Skin Care

Mask Away Your Blackheads With These Pore Refiners

A mask a day keeps the pores at bay...

by Hannah Savin | COMMENT

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Do you remember the episode of "Sex and the City" where Charlotte, fresh out of her relationship with Trey, reverts to her favorite "secret single behavior" of studying her pores in a magnifying mirror? There is something so satisfying about viewing and extracting these tiny dots all over your T-zone. Hey, we all do it! However, popping and squeezing these clogs is not the answer. If you struggle with clogged pores and blackheads on the regular, you probably have oily or combination skin — skin that produces excess oil, which, combined with dead skin cells and bacteria, leads to congested pores and eventually blemishes.

The answer lies in exfoliation — a mix of physical and chemical exfoliants to slough off dead skin cells, clear out pores and absorb excess oil. This is where pore refining masks come in. These masks treat clogged pores, blackheads and pimples with exfoliants like AHAs, BHAs as well as detoxifying ingredients like charcoal and clay. The best part is, they bring balance to the skin by also providing moisture so as not to strip the skin or cause an over-production of oil (to counteract over-dry skin). They also provide a mattifying and blurring effect that makes pores less noticeable. Check out some of our favorite pore refining masks that will give you the smoothest, clearest, glowiest skin around.

Image via @olehenriksen

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