Once upon a time, I thought that the acne that plagued me throughout my teens would magically disappear as soon as I entered adulthood. I had no idea how this would happen, but I assumed sometime around my 18th birthday my skin would become radiantly clear.
Memo to my younger self: That didn’t happen.
It took many years of patience, persistence, and some very, very strong prescription medications, but my skin did clear up considerably by the time I was in my early twenties. And it stayed clear, for about five years. Then the breakouts began again. The acne wasn’t as bad as it had been when I’d been in my teens, but it was there.
By this point, I was living in a new town and did not have a dermatologist, so I took to Google to look for help. It was there that I stumbled upon Exposed Skin Care. The reviews were promising, as were the before and after photos.
I checked out the site and learned that Exposed offers various kits, each full of products to help fight acne and improve skin tone. I decided to give it a try and ordered a Basic Kit.
The Basic Kit comes with 5 products:
- The Exposed Facial Cleanser, which combines salicylic acid to clean pores and kill acne bacteria with sage extract and vitamin B5 to calm irritation
- The Exposed Clearing Tonic, a salicylic acid facial toner
- The Exposed Acne Treatment Serum, which is formulated with tea tree oil and green tea extract to fight bacteria and heal skin
- The Exposed Clear Pore Serum, is a lightweight gel formulated with salicylic acid, green tea, and licorice root extracts to clarify and balance skin
- The Derm-X Cloth, is a facial microdermabrasion cloth to exfoliate dead skin cells and remove dirt
The Expanded Kit offers the above products, as well as the Exposed Skin Care Moisture Complex, a hydrating facial gel. And the Ultimate Kit comes with all of the above, as well as a Microderm Exfoliating Scrub, a Clarifying Mask, and a bottle of probiotic capsules.
The Basic Kit arrived within days of ordering it and I noticed a huge change in my skin after only a week of use. I followed the routine suggested by the team at Exposed:
- In the morning, I’d wash my face with the Facial Cleanser
- Pat dry
- Add the Clearing Tonic
- And then I’d dab on the Acne Treatment Serum.
- Finally, I would apply a moisturizing lotion.
At night, I’d use the cleanser and tonic, followed by the Clear Pore Serum and moisturizer.
I was truly amazed at how quickly the products worked. They have become my immediate go-to anytime I have a breakout. That said, I don’t use them all the time, and there are a few things you should be aware of before ordering.
Things to Know Before Ordering Exposed Skin Care Products
If you order through the company’s website, the kits come with a membership to Exposed. This means that you are charged $10 less for the kit than you would if you weren’t a member, but it also means you’ll receive a new kit automatically every 60 days. (Though the site says you can adjust the period at any time.)
Personally, it takes me a long while to get through a kit. Because my skin dries out easily, I only use the products when I’m dealing with a breakout. Once my skin clears up I go back to my regular cleanser and serum. So, for me, it doesn’t make sense to get a membership.
Because of this, I no longer buy the full kits but instead buy individual products as needed. My go-to products are the Exposed Facial Cleanser, the Exposed Clearing Tonic, the Exposed Acne Treatment Serum, and the Exposed Clear Pore Serum. (I didn’t really like the Derm-X Cloth, as I found it was too rough for my skin.)
Each of the products I use costs between $20 and $25 per item, but they last for a long while. A little goes a long way, and they’ve helped my skin significantly.