Category: Health & Beauty

My sister really loves facials (and manicures and pedicures, pretty much any sort of pampering!) but with her son (my nephew) she never has time for a spa treatment anymore. She is also notoriously hard to shop for and had a birthday coming up. I thought this would make a perfect birthday gift.

I went ahead and ordered the MicrodermMD (a product of TrophySkin) with a less abrasive head based on previous customer reviews.

My sister really loves the Microderm MD and her skin does fine with the included diamond tip. This may be the very first present she hasn’t returned.

When she convinced me to try it I had her use the gentler diamond tip as my skin tends to be sensitive. I thought it felt pleasant but it is a bit noisy and probably not something I would sit around doing!

My six-year-old nephew actually ended up getting curious about what we were doing with the suction so we had to give him a little facial treatment. My sister and I were pretty amused but I don’t think he’ll ever interrupt “girly sister time” again. We all had a good laugh about it and now I have another story to tell when he brings home his first girlfriend.

I have to admit the suction does weird me out a little bit but my sister didn’t mind it at all so perhaps it’s an acquired taste!

I was a little hesitant to purchase the MicrodermMD unit when Amazon carries several, lower priced units. I paid $289 but since we have Prime, shipping was free and I knew any returns would be easy. I wish the MicrodermMD included different tips as part of the standard package instead of making you purchase them separately. For close to $300 dollars I just feel that they could have included at least two different tips.

The slightly cheaper Kendal Microdermabrasion unit I looked at first came with 9 different tips from fine to coarse and in different sizes as well which seems convenient. Not to mention you have to replace filters and purchase a new diamond tip every year or so.

I know you can get hand held microderm kits for quite a bit cheaper but those just don’t seem to have the power that something like the MicrodermMD has. If I am going to spend over $100 bucks on something to treat facial skin I want to know it will work and not cause any harm to the skin!

In the end I went with this model because I could use my Prime shipping to return it if it didn’t work and most reviewers seem pretty happy with it. If my sister was having professional facials done still, I would probably have just gotten her a gift certificate but all things considered I think this was a good investment.

My sister has had the unit for about two months and I don’t see a huge difference. Of course the before and after pictures they post are always more dramatic that you see in real life. My sister does have generally healthy skin and looks much younger than her age naturally so perhaps the treatments would make more of a difference for an older person or someone whose skin has had a lot of skin exposure.

That being said my sister really does like the machine and says her face feels much better after using it regularly. This is definitely a purchase where your expectations play a huge role.

• If you have the money and enjoy feeling pampered without dragging yourself to the spa on a regular basis go for it!
• If you are expecting to look ten years younger you will be disappointed.

I can certainly see this as a way to keep your skin feeling fresh between spa treatments and you might be able to save some money in the long run by running to the spa less! I think the best things you can do for your skin are stay out of the sun and away from cigarette smoke!

As far as maintenance I can’t speak to that myself. My sister hasn’t voiced any complaints and her machine still seems to be working well so I assume she is able to keep it clean without any problems. If she can fit in the cleaning between a full time job and a very active six year old I can’t imagine it being very involved.

I did notice a few reviewers talking about problems with the cord but so far my sister hasn’t had any issues. Crossing my fingers that the MicrodermMD lasts for a couple of years. If we have to replace it after the three year warranty period (and doesn’t everything always go out right after the warranty ends?) I will probably go ahead and order another one for my sister since she enjoys it so much.

Next:

• Read our full guide to microdermabrasion at home

Doctor Gavin Chan, a cosmetic physician from Victorian Cosmetic Institute performs this split face test on a patient to determine the effect of microdermabrasion vs chemical peel.

He uses chemical peel on one part of the subjects face and microderm on the other half. In the end the subject and doctor Chan give their opinion on which treatment worked better.

Both, microdermabrasion and chemical peels, exfoliate the skin – an important process to maintaining a healthy and glowing skin.

Doctor Chan explains that we are looking at two very different procedures here. Microdermabrasion is a physical process where you put suction on the skin and suck the skin up to a diamond coated head which gently debrades the dead skin off.

“Chemical peels do a similar job except that they use chemicals – usually light acid – to exfoliate the skin.”

Exfoliation is good for a number of reasons. It can be used to make the skin look brighter and give it a glow. Or it can be used to treat some medical problems like acne. It can also be used to reduce sun damage and improve skin pigmentation, such as sun spots on the skin or freckles.

If you wish to perform a microdermabrasion by yourself at the comfort of your home you should check out our full guide to microdermabrasion at home and this video tutorial here where Raya demonstrates on herself how to perform the procedure with an at home microdermabrasion system.

If you are looking for a good at home microdermabrasion machine, we compared 10 machines and wrote a thorough review of two of the best at home microderm machines. Check it out here

Watch this video where Raya shows how she does microdermabrasion treatment to herself at home. If you are looking for a microdermabrasion machine that you can use at home then check out this article where we review the best microdermabrasion machines and be sure to read our complete guide to at-home-microdermabrasion here. Enjoy the video:

Microdermal abrasion treatment at home in 10 easy steps:

1. Cleanse your face before the session
2. Set up your machine. You might have to change filters (read the manual corresponding to the machine you own)
3. Start with a low-medium level
4. Make sure your skin is tight – you can pull it yourself
5. Start from the chin and move up, then move back down
6. Start with a slow pace, no need to hurry
7. You’ll hear a “vacuuming sound”. That’s ok
8. Your skin will probably get pink, it’s totally normal
9. Do the whole face once or twice (you might want to do it once if it’s your first time doing microdermabrasion and if you’re not familiar with the machine and effects)
10. When you’re finished – turn off the machine and check the filter. You’ll see a lot of exfoliated skin