No More Beef With My Skin: How Tallow Transformed My Skincare Routine

TL;DR: How I ditched $300 penis face serum (SkinMedica TNS Essential Serum) for beef fat and improved my skin.

Are you one of those people like me? Very concerned about eating organic and where your food comes from? Does a LOT of research on supplements and various health things? Is conscious that synthetic fabrics are bad for you? But… You’re having a hard time giving up your endocrine disrupting skin care because you’re terrified of aging? The song “You’re So Vain” could be my anthem (I am not proud of this).

Hey! It’s me, Elisha. Thought I’d hop in here really quickly to introduce my sister, JoJo, to today’s post. She’s guest blogged on other posts like, Being Your Own Health Advocate, How To Upcycle Last Year’s Calendar, and a Complete Bedroom Revamp post. I hope you enjoy today’s post! Now I’ll let her take it away.

P.S. let us know in the comments how you liked this post so we can make more for you!

This post may include affiliate links.

Please read my disclaimer page for more info.

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.*

Disclaimer: The information on this blog is based on personal experiences and should not be considered medical advice. The information on this blog is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Please ask your doctor if you have any questions.

I used to work in Cosmetic Dermatology for five years.

I know about all the anti-aging treatments, the skincare, how it all works. I was a model student at every lunch-and-learn our reps held. I am not an esthetician but have a deep understanding and was fully bought into the clinical quality skincare cult. I thought all the products I used were superior – SkinMedica, SkinCeuticals, Neocuits, Alastin, the list goes on.

The reps tell you they’re better because these are “science companies” and whenever they launch a new product they essentially do a “clinical trial” for them first. It’s science damnit! People saw improvement in fill-in-the-blank, and you can see here this chart proves it, now it’ll be $300 for that cream please, and thank you. 

I’ve been trying to phase out things that I think are bad for me, and always seem to get stuck when I get to my skincare routine because let’s be honest – I’m terrified of aging poorly and I have a dermatologist in the back of my head always telling me that I just need to get past the purging stage and I’ll love Retin-A and it will make me young forever. (Spoiler alert, it just doesn’t work for some people and that is ok and you should just accept it.) Also, let’s not be crazy, I will not be quitting Botox and Filler anytime soon. 

Anyhow, I eat super clean, I’m trying to phase out synthetic fabrics from my closet because of all the microplastics, I only use natural soaps with a good EWG rating, and so on and so forth.

Late last year my husband was having a particularly rough case of Seborrheic Dermatitis, and had tried so many things with no luck. I had been reading about how Metheleyne Blue helped with many skin things and found this tallow balm. It wasn’t a complete miracle for him, but it was a significant improvement in just a week!

I personally was worried about breaking out from tallow, but I thought, ok I’ll just try it on my neck and see if I have any reaction. A month or so went by and I felt like the skin on my neck seemed better, like the wrinkles on my neck were less defined. (Also, listen up kids, pull your products from your face all the way down your neck. By the time you have the thought “oh, my neck is looking a little old” it’s already too late. Get ahead of that.) I decided, ok, I’ll risk it and try my face.

Something to know about me is that I have been chronically dry, forever. All my time working in derm I was so dry. Flaky skin always on and around my nose and on my chin. I’ve tried all the big gun moisturizers – SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid, SkinMedica Ceramide Cream, Topix Restorative Bio-Therapy, Neocutis Bio Cream – and so many more. Suddenly, in less than a week using Meraki Methylene Blue Tallow Balm I was not dry at all. What?!? Putting some beef fat on my face cured my 10+ year struggle with dryness in a week?!? You have got to be kidding me.

So then I thought, well I can never use Retin-A, the “anti-aging gold standard”, more than once a week because I just get too dry. So I decided to really put the tallow balm to the test.

• First I used Retin-A twice a week for a couple weeks, still all good and no dryness. Impressive.
• Then I thought ok, three times a week, it’s not going to stand up to that – no way. Used it for another month like this, zero dryness.
• Then, I stepped it up to every other day. I have never in my entire life ever been able to use Retin-A every other day without looking and feeling like a burn victim. I HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH DRYNESS. What is even happening, my whole world was turned upside down by beef fat and a fabric dye! BANANAS.

