My Favorite Things

Look under your computers! Everyone reading gets their own goody bag!

Yeah ok, not. But I would if I could.

You've heard of "products queens"? I am a self-proclaimed "product whore." I could spend 4 hours in Sephora and rack up a bill to rival Imelda's shoe budget. And I've been meaning to share the love, at least in terms of reviews, even if I can't give you all a tube of Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment.

Some of this stuff is a little pricey, but people who tell you there's no difference between this and drug store brand? They're lying. Or they don't wear make-up or use moisturizer. And recession be damned, you should not be skimping on yourself in terms of looks. There's job interviewers to impress, or you know maybe in some cases Sugar-Daddys to seduce. So here are some of my favorite products and "must haves".

Pevonia Botanica is a line of spa products that I discovered getting facials at Bella Skin in Newton. (Love that place!) Like most skin care companies, they have various lines based on aging, acne, moisturizing based on need. The first thing of theirs I tried was their sunscreen. I was looking for something that was more than 15 and better for my aging, big pored, adult acne proned skin. I wear the Hydrating Sunscreen every day, unless it's pouring rain. It's not greasy, it acts as a daily moisturizer and gives me the SPF 30 I want. Then I took home a sample of the Hydrating Cleanser that the esthetician used for my facial. You really don't know the meaning of "soft, and no residue" until you use this and then go back to a drug store cleanser for a weekend because that's what you have up in the Maine vacation house. I was like, "ick" after using the "Oil of Olay" foaming daily cleanser. I have tried a dozen cleansers over my adult life and I have to say, I love this stuff. (I was about to type that I will never use another, but I realized I am lying...as evidenced further in the post.) Work a quarter sized amount onto dry skin with wet fingertips and rinse with a clean washcloth. Finally, Pevonia's Age-Defying Marine Collagen Cream is a joy to put on morning and night.

Another skin care line I really like is Philosophy. Their products smell amazing. Their best know item is probably "hope in a jar". It was a Sephora "Best of" winner last year. I tried this stuff. It's not for heavy moisturizing, or anti-aging, but it is really soothing to the skin. I love it when my skin is irritated from sun or wind. It's like a mousse that is instantly absorbed. The Purity made simple skin cleanser is a bargain, and also very gentile that leaves little residue.

One of my issues was I had a lot of sun damage and hyper pigmentation. I did some micro-derm abrasion to try to get rid of it. It didn't really get at too much. Before taking the next step to laser treatment, I took the advice of the esthetician and tried vitamin C. I was always skeptical about that, because I knew it was very unstable, and any product that claimed to have vitamin C to help your skin aging probably had very little by way of concentration to have any benefit. Well, Philosophy has this turbo booster C powder. You dissolve a scoopful in your favorite serum (such as Philosophy's "when hope is not enough firming and lifting serum") and you have a way to fade age spots, and lighten brown, blotchy skin. And it works! It took a few weeks, like 4 maybe, but I saw a difference in my skin. The next thing I buy from them is "eye believe" and "hope in a tube" eye and lip firming cream. I got a sample and it was really rich and soothing.

Ok. This post is way long now, and I know the average attention span has grown brief in this age. So...

To be continued...