It can be daunting when a company changes a much loved formula so I (Amanda) wanted to explain the little changes we’ve made and why I feel this makes the formula so much better. I genuinely believe my life purpose is to help people with their skin and this is why our products are designed and developed with passion and love (that's why they work so well 😘).

The best home use salicylic acid

Firstly quality, we’ve always used the best quality but we developed these products 18 years ago and in that time there have been many new and exciting ingredients introduced to the market. Back when I first started Bravura, salicylic acid wasn’t a popular product, now that it’s a well known and much loved ingredient there are more choices and we’ve picked the highest quality ingredients we could find.

Breakouts during menopause

Secondly, I wanted to make the salicylic acid more inclusive so that it’s suitable for different skin types. Salicylic acid can be quite drying, mainly as it’s targeted as a spot treatment for younger skin where the skin is usually oiler but it’s not just teens that get breakouts! Menopause for example can cause breakouts and with the recent pandemic, people have found that regularly wearing masks has meant they’ve started to break out around the jaw, mouth and chin. And so I wanted something that would help reduce the appearance of breakouts in even dry skin but that would also help support oily skin because anything that dries out the skin will cause our skin to produce excess oil, so this formula is perfect whether you're oily or dry.

Salicylic Acid Quality

As with everything, quality can vary. In this formula we have one of the purest forms of salicylic acid available, this is the quality you see in high end products and the kind of quality you've hopefully come to expect from Bravura products. I can't even tell you how excited I am that we have such an amazing ingredient in this formula, it just blew away everything else that I tried, the results are just amazing.

 

Aloe Vera Skincare

Aloe Vera Powder – I absolutely love aloe vera, it’s one of my favourite ingredients. It’s soothing and hydrating and so it’s a perfect addition to a formula that would usually be a little drying. Aloe vera powder is created by dehydrating the plant, drying it and then grounding it in to a powder, using a powder means we can use a high quantity and keep the cost low, while retaining the amazing properties of this plant. When choosing natural ingredients we always ensure we choose a company that shares our values, this product does not contain any traces of pesticides and is ethically sourced.

Glycerin – One of the best humectants, it helps to reduce water loss in the skin which is important as exfoliation can definitely cause a little dehydration. Of course you still need to moisturise after using your salicylic acid, but by adding the glycerin and the aloe vera powder I definitely noticed that when I used it on my sensitive skin that’s very prone to dehydration, it didn’t dry out my skin as salicylic acid can sometimes do.

Propylene Glycol – Another excellent humectant which can also help the delivery of key ingredients in to the skin, our key ingredients being the salicylic acid and the aloe vera.

Phytic Acid - An antioxidant with mild exfoliating properties and so it boosts the effects of the salicylic acid, it can help to brighten the skin and reduce the appearance of discolouration.

PH – we’ve increased the PH a little to 3.5-4 a higher PH means the product is less irritating and it had absolutely no detrimental effects on the formula or how it performs, so it basically works just as well as a lower PH but with less irritation.

 

What did our testers observe?

I have been testing this new formula for close to a year, as well as my daughters and other human guinea pigs and our observations were similar, it gives quicker results when reducing the appearance of breakouts and blackheads than our previous formula and is less drying on the skin, the 2 main things I wanted from this new formula. It has been tested on different skin types and skin tones, all seeing positive results. 

 

Packaging

You may notice that our salicylic acid is now in a box, I’ve always tried to keep our packaging minimal but with so many new regulations being introduced, more information was needed and boxes were essential. But what I do love is that we now have a QR code on the box that takes you to the full instructions online, this means that page translators can be used for anyone who’s first language isn’t English, perfect because we ship worldwide and in particular have a huge following of wonderful customers in Ukraine and Russia, now you will have full information in whichever language you choose.

 When can you buy it?

SOON! We are expecting delivery at the end of December, this is why we haven't closed until January, we know so many of you are waiting! To be the first to know when the salicylic acid is in stock, sign up to be notified.

 I can not wait to hear everyone's feedback and don't forget to tag @bravuralondon in your #bravuraselfie on social media so that I get to see what you think, I'm confident that you'll love this new formula as much as I do!