And now a brief interlude about Retin-A.

After about 3+ months of consistent Retin-A use, I didn’t feel like I was ever getting out of the dreaded Retin-A “purging” stage. For those who frequent the derm office, I’m sure you’ve all heard the fable that “you’ll look worse before you look better because it pushes all the junk out of your pores while they get smaller, but magically if you just stick with it and aren’t pathetic and cave because your face is peeling off, you’ll suddenly have perfect pores and wrinkle-free skin quicker than you can say to your dermatologist: here take all my money”.

It was constantly bringing everything up to the surface, but my pores were never looking better or smaller. I always thought I was the problem, because I was dry, and I just couldn’t use it enough. I would like to say to you ladies and gents out there who share in the struggle, it’s not you, it’s Retin-A. It just might not be right for you.

I also had a 15% Azelaic Acid that had been recommended for me when I was struggling with Retin-A, use it alternatingly my derm said. I decided to ditch the Retin-A all together and only use the Azelaic Acid in the AM, what an improvement!

My derm also suggested a Topix 10% Lactic Acid Resurfacing Serum to use at night to help with my pores. I didn’t have any dryness (at least not with my tallow balm) and my pores finally looked better. Success!

Note: I may have straight up lied to my derm about discontinuing Retin-A and using a tallow balm… She was going to tell me I was making a dangerous mistake, no Retin-A and putting beef fat on my face. You will clog your pores she would say (if given the opportunity). But why should I believe her when my own first-hand experience told me otherwise?

Back to our original story…

Encouraged by the tallow balm, I started thinking about how certain serums I used were made (remember, 5 years working in derm, I know too much).

SkinMedica TNS Essential Serum was my go-to for about a decade. Did you know it’s essentially penis serum? I kid you not, it’s made from a stem cell extraction from a baby’s foreskin. If men even knew that women were rubbing $300 penis cream all over our faces in the attempt at youth, I’m sure a lot of vulgar volunteering would happen.

I also was using Plated for a while, which is “platelet-derived exosome technology”. Basically, they take someone else’s blood, extract the exosomes, and then purify it and you put it on your face.

Both of these things started to gross me out. Like how do we know how clean it is? Does any of that person’s DNA survive? Hypothetically could you absorb someone else’s DNA through your skin and it integrate with your genome? Do we have any long-term safety data? Do we even know the answers to any of these questions?? The global moisturizer market is approximately 13 Billion dollars a year, just moisturizers. Do these companies even have our best interests at heart? I decided it was time to try out some more natural product options. 

I used up what I had because I was not throwing out a $300 serum even with my new found enlightenment. I’m practical. Then I went to my favorite research tool – X. I follow BowTiedFawn and always appreciate her reviews and advice on her blog. Clearly she is a knowledgeable esthetician, and reviews many levels of brands for all pocketbooks. (She also happens to make an awesome face wash and her boyfriend makes these toothpaste tablets that I love.)

I’d found Sevo Skincare on X myself and was impressed with the ingredients + Fawn had given it high marks. Sevo had seemed to do the research and it didn’t seem like natural fluff marketed to hippies (which there seems to be a lot of that out there and #1 I don’t think those products are generally effective and #2 typically they’re not as “natural” as they claim to be). I’ve been using Sevo for several months now, and I really like their products. + Their Morning Serum (Vitamin C) doesn’t smell like hot dogs! IYKYK, I’m looking at you SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic. I might be making this part up, but I swear Sevo’s origin story involved something about making natural skincare for a sister that had eczema, and you know we love a good sister story around here. I can’t seem to find where I read that now, so I can’t guarantee it’s 100% true… I also love that several products have a mix of mushrooms in them, and mushrooms are a health powerhouse!

