Makeup Artist’s Choice Product Review: The Fade Peel

If you have read my other blog posts, you would know that I struggle with severe hyperpigmentation (dark marks) on my face. I have tried many different things to try and fade them but I haven’t had much success.

The Fade Peel from Makeup Artist’s Choice was my most recent purchase for my facial skin. In this post, I will be talking about what it is and giving my review on it.

About hyperpigmentation

Hyperpigmentation is a skin condition in which there are spots and/or patches that are darker than the rest of the skin. This is due to an excess production of melanin which makes it more common in people who are of a darker complexion.

This condition can be caused by sun damage, acne lesions, tattoos gone wrong, hormones, scratches, wounds and burns. The marks/patches can be any where on one’s body.

There are various treatments for hyperpigmentation but they do take time to work (if they do at all). These treatments include the following:

• Hydroquinone: Has bleaching effects.
• Retinoids: Tretinoin and Retinol.
• Alpha-hydroxy acids: Glycolic, lactic and mandelic. They come in serums, creams and peels.
• Laser resurfacing
• Vitamin C: Comes in serums and creams.
• Wearing sunscreen every two hours: Protects from sun damage.
• Various other herbs/extracts that are said to possibly fade spots.

Some of these treatments may need to be used together in order to have the best chances of working. There are quite a few skincare products that actually do have combinations of spot-fading ingredients in cream, lotion and serum form.

My skin

I should mention first that I am of African American descent with medium brown skin. The picture above captures the hyperpigmentation better than my phone pictures can.

I started out having pretty bad acne on my face at the age of 11. It was likely when PCOS struck but we knew nothing of that diagnosis at that time. Because of that, we just thought it was regular puberty that was hitting me really hard.

The acne has gotten significantly better since I hit 25 but I have been left with dark marks as the aftermath. My skin picking issue has also not helped anything.

The hyperpigmentation is on my cheeks (left one is worse), chin and I have one spot on my upper lip. I also have hyperpigmentation spots on my body but I have been mainly trying to focus on treating my face.

The amount of products I have tried to even out my skin is crazy. I try to not get too upset about it, but it is hard not to sometimes. Lots of money has been wasted over the years.

The Fade Peel

This is one of the many high quality products from Makeup Artist’s Choice. It comes from their line of at-home chemical peels.

There are ten types of peels that are offered and almost all come in varying strengths. They all have some similar benefits but they also have some benefits that are more specific to each one.

The Fade Peel specifically treats dark marks. The fading ingredients in this peel include the following:

• Glycolic acid– This is an alpha hydroxy acid and comes from sugarcane.
• Lactic acid- This is an alpha hydroxy acid and comes from milk.
• Malic acid-This is an alpha hydroxy acid and comes from apples.
• Kojic acid-Comes from different types of fungi.
• Bearberry extract-Comes from the bearberry plant.
• Licorice root extract- Comes from the root of the licorice plant.

All of these ingredients also contain antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. This means that the peel has other benefits besides its ability to fade spots.

The procedure of how to apply the peel is similar to all of the other Makeup Artist’s Choice peels. It includes the following steps:

1. Do a patch test to see how your skin reacts to the peel.
2. Cleanse the skin and let it dry.
3. Prep the skin with their PH Prep toner. Let this dry for 20 minutes.
4. Apply the peel and leave on for five minutes.
5. Rinse off with cleanser.
6. Apply a moisturizer.

The Fade Peel is meant to be done only once a week. It is important to not use any harsh products (acid products, acne products, retinoids etc.) within 24 hours before using the peel. You should also be wearing sunscreen every two hours, afterwards (and in general).

This peel currently comes in a sample size for $3 and a regular size (1 OZ) for $20. The rating is 4.5/5 and has 207 reviews on the site.

My review of the Fade Peel

What drew me to this peel was the fact that it is specifically for fading hyperpigmentation and contains good ingredients. I didn’t want to get my hopes up but I was excited to start a course of it.

My plan was to do ten peels and then see where my skin was at. I would then either go for a higher percentage of the glycolic peel or stop doing peels for a while altogether.

The first and subsequent times of doing the Fade Peel, I found it to barely sting at all. I was thinking that it would sting more being that it is only meant to be on for five minutes (you can go up to ten for other peels). I thought that meant it would be more powerful or something.

What I noticed the next day after each peel was that my skin was really smooth and “bright.” That feel and look would continue on for a couple days and then it would change back to its usual state.

After the ten rounds of peels were up, I tried to really assess my skin. I had taken before pictures and then I took some after pictures to compare. I also looked at my face closely in the mirror.

No changes.

My dark marks and patches looked exactly the same. It was like I had done absolutely nothing to my skin at all. Another disappointment for me.

Up next for my skin

My hyperpigmentation is obviously extremely hard to treat as nothing has really worked to date. I think this is due in part to me having dark skin-maybe it makes things more difficult.

My plan right now is to keep using aloe Vera gel, rosehip oil and sunscreen on my face. This only maintains the way my skin looks which is at least better than it making it worse.

I also plan on starting a higher strength glycolic acid peel than I have done in the past. If the glycolic acid peel does absolutely nothing, I will start using tretinoin.

If the tretinoin doesn’t work, I really don’t think there is anything else left to try.

In conclusion

So, the Fade Peel didn’t work for me. It is still a very good product as it clearly works for other people. For that reason and the fact that Makeup Artist’s Choice is a great company- I still recommend it for others to try.

Do any of you have hyperpigmentation? If so, what works for your spots?

Thanks for reading!

Here is the beauty journal I use on a regular basis: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B093B9XWTH

#melanin #MakeupArtistsChoice #skincareproducts #beauty #postinflammatoryhyperpigmentation #hyperpigmentationtreatment #TheOrdinary #