Before buying a skincare product I always check its ingredients list. And if alcohol is listed near the top I usually put it straight back on the shelf. Alcohol can dry out and irritate your skin considerably.
A trip to the beauty counter at your local department store and you come home with a fortune in eye cream, day-night cream, serums, moisturizers and some ‘special products’ to treat spots, pimples, pores and wrinkles. And if the salesperson is to be believed all those things are equally essential! I have already written before in my blog that in general “less is more”. The more products you use the greater the risk becomes of skin irritation and allergy. Furthermore, as regards “unique ingredients” there is actually no difference between day, night, eye or décolleté cream. A serum isn’t necessary either if there is a high enough concentration of active ingredients in your usual moisturiser. In addition, most of the ingredients are multi-taskers; in other words they work to prevent pigmentation and spots, protect against sun damage, hydrate and soothe. So an all in one product, nice and easy and inexpensive too!
There is a lot of information in my blog about what does and does not work in the field of skincare. Information about such things as fine ingredients that really can improve the skin. Or about substances which you should avoid. About loose claims and indecipherable mock Latin. About the various skin types and complaints which come about from using incorrect, or the incorrect use of, cosmetics. But even with sufficient knowledge of ingredients, ingredients lists and your own skin, finding the right products is still a mammoth task.
The cosmetic industry is, with an annual turnover of around 220 billion dollars, one of the biggest in the world! And it is still growing. I wrote two years ago that the “average woman” uses around 9 products a day, it currently stands at 12. I am noticing though that people have lost their faith in the effectiveness of cosmetic products. It’s a pity, because despite my often critical comments, I believe more than ever in the possibilities of cosmetic products. Searching for your wonder cream…
I have written previously about the Toner (see here). There are quite a lot of discussions among Dermatologists as to whether using a Toner is worthwhile. I can understand why some experts are doubtful about this. There are many which are mainly just water with a hint of colour and fragrance. And if you are unfortunate there is also a large amount of mint, eucalyptus or alcohol added (for that fresh clean feel). All of which aren’t very good for the skin.