Skin Lightening / Whitening products

[WidowOfCulloden]

I don't know if anyone already mentioned it but have you tried white henna? It helps a lot with the discolourations and stuff.

 

[brownsugarplum]

^
Really? Never heard of that. Thanks for the tip. Off to google it.

 

[WidowOfCulloden]

^^^ Any time!

 

[limo]

White henna? I've never heard of that either. Thanks for posting that WidowOfCulloden.

Has anyone tried it?

 

[Lacroix]

I've googled white henna and from what I've read it doesn't look very safe.
I think you have to mix it with hydrogen peroxide and ammonia. I'll pass. That's the same reason I won't touch anything with hydroquinone in it

 

[balmain1914]

No offense, do Caucasian people need whitening products?

I am totally amazed by how Asian women are spending money on whitening products, even Estee Lauder also released kind of products in Asia market...
Seems most of those Japanese, Chinese and Korean girls tend to be as white as Caucasian ladies...so, I am wonderingdo Caucasian people need whitening products? Can companies selling whitening staffs get profitable outside the Asian market?

 

[Lola Montès]

Well, I think that's an interesting question !
The thing is most caucasians nowaday want to look tanned. Maybe natural redheads tend to protect themselves from the sun to avoid freckles.

Being very pale myself, I often feel embarrassed because I kind of feel naked... So, no , I won't used whitening products or I will be ill looking. Even more ill looking than naturally...

 

[rayoflight]

I think yes, if someone has pigmentation issues they need some whitener to get rid of them regardless of their race or coloring. Like getting rid of melasma, perma-tan, age spots, obvious sun damage... It's only possible with effective exfoliation and a pigment suppressor.
However I do find it weird to "whiten" skin for vanity reasons, but then again, I think the same about darkening skin for vanity reasons, aka tanning, but people constantly chase after the thing their don't have (not everyone, is a generalization). People with straight hair want curly, dark skinned people want lighter skin and vice versa. Not sure if they are happier/more whole when/if they get that though.

 

[imonabhaute]

I use whitening products because my nose has hyperpigmentation spots that really bother me. I'm going to be getting dermabrasion next year and hopefully will make it a bit better. I'm very pale I wear Shiseido SPF60 PA+++ sunblock religiously and that combined with the whitening stuff seems to keep my nose from getting any worse.

I'm cool and pale, blue eyed with naturally dark brown hair and being tan just seems like it would look weird on me; I like my skin how it is because of the contrast it provides being so pale (I just want it even though).

 

[chichina]

I guess it could be popular with anyone with pigmentation issues, usually that tends to be people with olive or darker skin. I use a whitening moisturiser from Shiseido because my olive skintone is a bit uneven. I read somewhere that one of the signs of aging in people with darker skin is an uneven skintone, whereas for people with fair skin it is wrinkles.

 

[oceanhue]

Every non-White population has an issue with having darker skin--they all have products for skin lightening. It has a lot to do with economic status (African slaves who were lighter were house slaves; Indians and Asians who were of a higher status spent less time doing labor outside so their skin was lighter) and the stains of colonialism when the European standard of beauty was idealized and imprinted of peoples of different nations to enforce slavery and the mistreatment of non-Whites--'The Great Chain of Being' when the concept of race took root in Homo sapien history. Such idealizations and thoughts about economic status eventually transformed into thinking that being lighter was better than being darker among other things where it is seen as undesirable to have kinky hair or epicanthic folds which is found in both African and Eastern Asian populations worldwide.

/anthropology mjaor

And I disagree, most Asians are tanned. I live in a large Asian population here and they're not pale at all unless they hide behind their huge umbrellas and wear long sleeves. I'm multiracial and my ex was from Korea. His skin was three shades lighter than mine when it got hotter outside and he wasn't even sunbathing or anything.

 

[Bulles]

Every non-White population has an issue with having darker skin--they all have products for skin lightening. It has a lot to do with economic status (African slaves who were lighter were house slaves; Indians and Asians who were of a higher status spent less time doing labor outside so their skin was lighter) and the stains of colonialism when the European standard of beauty was idealized and imprinted of peoples of different nations to enforce slavery and the mistreatment of non-Whites--'The Great Chain of Being' when the concept of race took root in Homo sapien history. Such idealizations and thoughts about economic status eventually transformed into thinking that being lighter was better than being darker among other things where it is seen as undesirable to have kinky hair or epicanthic folds which is found in both African and Eastern Asian populations worldwide.

/anthropology mjaor

And I disagree, most Asians are tanned. I live in a large Asian population here and they're not pale at all unless they hide behind their huge umbrellas and wear long sleeves. I'm multiracial and my ex was from Korea. His skin was three shades lighter than mine when it got hotter outside and he wasn't even sunbathing or anything.

I agree! Great point, however I will say this. I do like a lightening product for scars or stretch marks not for my overall skin tone. I think beauty is in the eye of the beholder and if lightening your skin makes you feel better, then I say go for it but safely. I have no right to tell someone how to live their life but Oceanhue, your point is indeed a historical fact and shift in our society even today. I see all the time in magazines, ads and promos. Artists with dark skin get lighter and lighter every year. Love your skin everyone, we are all beautiful.

 

[á la Balenciaga]

Skin whitening tips

I have a problem that i've been dealing with since this summer. I got tan pretty bad, and my skin looks a bit blotchy and uneven. I've tried everything from glycerin to aloe vera. I need to whiten my dark spots.

 

[Lakisha]

It is hard to remove natural tan. It will fade with time. Apply buttermilk with bit of oats in it. The oats has exfoliating capacity and the butter milk is an excellent after skin soother.

 

[á la Balenciaga]

I was reading about Obagi. Can someone please give me their honest opinion on the product. thanks

 

[brownsugarplum]

I was reading about Obagi. Can someone please give me their honest opinion on the product. thanks

If you are black then i don't think obagi is for you. I am a black girl with light skin but obagi made me look almost white. I only needed it to lighten some dark pigmentation patches on my face but it made things worse and my face did not match my neck.

 

[á la Balenciaga]

but see, that's the problem with some ppl when they lighten their skin, youre suppose to apply neck and face.

i did hear the product does make you look super white if you continue to use it. im not black, i already have light skin but i have uneven skin tone from sun tanning, and it annoys me!
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[á la Balenciaga]

did you use retin-a?
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[brownsugarplum]

but see, that's the problem with some ppl when they lighten their skin, youre suppose to apply neck and face.

i did hear the product does make you look super white if you continue to use it. im not black, i already have light skin but i have uneven skin tone from sun tanning, and it annoys me!
Posted via Mobile Device

I used it on my neck too but it did not have quite the same impact as it did on my face. I used Retin A and it did make me peel a LOT!!! The peeling removed some discolourations from my cheeks but that was it. Overall the unevenness was worse than pre obagi.

 

[Eurasian Mélange]

Is there anything out there that will just fade hyperpigmentation marks and not make it look like you're wearing a white mask?