So I was asked by Barbara (On my FB page) to do a list of my Holy Grail products! I thought I'd start it off with skin care!
I have terribly sensitive skin! Eczema and insanely dry skin are my main skin issues to contend with, mild rosacea is like their annoying sidekick. I've found that I can't wash my face with actual SOAP anymore. Anything that lathers (Sodium lauryl sulfate or a few others similar additives), has too much perfume or dye added will cause my face to break out in a rash and itch. Gross, right? It's a nasty side effect of my eczema. So when I do wash my face, I wash it with natural organic honey from New Mexico (B's Honey) with/without cinnamon. If I don't use cinnamon, I'll leave the honey on my face for a minute or two. It's naturally soothing to the skin and helps to clean your pores. I personally haven't had much of an issue since I started this routine over a year ago. When I need to wash my makeup off, I LOVE Pond's cucumber cold cream. It's really heavily scented but for some reason, it's never bothered my skin. I've used it since I was a teenager to take off all my makeup GENTLY. It's definitely another HG must have for me. I wash with lukewarm water (NOT HOT) and rinse with the coldest water I can get from my tap. Twinlabs Na-PCA (Na is the elemental abbreviation for Sodium, PCA stands for pyrrolidone carboxylate acid I BELIEVE) spray is next on my list. I spray it on my hands and apply it to my face. The bottle design is idiotic but it ONLY comes in liquid form and cannot be sprayed directly on the face. Sodium PCA is a derivative of a naturally occurring amino acid that is mostly used as a skin humectant depending on where it was extracted from. It can be pulled from various grasses, algaes and coconut oil. Normally, healthy skin should contain around 12% sodium PCA in order to help bind atmospheric moisture to the skin cells. I use it before I put my lotion on since it makes me skin much more receptive to what I put on it afterwards. E45 Cream is my next Holy Grail product. I just recently tried it, ordered a small tube from England (Ugh it's so expensive to ship!! ;_;) and fell instantly in love. Strangely enough, the main active ingredients (Paraffin wax) are petroleum based (Or petrol based as they would say in Great Britain). I usually don't have a ton of luck using petroleum to moisturize but the combination of other things in it help a lot. I haven't done a terrible amount of research into it just yet. It doesn't irritate my skin or make me break out and has finally ENDED that vicious cycle of dry, tight, itchy skin that I was suffering. It DOES clog my pores. I am NOT prone to blackheads, unless I use petroleum products, this definitely made me start to develop a few. My next HG skin care products are 'serum' masks and a 'paper' mask from Freeman Beauty! My favorites are the Blue Agave (Paper), Honeydew and Chamomile (Serum), Goji berry (serum) and the Pineapple Enzyme (serum). I can't use clay masks of ANY kind at all, or peel off masks. But I've found Freeman's serum masks and the one paper mask work just fine if I use them in moderation. The honeydew/chamomile and goji berry moisturize skin. They almost set into your skin as they dry like a skin conditioner. I like them A LOT. The Blue Agave mask comes on this terrifying Jason looking paper mask that you place on your skin. It's covered in another serum type of gel that soaks right into your skin. No need to rinse and it's REALLY great to use before applying foundation. The Pineapple enzyme mask is just that. It contains pineapple extracts and AHA's. AHA's are notorious for causing skin sensitivity or irritation. I never experienced ANY issues using the enzyme mask, even when I was using it 3-4 times a week. I cannot vouch for the sun sensitivity as I hardly EVER go out into the sun and wear sunscreen and use umbrellas anyway. To wrap this up, I finish all of my skin care off with a healthy slathering of Avon's intensive healing and repair extra strength cream and the matching, lighter body lotion. They're not the greatest but they work better than anything I can find in a store.
I hope you enjoyed my rambling list of my favorite skin care products! Next time I'll post favorite makeup for the face such as foundations, blushes and primers! Happy Sunday everyone!
