And they're called blackheads. Gross, right? Agreed. Particularly when you can't get rid of them. But in fact you can manage this little recurring nightmare, and it isn't even that much work.
When I was a teenager (you know, five years ago), I discovered what seemed to be a permanent constellation of blackheads decorating my nose. I did what any teenager would have done during that particular decade, and assaulted myself with SeaBreeze. Didn't work, but, attractively, my nose did turn red and peel.
Then, I developed a more sophisticated approach: I tried sucking them out with sickly blue St. Ives mud masks. Also didn't work, plus smelled funny.
Years later, Biore came out with the utterly addictive pore strips, which adhere to your nose, and when dry, peel off to reveal the little oxidized oil plugs sticking up from the tape. Which provide an endless source of rapt fascination, but, oddly, one's nose still appears to have blackheads, despite the offending oil plugs just having been yanked out. Why? The pore itself is stretched out, so still looks dark. Then attracts yet more dirt and grime, starting the cycle all over again.
So does anything actually work? Sort of, yes. First, exfoliate religiously; doing so keeps the dead cells from clogging up on the surface of your skin, and allows the turnover and shedding process to move along as it should. Second, yes, go ahead and use the Biore strips, OR a mud mask (I happen to love Aesop's Parsley Seed mask) but plenty work quite well, look for ingredients like charcoal and kaolin clay. And of course the epic Borghese mask is always a go-to favorite. Just make sure to use the mud mask after exfoliating and steaming for best results. If you use the Biore strips, try doing a gentle chemical exfoliation afterwards, it helps to tighten up the pores, even if temporarily. Over time, chemical exfoliation can help to improve the appearance of pores more generally, so keep at it even on off weeks.
See? Not so hard. And minimal grossness.
When I was a teenager (you know, five years ago), I discovered what seemed to be a permanent constellation of blackheads decorating my nose. I did what any teenager would have done during that particular decade, and assaulted myself with SeaBreeze. Didn't work, but, attractively, my nose did turn red and peel.
Then, I developed a more sophisticated approach: I tried sucking them out with sickly blue St. Ives mud masks. Also didn't work, plus smelled funny.
Years later, Biore came out with the utterly addictive pore strips, which adhere to your nose, and when dry, peel off to reveal the little oxidized oil plugs sticking up from the tape. Which provide an endless source of rapt fascination, but, oddly, one's nose still appears to have blackheads, despite the offending oil plugs just having been yanked out. Why? The pore itself is stretched out, so still looks dark. Then attracts yet more dirt and grime, starting the cycle all over again.
So does anything actually work? Sort of, yes. First, exfoliate religiously; doing so keeps the dead cells from clogging up on the surface of your skin, and allows the turnover and shedding process to move along as it should. Second, yes, go ahead and use the Biore strips, OR a mud mask (I happen to love Aesop's Parsley Seed mask) but plenty work quite well, look for ingredients like charcoal and kaolin clay. And of course the epic Borghese mask is always a go-to favorite. Just make sure to use the mud mask after exfoliating and steaming for best results. If you use the Biore strips, try doing a gentle chemical exfoliation afterwards, it helps to tighten up the pores, even if temporarily. Over time, chemical exfoliation can help to improve the appearance of pores more generally, so keep at it even on off weeks.
See? Not so hard. And minimal grossness.
