Today’s blog post is loooooooooooong overdue. (I know I say that about pretty much every single product I write about, but I really mean it this time… and all those other times…). In this post, I’ll be sharing my experience using The Ordinary’s Mandelic Acid 10% + HA. To find out more about mandelic acid and all its interesting, cool properties, check out this post here.
I bought The Ordinary mandelic acid late last year along with The Ordinary’s ascorbic acid but didn’t actually start using either of them until early this year. After seeing some not so favourable results i.e. peeling, I decided to take a break before reintroducing them into my skincare routine, until I decided to drop the ascorbic acid altogether. I continued exclusively using mandelic acid in my night routine, sometimes applying my Fresh Lotus Youth Preserve Dream Face Cream Super Lotus Night Recovery on top, until a couple of months ago when I noticed how dry my face was feeling deep in the layers. That then prompted me to temporarily switch my morning and night skincare routine to the more hydrating rose trio from Fresh. However, about two weeks ago, my face really started acting up and breaking out ALL over. It was then that I knew I needed to get back onto my mandelic acid to help keep the spots at bay, which is where we are now.
After all of that, I think it’s fair to say I’ve been on quite an adventure with mandelic acid. As I come to the end of the bottle, I’m looking back at all the things I learned while using the acid as well as things I noticed, liked and didn’t like. Let’s get into it.
What I Noticed:
- Though I still experienced spots every now and again (especially around my period), I noticed that my spots weren’t as occurrent as usual. Mandelic acid is a gentle chemical exfoliant, which slowly sloughs away at dead skin.
- In terms of reduced hyperpigmentation and dark spots, I didn’t notice a change in my face. I expect I’d probably need to be using the acid consistently for a couple of months before seeing those kinds of results.
- I also noticed that this acid absorbed quite quickly, which made following up my skincare easier as I didn’t need to wait for ages to apply the next product if I was in a rush.
- In the early weeks of using mandelic acid, I would apply A LOT (about three squirts per section). This most likely caused the peeling I mentioned before, as well as causing my cheeks and forehead to sting like mad. I must have thought that because my face had been used to using glycolic acid, that it’d be okay with me applying silly amounts of this acid on to it – boy was I wrong because that was not the case at all.
- This wasn’t something that happened straight away – I only noticed in during the warmer months – but my cheeks suddenly started feeling very dry. Imagine the feeling when you wash your hands with soap and then touch paper afterwards… eeeeeek. At first, I wasn’t sure what was causing this level of dryness until I stopped using the acid.
What I Liked:
- I like how easy the acid was to apply. It comes in a pipette bottle meaning you can control how much you put on.
- I loved how the acid helped stabilise my skin and keep the annoying spots on my cheeks and forehead at bay.
- I really liked how well the acid paired with other products in my skincare routine and didn’t cause irritation either.
- This acid is so cheap, I think paid about £8 for this bottle. Not only has it lasted me for such a long time, but it’s also super effective which is a massive plus!
- And lastly, I really love that mandelic acid, as a whole is better suited for darker skin, so I was less worried about it causing more discolouration or dark spots.
What I Disliked:
- Probably the only thing I didn’t like about the acid was how dry it made my face.
Will I Buy Again?
I will most likely buy this mandelic acid again because I did really like it, despite stopping and starting with it so many times. Additionally, now that I have a handle on how best to use it on my face, I’ll be better equipped at maximising its benefits without causing the same issues.
That said, I do want to start using retinol this autumn/winter, so I’m curious to see how these two products work together and how I’d be able to incorporate both into my overall routine without overdoing it.
Have you tried mandelic acid? Let me know in the comments below.
alice
xo
