A personal trainer who spent £4,000 trying to reverse ageing sun damage on her face revealed how she finally fixed the problem with an over-the-counter moisturiser.
Harriet Metzger, 34, of Woodford, Essex, spent thousands of pounds on facials, clinic treatments and high-end products in a bid to get rid of the unsightly patches on her forehead caused by years of sunbathing without enough sun cream.
She revealed how the unlikely solution was a pot of £49.99 Cult51 night cream, which was recommended to her by a local pharmacist.
Before: Harriet Metzger, 34, of Woodford, Essex, spent thousands of pounds on facials, clinic treatments and high-end products in a bid to get rid of the unsightly patches on her forehead, pictured, caused by years of sunbathing without enough sun cream
After: The self-confessed sun worshipper reveals the results of her over-the-counter treatment
Favourite: Harriet found the Cult51 Night Cream, pictured, was better than high-end products
Harriet, a self-confessed sun worshipper, said: ‘When I was younger I rarely wore sunscreen which I now deeply regret. It wasn’t until my late 20s that the sun damage started to show.
‘It began with a few small brown patches but it got worse until it covered around 60 per cent of my forehead.
‘It literally looked like I had smeared mud on my forehead. The brown patches were really dark and very noticeable, even under heavy make-up.
‘It aged my skin by about 10 years, I was very insecure and self-conscious about it.’
Harriet holidayed regularly when she was growing up, and always spent as much time as possible on the beach.
Self-conscious: Harriet said she regrets the years of sunbathing that damaged her skin, above
Natural beauty: Even without make-up, the results of the pharmacy moisturiser is dramatic
A dozen trips to Dubai were the highlight but she also travelled to Spain, Thailand, and Australia.
She started to notice the pigmentation on her forehead in her mid-20s and keen to nip it in the bud, Harriet first tried Crème de La Mer’s £220 The Brightening Essence but found it made little difference.
She also tried products from Dermalogica, No.7 and a £93.45 Skinceuticals Advanced Pigment Corrector, but to no avail.
Harriet then turned to more aggressive treatments and opted for a course of Mesotherapy costing £1,000. The course involved needles being inserted into the epidermal layer of the skin.
Harriet was forced to endure painful side effects such as bruising, swelling and soreness – again without noticing any difference to her skin.
Confident: Harriet once feared that she would never get rid of the brown patches on her face. She is now delighted with her clearer complexion, pictured
Following that Harriet splashed out over £2,280 on monthly facials – all with little effect.
It was only when she visited her local pharmacy, Hamlets of Woodford, to discuss her sun damaged skin with the pharmacist that they recommend she try CULT51 Night Cream.
Sceptical at first to splash out on yet another cream, Harriet wasn’t convinced that anything would budge her discoloured skin. But the £49.99 cream worked wonders.
Harriet said: ‘I have been promised so much over the years from beauty creams, some of which cost over £200, and I’ve never seen a real difference.
‘I never thought a cream would give me these results and I’m so happy that I gave it a go.’
Dr Natalie Blakely, at Light Touch Clinic, said: ‘Pigmentation can be notoriously difficult to treat.
‘Practitioners often have to use machines with downtime or creams that will cause a lot of irritation.
‘The fact that Cult51 has achieved these wonderful results without downtime or irritation just highlights how special Cult51 is.’