time - I'll ask her if she can pick up one for me. Not sure where the closest one to me is...

Yea, yo have to at least give it a try ALSW. I loved how even it made my skin. I don't get a lot of break outs but I hate the red tones I get and the unevenness, at this soap made my complexion flawless.

For that price I'd definitely try it! My skin is so light that the littlest bit of redness stands out like a sore thumb and I get the usual hormonal breakouts. Sounds great to me!

Hmm I'll have to look for one. I wonder if I can just use any teatree soap or if that specific one is best..

This one is a body bar but I leave it in the shower and use it on my face as well. It works great. I would say try this one first Karma, because there is more than tea tree oil in it that help soothe and calm the skin.

http://www.tagzhome.com/Soap.html?1105983999812

This link has info about the Paul Mitchell soap, and it is exactly the same as the generic bar sold at Sally's. The one at Sally's is just a no name brand.

karma - I was just on makeupalley and if you're looking for one that you can buy online, Jason Natural Cosmetics Tea Tree Soap for Hands and Face got really great reviews and it's on drugstore.com

INGREDIENTS: Sodium Palmate, Cocoate [or Sodium Palm Kernelate], Water (Aqua), Wild Mint (Mentha Arvensis) Oil, Glycerin, Tea Tree (Melaleuca Alternifolia) Oil, ‘Awapuhi’ White Ginger (Hedychium Coronarium) Extract, Aloe Barbadensis Extract, Kelp (Macrocystis Pyrifera) Extract, Parsley (Carum Petroslinum) Flakes, Rosemary (Rosmarinus Officinalis) Extract, , Rosemary (Rosmarinus Officinalis) Oil, Jojoba (Buxus Chinesis) Oil, Lavender (Lavandula Angustifolia) Oil, Eucalyptus Globulus Oil, Peppermint (Mentha Piperita) Oil, Sodium Chloride, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Pentasodium Pentetate, Trisodium HEDTA, Titanium Dioxide.

These are the ingredients that are in the soap.

Awesome, thanks!

So.. I have really sensitive skin.. still recommended, right? I'm definitely checking it out.. I'll order one or the other this week!

Karma, that soap is wonderful for sensitive skin. My oldest son has sensitive skin and it clears him up beautifully.

WOo hoo.. well then I'm excited. I've been using plain ol neutrogena bar soap, but it dries my skin out SO MUCH and I'm not sure that it does anything for it one way or another.

Just give this stuff a try. I noticed a difference right away.

Hmm, tea tree soap sounds awesome. I don't know what it is, but I really love that medicated smell.

Same here. My daughter uses tea tree oil on her skin after she washes her face, and my whole bedroom and all my clothes smell like tea tree oil LOL

A Vitamin A cream is great - but I believe you can only get it when prescribed (at least, that's how I get mine).
It takes a couple months to take effect, but it works at correcting the problems rather then masking them so it’s worth it.

suebree - I've been trying the tea tree soap for the past few days and I love it! Definitely less oily, but I'll have to make my final judgement after all these hormones start in a few days. Thanks!

It will help you through that too. It helped me too. My daughters face cleared up after just two days of using it. I swear by that soap. I try to buy it in bulk when I find it at the store because they don't carry alot, so when I find it I buy them out LOL
I am so glad it worked for you ALSW!!!!!

I still need to find this! I keep reminding myself every morning to look online/order it and then I forgot!

The only thing that stinks karma, is that they don't dell it online. You canonly buy it at the Sally stores. I tried to get it online because the store closest to my house only carried two bars at a time, and the website says it is only carried in the store. You can find the Paul Mitchell brand, online it self, (the one at Sallys in a generic of Paul Mitchell) It goes by the name Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Body Bar. But it can be used on the face as I use it.

Thats what I was thinking of Sue.. just ordering the Paul Mitchell.. You said its the same thing, right

Yeah, same ingredients. You are going to love it. LEt me know if you get it, how it works for you.

