Salicylic acid is a beta hydroxy acid, or BHA, with versatile properties. In skin care, it can be applied topically to treat and prevent acne. It can be used to perform mild to medium chemical peels to improve the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, blemishes and scarring. While skin peels can be great for your skin, they can also be expensive. Home peels can cut down the cost. Follow these instructions for giving yourself a salicylic acid chemical peel at home.
Patch Test Your Salicylic Acid Solution
The day before you perform your home peel, you should patch test your solution to make sure it won’t harm your skin. Dab a small amount of the solution onto your cheek or neck, near your ear, with a Q-tip. Wait five minutes, then wash the spot with plain cold water. If the skin appears normal the next day, and you haven’t experienced any redness, inflammation, stinging, blistering, or burning, then your chemical peel can be safely applied.
Gather Your Supplies
You’ll need about half an hour to complete your home chemical peel. Gather together some Q-tips, rubbing alcohol or witch hazel, gauze pads, petroleum jelly, tap water, a clock for timing, a hair band (if you need it to keep your hair off of your face), and, of course, your peel solution. You’ll also need a good skin cleanser.
Prepare Your Skin
Prepare your skin for the chemical peel by washing and drying it thoroughly. After drying, wipe down your skin with rubbing alcohol or witch hazel to make sure you have removed all natural oils from the surface. Use a Q-tip to apply petroleum jelly around the nostrils, eyes, and lips. Chemical peeling agents should not be allowed to touch these sensitive spots.
Apply the Chemical Peel
You can apply your peel solution with gauze pads, a paper towel, or Q-tips as you like. Starting from the top of the nose, spread the salicylic acid across your cheek to your ear. Spread it across both sides of the forehead, one at a time, starting from the middle and working toward the temple. On the bottom of the face, spread the acid from the middle of your chin to your ear on both sides. Finally, spread the salicylic acid beneath your nose, being careful not to get it on your lips. If you would like to chemically exfoliate your neck, you can spread salicylic acid there at this time.
You may experience mild stinging or burning. If it becomes severe or if you begin to notice reddening of the skin, wash the peeling solution off right away with plain cold water. Otherwise, wait ten minutes for the salicylic acid to do its work, then rinse it away with cold water.
Moisturize
After your peel, apply a gentle moisturizer to the treated area. Avoid anything that contains AHAs, BHAs, retinols or other acids for at least 24 hours. Wear sunblock on the treated area to protect the new skin from sunburn.
Peel RX Salicylic skin peel kits come with everything you need to do your first at-home skin peel: Peel Prep, Salicylic Acid, Neutralizer and Hyaluronic Acid. Check out the various strengths available here.