Remember being a teenager, and having all those skin problems. I thought I had outgrown them, as during my later teens and into my twentieth year, my skin was really very clear. Then, I got pregnant. Holy crap! I had no idea my skin could produce so much oil! Although the pregnancy ended, my skin did clear, it has never had the very pretty tone and acne-free aspect that it did during my late teens. However, now that I am in my thirties, I am not only dealing with acne and pores that are bigger than the last house I rented, I am now dealing "fine" lines and the beginnings of wrinkles. Thank God, for the genetic gift of not looking as old as I am that my wonderful parents passed to me. However, I have really needed to find a facial cleanser that helped address the large pores, the acne issues and the fine lines in order to help Mother Nature in these areas.
Several months ago, a friend of mine told me about Olay Deep Cleansing Face Wash with witch hazel for skin that is oily or combination-type. Since I was at a point where I could no longer afford to get the nice, expensive anti-aging products that I had been using, this product sounded good, since my best friend pointed out that it was only around six dollars, and it did not take too much cleanser to do a thorough job on her face. She had bought a bottle and kept it for several months. Well, I thought that was definitely worth a shot.
I went to the local Wal-Mart, and they did not carry it. On my next trip to the next town, I went to that Wal-Mart, and they did have it, so I purchased the seven fluid ounce tube that comes in the convenient container that has the lid at the bottom, so you do not have to constantly shake it to get your cleanser to the opening. I spent $6.47 before taxes.
I followed the directions and wet my face. I do this with warm water to open the pores for cleaning. Heeding my friend's advice, I did not put a lot of the cleanser which has a thick consistency and a pearly sheen. It was about the size of a dime, as the directions advise. I added a little water to my hands, rubbed my fingers together and began to rub it into my facial and neck skin. I found this cleanser to be a lot more gentle to my skin than I expected, since it contained witch hazel. I began using it to remove my make-up at night, and I would use it during my morning shower.
Being cheap, I had bought witch hazel to use as an facial astringent before, and wow, did that so not work out for me. I keep some witch hazel handy, since it does have good properties for helping with swelling, bruising, acne, eczema, hemorrhoids, and many other unpleasant conditions (en.wikipedia.org). However, since Olay has such a good reputation for skin products, I was willing to take a chance.
I do understand that it can take several weeks for a product to show real results, so I was ready to be patient, but unlike most facial cleansers, this one actually started working within the first few days. My skin was much clearer, but it was not drying it, too much. My pores started getting quite a bit less noticeable, and the blackheads are a lot better. I have been using this product for months, and I did at one point try to go to a cheaper cleanser, and my skin very angrily retaliated with a nasty bunch of acne until I started using the Olay product again.
My skin is far from perfect, but it has improved greatly, since I have been using this product. I would highly recommend it. Also, the fine lines and wrinkles have gotten much less noticeable. My younger sister is a cosmetologist, and I was asking her about things for age lines. She looked at me, and said, "Why do you need to know?" with genuine bewilderment. I told her that I had been noticing lines on my forehead and around my eyes. She looked very closely, and said that she could barely see any lines.
Now that it is winter, my skin does have more of a tendency to get a little dry, but I simply put some inexpensive aloe vera gel on it to keep from having flaky skin and getting the breakouts that oily lotions cause. All in all, I would give this product four out of five stars. It does not produce miracles, but what does? However, it does help with the acne, blackheads, large pores and age lines. This is with the added bonus of not costing a fortune and lasting for a few months per tube.
For those interested in trying it, you can purchase it at some local stores like Wal-Mart. The good news is that I just found it on Walmart.com for $9.36 for a two-pack with shipping to your home for less than a dollar. Nice! I hope this product review is helpful, and I hope if you try this Olay Deep Cleansing Face Wash with Witch Hazel for Combination/Oily Skin .
