Jessica Alba's Honest Beauty Acne Collection Launch
Do you remember scrubbing your face with a fruity, gritty paste after high school gym class, only to follow it up with an alcohol-loaded astringent in hopes of drying any traces of breakouts? Chances are the last person you’d imagine to do the same is Jessica Alba. In fact, the actress and entrepreneur began taking medication for acne in her teens and continued to battle versions of it into her 30s. Now, Alba's Honest Beauty has created a no-fuss collection of acne-focused products that fight even the toughest blackheads and whiteheads, without the burn or the chemicals. "It's really about having healthy skin—not zapping or stripping away the issue," she says of the line.
Jessica Alba's Honest Beauty has recently launched a no-fuss collection of clarifying products that ... [+] fight even the toughest breakouts without harsh chemicals.
Since launching The Honest Company in 2012, Alba says one of the ways it differentiated itself from other brands was with its private in-house labs and regulatory team. She attributes details like these to creating a more savvy consumer who demands better quality and good-for-you ingredients. "We can formulate and even source our own raw materials in-house," she says. Some of these ingredients include the brand's proprietary colloidal sulfur, wintergreen-derived salicylic acid and niacinamide, which were sourced with the goal of balancing skin in mind. "If we’re going to treat the cause of acne, we’re also thinking of what we can do to heal the skin at the same time," she says.
Available at Ulta and the brand's own site, Honest's clarifying trio is chock full of effective ingredients that treat breakouts while building the skin's barrier. Colloidal sulfur, the most active and microscopic form of sulfur, helps absorb excess oil that can contribute to breakouts and helps unclog congested pores. Apple-sourced alpha-hydroxy acids include malic, glycolic, lactic and citric acids that naturally exfoliate the skin and increase cell turnover. And wintergreen-derived salicylic acid exfoliates, helps clear current breakouts and prevents future blemishes.
"I wanted to create a line where you don't have to change everything in your routine," says Alba. She recommends working the three products into your regular moisturizing and sun protection lineup for skin that's clear and, more importantly, healthy. Plus, they come approved by Alba's daughter, Haven Warren, who shares her skincare regimen featuring the trio on TikTok.
Ulta
Made with colloidal sulfur to soak up excess oils, this gentle cleanser helps prevent and control future breakouts while washing away dirt and impurities. The cream-to-foam formula, also known as the brand's SLS-Free Surfactant System, removes dirt and debris without overstripping skin. While sodium lauryl sulfate tends to be drying, we’ve all been guilty of favoring them for their foamy lather. Luckily, this sulfate-free cleanser gives you the same luxurious feel without drying your skin. Finally, four types of AHAs (malic, glycolic, lactic and citric acids) exfoliate, keep blackheads at bay and boost cell turnover.
Ulta
This serum repairs skin and gives it the moisture it needs without clogging pores. It's loaded with anti-inflammatory ingredients to minimize the appearance of breakouts. Zinc helps balance the skin's microbiome, while niacinamide helps improve the look of redness, but the best part is you get the moisture and repair without clogging pores. Added wintergreen-derived salicylic acid helps exfoliate and azelaic acid minimizes the appearance of most post-blemish pigmentation.
Ulta
When you have a zit that calls for a little extra breakout-banishing power, this treatment minimizes spots in as little as 48 hours. Packed with salicylic acid, glycolic acid (which exfoliates and promotes faster blemish recovery) and witch hazel (a natural astringent that soaks up excess oil to dry out imperfections), this formula reduces the appearance of blemishes by shrinking the size of the breakout and treating redness. The result of this powerful spot cocktail is clearer, more even skin in a snap.