January 18, 2010

Have you been really disciplined with your New Year’s resolutions and want to reward yourself?  Maybe you’ve already lost a couple of pounds and need a non-food treat?  How about getting yourself a Clarisonic Skin Cleansing System!

I’ve mentioned before that I’m not an early-adopter.  I’ve only had an iPod for a year, an iPhone for a few months, a Wii for a couple of weeks, and I’ve yet to buy a blu-ray player.  My television is over 20 years old and weighs as much as I do.  Oh yeah, and my car will be 10 years old in a couple of months.  With all that in mind, I’m sure it doesn’t surprise you that I’ve been hearing about the Clarisonic for over a year and just now got one.

Why did I wait so long!  My skin is already dramatically different in only two weeks of using the Clarisonic:

• It feels much much cleaner deep down, and clogged pores are becoming clearer

• It’s radically smoother in texture

• The color is healthy

• Pores look smaller

• It feels firmer!

I noticed some of these benefits immediately, and I continue to be pleased with the cumulative improvement I see in my skin, which is a pretty big deal for me.  I’ve never had pretty skin in my life.  I started making weekly trips to the dermatologist when my skin started breaking out at age 12.  In my early 20s, I was one of the first people to use Accutane, but by then I had scarring that really bothered me.  In late 2007, I had 6 Fraxel laser treatments at a cost of well over $5000.  By the way, I have a high tolerance to pain, but that was the most painful thing I’ve ever experienced.  Thankfully, I did see substantial improvement in my skin’s texture and scarring was reduced somewhat.

But even so, I’m still not happy with my skin and I’ll always be looking for ways to improve it.  The Clarisonic is an excellent tool, and it cost much less than $5000!  I got mine for $225 through QVC because their deal came with some extra goodies like cleansers and additional brush heads.  The model I got comes with a brush for your body, as well as 3 facial brushes.  You can also buy the Clarisonic through Amazon, Ulta, Sephora, and probably lots of other retailers.

I highly recommend the Clarisonic…don’t wait forever like I did!

~BigSis

November 20, 2009

You’re right, LilSis; I do have something to say about great body creams that don’t give you a financial guilt attack!  I love everything about L’Occitane, but their shea butter products are a bit of a splurge.  There are times for splurging, but there are also times for being a little more frugal (like now).

Let me give you the scoop on an AWESOME inexpensive cream that you can get at pretty much any drugstore or discount store.  It’s Gold Bond Ultimate Cream.  I’ve tried both formulas: Ultimate Healing has aloe, and Ultimate Softening has shea butter among other ingredients.  My favorite is the shea butter formula since it’s even richer.  You can get the cream in a pump bottle or in a tube.  I prefer it in the tube because it’s SO ding dang thick and rich that it’s hard to get all of it out of a bottle.

I love the Gold Bond cream year-round for arms, legs, feet and hands.  It’s heavy-duty enough for winter dry skin, but it soaks in quickly and isn’t greasy so it’s great for summer too.

The bonus?  You can frequently find a coupon in the Sunday paper for $1 or $2 off this great cream.  It’s a touch more expensive than Jergens or Vaseline Intensive Care, but I think it’s much more effective.

But wait!  There’s more!  I have an incredible foot cream for you too.  It’s Burt’s Bees Coconut Foot Creme.

Wowie!  This creme smells beyond scrumptious, and will moisturize your dry feet beyond belief.  This is an extremely thick creme; I would even say it’s goopy.  Deliciously goopy!  If you need a thick creme to slather on your feet overnight, this is the one!  Rub it into your feet and cover with socks, and you’ll wake up to super smooth soft tootsies!  Plus it’s pretty cheap…only $9 retail.

When I think of this coconut creme, I always remember how I used to rub it on HayHay’s Fred Flintstone feet when he was a little guy.  That may embarrass him, but it’s a happy little memory for me.

There you have it, LilSis, my favorite inexpensive but uber-effective creams that will obliterate your dry winter skin!

~BigSis

October 4, 2009

Summer is gone for most of us, and has taken swimsuit season away with it for a few months.  However, being the well-groomed, sophisticated women that we are, we still have to shave our legs, right?  We can’t let a ding dang forest grow on our legs just because we aren’t going to the pool, or running around in shorts.

I do it every morning whether I’m wearing a skirt or not; it’s just part of the daily routine.  Over the years, I’ve tried bunches of different shave creams and gels, and have a real favorite line that  you might not know about since I find it frequently in the men’s shaving section.

The best shave gels on the market, in my opinion, are made by Aveeno.  I like two of them equally well.  The Positively Smooth Shave Gel has soy and emollients, and is supposed to help you shave less often and get fewer nicks, cuts and razor bumps.  It has a very light and pleasant fragrance.

The other gel I like is the Therapeutic Shave Gel.  It contains oats and allantoin, and is formulated for sensitive skin and is supposed to soothe and moisturize easily-irritated skin.  It is fragrance-free.

You can find these at most discount stores and drug stores for under $5 usually.  I find them both to work extremely well at what they claim to do.  They are both moisturizing, and provide a close irritation-free shave without the red bumps. I don’t know if the Positively Smooth Shave Gel does reduce hair growth or not, and it doesn’t really matter to me.  It’s an excellent gel and smells great.

Since I’ve found these two shave gels, I’ll never go back to the strawberry-kiwi or peach-mango scented gels…you know the ones I mean!  They aren’t nearly as nourishing to the skin as the Aveeno line, and don’t cost much less.

Shave on, girls!  If you use these gels, let me know what you think about them!

~BigSis