The Sephora Sun Safety Kit is back for 2010! Sephora is selling 12 travel-size sunscreens from brands like Bliss, Shiseido and Kate Somerville, and the kit comes in a pink makeup bag, along with two UV monitoring bracelets. The sun safety kit is valued at $95 but it costs $25, and 100% of the net profits go to The Skin Cancer Foundation.

SEPHORA COLLECTION Sephora Sun Safety Kit

Here’s what comes in the set:
• Murad Essential-C Eye Cream SPF 15 (0.14 oz)
• DDF Ultra-Lite Oil-Free Moisturizing Dew UV Moisturizer SPF 15 (0.23 oz)
• Jack Black Intense Therapy Lip Balm SPF 25 in Lemon and Chamomile (0.10 oz)
• Peter Thomas Roth Max Sheer All Day Defense Lotion SPF 30 (0.25 oz)
• Kate Somerville Protect SPF 55 Serum Sunscreen (0.16 oz)
• Clarins Delectable Self Tanning Mousse SPF 15 (0.27 oz)
• Cover FX BritePrep FX Brightening Foundation Primer & Photo-Aging Defense SPF 50 (0.16 oz)
• Bliss Best of Skintentions Daily Moisturizer SPF 15 (0.34 oz)
• Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Cream SPF 60 PA+++ (0.23 oz)
• Ole Henriksen Herbal Day Cream SPF 15 (0.25 oz)
• Smashbox Photo Finish UVA/UVB SPF 15 (0.25 oz)
• Bare Escentuals BareMinerals Multi-tasking Face SPF 20 in Summer Bisque (0.02 oz)
• Pink Sephora makeup bag
• 2 x single-use UVSunSense UV monitoring bracelets

If you are a sunscreen junkie like me, this is a great way to try a bunch of different products without committing to a full-size tube. Not all of the products are just sunscreens – some are moisturizers or primers with SPF. I think the Shiseido sunscreen you get is actually their lotion, not their cream (my favorite sunscreen). I can’t wait to try the lotion version too. Sephora says their kits sell out fast, and they are a limited edition, so get yours now! I just wish those UV bracelets weren’t for one-time use because I would totally wear them around every day.

*Get your Sephora Sun Safety Kit*

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Jojoba Oil!
If you’re looking for a natural moisturizer, one that is organic, and free of chemicals and parabens, try jojoba oil! It’s also inexpensive compared to most facial moisturizers. I can’t believe I had never tried jojoba oil until now! I recently bought a small bottle of jojoba oil at my local vitamin store because I had been reading about its many great skin care uses and benefits.

Jason Jojoba Pure Beauty Oil
I picked Jason’s jojoba oil because it was the cheapest one I could find – $6 for a 1 ounce bottle. Desert Essence Jojoba Oil seems to be the most popular jojoba oil brand, though, and it comes in larger sizes, so it’s actually even more economical. I had been hearing about people using oils on their faces for years, but since I am so acne prone, it never dawned on me that I could use oils too. Nonetheless, I took the plunge and slathered my face with the jojoba oil, and it has not caused a single breakout since I’ve been using it for the past two weeks.

Jojoba Oil – natural moisturizer
My experience with jojoba oil so far has been great. As a moisturizer it works really well, and it doesn’t wear off as fast as a lot of moisturizers, so it still leaves your skin feeling hydrated several hours later. I have dry skin and most moisturizers don’t hydrate my skin well enough, but this does. Mostly I’ve been applying it at night, and I wake up with smooth, soft, hydrated skin. I’ve also worn it in the daytime and it works fine under sunscreen and makeup. I am probably over-applying it because it does leave my face a bit shiny, but if you just use less (like a pea-sized amount), it soaks in without looking greasy. Jojoba oil can be used on all skin types, but you might not need a moisturizer if you have oily skin. I will soon write a separate post about using jojoba oil for acne. You can use it on your face, as well as your body.

What is Jojoba Oil?
Technically jojoba not an oil, but a wax ester (a liquid wax) rich in the anxtioxidant Vitamin E, and it comes from the jojoba plant. Jojoba is a natural ingredient that is extremely similar to your face sebum. It is non-comedogenic so it shouldn’t clog pores. Jojoba oil is also 100% organic, and it only contains one ingredient (I’m not sure if all jojoba products are organic, but most of them are)! This is great new for people that are extremely concerned about putting chemicals on their faces. Jojoba is supposed to be very stable, despite being preservative-free, so it shouldn’t go rancid.

