I took this from my LJ. lol

Beauty Questions 1 and my skincare routine

Allllrighty, I have some free time (ie I have things to do that I'd rather not). So, my first questions asked by babybear05.

1) In your experience, how much better are the super nice skin care and makeup brands than OTC thrift store brands? What makes them worth the investment? Can you tell I have emotional problems with spending money? ;)
2) Along the same vein, what are your must-have skin care products and why?

Okay, first of all, my skin type is sensitive, combination, AND I have rosacea. I have the Murphy's law of skin: anything that can go wrong will go wrong. If I'm not breaking out, I get these weird redness breakouts from rosacea. If those aren't happening, my face is actually dry (this almost never happens). Or I'm really really itchy.

So as a consequence of this, I have tried prescription stuff from my dermatologist, drugstore stuff, and high end stuff. For awhile, I used Creme de la Mer this $130 face cream. Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd I have found that Neutrogena is the best. o_O Well, at least as far as cleansers go, I definitely would not pay for high end stuff if you don't want to. When it comes to moisturizers, you could splurge, but my standby is pretty much always Philosophy Hope in a Jar. In my gym bag, however, I do have Neutrogena Oil Free Light Moisturizer because my metabolism is very very revved after working out and I continue to sweat for what seems like hours after working out.

So my skin care routine.....

This varies depending on if I'm having rosacea issues, but for the most part, I use Neutrogena Oil Free Acne Wash (and I even use it to clean my makeup brushes and sponges in a pinch) or I will splurge for Philosophy Purity Made Simple. I wash my face twice a day, once in the morning, once at night, and then moisturize. In the morning, after I moisturize, I use facial sunscreen of SPF 30+ (and I have done this every day since I was 19ish). I don't bother with toners.

At night, I do use an eye cream and I honestly have no clue if it works or not.

For breakouts, one of the best products I've ever come across is Philosophy On a Clear Day H2O2 and I just realized that it's been discontinued. Great. Supposedly it has been replaced with Philosophy On a Clear Day All Over Acne Treatment. Grrrr.

For a spot treatment, the best I've come across is Burt's Bees Blemish Stick. I always thought my dad was nuts for pushing Tea Tree Oil, but it really does work. You can probably find a cheaper version at your local health food store.

I have tried Bare Escentuals Rare Minerals Skin Revival Treatment and I have yet to see ANYTHING different. I don't see what the reviewers saw, honestly. Also, I've tried Garnier Anti-Puff Eye Roller and I see nothing. Seriously.

And you may laugh at me, but I keep a jar of vaseline nearby. I put it on my eyes before I go to bed because it gets rid of any lingering eye makeup, it's great at moisturizing the eye area, and it conditions my eye lashes (and it's really cheap!)

I don't buy expensive scrubs, as I make mine from olive oil, brown sugar, lemon oil, and honey.

I should do an entry on products that I've tried that have done absolutely nothing. lol