Hi Guys,

Recently I have been trying a few new bits of skincare and I thought it was about time to give my verdict on them. When it comes to skincare I have my usual set of products that I swear by, but I find my skin goes through strange patches of oiliness and breaks out, so occasionally I switch it up a little in order to see if the change will make a difference. Recently I saw a lot of hype around the Aldi products, including the Hot Cloth Cleanser and the Glycolic Pads. I usually use my Nip and Fab ones so wanted to see if these could work as a cheaper alternative. I also was kindly sent the Swiss Clinic 2mm Derma roller*. I had never used one before and was intrigued to see if this could add anything to my skin, especially regarding the pigmentation around my mouth.

Swiss Clinic offer a Skin Renewal Treatment for £89, whereby you are sent a derma roller, along with a rejuvenating serum complex. You use the roller all over the face on cleansed skin. I did this in the evening rather than the morning and spent about three minutes slowly rolling over all parts of the skin even down to the neck, but avoiding the eye area. The roller is covered in 540 silver plated micro-needles and I expected it to be a little painful, after all no pain, no gain, however I didn't find it painful in the slightest and would definitely opt for the 5mm roller next time. Once completed you then apply the  rejuvenating serum and any other skincare you wish to. The product is supposed to be absorbed up to 300% more due to the little channel the roller has created!

You do this for 5 days and then have 5 days of rest and continue until you get the desired effect. Swiss Clinic also offer a Cleaning Spray which I would say is a necessity as it ensure the needles are thoroughly clean before penetrating the skin. 

So here is my verdict, I have been using it for 5 weeks now and have completed four cycles of the 5 days on and 5 days off. I have seen a small improvement in scarring around my mouth area. I suffer from coldsores and have one particular scar from my teenage years that is still quite prevalent, I have seen a small improvement in its appearance. However the overall pigmentation around my mouth I feel still exists and I'm not sure I will ever be able to get rid of it. The use of the derma roller is also supposed to encourage the production of new skin cells, but in the first few weeks of using it I did find my skin breaking out quite a bit, I wasn't sure if this was due to the fact my skin was getting used to the product or the product itself. It has now calmed down, however I am still battling with spots around my mouth and forehead area, but this could be hormonal too.

I found the rejuvenating serum really refreshing after I have rolled as it is quite cool, although apart from this I am not sure what it has added to my skin regime. Overall I like the derma rolling process and will continue to do this, however I think I might stick to using my own skincare products with it. Only time will tell with the derma roller and I plan on continuing to use it, I feel as though it is one of those products which is a long term investment and you need to be in it for the long haul to achieve the desired result, as well as be willing to go through some ups and downs along the way. In the big scheme of things I haven't really used it for long enough to get the effects I want, so I will keep you posted with updates.

Part of my breakouts might have been due to the change in use of products. As I said earlier I purchased some skincare from Aldi. Firstly with the Hot Cloth Cleanser (£3.99), I have really enjoyed using this. I have a section on my Instagram highlights (click here) where you can watch my first impressions but overall I really think it works great as a cleanser. My skin feels clean and quite soft after using. Even though my skin hasn't been its best recently, I don't think it is due to the cleanser as it throughly cleanses my makeup and the skin feels pristine after. It contains eucalyptus oil which is the overwhelming smell that hits you straightaway, as well as cocoa butter and extracts of chamomile, all perfect for soothing and leaving your skin soft. So next time you are shopping, pick one up, I would definitely say it is worth a try.

One product I haven't been so impressed with is the Glycolic Daily Cleansing pads (£2.49), unfortunately I don't feel as though they are strong enough and blame my breakout on this. I feel like the fact that they don't state the percentage of glycolic acid is a tell tale sign. I don't get the same effect compared to the nip and fab or my pix glow tonic and maybe this is what my skin has been missing. Again the pads are convenient as they are ready to use, but without the right amount of acid they just aren't effective.

Overall from the new skincare products I have been using I can honestly say that the Hot Cloth cleanser, as well as the derma roller are products I will continue to use, however when it comes to the glycolic pads I am going back to my nip and fab. I am also on the hunt for a new serum to use after derma rolling so would love any suggestions in the comments below.

Amina xx

*PR sample. All opinions are my own.