I believe I have $crewed myself by doing (or not doing) two things:
(1) Laying out in the sun. I remember very distinctly Tracy and I laying out WITH OIL every single day of summer. Alternating between her pool, my pool and the beach (32nd Street yo!). This could not have helped matters, although I'm sure I had a much higher vitamin D content at that time.
(2) I have never ever been into lotions and potions, and in fact, only started using face lotion daily within the last month! I know, awful, but I've always had very oily skin and have been afraid of lotion on my face.
The ONE good thing I've done is [tried] to keep my face out of the sun since I've been 18. The one thing I remember my mom always saying to me was, "I never put my face in the sun after 20." This is probably one of the reasons she looks so young, but she also has olive skin, which I do not. :(
So, my obsession started after Ella was born when I noticed big bags and dark circles under my eyes that I couldn't control. After trying different under-eye gels, lotions and concealers, I noticed I also began to have fine lines under my eyes...GROSS! Apparently, according to the esthetician at the Guerlain counter, this is because my under eye area is severely dehydrated and dry causing lines that are further enhanced when the makeup cakes into them.
What is a girl to do? I think I need a VERY hydrating under eye cream (probably with no anti-wrinkle ingredients because those tend to dry you out), a VERY hydrating night cream and then a regular oil-free daytime lotion, possibly with anti-wrinkle properties. If anyone has the magic cure, feel free to share! Especially if you have a SUPER hydrating lotion...I don't care if it has oil in it and is greasy, I just need something for my under eye area over night because it's starting to peel!!!
I'm with ya, sista! I don't know what to do or where to turn. I think for me, it's the weather that has dried me out. I can see really dry skin around my eyes too. If you find something great, let me know. I'll tell you what HASN'T worked for me - Philosophy Hope in a Jar. Clarisonic didn't work for me either - made my skin WORSE, in fact. I also tried Dr. Perricone's Cold PLasma Moisturizer and didn't see a difference (and for that price, I really should've).
ReplyDeleteI would suggest using a something with a retinol, even on the skin around your eyes. Wash your face, let is dry for about 10 mins, get something like green cream: http://www.advancedskintech.com/greencream.htm
ReplyDeleteAnd then let that soak in and put some jojoba oil or a few drops of sweet almond oil on under your eyes at night. It will soak in and will relieve the dryness + the retinol will repair the wrinkles.
On the rest of your face, consider getting a prescription like Retin A micro or something for night, and during the day, use a light lotion + sunscreen.
One more thing, I also have skin on the oily side and every once in a while I still get a pimple (more hormonal than anything), but I use the sensitive skin face lotion from the Body Shop. It's the Aloe Skin Care line, and it doesn't break me out. You only need a tiny bit. And its cheap.
ReplyDeleteI think you're darker skinned than me, but I have become recently horrified by "mottling" in my skin, meaning that it looks really uneven and I have weird pink and age spots, and my freckles run together. It's really weird and I can't handle it. No wrinkles yet, but I've already spent a fortune (all within the last year, like you, I used to NOT CARE at all about skincare) on peels, acids, etc. It's not working. I'm afraid I'll have to go the laser route!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely swear by Murad face lotions (you can get it at Ulta at the District). Murad also has an amazing under eye cream that is smooooooth as butter and it's in a small tube that looks like eyelash glue. I really like my routine/regimine which I've been doing for years - Plain old Neutrogena face soap in the pump, then I use Oil of Olay face wipes (comes in a package like baby wipes and you don't need water). The wipe is like a toner and makes your face even more squeaky clean and then I use murad daily face cream and under eye cream :-). Then, I use photo finish foundation primer by Smashbox which is like velvet on your face - the stuff is amazing. It immediately gets rid of the moisture from the lotion so you have a good canvas for make-up. The primer is also another good layer of sun protection :o)
ReplyDeleteUnlike you, I was obsessed with skincare when I was younger but I have become much less obsessed now that I am older and have a kid. I have read, over and over, that MOISTURE is the only thing that matters and I think it's true. As far as my skin is concerned, I have fared better with the simply philosophy that "less is more." When I have lots of makeup on, I wash my face with an oil cleanser (Shu Uemura) because it doesn't dry your skin out and they say that oil cleansers actually make your skin LESS oily. Go figure. On normal days though, I only wash my face with Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser (not the gentle skin cleanser). And then, I smother Cetaphil lotion all over my face (not the tube that's in your picture, but the one with the pump). I even smother Cetaphil around my eye area instead of using a separate eye cream. It's cheap and it works. As a matter of full disclosure, I still look tired and old but I think that's because I am actually tired and old. Also, I have recently contemplated the purchase of La Mer eye cream because, when I was into skincare way back when, La Mer was my favorite. Good luck finding your perfect solution!!!
ReplyDeleteI also used to have a problem with peeling under eye skin (yuck, and it was pre-kid, double yuck) and discovered Shiseido's under eye creams. I use the lighter one that comes in a pump, but they also have a heavier one that my mom uses and loves. I used to use the Cetaphil daily moisturizer but recently ran out and switched to Lubriderm with spf 15 and have noticed less breakouts in my oily face areas.
ReplyDelete