In my opinion 2020 has become the year of skincare. I love how others are turning to one another to crack the secrets of skincare marketing and truly cutting the bullshit and ditching products that can harm your skin. Are high price tags necessary for skincare? Are physical exfoliants necessary? Are eye creams necessary? What we learned this year to all these questions are NO! Let’s cut the crap and research what our skin needs. Let’s read ingredients and learn the industry. My blog was inspired from my love of skincare. My skin took a deep dive as soon as I became an adult. I got into skincare because I learned so much about the do’s and dont’s with my own journey and wanted to share my knowledge with everyone! I wish I had as many resources like this when I was in high school. Below are some brands that I have used this year in particular because they blew up in popularity! The three brands below are inexpensive and reliable brands that if you are just getting into skincare, they would be a great option to check out.
La Roche Posay
I have used this brand for a long time. It is shocking to me that 2020 was the year that made it “mainstream” What I love about this brand is that no matter the product I use, it generally is dedicated to sensitive skin. Most of their products that I have tried are fragrance free. The only thing difficult I have found about this brand is that their product names are not simple to understand. This brand is made in France. Their products are written in French. If you do not speak French or understand the language you will need to research the products ahead of time. Their prices are on the high end side of drugstore. Their products are worth the money. I have used several products from them. I will go into detail on the products I am currently using but, first I wanted to highlight the products I have used in the past that are worth mentioning. First, the Toleriane Dermo Cleanser. I loved using that product. It is very soothing. It did a great job of removing make up and cleaning the face. It was not stripping for my dry skin. The next product I have used is the Thermal Spring water spray. It was soothing and did the job. However, I have not repurchased it. I did enjoy it I just personally kept buying the Avene thermal spray instead.
Cicaplast Baume B5
First off, I want to say I love this product! This product is an overall soothing repairing balm. I first bought this product because I had tinea versicolour on my chest. I wanted a repairing balm to help soothe the area if I did not want to apply the medicated cream. This worked like a dream. After researching this product further I realized I can actually use this product all over my face on irritated dry spots. I sometimes have red flareups under my eyes and around my cheeks. Some days I just use water to wash my face on irritated days and apply this product all over. This product can be effective on face, body & lips. A little goes a long way.
Eau Micellaire Ultra
I am a huge fan of La Roche Posay but let me just say I was SUPER disappointed with this product. This is their Micellar Water and I did not carefully read the ingredients of this product before purchasing it. The scent of this product is overwhelming. It smells like old lady perfume. It has irritated my skin and I am just trying to get over this. Do not buy this product if you have sensitive skin. This is not like this brand… super disappointing product.
Rosaliac AR Intense
I have redness on my cheeks and my goal is to one day get rid of it! This is their visible redness reducing serum. I am new to using this product. So far I have really enjoyed it and have noticed that since using it, my skin redness has reduced a bit. This has no fragrance and is oddly a gold/orange colour. I use this right after I cleanse my face. It has not been a pain and does work well with other products I have applied on top. Make sure when trying something new, you are always being cautious about which products you layer on top of one another. If this can replace my current love, the Dr. Jart Cicpair Tiger Grass serum that reduces redness, that would be incredible. This product costs nearly half of what that product costs.
Cerave
Cerave! This company has MR.HYRAM himself to thank. This year, if you went into any pharmacy that carried Cerave good luck because nine times out of ten this product was SOLD OUT! The shelves were empty! This is the main reason why I have only tried one product form this brand.
Hydrating Cleanser
I LOVE this cleanser. I have dry skin and those of you with dry skin know it is tough to find a cleanser that does not strip your skin. This cleanser makes my skin feel clean and not stripped. 100% recommend.
The Ordinary
The Ordinary has really been the brand that has taken the skincare community by storm this year. Even those that did not know much about skincare got into skincare because of this brand. Their main hit this year was the AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution, the red blood looking solution. I have never tried this product because it seemed way too intense for my skin. If you used this product this year leave a comment down below with your experience. You may ask, why is there such hype around this brand? Well… it is inexpensive for effective ingredients in their products. Some may argue the percentages of ingredients for actives in their products are too high which can cause major irritation. That is why it is so important to know your skin and when you are playing around and getting into new products to make sure a patch test is done before applying certain new products all over the face.
Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA
Will I buy this product again? I wont go out my way to go repurchase this. I have dry skin so typically I prefer and do enjoy a thick moisturizer but I am not the biggest fan of this product. It takes a while to blend in. It is soothing but I do not really see myself reaching for this as much as some of my other moisturizers. It is worth a try for the price though. I have a feeling this will become my reliable “back up” moisturizer.
Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5
Love this Hyaluronic acid! Some of the complaints regarding this product is that it can be sticky and it is…but I do not mind this factor. You need to know how to apply Hyaluronic acid. Your skin needs to be damp before applying. I have another blog where I go into detail on how to apply hyaluronic acid. 100% recommend this product!
Mineral UV Filters SPF 30 with Antioxidants
Since using this sunscreen I have found another SPF I enjoy using over this one. However, this is a must try. I finally found a sunscreen that did not break me out and for the price it is excellent. Like the moisturizer I have found it does take me awhile, to get this sunscreen completely absorbed into the skin.
Which products have you tried? Let me know in the comments down below! Which product should I try that you loved this year? Happy skincare loves! Remember to experiment safely!
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