Pore strips.

"I love a good pore strip. I think people have demonized them for so long just because they don't have a good understanding of what they are. The ones that I particularly like are from Biore. I think until recently they had the OG. They've had a patent on the technology, I think until the last few years, so maybe somebody's copying them now on the actual technology that's in the pore strip. When you wet it, it polarizes and it actually attracts the pore contents, as opposed to some other methods like those old peel off masks that are just acting like an adhesive and can be a little bit more damaging to the skin, or people using egg yolk or egg whites to put on the skin and then it dries and they feel like it's pulling things out. But it's not the same at all. I don't think that they're really the be all end all of having nice refined pores, but I do think that they can be helpful, especially if somebody's at the beginning of their skincare journey and they want a quick fix that's going to improve the appearance of their pores quickly. I still use them."

"Biore is the popular pore strip out there that I've used. You apply it to clean skin, let it sit for a few minutes, and peel it off, and it's so gratifying seeing all those little columns of trapped keratin, dead skin cells, and sebum in each pore being pulled out by this adhesive tape. But it is temporary relief. It's not going to give you longstanding clear pores, it's just taking out what you have at the moment, and if you don't change your cleansing habits and practices you'll have clogging of those pores again. I have to caution though, that was probably the most traumatizing thing I applied to my face, it actually peeled the epidermis off of my nose. Be very careful of those adherent pore strips, they can be traumatizing to the skin. It left some hyperpigmentation for a bit that I had to treat with a cicaplast balm B5 and lots of sunscreen before it eventually cleared. I was pretty upset that pore strip that was sent to me from Biore was way too traumatizing, so I've been telling my patients not to do it."

"Biore pore strips are basically the same principle as waxing. If you have facial hair, whatever, and you want to wax it off, it puts something down, grabs onto those little hairs, and pulls them out. That's basically what the Biore pore strips are doing. They can temporarily get rid of them, but of course they're going to come right back, so it's one of those things you have to keep doing. I do caution that Biore pore strips definitely can cause a lot of irritation. Anytime you're stripping, whether it be putting tape on your skin or something like a pore strip, which is basically a type of tape, it can strip away at your skin barrier. Along with that you can get dryness and irritation, so don't overdo it with those, but they certainly can help."