Review: Avène TriAcnéal

I first came across the Avène TriAcnéal while browsing the skincare ranges in Boots, but was put off by the price - £23 for 30ml. Then I had a look around online for reviews, as I'm not one to purchase things on a whim, and came across the reviews on Make Up Alley. It had a 4.4 out of 5 rating on, which completely swayed it for me! I had a look around online and found it on eBay for approximately £14 (including postage).

TriAcnéal has 3 active ingredients: Efectiose to reduce inflammations, Retinaldehyde to eliminate imperfections and Glycolic acid, a powerful exfoliant to smooth skin's surface (Boots.com).

I do like this product as it does help with my breakouts. I haven't noticed much difference in blackheads or the closed skin-colour comedones that are predominantly on my forehead, which is a little annoying as these are what the majority of my skin imperfections are. But I have found that it is good on spots that are brewing under the skin and for helping to shrink those big beastly spots. I plaster it on those at night and the next day, the spot doesn't appear and has shrunk. However be careful when applying a large quantity onto small areas, as this product contains glycolic acid and can leave you with a minor acid burn.

With a bit of trial and error, I find this works best when you use a large quantity of product on a smaller area, rather than thinnly blended onto larger areas of skin. I have also found that it's best to not put any moisturiser on on top of it, as I find that it lessens the effects of the TriAcnéal.

Unlike other typical spot treatments, I experienced no irritation to my skin. I had no dryness or redness either, which is great as I have used other spot treatments (e.g. high % of Benzoyl Peroxide) which have left my skin looking burnt and feeling sore. I did find that it can sting on application on open skin, but that only lasts momentarily. It has a light floral type smell, which I personally find quite pleasant.

It is recommended that you only use this once a day, so I have been using it every night for the past few months. You are best off using this at night, because it comes out a creamy yellow, but dries to a bright yellow on the skin! If you blend it to a thin layer over the skin, it doesn't look as obvious. I have to also add, be careful if you have white or light coloured pillow cases!

Avène TriAcnéal

It comes in a handy tube, which is nice and hygienic. It generally works well, as you can squeeze out as little or as much as you want. However, sometimes the product comes out super fast, resembling a thin thread and ends up wrapped around the nozzle and making a mess.

It is quite a pricey product at it's RRP (£23), especially in comparison to over Avène products which usually retail somewhere between £6-£15, however like I said before you can find it online for cheaper. The tube does last for a long time though, as you really don't need a lot, so it does end up being cost-effective.

Have you ever tried this product?

I'm really liking Avène products at the moment. Are there any that you would recommend?

Thank you for reading. xoxo, Joy