February 8, 2017

Do Buy These Skincare Products But Don’t Buy Those Ones!

I receive a small commission if you shop through my link.

You know how I know it’s Winter? When its 60 degrees in New York one day and it’s 10 inches of snow predicted for the next. You know how else I know it’s Winter? When I start overly moisturizing myself to the point I glide across a room when I walk. Lucky enough, the Winter has been a mild one in Gotham but it can be a little bit of hell on your skin when it’s warm one day and cold the next.

I’ve been quite busy sharing my thoughts on a slew of new skincare these past few weeks! Some of which are hopefully getting you through the cold (and warm) weather.

Here’s a remind of some skincare you should buy and others you should avoid.

Skinfood Black Sugar Honey Wash Off Mask (Review)
Dry, flaky skin got you down? This mask is the perfect way to gently exfoliate, smooth, and soften your dry skin! Do buy it!

St Ives Exfoliate & Nourish Coconut Oil Scrub (Review)
Need some extra buffing power? This cleansing oil-like facial scrub starts out life as an oil and emulsifies into a milky scrub to deeply cleanse skin. Do buy it (but beware if you’re sensitive)!

Shea Moisture 100% Virgin Coconut Oil Daily Hydration Overnight Facial Oil (Review)
Is your dry skin driving you crazy? Hydrate it well with this rich facial oil that adds a super boost of moisture to skin! Do buy it!

CeraVe Skin Renewing Gel Oil (Review)
Love trying new and innovative products? Grab this interesting oil that has a gel-like texture which absorbs quickly and easily into skin without leaving it greasy but still bringing your dry skin an extra boost of moisture! Do buy it!

St. Ives Exfoliate & Nourish Apricot Facial Oil Scrub (Review)
This too harsh scrub isn’t for the faint of heart. It proved difficult to wash off and the harsher grains are a big no! Don’t buy it!

Peter Thomas Roth Water Drench Hyaluronic Cloud Serum (Review)
As interesting as Peter Thomas Roth’s new serum sounds with it’s promise to retain moisture and help to hydrate skin, it’s actually way too expensive for what you are getting and can be easily replaced with a much cheaper and more hydrating essence or emulsion from Korea. Don’t buy it!

NYX Stripped Off Micellar Cleansing Water (Review)
If you love Garnier’s Micellar Water, NYX’s formula is quite the same and at a little bit of a cheaper price. It does well swiping off makeup, dirt, and oil without drying skin out! Do buy it!

Tarte Brighter Days Highlighting Moisturizer (Review)
Tartre’s luminous moisturizer acts to lightly hydrate skin while adding a very pretty little glow but the near $40 price tag and smaller size make it a facial moisturizer you won’t feel compelled to use daily! Don’t buy it!

What’s on your skincare hit and miss list lately?

Do share!

I receive a small commission if you shop through my link.

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Jane

    I got the Caroline Hirons Double Cleanse from Pixi and I love it (the one day I have had it to use it, that is). So lovely, although with my weird pink post-partum skin, I will skip the recommended washcloth tonight.

    And to the sad skin, I’ve just been using CeraVe’s healing ointment on my face like a fading 30s movie star. Feels great, though, even if I feel like the pictures have gotten smaller.

    This warm winter weather (I’m down the eastern seaboard a bit) just depresses me. I always think of the XKCD global warming explainer cartoon and just… it’s very sad.

    • Isabella Muse

      yay happy to hear you’re liking that one! this weather is abnormal for this time of the year! Def global warming!

      • Lorraine. E.R

        We have barely had any winter days in Louisiana. Maybe 3-4ish weeks of winter weather if you add up all the days it has dropped below 60 since Oct?
        And it might be 45 for 2 days but then it’s between 60-75 for 2 weeks! It is all over the place too, we can have 40 and 80 degree days in one week. It makes planning outfits very hard! Lol.

        • Isabella Muse

          I didn’t know you were in Louisiana 🙂 cool! Haha sounds like NY as that’s exactly what we’ve been having!

  • Emily

    Indie Lee Squalane Oil, a definite buy for someone like me, combination skin prone to breakouts but also dry patches especially in winter. It’s recommended for all skin types. Since I started using it, I have not had a single dry patch. I love the smell, I love the feel, and it’s not obnoxiously expensive. Have you tried anything from her line? I’m eager to try more, but have so many products in my collection to get through first! I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, I need more faces!

    • Isabella Muse

      I haven’t! I’ll have to give it a whirl thanks for the rec 😀

  • Emily

    Oh, and my biggest miss has been the SK-ii facial treatment essence. I can’t handle the smell. Who knows, maybe if I had stuck with it longer I would’ve seen some magic, but I tried it for a few days at a time on 2 separate occasions, and just hated the experience way too much. It smelled like stinky feet. My hands smelled like feet after I applied it. I don’t see myself ever growing accustomed to it. Money saved!

    • Isabella Muse

      LOL omg. I didn’t get that smell from it but the visual has me laughing!

      • Emily

        It was so bad, it makes me wonder if there was something wrong with mine. I didn’t buy it, I got it as a Sephora reward, and I’ve read so many reviews that made me wonder how so many people are OK with the smell. I am not overly picky about scents, usually, and prefer my skincare as unfragranced as possible.

  • KimMWC03

    The weather has been crazy here in DC too. My skin is like what’s the deal? I’m going pretty basic with my skincare right now until my skin gets back to normal. I’m just using Neutrogena moisturizer with SPF, a Clinique cleanser and Bioderma.

  • Abbey

    I recently bought some products from The Ordinary, and I’m still trying to decide how I feel about them, they layer well over each other, but if I try to use my favorite oils and moisturizers with them, they pill and it’s awful. Still loving the Caroline Hirons/Pixi cleanser and the Drunk Elelphant serums, though!

    • Emily

      Which Ordinary products are you using? I’m very intrigued by this line, especially interested to try the caffeine serum and one of the lactic acid ones. I have too much skincare in my stash already that I need to get through, but The Ordinary is very much on my radar lately.

      • Abbey

        I bought all of the recommended products for the regimen for pigmentation issues. So far I’ve used the alpha arbutin +HA (kind of sticky), the niacinimide and zinc serum (like the way this feels, but don’t know if there’s a difference in my skin), the azelaic acid (pills like crazy and makes my face itch), and the 2% retinol (like this one, but have to use every other night, and pills under my oils. Works well under regular moisturizer). I haven’t tried the magnesium and vitamin c moisturizer because I’m still using and loving my Drunk Elephant C serum.
        I definitely think they’re worth a try. They’re so inexpensive. None of them have any scent, which is a huge plus in my book. And I may try some of the other acids after I work through my other products.

  • genevieve

    I really like the idea of the CeraVae product, it is right up my alley. I am not into expensive skincare because a) I can’t afford it if I become too attached to it and b) there is always a cheaper and perhaps better alternative.

    I am loving the La Roche Posay line at the moment – especially the Ultra light SPF50 as we are in the midst of summer here (scorching with high humidity). This little gem stopped me from becoming sunburnt at my grandson’s first birthday at a park last week (although it was held in the morning, it still become warm by lunchtime). It can also be purchased at our local Priceline and Chemist Warehouse and it is occasionally on sale too.

  • fannyanddailybeauty

    Really like this post, especially as I wanted to try the PTR Water Drench Hyaluronic Cloud Serum, now I’m definitely going to reconsider it!

    • Michelle Luna

      Same here, I just added that to my Loves after seeing the bottle at Sephora the other day but I’m definitely going to save my money for something else! So glad that was mentioned.