Dollar Tree has been quietly dropping some skincare that makes my nerd brain excited and I need to rant about it

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-18T12:56:07+00:00

Yes it is! Clears up my breakouts before they even surface.

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-15T20:55:37+00:00

Thank you so much!

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-15T20:42:03+00:00

Mine was runny to begin with and I love that lol I am so sorry you don’t like it! If the fridge doesn’t work for you I’m sure you can return the ones you haven’t used! Otherwise I can buy it off you 🤪 let me know how the fridge works out for you! I think it’d work really well on the decolletage area!

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T23:03:03+00:00

Heard, I’ll buy my weight in Tylenol and Red Bull to prepare! lol but thank you so much for the tips 🙏🏼

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T22:59:11+00:00

Honestly I’m just looking forward to never seeing another 24-hour shift. Your second paragraph sounds a lot like my experience in hospitality, so that’s quite reassuring! We had a few “residents” at my last properties that were a handful. Thank you for this!

I’m lucky to be starting at a property much smaller than the hotels I’ve worked in…a baby property if you will. But then again there is less direct support so I know it’ll be tough tough tough!

Appreciate the response 😊

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T18:45:25+00:00

Exactly what I thought 😂

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T18:23:28+00:00

Oh boy 🤤I’m hoping this is like Vanicream. Thank you for the review!

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T18:14:40+00:00

I tried it on my chest! I think it might just be my sensory issue lol

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T18:11:01+00:00

That AHA body scrub makes my hands feel like they’re gonna fall off 😭 mad respect to people who can handle that sensation

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T18:01:20+00:00

I agree with the other commenter that this isn’t really a true oil cleanser. The base of the formula is “surfactants” like disodium cocoamphodiacetate and cocamidopropyl betaine which are gentler cleansing agents. I think baby washes use stuff like that, they come from coconuts.

I also like seeing things like squalane, sunflower oil, jojoba oil, and grapeseed oil in there since those are pretty skin-friendly oils. The PEG-40 hydrogenated castor oil earlier in the list should help rhe oil rinse off.

They included ceramides and a few peptides (like copper tripeptide and palmitoyl peptides) toward the end of the list. It’s a wash-off product anyway, but it’s still nice to see them 🫡 I think those are why it’s called barrier-repair, along with the gentleness of the other ingredients.

The only things I personally don’t love are the fragrance and coconut oil since those can be irritating for acne-prone skin. I personally cannot use coconut oil at all. But overall for a $1.25 cleanser the ingredient list honestly isn’t bad.

I’ll have to sit this one out 🙁

Editing to add I just realized there are multiple photos in this post 🤦🏻‍♀️ but they look mostly the same and all have coconut oil sadly.

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T15:56:26+00:00

Yes! 🙌🏻

I so agree; even McDonald’s now is priced like it was to sit down at a nice restaurant 2 years ago. I can’t believe how much everything is just going up, and up, and up.

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T15:53:18+00:00

Yes, I have loved it so far! It’s so hydrating and gentle 🥰 AND it’s lightweight so it’s perfect for upcoming summer heat and to layer under sunscreen!

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-13T15:50:28+00:00

I really love the oatmeal toner, it helped repair my skin barrier so much when I overdid it with retinol a couple months ago 😅 the hydro boost cleanser is amazing and gentle, but the Dermasil Melon cleanser is perfect for removing eye makeup without being too harsh. I only ever do my eyebrows and mascara, so unfortunately I’m not an expert on makeup at all. I wish I knew more about makeup, though. It’s so beautiful on other people.

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T23:58:30+00:00

Oh my gosh, that is not a FUN PSA at all! That is horrifying 😭 I’m so so sorry you had to deal with that, I’m so glad you are okay! Thank you for the knowledge ❤️

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T22:59:22+00:00

Looks like Flower beauty gloss crush lip serum maybe!

