Exploring Paris & French Skincare with La Roche-Posay | Advertorial

 

It wasn't until I developed adult acne, did I learn to appreciate good skincare. I'd always had relatively good skin, even throughout my teens and seemed to avoid that 'life ending' puberty led onslaught of acne. Of course I had the odd blemish here and there, but never anything too extreme.

Growing up with a single mother who didn't care much for makeup, skincare or beauty products, I learnt through trial and error, and women's magazines which skincare products to use. Needless to say, I picked up a few terrible beauty care tips... (Does anyone else shudder with horror at the thought of putting toothpaste on  breakouts and baby powder in their hair now?)

When my skin was at its worst, It affected my self confidence in so many different ways. I was a shadow of my former self and I wasn't sure on the best way to deal with it, but one thing that helped me, was sharing what I was going through.

It took me the better part of a year to get my skincare routine nailed in a way that was working for me, and it was so heart warming to see all the amazing comments and messages of support in Instagram and YouTube from those that had been following my skincare journey.

One thing I've learnt is how temperamental acne-prone skin can be, and I'm very aware that many of the skincare products I added into my routine were mid to high end in price point – which isn't very purse friendly. A few of you were disappointed that I hadn't found more affordable products that work to combat blemishes and acne prone skin, so over the past few months I've been looking into alternative options that are affordable to everyone and that's why I recently headed to Paris, famed for not only it's amazing Boulangeries, but also it's wonderful French Pharmacies and incredible skincare, with La Roche-Posay. .

These days I'm always more reserved, and hesitant with trying new products, but one thing which attracted me to La Roche-Posay, is that they have an affordable range of products called Effaclar, designed specifically for acneprone skin. In the summer, I was SO into the La Roche-Posay Thermal Spray Water, and was intrigued to learn more about their products as I've seen so many bloggers talking about them. With that in mind, a quick Parisian trip seemed the perfect way to learn more. 

I checked into the beautiful Les Bains Hotel, infamous in Paris and showbiz circles for the Celebrity packed parties that frequently took place in the 80's and 90's. Now, it's decked out into a beautiful designer led boutique hotel. The Room was so beautiful, and looked like a bloggers paradise with a beautiful marble headboard and crisp white sheets. 

I spent the first afternoon wandering around the city, even stopping for a quick bite to eat near The Louvre, and before  I headed home, I got the chance to spend time with a leading French Dermatologist – Prof Phillipe Beaulieu. If you follow me on Twitter then you may have heard about a very special YouTube video Phillipe and I got to film together! I asked on twitter if you had any questions or thoughts you'd like me to put to a Dermatologist, such as 'What do Derms REALLY think of face wipes?' as well as a few other burning questions I see popping up all the time about skincare.

A huge thank you to LaRoche-Posay for helping me understand more about skin, as I got to attend a special Dermatologist led skincare session. We talked about everything from Isotretinoin (more commonly referred to as Accutane), to the different types of acne and how they are graded on a scale – from very severe to no lesions (only redness) and how dermatologists treat the different types. It was fascinating and I feel like it totally enriched my knowledge, which hopefully I can pass on. Over the next few months I'll be putting the knowledge and skincare to the test, and trying out the La Roche-Posay Effaclar range in the hopes that it could be the affordable skincare line we're all looking for.

Em xx