Jojoba Oil uses
Besides being a great natural moisturizer, you can also use it as a makeup remover and lip balm. I haven’t used it for either of these things yet, so I don’t know how well it works for that. I am scared to use it as an eye makeup remover, but I hear it does work well. Just read the individual label for the product you buy to see if it’s safe for use on your eyes. Jojoba oil can also be used for shaving, as massage oil, and as a hair conditioner or for a scalp massage (I have read mixed reviews about its use hair).

Drawbacks
The only negative I have about Jason jojoba oil specifically is that it’s hard to dispense so I end up pouring out too much, and it drips down the side of the bottle. I wish it would come with a dropper application. As a face moisturizer it’s pretty cheap, but if you end up using it on your whole body, then it could become more pricey. I can’t think of any other negatives!

If you are looking for a cheap face moisturizer, I definitely recommend jojoba oil! If you are hesitant, just start out with a really small amount to see what you think. Your local vitamin store or Whole Foods should carry it. Do you use jojoba oil?

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TRESemme Freshstart Dry Shampoo is the first dry shampoo I’ve used, and it’s supposed to be the perfect solution to achieve clean hair without the need for water. The goal of dry shampoo is to instantly remove oil, while adding volume to your hair. I have thinning hair, and I hate shampooing my hair every day because I always hear it’s bad for your hair and scalp to over cleanse it, yet my hair gets oily pretty fast. UGH. I was sooo excited that this would be the answer to combat my oily, stringy hair. At $5, this is the cheapest dry shampoo I could find, so that’s how I decided to buy it. I got it at Ulta, but have also seen it at Target and a few other drugstores.

TRESemme Dry Shampoo Review
I’ve used this product about 10 times now, and keep experimenting with it. To use it you 1) shake the can vigorously before each spray 2) spray lightly and evenly 8-12 inches from your head, and leave it in for 1-2 minutes 3) brush it out, then style as usual. The first several times I tried it, my hair felt more greasy and sticky than it did before using it. After spraying it, it coats your hair with white powder, and even after brushing it out, I could still see it on my dark roots, and the lighter brown parts of my hair looked dull also. My scalp looked extra white too, which sort of magnified my part.

After several tries, I found I got better results, and my hair didn’t look greasy or sticky, but it still looked a bit ashy. I sprayed my hair with a glossing spray to attempt to disguise the dullness, and that helped a little. If you have blonde hair, or a lighter hair color, this may not be as big of an issue. I think what I was doing wrong initially was not shaking the can before each spray, and I may have been concentrating on one area for too long, rather than moving the can around quickly to create a light mist. The dry shampoo does work to create volume when I spray the underneath part of my hair, so that’s exciting. I wasn’t really able to create too much volume on the top of my hair, though.

Due to the ashiness of the product, and the fact that half the time it comes out sticky and doesn’t help with oiliness, I don’t plan on using this anymore to remove oil. However, I will still use it underneath my hair to create volume until the can runs out. Keep in mind, though, that I’m really bad at styling my hair, so other people might be more skilled at using this product. Unfortunately, I will probably still have to wash my hair every day since this didn’t help to extend days between washing.

Online a lot of people have written that they hate the scent, but I actually like it, and I’m hard to please. It’s a bit overwhelming and strong, but it has a typical fruity shampoo-like scent. The scary thing about this dry shampoo, and really most dry shampoos, is the ingredients. Most dry shampoos contain butane (which is what’s in lighter fluid), plus alcohol. Instead, this one’s first ingredient is hydrofluoocarbon (I’m not exactly sure what it is, even after looking it up on wikipedia), plus alcohol denat (which dries out your hair and scalp), and then cornstarch is what is used to sop up the oil. I try to stay away from hair products that contain alcohol, but have been using hairspray lately as a desperate attempt to create volume in my hair.

