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Hey y'all! Welcome back to my blog. If 

you're new here my name is Ola and I write about skincare for Black Beauties like myself.

Today's blog is about my buddy and her skincare journey on how she cleared her dark spots in just two months. In her own words:

"My face was so terrible."

She tells (AND SHOWS) us how she went FROM THIS:

TO THIS

Ola: Thanks for agreeing to share your story, hun.

Sade: No problem. You didn’t give me much choice.

Ola: Ahh… I did, but your story will help many women, and this is my mission. Okay, let’s get into it. You’ll be talking about how you cleared and faded your acne and dark spots—hyperpigmentation—in literally two months.

Sade: Yes, I said two months.

Ola: But first, I want you to go ahead and start by giving us a little background. So, for starters...

Sade: I’ve always had issues with hyperpigmentation and acne since puberty. In high school, when I went through puberty, every time my monthly cycle would come on, my face would just flare up and leave dark marks. It really got worse when I got pregnant—around the time I got pregnant, my face was just going berserk.

Ola: I was there. I remember—that was tough.

Sade: Yeah, and I couldn’t do anything about it because, of course, with pregnancy you can’t do anything. They don’t want you to use certain products—you can’t get chemical peels; you can’t do anything of that nature. So, I was just really depressed, and, as you know, I just had a baby 10 months ago.

Ola: 🥰

Sade: Lol… so here we are. I would literally try everything—from store-brand cheap products to high‑end expensive products. Nothing worked. I came on YouTube, TikTok, saw what everybody else was using—baking soda, potatoes, all kinds of mixed ingredients—and I’m telling you, it did not work. I just got so discouraged. It just didn’t work; nothing worked.

I even tried going to an esthetician in my city, and y’all, let me tell you—that was the horrible experience ever.

Ola: I remember you on the phone cussing and screaming.

Sade: Yeah, it’s funny now… but then…I started off by getting a facial, y’all. I told this girl, “My face is very sensitive,” so I did. I did realize that less is more with my face because the minute I start piling up products or trying different things, my face would just blur, you know? So, like I said, less is definitely more for me. When I went to the esthetician, she did a facial—

Ola: The “FacialGate,” as we call it now.

Sade: I kid you not—in the end, that day, my face was shiny, it was a bit oily, it was looking good; I thought I was in the right zone.

NOPE!

The next day, my face broke out like I had so much acne I couldn’t even count.

Sade: I deleted every single picture because, even when I look at them now, it gets to me, you know? I was so much more discouraged again because I knew it was going to leave so much hyperpigmentation. Like, who asked me to get this facial? No one. Did I mention I paid almost $200?

Ola: When you called her and sent her the photos, what did she say?

Sade: Imagine—she said, “Over time it fades…” I was like, “So in a day? Three days? What?” And dark spots take YEARS to fade on Black skin. And nothing can fade if new ones keep coming on my face! So right then and there, I was always scared of any esthetician.

I never went back; I was scared of the chemical peels and all of that. This was rock bottom, you know?

At this point, I didn’t want to go out. I didn’t leave the house without makeup—not even when I was taking my baby for a walk…nothing. My skin was awful. I felt awful. My fiancé was really trying to get me out of my funk, but he didn’t understand. My confidence was zero.

Ola: I think people don’t realize how hard it can be, plus all the stress of a new baby, going back to work…crazy.

Sade: Yeah…I don’t want to say I didn’t like myself, but I really didn’t like what I saw in the mirror. I didn’t like my skin. Even putting on makeup was painful because the acne was still raised—you can’t hide that…unless you’re using like six layers.

Ola: But something changed for you.

Sade: Yes…literally nothing worked for my skin until I tried this Korean skincare product. Yes, I just said “Korea”—and no, not the snail stuff and all that other foolishness. I was so skeptical of the Korean stuff because, I mean, it’s not made for Black skin, is it?

I used to sit on YouTube and watch these videos, but honestly, I was just so scared—none of these ladies were Black, and they didn’t have acne and spots like mine, you know? Then I found VOUEE… the Korean brand owned by a Black woman.