Oh trust, I will be back here as soon as I get it/try it!

Cool. I hope it works for you as it has worked for me, and my kids. My sons face is proof. He has had acne for sometime, as has tried Proactive and all those types of treatments, and this soap worked overnight on his skin. I hope it works for you too.

Oh gosh I tried Proactive in high school and it made my face break out SO, SO bad. I was thinking of trying it again but.. I'm nervous. It didn't work well for your son

No , it didn't. I thought that the Proactive would, but it kind of made it worse. I think it is because he has sensitive skin, and it dried out his skin too much which caused him to break out more. This soap clears him up and doesn't cause redness, which is a bonus.

Oh OK so I'm not the only one that had a bad reaction to ProActic The commercials are so sneaky.. they suck you in and make you think its some miracle face wash!!

I tried Proactive too and absolutely hated it. It dried out my face so badly!

And I won't say that I'm oily face free just yet, but I can see a huge difference! And my face is a little less red so far too. You may have gotten me hooked, Sue!

Believe me, if I hadn't tried it myself I would've never posted about it.
I don't have trouble skin, but it is combination, so I am greasy in the summer and dry in the winter, and tend to breakout during that time of month. Plus I am a basket case when ti comes to unevenness and black heads. This soap totally evened my skin tone to the point that I don't have to wear foundation, I still ear it to protect my skin from the environment like dirt and dust, but I don't have to wear it if I don't want to and my skin looks even and hydrated. And I hate it when something dries out your skin to wear it feels itchy and tight, so I have to use a lot of moisturizer. My skin doesn't get that way with this soap.

Oh yeah that dry and tight is just the worst. Ugh.

I myself have extremely sensitive skin, so I know what you are dealing with. The most important thing is to moisturize, moisturize, moisturize.

I have a whole regimin that works for my skin, but I will just write the basics here:

I alternate cleansing with Murad Anti Acne Face Wash and a Cetaphil like face wash from my dermatologist. I'll use the Murad wash maybe once or twice a week, maybe more if its around that time of month, and the rest of the time its the Cetaphil. I always take my makeup off with Nuxe Cleansing Waters (made with green tea).

Its also really important to tone the skin after washing it, but sensitive skin can be tricky. I have gone through a few toners, but have fell in love with Duchess Marden Rose Water. Not only does it soothe and improve the skin, but its really refreshing in the middle of the day!

At night I use Lancome Primordial Face Serum (to protect from free radicals etc) underneath my moisturizer. And then I use a creamy moisturizer from my dermatologist- the closest thing I have found to it is Philosophy Hope in a Jar. I also really like any sort of oil serum as a moisturizer, I use one from Honurth.

Eye cream is very important - in the morning I use Korres under my eyes, and at night I use Lancome Primordial Eye Cream all around.

For my lips: At night I exfoliate with the Philosophy lip exfoliator and then coat my lips with the Korres lip butter. In the morning I use Fresh Sugar Lip Balm SPF 15.

I also use NV Perricone Ceramic Face Smoother on top of my moisturizer in the morning.

It is also really important when you have sensitive/red skin to do some extra maintenance. I exfoliate once a week - in the winter with Nuxe face exfoliator, in the summer with Fresh Sugar Face Scrub. And everyday I use the Fresh Rose Moisturizing Face Mask after washing my face in the shower. As an extra boost for a clear radiant complexion, once every two - four weeks I use a clay detoxifying mask also made by Honurth.

And of course, I drink tons of water during the day and always wear SPF.

I know its a lot, but your skin is worth it. If you don't want to go through all this work - I would at the very least stick to the SPF, drinking lots of water, the cetaphil cleanser, Duchess Marden rose water,the Hope in a Jar Moisturizer, an eye cream and a lip balm. Everyday, twice a day. And never sleep in makeup. No matter what.

Thanks for the suggestions htiduj! I have totally resolved to drink more water and wear SPF. And I washed all my makeup off my face last night before bed. I'm so proud of myself.