Once my can of TRESemme dry shampoo is up, I don’t plan on buying it again, or any dry shampoo that comes in a can because the ingredients seem too scary to me, but I might be overreacting. I would be interested in trying a different form of dry shampoo, though – one that doesn’t have alcohol or butane, etc. Do you use dry shampoo? What is your favorite one? Do you have any tips for using it? Even though I don’t love it, if you are curious about trying a dry shampoo, you can’t beat the price, and there are some people online that do really like it. Also check out my review of Living Proof Full Thickening Cream.

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RevitaBrow Eyebrow Conditioner is a new product that helps you achieve thicker, fuller looking eyebrows. It contains peptides and botanical ingredients to help revitalize, strengthen, and condition eyebrows. I was offered a free tube of RevitaBrow to try, and because I struggle with thinning eyebrows, I jumped at the chance. For the last several years, my eyebrows have had patchy areas, and the outer parts of my eyebrows are completely gone. I have tried Rogaine on my eyebrows, and haven’t had them waxed for several years, but nothing has worked to regrow them.

RevitaBrow review
The RevitaBrow website says the product will make your eyebrows look darker, thicker, and fuller, so what I thought that meant was that my patchy, bald areas would fill in, and I would regain the eyebrows I used to have. However, inside the box, there’s a disclaimer that says, “RevitaBrow Eyebrow Conditioner is not intended to treat, prevent, cure, relieve, resolve, stop or reduce hair loss or to promote the growth of hair.” Isn’t that a contradiction??

Nonetheless, I applied the product every night with the easy-to-use wand applicator. I didn’t see any changes to my eyebrows until at least 6 weeks, which is when I noticed my eyebrow hairs looked darker and the diameter of the actual hairs seemed thicker and healthier. So I guess that’s what they meant by thicker. Even my boyfriend noticed my eyebrows seemed darker when I asked him if they looked different. It’s been over 8 weeks now and my patchy spots and outer hairs haven’t grown back, but apparently they aren’t supposed to since the product isn’t a hair growth aid. I usually need to do minimal plucking of stray hairs, and I did notice a few more stray hairs than usual, so either the RevitaBrow did help to grow some new hairs, or it darkened hairs I already had but just couldn’t see before. Interestingly, the second ingredient of the product is Serenoa Serrulata Fruit Extract, also known as Saw Palmetto, and orally that is a supplement that may help with genetic hair loss. I didn’t have any adverse effects from the product.

Is RevitaBrow worth it?
I may be wrong, but I assume most people that buy eyebrow enhancing products do so because they have thinning, sparse eyebrows, and they are hoping to regrow them. After viewing the product info on the RevitaBrow website, I had assumed the product would help regrow lost hairs, and it wasn’t until I read the fine print in the actual box that I found out the product wasn’t intended to grow hair. So personally I felt misled. However, the actual RevitaBrow box only says that it will “dramatically enhance the beauty of your Natural Eyebrows” and you are left to guess what exactly that means.

For $110 a tube, RevitaBrow is expensive, but I did see a change in my eyebrows – the existing hairs got darker and thicker. I’m not sure how long the tube lasts, but it’s been over 2 months and I still have some of the product left. If you are seeking darker eyebrows, an alternative would be to have them dyed once a month, but that may not be a whole lot cheaper, and it’s dangerous to use dye near your eyes.

The bottom line: If you can afford it, RevitaBrow may be worth trying if you are seeking eyebrows that are darker and healthier looking. Just remember that chances are you won’t see new hair growth. Also, I assume you will need to continue using the product indefinitely to keep up with the results.

*Buy RevitaBrow Eyelash Conditioner Here*

RevitaBrow ingredients:
Water/aqua/Eau, Serenoa Serrulala Feuit Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Swertia Japonica Extract, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract, Biotin, Octapeptide-2, Apiqenin, Oleanolic Acid, Biotinoyl Tripeptide-1, Cellulose Gum, Chlorphenesin, Phenoxyethanol, Glycerin, Sodium Chloride, Butylene Glycol, PPG-26-Buteth-26, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Tritcum Vulgare (Wheat) Protein, Isopropyl Cloprostenate, Disodium Phosphate, Phosphoric Acid, Pentylene Glycol

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Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask by Bliss is an at-home facial mask that is supposed to replicate the super popular oxygen facial at the Bliss Spas. I received a sample of the mask, and was curious to see if it would give me perfectly glowing skin, which is what the world famous Bliss Spa triple oxygen facial promises.