Ola: Game elevated.

Sade: All the way elevated. When I say nothing worked until I tried this brand—look, y’all, my face came a long way.

Ola: I will add the photos of your process so folks can see.

Sade: You can tell—even if you look back at my month‑1 photo compared to this photo—you can see a major difference in my face.

Ola: But how did you even find them, though? Because they were only delivering to Europe right?

Sade: I actually went to a nail salon in Atlanta. The lady next to me was getting her nails done—Gloria—and her face, I mean, her skin was super, super clear.

I asked her, “Did you use Accutane or this?”

And she was like, “No.”

I had been eyeing her skin for a whole time before I spoke to her because I was sure it was something harsh or expensive, you know?

And it’s my face—I just didn’t want to pay all that money or risk my skin getting worse.

Then she said it was a Korean skincare. And I was already raising my eyebrows, ya know.

Then she said the brand was run by a Black woman who only makes skincare for women of color.

I was like, “Okay… okay…” So I thought, if I want to see different results, I definitely have to try something different, like I can’t keep doing the same thing and not see results.

Ola: Definition of madness.

Sade: Right! Like the products ain't working. It's not working!

So I went to the website to read up on the lady who founded the brand, Saw her skin…like she looked like she had healthy skin you know…just bouncy—and I read the reviews.

I ordered the face wash, the brightening serum, and the sunscreen.

So yeah, the cleanser your brightening cream a moisturizer that contained SPF so which is sunscreen. Black people need sunscreen. I used to be one of those Black girls who thought, “Oh, I’m Black—I’m full of melanin; I don’t need any sunscreen.”)

Ola: Many of us were like that.

Sade: Right! Not for no reason though. I used to have a horrible experience when I did wear sunscreen back in the day. Like I feel like it would break my skin out even more so I never even like look again at that. 

And this was the kicker, the vouee sunscreen was nothing like that.

Ola: Wait, wait. What is the whole routine then?

Sade: Okay, so you get a 100ml cleanser—which really helped calm my skin and get rid of the acne. This is the best cleanser I have ever used. No stinging, no dryness. I buy this baby in bulk—boom, whenever it’s on sale. My hubby uses it too for his shaving bumps.

Ola: I think I’ve used it at your house.

Sade: Definitely. Then the brightening serum—I hadn’t even heard of the key ingredient in it, but basically instead of hitting your skin hard, it works from the inside out, using antioxidants to clear dark spots.

Sade: I did my research and I saw it in vogue, allure, aad, all these blogs and magazines, even some harvard review.

The Glutathione works by controlling melanin production—the root cause of our dark spots.

Ola: Yeah, in Asia, they rave over this ingredient, some women saying this is making them look younger even.

Sade: Right! But the best part is, it’s just one serum. No layering nonsense. 5 serums that still didn’t work. So this is what really changed things for me.

By week 3, I could see acne reduced and dark spots starting to fade. It was like clearing the acne so my skin could actually heal and clear the spots. So I wasn't getting any new spots, which meant the old ones could gently fade..month 2 was the point where I said..this actually works..

I wasn’t 100% clear of every spot, but I was well on the way. Like my skin now is better than when I hit month 2. I feel like every week am seeing my skin improve..does that make sense?

Ola: I think it’s more than just your skin—it’s your confidence, your self esteem.

Sade: VOUEE definitely made my skin a whole lot better. I used the sunscreen, and it melted in—I got no breakouts. It’s not thick and oily like the others I tried.

It’s been one long, crazy experience, but everything changed for me. Like, look, my pores are like definitely very tight now like they're small —they’re small.

Before, when I was having the bad acne, my pores were huge; I guess what they call open pores or something like of that nature. They showed in pictures and videos even under makeup, and I just did not like it. I did not at all

But now, I see the difference, and I understand why women in the UK loved this brand.

Ola: Well, I for one am glad. So what would you say to people in your shoes or just starting their journey?

