My progress (melasma & sun damage) pics & maintenance questions
I thought I'd share some pics for anyone else dealing with melasma and/or sun damage.
These are pix of my forehead. The top one was taken July 31st and the bottom was taken on Oct 7th.
http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/982/foreheads1.jpg
Left was July 31st ---- Right was Oct 7th
http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/8/augtooct.jpg
These below (red shirts) are to give an idea what happens when I neglect to do any sort of sun protection or intentional exfoliation. I was basically washing & moisturizing only. The photo on the left is not my darkest tan. Apologies for the quality. These are photo of framed photos.:p I hope it's enough to give you an idea of how dark (and uneven) I can get.
http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/2594/pastl.jpg
On a good summer, I could approximate Kelly R.'s (left) color (not as red though) here
http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/2962/picture3ja.png
the problem is that my untanned parts were closer to Sanaa L.'s color in this photo
http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/3646/sanaal1.jpg
I'd love to hear from anyone who has maintained an even complexion for years. What is your regimen? Have you found any nutritional, dietary elements that help?
I've been reading all sorts of things from taking gluthathione and vit-c to avoiding caffeine & aspartame.
I'm currently using sunscreen faithfully, sometimes hats.. Products are:
Fair and Flawless Parfait
Fair and Flawless Resurfacing Cleanser (it's like a gentle scrub)
Dove Soap
Likas Papaya Soap (when i remember to use it)
Othine HQ cream
Belo Whitening Lotion on my arms and knees (just started with this week)
My goal is to have an even color all over. My forehead, back of neck, forearms, knees, and back of hands are the most out of whack.
It's crazy, I used to lay out try to even my skin shades! It looked good for a while but got gross again when the dark tan faded became got patchy. Lots of sun was also a problem depending on what sort of clothes I wore.. some times I'd get an awful farmer's tan... or chocolate head, caramel boobs, you name it. Arrgh.
Of course I thought the answer was even more sun or foundation. Sigh.
Anyway, Thank you in advance for any help or experiences you can share.