The at-home mask is easy to use - you apply a generous layer of the product to damp skin, wait 5 minutes, and then wash it off. Once you rinse off the mask, you can apply a moisturizer. The best part about the product is that it smells nice (like oranges), and it creates a frothy texture on your skin that feels refreshing. This is the first mask I’ve used that creates a shaving cream-like texture, and I personally liked the feeling. The frothiness (if that is even a word) only lasted a few minutes before it disappeared, and by the time 5 minutes was up, my face was feeling a little tight.

Results
The mask did make my face feel softer. My skin looked nice and smooth after using the mask, but it wasn’t glowing, and I’m not sure if it looked less “dull, tired and sallow” like it promised. I basically looked the same as before using the mask, but my skin was ever-so-slightly smoother and more even-toned. The product can be used up to 3 times a week.

Is it worth it?
The mask is fine for all skin types, and it doesn’t have pore clogging ingredients. It has some skin cleansing ingredients (like Sodium Laureth Sulfate), which seems sort of weird for a mask. At $52 for a bottle, it is pricey, although it contains 3.4 fl oz, which should last for several months or longer. I haven’t done extensive research on the benefit of added oxygen for your skin, or if it’s even possible to give your skin extra oxygen, but from what I have read, the whole oxygen thing is all marketing hype, and adding oxygen is actually not beneficial. The mask contains some good antioxidants, but if the product really does increase the oxygen in your skin, I wonder if that would negate the effects of the antioxidants since oxygen is a source of free radicals. Hmmm.

A lot of people do really like this mask, because there are some great reviews of it online, and other people think it’s fine, but not really worth it. The best thing about any skin care mask is that you feel like it’s a little pick-me-up for your skin, so even if it doesn’t do much, you feel better just knowing you did a little something extra. Due to the cheaper price and excellent hydrating abilities, I prefer the Paula’s Choice hydrating mask, but I would only recommend that one for normal to dry skin, and it doesn’t do any cool frothing or smell good, so it’s a bit boring.

*Buy Bliss Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask* (you can also view the full ingredients of the product here). Have you used the Bliss mask? What do you think?

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Eyebrow shaping is something I’ve become obsessed with because it’s amazing how much better perfectly shaped eyebrows can make you look! Ever since I lost my perfect eyebrows and they become thin and patchy, I’ve been searching for new ways to make them look better. Since eyebrow waxing may have been what damaged my brows, I gave up waxing and only do minimal plucking.

Eyebrow planing – a new way to shape eyebrows
I read about eyebrow planing last year, and it seemed like a great thing to try because it removes stray eyebrow hairs without the possibility of permanently damaging hair follicles, which can happen from waxing, tweezing and threading. Eyebrow planing is basically a fancy razor! I know it sounds crazy, but I used to use shaving razors to clean up peach fuzz above my eyebrows, because I hate how makeup and sunscreen looks when it sticks to the peach fuzz. Obviously regular razors are big and bulky to use around eyebrows so they aren’t ideal to shape eyebrows.

I bought a Precision Brow Planer from Christi Harris, which is a little tool that is sort of like a men’s straight razor. You hold it flush with your skin and shave away excess eyebrow hairs to create sculpted brows. When I bought the tool, it came by itself and it was pretty inexpensive (like $12 for two), but now she apparently only sells it with an eyebrow makeup kit, so it costs a lot more. On her site, she has a little video that shows you how to shape eyebrows by brow planing. Since the planer just shaves away hair, you aren’t permanently damaging the hair follicles. But the hair will grow back faster than if you had waxed or tweezed.

I hardly have any stray hairs anymore, so I mostly use the brow planer to get rid of peach fuzz. It works pretty well to remove hair, but it’s hard to maneuver to perfectly shape your brows, although I’m sure some people would be better at it than me. I also find it a bit bulky to get under my brows as well as I’d like. It can also chafe your skin, and it’s sharp, so you need to go slow and plane carefully. The brow planer can also be used on peach fuzz on your upper lip, so that’s an added bonus! I’m sure it would also work for any excess facial hair.

