Mario Badescu Deep Blemish Solution, Spot Treatment for Face with Potent Zinc Oxide, Niacinamide and B Vitamins Overnight Treatment Serum that Targets Large Blemishes Under the Skin

I don't get much acne anymore (but still more than I'd like at my age), but when I do it almost always seems to be an attack of those evil cystic spots that grow and grow and take forever to go away. I bought this stuff from amazon two years ago and have to admit, I thought it helped, but I definitely didn't think holy grail. That is until I went travelling about six months and filled a small screw top little pot with this stuff (and another with Acnomel Adult Acne Medication Cream - 1.3 Oz).My face went a bit nuts a few weeks into my trip when I switched sunscreen and I broke out the tubs to deal with my break out. I found the buffering lotion had mostly evaporating leaving it slightly moist, wet enough to get a dot on my finger tip, but not wet enough to drip. I applied it and later Acnomel, my holy grail for all things acne since I discovered it (I've also tried other various similar treatments like Acnevir Acne & Redness Relief Gel-0.75, oz., that are clear and should work the same), but nothing does the job of clearing my skin and most importantly not drying it out so my zit may be gone, but now I've got a peeling face. Looks ick and is impossible to conceal.Once I figured out that I just needed to concentrate the product I started pouring a few squirts into a screw jar and leaving it open to allow most of the liquid to evaporate, once it's close to gone, I seal the lid tight. Usually it keeps moist for about a month, but even when it's dried out and I mix it with the Acnomel it works like a charm.So to those of you this hasn't worked for as well as you hoped, try drying out the liquid and concentrating the heck out of this stuff. If you think you're going to lose out and end up using more, don't. I'm now actually using the stuff regularly and still have almost half a bottle.For the record, I still think Acnomel rocks for normal use and when combined with the concentrated Buffering lotion twice a day for a day or so, the cystic zit on the horizon disappears. Like gone. It doesn't come back either. I've never had any luck with the Buffering Lotion though on normal spots or blackheads, but who cares? No more cystic acne!!!

I've used a variety of products ranging from prescription required to boutique to over-the-counter to try and fight cystic acne. Most handle regular acne well, but seem to have little or no effect on the cystic ones. I would have to say that pharmaceutical grade products work best and seem to be most effective, but who has hundreds of dollars to throw around all the time (especially when acne is recurring). I've tried changing my lifestyle and diet which helped tremendously in reducing most, if not all cystic type acne. However, they have returned due to my job function requiring extra hours and getting little sleep.My girlfriend had applied the Mario Badescu Drying Lotion previously on some of my acne (both regular and cystic). I wasn't a regular user but it seemed to help overall. I was going to purchase that one until I came across the Buffering Lotion. Based on the reviews I decided to give it a try. With the price on Amazon, it was a no brainer.First, I'd like to say how wonderful Mario Badescu is in pleasing their customers. Instead of a small box, I received pretty large one filled with a variety of samples, a pleasant surprise. It seems their other products are also of the same high quality. The product itself was interesting. It looked like there was separation of "white" liquid and a clear liquid. The instructions say to "shake well" so indeed I did. The instructions also say to apply it on the area in question. I opened the top and the liquid was very runny. It was almost like milky water. I dabbed it on my face but it was so runny that it was hard for it to stay in one area. I was concerned that this product wouldn't work.After, dabbing it a few times and concentrating the "white stuff" on the spot, I walked away. After a few minutes, I started feeling a drying effect on the affected area. The next morning I woke up and the cystic acne had reduced significantly. These had been cystic acne that I had been nursing for over 2 weeks with no change and overnight they had gone down quite a bit. This is not to say it is a miracle product as it will not get rid of the blemish left behind, or completely destroy the cystic acne in 2 days, but it helps in accelerating the process for it to go away.I will give it 5 stars for its value vs effectiveness ratio and for Mario Badescu's great service / products.