Sade: Definitely try VOUEE. I am not one to leave reviews but this is sooo on another level. Also, do your research, research, research. I know people always used to say “Drink your water!” but when I was just drinking water, ain't nothing happening. Nothing happened.

Ola: Lol. Right! Thank you for being HONEST about how you got your skin clear… cause so many girls say it’s just “ water” or “ double cleansing” and it’s like no girl it’s not.

Sade: Not even. I’m so glad I did try it because my skin looks way way—like, ten times better than last month. Now it’s not 100% clear yet—like I still have some spots right up here—but honestly, I’m sure that if I keep using it, they’ll be gone in a couple more weeks.

It definitely did my skin justice. I’m back drinking my water, adding vitamins to my routine, and everything is starting to come together.

Ola: Finally!

Sade: Yeah Finally

Ola: Okay, so these are the pictures that run me through your journey.

Sade: Okay. This was day one when the kit arrived—I wanted to record everything. That was in the morning. It’s crazy to look back; I almost don’t recognize myself.

Sade: Then, week two—I could see the acne was less raw and red, and I dunno but my skin was just less irritated you know. So this is week four.

Ola: Whoaaa! (More pics below)

Ola: Like night and day

Sade: Who you telling? Yeah I just washed my face here. You can see I'm still with some spots but the acne is way down..and my face is not dry or cracking..its all not that weird oily thing on my head. 

Ola: How are you feeling at this point?

Sade: I’m encouraged definitely, but I really want the spots to go away, you know ..like... no new acne is a great sign because that means no new spots. But the old ones goooottta go… I was so ready for it to be over.

Ola: Was it difficult sticking to the products?

Sade: Not at all. It’s very, very very very very easy. I used to do some stupid 10‑step routine, but this is just three steps, aaaaand it’s working. At this point, I knew I hadn’t wasted my money. I was seeing real results.

Ola: Yeah, I feel you.

Sade: So, err… this is around week 6 or 7—or maybe even 8, I’m not sure now—I’m just using the serum before the sunscreen.

Ola: What’s that?

Sade: ahh cat scratched me. I’m going the full regimen, though—I added the retinoid at some point. Now, day and night, I’m doing this. And there you go—that was around week 9, I think.

Ola: Wow, you only used the products for uh...8 or 9 weeks?

Sade: Little over 2 months. By then, the brightening serum did really good on my face. I looked online and saw where this skin expert or derma was saying certain ingredients don't work the same for Black people. So I followed her. and pretty much everything she was saying was what the vouee stuff had so I was like jackpot. 

I go on the forums and see women going through the same thing I did. Some use accutane, kojic acid—horror stories, you hear man. I’m just so glad I didn’t go that route.

Ola: So, are you going to try anything else or add anything else to the routine now?

Sade: Nope—it works. Like it really works. And I am also using it on my chest. If you look back at my old pictures my chest actually.... um...was full of dark spots as well due to my pregnancy. And it is actually clearing that too. 

So this is more of a maintenance routine now. I'm using this as a maintenance.. I don’t use the retinoid every night; I may use it twice a week before I go to bed.

Ola: It definitely cleared your face—it just looks super hydrated and moisturized.

Sade: I wish I had filmed the whole experience because I knew like this might help someone else, you know.

That was my journey—it made a total difference in my skin,

Ola: your confidence, your whole vibe.

Ola: And the best part? The brand is Black-owned.

Sade: Black, female-owned. She made these products because she said the stuff we were using wasn’t helping our skin at all. And I have to agree.

Ola: Well, I for one am definitely going to check VOUEE out.

Sade: Especially if you feel like you’ve tried everything out there. What works for me may not work for you, but given how bad my skin was to start, I’m just sharing my experience and the proof in the pictures.

Ola: Thank you, thank you, for sharing, hun.

We’ve managed to get a discount from VOUEE—get up to 50% off their bundles and free international shipping.

They’ve given us 100 voucher codes. (Updated 10 Mar: 39 codes left.) So if you want to try some Korean skincare designed specifically to clear your dark spots and acne, use our link and save.