Moisturizer

Alas, even the out-of-this-world beautiful Maggie Q is not immune from oily face. I don’t know about you, but I personally consider oily face to be one of the greater evils in the world of beauty. Who really wants to feel like their face is melting off, ummmm… their face? Or like your face is so oily that one only needs some lemon juice to make the perfect summer salad — okay, that was gross. Anyway, if you suffer from the shiny’s, as I like to call it, try switching your moisturizer to oil-free moisturizer formulated for men’s skin during the hot summer months.

As it turns out, men’s skin and women’s skin aren’t as similar as I’d thought at first. Apart from being thicker, men’s skin actually produces more oil, 20% more to be precise, than women’s skin because they have more sebaceous glands (glands found in our skin that produce sebum, or oil). This is why there is a separate line for men’s skincare — products are formulated specifically for their skin and therefore are more efficacious in controlling pesky oil. Geez, here I was thinking they were just being too finicky with the frilly packaging!

Here are a few of men’s skin care products that I sourced from Sephora.com. A product worth the mention, but not shown here, is Murad’s Essential-C Moisture. I bought the Night moisture for myself, but was not crazy about it (will do a review in a later post) so I gave it to my bf to try. He has oilier skin than I do and he loves it!
 

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We all know the importance of taking care of our skin, especially if you want to keep that youthful and healthy glow to it. But, dang, it does take a big bite out of our wallets every year, doesn’t it? If you’re on budget (who isn’t nowadays?), but still want to give your skin the protection it needs from harmful free radicals that accelerate skin’s aging, then this you just might want to try out this simple, yet surprising tip.

Yep, giving your $10 drugstore moisturizer the $50 moisturizer status is as simple as adding some vitamins to it. You can use Vitamin A, C, or E, or even some Omega fatty acids. Simply prick a vitamin soft gel with a clean needle and squeeze the contents into a clean jar filled with some of your moisturizer.

Some word of caution, however. Ascorbic acid (a type of Vitamin C) is only water soluble, making it pretty hard for our skin to absorb and even irritating sensitive skin; look instead for Ascorbyl Palmitate which is fat soluble. Also, Vitamin C does oxidize quite fast and when it does, you’re better off not using it at all as it may even increase the rate of free radical formation in your skin.

As with anything, do your research first and always test out the product on a small patch of your skin (inner wrists should be fine) in case you may be allergic.

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There’s just no other way to write this post without revealing that I am guilty of watching Vampire Diaries :S. Yes. I do (kind of) like the show. And have been liking it more now that Kelly’s character, Pearl, is getting more screen time. Pearl is up to something. Her daughter, Anna (biological?), released her from captivity along with other resident vampires and now they are back with a vengeance. Pearl is up to something. Oh, she’s brewing something good over at Mystic Falls, alright.

Speaking of the show, not a huge fan of Elena. I don’t know why, and believe you me I have tried, but I find her character a little bit on the dull side and she has gotten even more dull during the past couple of episodes. Apart from falling for tormented vampire hero, Stefan, the worst she has done so far is speed. But hey, that’s just my opinion. Anyway, getting back to the main topic: Kelly Hu.

Is she hot or is she HOT? Can you believe she’s in her 40′s? She can pass off for someone in their early to mid 30′s. Seriously. I could not find any of her beauty secrets, but clearly she moisturizes her skin well. So, kids, let it be known: moisturize, moisturize, moisturize!

Want to take it up a notch? Using moisturizers with anti-oxidants is a great way of amping up your skin care. Anti-oxidants help prevent skin damage from free radicals — villains of skincare-land that attack healthy cells causing our skin to age prematurely. And excessive sun exposure leads to more free radicals, so you may want to cut down on tanning.

When it comes to choosing moisturizers with anti-oxidants, or pretty much any skin care products, it helps to be a discerning consumer: cheaper does not mean it is less efficient or vice versa. Look at the back of the box and read the list of ingredients closely. If a product claims to have anti-oxidant X and/or Y but is/are in the last 5 ingredients listed , then it means that said product has less amounts of X and/or Y in it. What does this mean? You are paying too much for moisturizer with a tiny amount of anti-oxidants. Acids (BHA, AHA, etc.), however, are meant to be in weaker concentrations.

 

Here are some products with anti-oxidants:

$$ Neutrogena Anti-Oxidant Day Lotion”>Neutrogena’s Anti-Oxidant Day Lotion My bf, knowing my fondness for trying new products, bought this for me two months ago. I love that it has built in SPF 20 (Helioplex, said to be the best kind around), though I still try to go with at least SPF 30 or 50 depending on how long I’m staying out for and how strong the sun is. It could be more moisturizing, in my opinion.

$$ Korres Yogourt Cream Full-fat Greek yogourt, olive oil, macadamia nuts… Mmmm sounds good enough to eat! What’s great about Korres products is that they don’t have chemicals like Parabens, Sulfates, Pthalates, Triclosan, etc. that are purportedly harmful to your health.

$$$Clinique’s Super Rescue Anti-Oxidant Night: I have yet to try this personally, but I have been told that this product is just great. Plus, nighttime application means it is not interrupted by dirt, grime, and pollution.