Jolie is thrilled that Allure’s Daily Beauty Reporter included her skincare tips alongside those of fellow beauty gals Daneen from Spoiled Pretty, Erika from Makeup Bag, and Amber from Beauty Blogging Junkie (if you’re not reading their blogs, you should be, as not only are these ladies super knowledgable, but they’re just good people to boot!).  Daily Beauty Reporter Jessica Matlin, an old magazine chum, quizzed me on which skincare product is currently revving my motor.  My answer?  IS Clinical Super Serum Advance, a powerhouse serum that’s full of antioxidants, brightens the complexion, helps keep acne at bay, increases collagen production, and does your laundry.  (Okay, not true…but it does everything else!)  It is, let’s be real, hardly cheap—$130 for a serum?  Dude, I still don’t have a car!—but if you’re as skin obsessed as I am, genuinely worth every penny.

Lipgloss and nail polish are all well and good, but I feel about makeup the way I feel about fashion: it enhances and beautifies, sure, but at the end of the day it’s what’s underneath that counts.  As a result, skincare is my true beauty passion–if your skin isn’t glowing, taut and in its best shape, all the makeup in the world isn’t going to do a damn thing.  Luckily, there have been seemingly endless advances these past few years, as beauty companies are realizing the huge potential of the anti-aging market: now you can find a serum or night cream at every price.  But which ones are best…and do they actually work? 

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Sooo, the Clarisonic.  As promised, I’ve been testing it these past few days, and while it’s too soon to make a serious judgment about it (one way or the other), I’m tentatively pleased.  It cleanses thoroughly, it exfoliates well, my skin feels soft and smooth afterwards and it’s just fun to use.  During my Clarisonic time, my bathroom is full of birds chirping songs and mice dancing jigs!  A good time is had by all!

Seriously, though, my only real concern is the price: the Clarisonic goes for nearly $200…and while it would be the best device ever at, say, $29.99, does it really clean two hundred clams worth?  I mean, my skin is still just there, being all skin-like.  I haven’t yet broken out, but I’ve not morphed into a supermodel, either.  Sadly, the jury is still at recess.  I’ll keep you posted on my findings.

So, it’s been three weeks since my Vi Peel, and my skin still seems to be regulating itself.  After enjoying a gorgeous, smooth, soft complexion last week, I woke up on Saturday with four honking zits that seemingly came out of nowhere.  In the week after the Vi Peel, there was a noticable difference in the texture and appearance of my skin—less pigmentation, more even and radiant, although also more red—but my skin broke out from the intensive moisturizer that comes along with the peel.  The zits quickly went away, but now they’re back with a vengeance.  (I mean, seriously, I have some zits right now that deserve their own zip code.)  I don’t want to have unrealistic expectations, and know that the real test will come next week with my one-month-post-peel photos…but still.  Jolie is not so happy right now.

I just had something called a Vi Peel, and my face feels like it’s on fire and is going to fall off.  Good times!  It uses exfoliating phenol acids, vitamin C and Retin-A to slough off the top layer of skin in 3 -5 days, and is supposed to be good for all complexions, including African-American skin (which typically can’t tolerate peels without hyperpigmentation).  The actual peel only took about five minutes, and I’ve been instructed to use the Post-Peel Towelettes tonight and tomorrow night to help accelerate peeling, and then to expect the oh-so-sexy snake action to begin on Friday.  According to the literature, the peel will get rid of acne and acne scarring, brighten skin and increase collagen production…but right now all I can focus on is the fact that my skin looks like a tomato, smells like formaldehyde, and feels like it’s been sunburned and then scratched.  (Note to self: Eyes on the prize, J.)