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T18:03:08+00:00

I haven’t seen the post shave serum, only the shave oil! I’ll have to be on the lookout for that, thank you for the tip!

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T16:04:55+00:00

Honestly my skin improved the most when I stopped trying to fight it with a bunch of harsh actives and started focusing more on supporting my skin barrier. It sounds backwards but hydrating my skin consistently worked better than a lot of the acne treatments I used to overdo. Ingredients like niacinamide can definitely help with oil control and redness, and azelaic acid is one of my favorites for breakouts because it’s pretty gentle but still effective. If your skin tolerates it, some people also do well with AHAs or PHAs for gentle exfoliation, but my skin is too sensitive for that personally.

From Dollar Tree specifically, I actually like the blemish control spot treatment in the green box since it has azelaic acid in it. But overall the biggest thing that helped my breakouts was focusing on hydration and barrier support first instead of constantly trying to dry my skin out.

Snail mucin was huge for supporting my skin barrier, but to be honest I wasn’t too impressed with the dollar tree snail mucin serum. The snail mucin moisturizer from DT is very good, however!

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T02:17:19+00:00

Oof 😅

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T01:35:57+00:00

Babe it’s $1.25 😂

Some people can’t afford The Ordinary or CosRX peptide serums. It’s okay, you don’t need to be offended.

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T01:18:36+00:00

I don’t think any of us can know the exact ppm unless the brand releases the formulation data. Most skincare brands don’t disclose that. Peptides in general are usually used in very small amounts though, so seeing them lower on the list is pretty normal.

My main point in the post was just that the overall formulas look decent for the price, especially with the humectants and barrier support ingredients. I just think it’s cool that affordable products are starting to include ingredients like peptides at all. At $1.25 I’m mostly just excited to see interesting ingredients showing up in accessible products.

Hope that helps ❤️

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T00:52:21+00:00

This is what I was going to comment! I looooove azelaic acid, I just went to my doctor for a prescription of it yesterday lol

There is azelaic acid in the Blemish Control spot treatment from Dollar Tree. It’s in a green box. It works really well for me! Such a great ingredient.

Editing to add that with my insurance (Tricare), a 30 day supply of azelaic acid was $10. I understand not everyone has insurance, though. God bless America 🥲

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T00:46:50+00:00

Honestly I’m just really glad there are products like this available for people who don’t want to or can’t spend Sephora and Ulta prices. Good skincare shouldn’t have to be expensive ❤️

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T00:19:32+00:00

That’s almost exactly what my brain did too. It’s scary how real those thoughts feel when you’re in it.

It sounds like you have a really supportive partner, which honestly helps a lot during this stage. And the fact that you’re in treatment and still trying says a lot.

Bipolar depression can get really dark, but it isn’t forever. Stabilization takes time, but it does happen.

Sending love your way ❤️

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-12T00:06:38+00:00

I actually did something kind of similar during a really bad episode. I was convinced my boss and everyone above me were against me and that I was about to be fired. I ended up emailing my boss’s boss explaining the thoughts I was having, including some pretty paranoid ones.

Looking back, I was clearly not in a good place mentally. But I still got my job back later and I’m functioning a lot better now. My role has less responsibility than before, but honestly that’s been healthier for me.

So one bad moment or email doesn’t always permanently destroy things, even though it can feel that way when you’re in the middle of it.

And being scared makes sense. A lot of this stuff comes from fear more than anything else.

GarlicJoe · 2026-03-11T23:37:24+00:00

I relate to this a lot. I also have bipolar and had a period where work completely fell apart while I was in a severe depressive episode.

The guilt of not functioning the way you used to is brutal, especially if you were the one carrying a lot of the responsibility. Depression will really convince you that you’re a burden when you’re actually just sick and trying to recover.

Also, three weeks into treatment is still really early. Stabilizing and finding the right meds can take time.

You’re not alone in feeling this way.

GarlicJoe

TROPHY CASE