I often get the sense that my friends have an almost mystical faith in moisturizers. While they avoid taxis and stagger home from Costco with 10 pounds of rice, they have faith that a $300 moisturizer is the key to beautiful young skin. If only it was that easy.
First, a little back story. Water is essential for healthy skin. It promotes normal metabolism and keep skin cells organized and flexible. The mission of a moisturizer is to simply help the skin maintain a healthy water balance. The most basic water and oil formulas act like Saran Wrap to prevent evaporation of water from the skin. And the simplest moisturizers will do just that. But there are three affordable and effective ingredients which crank up water attracting and holding powers in a moisturizer. Hyaluronic acid, ceramides and dimethicone, either singly or in combination, dramatically increase the value of a moisturizer to the skin. These cosmetic workhorses may not be sexy, but they deliver results.
Flip throught he pages of a magazine and you will find ads for super spendy moisturizers pumped up with exotic/expensive ingredients like arctic cloudberry, marula oil or alpha lipoic acid. Some work some don’t, but the bottom line is that they are not essential to beautiful skin. On the No-Nonsense Budget Beauty program your anti-aging and antitioxidant needs are met with glycolic acid, vitamin C and affordable microdermabrasion kits.
Here are four nighttime moisturizers that you should apply over the anti-aging products. For normal and oily skin, dot on a pea size blob on your cheeks, forhead, chin and neck and blend into the face. If your skin is dry, use the double app technique. Once the first application has benn absorbed, dot and blend a second coat
I’ve four favorite moisturizers all at less than $15:
1. CeraVe PM ( Coria Laboratories)
This baby hits all the right notes: Fragrance-free and non comedogenic, its packed with ceramides, and hyaluronic acid. FYI its one of the few affordable moisturizers to offer this powerful water attracting ingredient.
2. Active Naturals Daily ProtectionMoisturizing Lotion( Aveeno)
This light, fragrance-free cream has colloidal oatmeal to soothe sensitive skin and dimethicone to hold moisture.
3. Sensitive Skin Remedy ( Curel)
This a new product to my tool box. It offers ceramides, dimethicone, super soothing allantoin and antioxidant rich citric acid. All this and fragrance and dye free too.
4. Aquaphor ( Beiersdorf)
The first three moisturizers are lighter formulations. This is what I need and I’m reluctant to recommend products I don’t use. But when the weather turns cold and windy, my skin turns dry and flaky — and I reach for Aquaphor. Its the moisturizer that doctors give their patients after lasers and peels. If its good enough for them its good enough for me.
If you your skin is uber dry, try the double app method with Aquaphor. Before going to sleep apply generously to your face. Allow the first application to sink in, then reapply.
Great advice again. Thank you for sharing. My skin is starting to act up due to the weather chaning. I’ve been using Mario Badescu Vitamin C Serum a couple times a week and that’ been helping.
I really, really appreciate your blog. I am sending this to my friends. I swear by CerVa. I use the am too.
Michelle, you’ve made my day!