Ardell Trim & Shape Grooming Tool
Right after I bought the Christi Harris planer, I saw a $3 version at CVS! I haven’t tried it, but it looks very similar. I think this Ardell Trim & Shape is the same one I saw, but it’s hard to tell from the picture. At that price, it’s definitely worth trying once to see what you think. Also check out your local drugstore to see if they sell similar eyebrow shaping tools. If you have unruly eyebrows, I think getting them professionally waxed, plucked, or threaded is still the way to go, but just remember you may never see those excess hairs again, so make sure the person doesn’t overdo it! If you are like me and don’t have enough hairs left to work with, try the eyebrow planing to shape your eyebrows!

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Getting rid of stretch marks is something that most people want. There are so many products that promise stretch mark removal, but do any of them work? 90% of women and 40% of men have stretch marks, so like cellulite they are totally normal, but just about everyone wants them gone.

Causes of stretch marks
Stretch marks usually appear after rapid weight gain or weight loss, growth spurts, and pregnancy. Even excessive weight lifting can cause them. Genetics also play a role, so getting stretch marks can be hereditary. Stretch marks are a breakdown of the skin’s collagen and elastin, and surprisingly doctors are still unsure of the exact reason why stretch marks occur. Theories, though, include elevated stress hormones and other hormone changes, and well as the skin stretching beyond its capacity, or stretching too quickly.

Stretch mark products to avoid
So how do you get rid of stretch marks? It’s not easy to get rid of them, but there are some possible solutions to make them less noticeable. I’ve had white stretch marks on my hips since high school, and most of the time I don’t even notice them anymore, and I suspect it’s because I don’t tan anymore, and that has helped them blend into my currently pale skin.

Most over-the-counter products that claim they will fade stretch marks do not work at all, and they are a complete waste of money. Mederma, onion extract, aloe, cocoa butter, wheat germ oil, and other creams and oils will unfortunately not reduce stretch marks, despite their fanciful claims. Your skin may appear more hydrated, but that’s it. These products are a waste of money.

Ways to really get rid of or reduce stretch marks
If you have just developed stretch marks and are concerned about them, I would visit a Dermatologist right away because the faster you start on treatment, the better your end results. Fresh stretch marks are usually red, pink, or brown. Eventually they will fade to a white or silvery color. If you are breast feeding, though, most of your treatment options will be limited until you are finished nursing – your doctor can tell you what is and is not safe. A lot of doctors, however, will tell you that nothing can be done for stretch marks, so unfortunately you might end up spending money on treatments that are not effective. Ideally treatments would come with a money-back guarantee, but I doubt many doctors or medical spas offer this.

Retinoids
Topical retinoids like Retin-A and the generic Tretinoin can have some improvement on stretch marks. Your doctor will need to give you a prescription, and you can’t use retinoids when you are pregnant or nursing. Using retinoids on fresh stretch marks might give you the best results.

Chemical Peels and Glycolic Acid
Your Dermatologist may perform medical-grade chemical peels (with TCA or Glycolic Acid) to reduce the appearance of stretch marks. Topical Vitamin C could also increase your collagen production and you could rotate between Vitamin C, Tretinoin and over the counter Glycolic Acid products at home. If you see any results, they probably won’t be that dramatic. Dermabrasion performed by a Dermatologist may also slightly help with textured stretch marks.

Lasers
There are several types of lasers that are currently being used to reduce the appearance of colored stretch marks. On pink, red and purple stretch marks, Dermatologists and Cosmetic Surgeons use V-Beam, and IPL (Intense Pulsed Light – not a true laser). Brown stretch marks may be treated with Q-switched lasers. What I haven’t been able to determine is if the colored stretch marks turn skin-colored after treatment, or if the laser just speeds up the fading process, thus making the stretch marks white. In that case, it seems sort of pointless since they will fade to white on their own, yet they would still be visible.

Fractional Lasers / Fraxel
If you have old stretch marks that have turned white or silverly, and if they are textured, then fractional lasers may give you a noticeable improvement. Fractional lasers haven’t been around for very long, so using them to treat stretch marks is still pretty new, but it’s a promising solution. From what I’ve read, some people see a good improvement, yet others don’t see any improvement. Fractional lasers, or any type of lasers, must be handled by doctors that are extremely skilled, so you will need to get referrals, check on the doctor’s credentials, and ask to see before and after pictures. You also might want to check with more than one doctor to compare their approach. Lasers aren’t cheap, but if you are really bothered by stretch marks, it may be worth it.

