Yes! Our plea for reader questions did not go unanswered. Here we will address our first one (and it is one we have struggled with for many, many moons ourselves!). From Cait:
I was wondering if you have any suggestions for a good facial
moisturizer. I like the Prescriptives "All You Need" that I’ve used in
the past, but it isn’t nearly as fabulous as it should be for the
price. I love Philosophy’s moisturizer, but last time I checked, they
didn’t have sunscreen, and really, I am a poor grad student, do I need
to spend $40 on moisturizer?
‘normal’ but that bubble was burst by a facialist who not so nicely
told me I was deluding myself and that my skin is more appropriately
called ‘oily’. Whatever. Do you know of a good moisturizer that has
sunscreen, doesn’t leave your face feeling like it is coated with
something, and doesn’t totally break the bank (though if it has
mystical properties that make me look ravishingly sexy and 10 pounds
skinnier, I am willing to splurge).
First off, fuck your facialist. No one should ever be mean to anyone about the condition of their skin. I mean, who does that? You’ll have to excuse our orneriness – we are feeling mildly out of sorts today, and we are blown away by how mean some people can really be. And how passive aggressive they can be. And just how ANGRY that makes us.
Anyway. Back to Cait.
Cait, we feel you. This summer, we tried every moisturizer – you know what. That word also makes uncomfortable. We’re saying lotion from now on. We tried every lotion we could get our paws on. Nothing worked for us, so we are just, as they say, winging it until we find something. We learned from a very nice woman at Kiehl’s that we are probably allergic/reactive to something in sunscreen which makes us break out. Which has made trying any lotion with sunscreen in it horribly disappointing. Hopefully this is not your fate.
We won’t give you the gory details on what didn’t work for us – but we’ve gone through piles of research (really!) and here are our favorite picks:
Ok. We are totally stopping at the drugstore on the way home and buying this. This is Olay’s Complete Moisture Lotion SPF 15. It got rave reviews, and we especially like that Olay uses a different kind of sunscreen – which makes us think we might not break out terribly with it. We’re actually excited about having fully protected, moisturized skin now. We will note that apparently this product comes in three different types (sensitive, normal, oily) and 2 formulations (lotion and cream) and a couple different SPFs. So choose wisely, young Jedi.
Here is the short list of what didn’t work for us – but again, that’s not to say it won’t work for you! Seek out retailers with excellent return policies (we tried every Clinique lotion at the Macy’s counter that way):
Clinique CityBlock
Clinique SuperDefense
Aveeno something or other
Neutrogena anything
Kiehl’s with any SPF
We are from the same school of thought about money. We know someone who spends $40 a jar on her lotion, and while her skin always looks great, we just can’t handle that. Oh – and we should add, that we have always loved Clinique’s Dramatically Different products. We would highly recommend them if you can pull together the scratch. It doesn’t, it should be noted, have any SPF. Bummer.
We know some of our readers must have suggestions for Cait. Help her out!
(at top) Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel, $11.50
-LIL BUNNY
All that JnJ stuff is like 99.99% the same (Aveeno, Neutrogena, Clean & Clear, Purpose, Basic, RoC)… so if one their consumer brands didn’t work for you, the rest probably won’t either. That said, I’m partial to the RoC anti-aging brand.
Purpose with SPF 15. It’s reccommended by dermatologists as THE BEST face lotion on the market. and it’s maybe $13? i am obsessed with it.
I used Oil of Olay with SPF for a long time and was very happy with it, until my skin started reacting to everything and I had to switch to something without parabens. I don’t blame that on the Oil of Olay though; I thought it did a really good job, especially considering how cheap it is.
i’ve had good luck with neutrogena sensitive skin spf 15 lotion (my skin is VERY sensitive). it’s light and doesn’t make me break out.
i actually had a lot of problems with the clinique dramatically different lotion for some reason – it made my face feel like it was melting.
the cetaphil stuff always made my face incredibly shiny, and the eye- burning is not to be taken lightly, especially if you get seriously sweaty while wearing it.
i’ve been using the olay spf stuff for years and love it. another plus – it takes me about six months to go through a bottle, and I use it every morning (and nothing else, might I add. more out of laziness actually, but whatever).
i pack an extra bottle like a security blanket when i go abroad for long stays, btw. interesting looking foreign elixers be damned.
Every Olay product makes my face burn.
Lately, I’ve had really good luck with this tinted moisturizer. it’s the first one I’ve ever liked:
http://www.sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P42786&shouldPaginate=true&categoryId=5668
Try the Avalon organics line…it is sold at Whole Foods and they also have a website. I use the vitamin C lotion with sunscreen and it is the only sunscreen I have ever been able to wear. I think it actually has improved my skin.
I have to say I try new things and always go back to Olay. I use the one mentioned about for the day. I just got their night cream and it is FREAKING AMAZING! My skin feels awesome in the morning. In this hot hot August, I have liked the Kiehl’s Ultra Face Moisturizer. It is very light and has SPF.
Dr. Hauschka! Rose Day cream for dry skin, Normalizing Day Oil for oily skin. It’s like magic!
i’ve been using aveeno for about 8 months now… started with the regular face lotion and am now using the calming one. i have combo skin, and aveeno keeps the normal part moisturized and the oily part nice and unshiny. cetaphil definitely hurt my eyes, especially when i sweat and i felt like i wiped my face in oil by the end of the day. neutragena made my face look ashy for some reason, and the tinted moisturizer left marks on my clothes when i accidentally touched my face with a sleeve. oil of olay is quite good, but the whatever they use for fragrance was too overwhelming for something that covers my nose and everything near my nose. i love the clinique one, which i got as a sample, but it has no spf whatsoever and even spending a little time in the sun made me turn bright red by the end of the day.
KT said, “Purpose with SPF 15. It’s recommended by dermatologists as THE BEST face lotion on the market.”
I got samples and it’s feels heavy for me, but maybe it’ll work for Cait. Jen mentioned Avalon Organics, which I’ve used and liked. Also Derma E; online or at health food stores.
You can also get your own spf and add it to lotion. The other issue is that it’s hard to find eye creams with spf ; maybe because spf is too heavy for eye creams. . . but under the eyes really needs it.
I’ve been mixing Neutrogena Sensitive Skin Sunblock Lotion w/ SPF 30 into my regular spf-free facial moisturizer (Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisture for Sensitive Skin) and it works so well. However…it makes my skin have a ghostly color. Almost like I put straight zinc oxide on my face then tried to rub it in REAL good. It also felt heavy.
My derm recommended Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock SPF 70 (!). But it makes my eyes burn.
I realize after writing this that I have offered no good recommendation whatsoever.
I’ve been mixing Neutrogena Sensitive Skin Sunblock Lotion w/ SPF 30 into my regular spf-free facial moisturizer (Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisture for Sensitive Skin) and it works so well. However…it makes my skin have a ghostly color. Almost like I put straight zinc oxide on my face then tried to rub it in REAL good. It also felt heavy.
My derm recommended Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock SPF 70 (!). But it makes my eyes burn.
I realize after writing this that I have offered no good recommendation whatsoever.