That should be simple enough to answer. Skin care products are those cosmetics that are formulated to maintain and/or improve the condition of the skin. Once I’ve said that, it all becomes more complicated because there are lots of notions as to which products do it best, and for what kind of skin. Unless it’s makeup, it’s now known as skin care or skin treatment. Some of the types of products include:
Cleansing cream is meant to remove facial makeup, along with surface dirt and oil, from the face and throat. Although soap and water can do the same thing, cosmetic advocates claim that cleansing cream has certain advantages because makeup is more easily removed by cleansing cream, which is formulated specifically to cope with the chemicals in facial makeup. The basic formula for the simplest form of cleansing cream contains beeswax, water, mineral oil and borax.
You may recognize it as a modification of Galen’s 1800-year-old recipe. Of course newer products have gotten more complicated, and, depending on the skin type for which they are formulated, may contain a range of other ingredients, including camphor, stearyl alcohol, cetyl alcohol or sorbitan laurate. Probably the best known cleansing cream is Pond’s, and at under $5 include Maybelline, Noxzema and Bonne Bell. Revlon Skin Balancing Cleanser is under $7. Lancome Savon Fraichelle Daily Cleansing Gel is under $15 and Estee Lauder Re-nutrive Extremely Delicate Skin Cleanser sells for about $20. Orlane Ligne B-21 has a cleanser for more than $30.
Another cleansing product is eye makeup remover. This is a relatively new cosmetic entry. When waterproof mascara and eye makeup were marketed, it quickly became apparent that they were not easily removed by traditional methods. Voila-eye makeup remover. Almay sells it for under $4. At Borghese it costs in the
neighborhood of $6. Lancome has a product that sells for about $10 .
Scrub cleansers are designed to exfoliate, or slough off, the top layer of epidermal tissue, thereby cleaning the pores and improving the appearance of the skin. Basically, scrubs are made of some form of abrasive substance suspended in a lotion, cream or soap. Ingredients can include sea kelp, lemon, grapefruit, strawberries, oatmeal, almonds and apricots, along with more usual cosmetic ingredients such as cetyl alcohol, clove and eucalyptus oil. A scrub can cost from about $4 to $20.
Aapri makes an inexpensive Apricot Facial Scrub. Both Frances Denney and Dubarry make scrubs in the $5 range. Adrien Arpel Honey & Almond Scrub costs about $14. Masks also clean the skin, and although they contain many of the same ingredients as scrubs, they are usually less abrasive and, depending on the skin type for which they are formulated, may include other types of ingredients intended in some way to “treat” the skin either by introducing moisture or reducing oiliness. Some masks, such as the mud! clay variety, are washed off; others with vinyl -type ingredients are peeled off. Unless otherwise directed, masks should not be used on the delicate skin near the eyes. Chattem Mudd Mask sells for under $3, and Almay has a mask for about $6. Elizabeth Arden, Adrien Arpel and Frances Denney have products in the $10 to $15 range. Dior and Lauder market masks that cost more than $20.
Toners are also known as astringents, skin fresheners and clarifiers . Whatever you call them, they are meant to reduce temporarily the size of the pores and remove excess oil and dirt from the skin. The primary ingredients are usually water, alcohol, and fragrance. Often astringents have more alcohol than fresheners, and some products made for dry skin don’t have any alcohol. Some toners meant for very oily skin may contain acetone, resorcinol or salicylic acid; those for dry skin may contain glycerin. Most toners run between $6 and -15, but there are a few over $20.
Lip repair products are another new entry into the skin care maret. We are told that lip repair products help smooth fine lines, improve texture and reduce lipstick bleeding and feathering. Some (ontain sunscreens.
Lip repair products are manufactured by several companies, including Max Factor, Elizabeth Arden, Revlon and Borghese. Most are in the $5 to $10 price range. Chanel’s Protective Color Control about $15.