How celebrities remove their post-baby stretch marks
Tummy tucks can remove stretch marks on your stomach – the actual skin is surgically removed, along with the offending stretch marks. You will have a scar, but it’s usually low enough to be hidden under a bikini bottom. I have a feeling a lot of celebrities get tummy tucks to achieve the perfect post-baby body. This is major surgery, but it may be the most effective solution to remove stomach stretch marks, along with saggy, crepey, and flabby skin that doesn’t respond to diet and exercise.

Permanent makeup or cosmetic tattoos
An unusual approach to disguising stretch marks would be to have white stretch marks filled in with flesh-colored tattoo ink. I don’t know how well this works, and there’s always a possibility of making the stretch marks look worse, so you would need to find an excellent cosmetic tattoo artist that specializes in permanent makeup. I was unable to find before and after pictures of stretch mark cover up with permanent makeup, so this doesn’t seem to be a common thing. Regular tattoos can also disguise stretch marks, though. The ink might blur over the stretch mark, so your tattoo artist would need to be skilled to figure out how to incorporate this into the design. And of course this solution is only good if you prefer tattoos to stretch marks!

Unfortunately, even with the best procedures, a total removal of stretch marks is usually not possible. Some people will see no improvement, while others will see a decent improvement from various treatments. Do you have any stretch mark solutions? Do you have stretch marks but aren’t bothered by them? Finally, I wasn’t able to find any medical references to the use of silicone scar pads and sheets on stretch marks, but I do wonder if they would be effective at all on improving the texture of stretch marks, specifically on newly formed ones.

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Can eating chocolate reduce sun damage? It’s always a great day when I read about chocolate being beneficial to my skin and health! A study in the “Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology” reports that eating chocolate can significantly protect your skin from UV light!

Don’t throw out your sunscreen just yet!
The article states “Cocoa beans fresh from the tree are exceptionally rich in flavanols. Unfortunately, during conventional chocolate making, this high antioxidant capacity is greatly reduced due to manufacturing processes…Our study demonstrated that regular consumption of a chocolate rich in flavanols confers significant photoprotection and can thus be effective at protecting human skin from harmful UV effects. Conventional chocolate has no such effect.”

Throw out the M&Ms!
I’ve read countless articles that say eating small amounts of chocolate that contains 70% or higher cacao is good for your health due to the high amount of antioxidants it contains. I’m not sure if the 70% dark  chocolates you can get at the supermarket (like Lindt and Ghirardelli) count, since I would assume they are made in a “conventional” way. Nonetheless, I’m still eating them for now, unless I find out they aren’t full of flavonoids like I had thought. And even if dark antioxidant-rich chocolate does help prevent UV damage, sunscreen is still essential! The chocolate just provides a little bonus to your skin – like wearing topical antioxidants. It’s a shame M&Ms and Snickers will never count as an antioxidant-rich food:(

Lots of other foods are full of antioxidants and great for your skin and health, but they aren’t as fun to talk about – berries, dark colored veggies, bright colored veggies, spices and herbs, and green tea are just a few super healthy foods. On a side note, did you know that chocolate/cacao is grown on trees? When I was a kid growing up in Hawaii, I went on a field trip and was shown a “chocolate tree” but I didn’t believe that’s really where chocolate came from. We tasted the seeds and they were bitter and horrible, so it wasn’t until years later I found out chocolate really does grown on trees (and it’s the sugar that makes it taste good!)

The original sun damage / UV protection study was published in volume 8, issue 3 of the “Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology.”

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Skin care products come in so many different types of packages, but is some skin care packaging bad – specifically jar packaging? I am in mourning this week because my favorite moisturizer of all time has been discontinued - goodbye Clinique Moisture On-line. I knew this day would come, and I actually can’t believe how upset I am. The product worked better than any other to hydrate my dry skin, and it temporarily plumped up my skin, making it dewy and supple looking. There was always one huge problem with the product, though – it came in jar packaging!

Jar packaging looks pretty
Jar packaging may look pretty, luxurious and expensive, but it comes with a lot of unnecessary issues. If you read reviews on MakeupAlley.com, you’ll notice a lot of people hate jar packaging, so I’m not the only one. I continued to use the Clinque Moisture On-line because it worked so well as a moisturizer, but it was $40 a jar, and all it did was hydrate my skin. I felt like a sucker every time I bought it, but I knew in some ways it was cheaper to keep using it than to try out one product after another to find an equivalent that wasn’t in a jar.