I also kept reading about Copper Peptides on X, so I added that in too. It pains me to say this, after all the money I spent on “growth factors”, “ceramides”, and Retin-A, but I am happy to report that my skin looks better than ever! It’s glowy, I rarely have acne, I’m never dry + I think with the exception of the acids I use on my face I could eat most of my skincare if I was in danger of starving to death. I keep coming back to this thought lately; you can’t outsmart Mother Nature. We can invent and study all these newfangled things, and some of them definitely improve our lives, but at the end of the day – maybe Mother Nature knows a thing or two. I feel like the cosmetic dermatology industry has done a number on women and maybe we don’t need all the clinical trial skincare, and should just listen to Mother Nature a little bit more. Your skin is your largest organ, maybe you should only be putting things on that you could eat.

If you’re curious about my skincare routine – here you go:

AM:

1. H2.0 by Biom Cleanser (currently sold out, but also love their toothpaste tablets, we like to carry these in a pill box when we travel to avoid messes)
2. Sevo Morning Serum (Vitamin C and Methylene Blue)
3. Mirror Skin GHK-Cu (Copper Peptide) (mixed with the Vitamin C, it will give you a slightly metallic smell that quickly dissipates – I probably only use this serum during the day like 50% of the time)
4. 15% Azelaic Acid (the one I use is an Rx, but lower percentages are OTC)
5. Sevo Face Balm (another Tallow balm that’s awesome with a different mix of ingredients!)
6. EltaMD UV Physical SPF 41 (I only use SPF if I’m going to be outdoors for a prolonged period, and I never use a chemical SPF)
7. Oxygenetix Oxygenating Foundation (I rarely use foundation, but when I want a more polished look, this one doesn’t feel too makeupy – sometimes I’ll even mix it with my SPF to thin it out) 

PM:

1. H2.0 by Biom Cleanser (currently sold out, but also love their toothpaste tablets, we like to carry these in a pill box when we travel to avoid messes)
2. Mirror Skin GHK-Cu (Copper Peptide) 
3. Topix 10% Lactic Acid Resurfacing Serum
4. Sevo Evening Serum (just reformulated to include GHK-Cu, so I may phase out Mirror Skin in my PM routine)
5. Meraki Medicinal Methylene Blue Tallow Balm

Other things I use as a part of my routine:

1. Ashwood Acres Tallow Lip Balm (the most hydrating lip balm ever, even my husband loves this stuff – the scents are strong but made from essential oils and not fragrance)
2. Farmer’s Premium Plantain and Jewelweed Salve (nature’s version of Aquaphor, I love to put a thin layer over my lips at night on top of my tallow lip balm + this jar will last you FOREVER)
3. Celluma Pro Light (this is a splurge, but worth the money – my skin looks better, pores are smaller and the touch of rosacea I have on my cheeks has improved, so much so even my facialist noticed. Bonus: If you feel an angry underground cyst coming up on your chin, just use the red light and it will never fully show up! Truly miraculous.)
4. Boar’s Hair and Nylon Brush (I have long thick hair that I highlight and was having a lot of breakage and this brush really turned it around – sure, this isn’t exactly skincare related, but your scalp is skin too, so you’re welcome)
5. Silk Pillow Case (I can’t say enough good things about a silk pillowcase, I even travel with one. It’s magic for keeping your hair nice for multiple days, and lets your face slip and slide around at night + allegedly helps with dryness)
6. Gelatin (collagen’s big sister, gelatin packs an even bigger punch – I make homemade gelatin gummies and make myself a daily “gelly coffee™️” to help strengthen my hair, skin, and nails)
7. Pro Tip: Date when you open your products, so you know how long they last and have an idea of when to reorder + at some point things just get too old and you should throw them out if you don’t use them.

If you liked this post about tallow – let us know in the comments! While you’re there, tell us what your fav natural skincare products are.

Explore other recent posts:

• What You Should Know About Your Money Before Moving Abroad
• More Great Sewing Projects To Use Up Leftover Fabric
• How To Successfully Make $0.00 Online While Working A 9-5
• How To Make A Satin Lined Beanie From Fabric Scraps
• The Most Important Travel Items For Your Next Trip

Find us on social media!

P.S. If you’re looking for an activity you can do on a bad flare day and from bed or with your virtual community, download our free trivia here.

Playing trivia is a great way to still participate in fun activities with your friends and family without ever leaving the comfort of your bed. It’s perfect for keeping in touch with friends who you may not be able to visit regularly. Check it out and let us know what you think! 👇