For years I thought I had the worst skin in the world, I dreaded facing the mirror each morning as I knew I'd be confronted by yet more spots, lumps and bumps. It created havoc with my self-esteem and confidence. I must have spent a fortune on expensive salon facials, high-end products and skin-improving supplements and all to no avail. No amount of water, healthy eating or careful cleansing made any difference. I've only ever worn lippy and eye make-up so I couldn't even blame pore-blocking foundation.
In the end I stopped worrying, cut my products down to a bare minimum and just got on with it. Guess what? My skin flourished with the lack of fuss. I still get the occasional spot but I can live with that.
My favourite range was Boots' Botanics until I discovered that Poundland did a line called "Pure" -identically packaged products with the same ingredients at a fraction of the price.
Johnson's Baby Oil is an essential for removing make-up, hydrating the delicate eye area and as an all-over body moisturiser combined with a couple of drops of essential oil.
Essential oils are amazing. Lavender and tea tree can be applied directly to spots and acne.
For a weekly facial sauna combine a couple of drops of essential oil in a bowl with half a litre of steaming water, cover your whole head with a towel and put it over the steaming bowl so the towel forms a tent to hold the steam. Stay inside for five minutes and finish by slashing your face with cold water.
Good choices for facial oils are Patchouli (reduces puffiness), Lavender (normal skin), Chamomile (Dry skin, acne and sensitive skin if combined with 50% lavender) and Geranium (Combination and oily skin).