What’s wrong with jar packaging?
Antioxidants, peptides, and retinol are some ingredients that degrade when they are exposed to air and light. Thus every time you open your pretty jar, the ingredients you paid big bucks for are being deactivated. Your expensive antioxidant cream or retinol treatment is suddenly just a glorified overpriced moisturizer. Most products these days aren’t just marketed as moisturizers, so you are expecting and paying for the added ingredients to be somewhat beneficial to your skin, aside from just moisturizing it. Even though the Clinique product I used contained antioxidants, I assumed they were worthless because they were in a jar, and thus I would apply a separate antioxidant serum under it. There goes even more money!

Jar packaging is also more unsanitary and more prone to bacteria growth than stable packaging. Every time you reach into the jar, you’re spreading whatever was on your hands into the jar, and then applying that right on your face! Personally I’ve never had any health problems from jars, but it’s still icky to think about. Sample jars at Sephora and makeup counters are teeming with bacteria because so many people put their fingers in them. Gross.

Because jars aren’t airtight, the products inside may not last as long as those in pumps or tubes. In the past, I’ve had several jars smell rancid after a few months. Most products, though, do come with ample preservatives to make them last long enough to finish the jar if you use it every day. Some “natural” companies don’t use preservatives, or traditional preservatives, because they don’t want to include parabens in their products. These products also may not last very long in preservative-free skin care packaging.

What should you do?
If you want to buy a product with antioxidants or retinol, make sure it’s in an opaque or dark container, and that it comes in a pump or tube, or some sort of packaging that won’t allow the product to be exposed to air and light. And if you’re concerned about hygiene, skip jar packaging. I admit that if Clinique didn’t discontinue my favorite product, I would still buy it, but because it’s now gone, I’m taking this as a sign that I must take a personal stand and boycott jar packaging from now on! It’s just not worth paying $40 for a moisturizer when there are so many products that come in stable packaging that provide a lot more benefits. For now I’ll be using Paula’s Choice Skin Recovery Hydrating Treatment Mask as a moisturizer because it’s half the price as the Clinique, it’s twice the size, it contains antioxidants, and it comes in stable packaging. Even though it’s a mask, it can be left on as a moisturizer. It’s almost as good of a moisturizer as the Clinique, but its value is much higher. One thing I will miss, though, are the Clinique gift-with-purchase products:( I really do like their free mascara…

Do you care one way or the other about jar packaging?

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Since most airlines charge to check extra bags, and you can’t bring full size skin care products on the plane, tons of companies are now offering travel size skin care products. I’ve always loved travel size toiletries because they’re cheap to try, and great for committment-phobes, but now more higher end companies are making mini versions of their products too.

3 Fl oz
As a carry-on, the TSA allows a quart-size ziploc bag with products up to 3 fl oz each. With a little practice, it’s amazing how much you can stuff in one little bag – last time I flew, I shoved about 15 products in my ziploc, which is sort of scary since I only went on a weekend trip! 3floz.com is a website dedicated entirely to travel size products! They specialize in mostly non-drugstore brands like DDF, Go Smile, and Phyto. Their slogan is “for those who travel, those who are curious, and those who can’t commit.” Beauty.com and Dermstore.com are other sites with a lot of mini products.

Sephora also has tons of travel size versions of their best-selling products. In the website’s search box, just type in: travel. As a bonus, this week they’re giving away 10 free skincare samples with any order.

Travel Size at Amazon
If your drugstore doesn’t have your favorite travel size beauty product, check out Amazon – they have tons of the cheaper drugstore-brand travel toiletries. And of course for the frugal person, there’s always the free hotel room toiletries! You know you’re really frugal when you stay at hotels that don’t even provide free products – up until a few years ago, that was me! Usually I just buy little plastic containers at Target and fill them up with my shampoo, sunscreen, and moisturizer, etc., but it’s still fun to actually find your favorite product in its mini version, even though it costs more per ounce. Just remember that some products will lose their effectiveness when put in non-airtight jar packaging, so don’t put retinol or antioxidant products in new containers.

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