So today I thought I would start with the foundation of everything - skin care. As mentioned before, I have very fair, extremely sensitive skin, and allergies. I also have a tendency to break out a lot. I have oily skin that often appears to be flaky. These are the items I use daily with the exception of the moisturizer which I only use when needed.
I wash my face every night with Clinique Liquid Facial Soap Mild. You can rub this all over your face and eyes - it is very mild and non-irritating but removes makeup very well. Whatever eye makeup is left, I use Clinique Rinse-off Eye Makeup Solvent to remove it. This never irritates my eyes, and I like it because it is not greasy at all. I then use Clinique Clarifying Lotion 2 as a toner.
My Mom has dry skin and I have oily skin but we both have the problem with flaky skin. The flakes would even be in our eyebrows so when you ran your finger over them they felt gritty. We both went to different dermatologists and were prescribed various creams and given numerous samples and nothing got rid of the flakes. We were at our wits end. It goes against conventional wisdom to put a toner on your face if your skin looks flaky, but I'm telling you it will get rid of the flakes! I told my Mom to try it and she couldn't believe that it worked. She uses a Mary Kay toner and still gets good results.
I only use moisturizer occasionally in the winter or if I'm visiting a cold/windy climate or I'm on an airplane for a long period of time. When I do, I prefer Clinique Moisture Surge. It is a gel so you don't get that greasy feeling at all. My Mom loves it too. Again, I'm oily and she's dry - it works for both of us.
I wanted to mention that a good, and less expensive alternative to the Clinique Cleanser, is Eucerin's Sensitive Skin Gentle Hydrating Cleanser. It is Fragrance-Free, very mild, and you can buy it at Walgreens. I usually keep it in the shower and wash my face with it in the mornings then use the Clinique Clarifying Lotion when I get out.
I realize there is nothing groundbreaking here. Everyone knows about Clinique and Eucerin. Probably the thing I'm most excited to tell you about is the Premium Exfoliating Cotton Rounds I buy from Walgreens. You may not be able to tell in the photo above, but one side of the cotton round is soft and the other side has little bumps. They are 100% pure cotton, but the bumpy side is great to use when applying the toner/clarifying lotion. It helps remove the dead skin. Of course the softer side is great for removing your eye make-up. I have to warn you that Walgreens doesn't always have these in stock. The last 2 stores I went to were out, but I lucked out and found them today. I really love these things and now that I've been using them I hate to use anything else.
I hope you have good luck with these items if you give them a try. Let me know how it works out for you.
Today I wanted to share my alternative to lotion. When my allergies kicked in a couple of years ago, I found it difficult to wear most lotions because of the fragrance in them. And while there are fragrance free lotions out there, applying them after you get out of the shower just takes extra time and effort. So I started using Neutrogena Body Oil Light Sesame Formula - Fragrance Free. As the label implies, it has sesame seed oil in it. I apply it right after my shower - while I'm still in the shower. It's best to moisturize while your skin is still damp because it retains more moisture. I put it on my legs and arms, making sure to cover my elbows. Sometimes I rub it on my heels too because they tend to get dry. If you are a bath girl, you can add it to bath water to soften your skin. You can purchase this at Walgreens, Ulta, Walmart, Target and most grocery and drug stores. Neutrogena offers the same body oil with fragrance. The bottle looks the same but does not have the label "fragrance free" on the front so watch for that. Sometimes a store doesn't carry the fragrance free version or they are out of stock so you may have to shop around for it. Good luck!
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