Check your cleansing skin care products

Many skin care experts feel that price alone doesn’t qualify skin care products as being the best. However, all agree that you need to find a good cleanser that your skin responds well to, and stick with it Avoid soap at all costs.

According to Rona Berg, in her book, ‘Beauty,’a French cosmetics executive once told her, “soap should only ever touch your skin from the neck down.”

Most cleansers contain oil, water&surfactants. The oil dissolves oil on your face, surfactants dissolve dirt and makeup and the water washes it all away. The secret is finding the right mix of oil. Too much on your skin will clog pores, while too little will dry it out. This is why you need to know your skin type.

Your skin type is determined by how much – or how little – oil your skin produces. Genes, diet, stress level, medication&even your skincare regimen all determine how much oil your skin produces

To determine what skin type you have, take the ‘skin test.’ To do this, wash your face&pat it dry then take a few pieces of rice paper or lens-cleaning tissue paper&press on different spots on your face. If your skin is oily, the paper will stick, pick up oily spots&become translucent. If the paper doesn’t stick or pick up any oily spots, your skin is dry. If it sticks in your t-zone (forehead, nose&chin) then you have combination (or normal) skin. About 705 of women have combination skin type.

Most experts contend that women need only clean their faces at night. In the morning, a splash of lukewarm water is all you need. However, if you apply moisturizer at night, you will need to cleanse in the morning, too. Never wash your face with hot or cold water (both hot and cold water causes broken capillaries) .Never go to bed with makeup on, you run the risk of clogging your pores.

Here’s the best way to wash your face: Use warm water to loosen dirt&clogged pores. Use a dime-sized bit of cleanser and gently apply it in a circular motion, then rinse with cool water. Cool water tends to tighten the skin.

By shopping online at the sites of many catalogers and merchants, you can find cleansing skin care products to meet your needs?regardless of what type of skin you have.

This is a run down of the best facial cleansers on the market today from the cheapest to the highest prices for 5 different skin types: dry, oily, combination, sensitive and blemished. This list includes the yearly picks by the staff of ‘InStyle’ magazine plus the tried and true picks by other beauty experts. Every cleanser here has passed with high marks the exacting standards of the best makeup artists, beauty editors and dermatologists in the business.

Best cleansers for dry skin, from cheap to steep

Cetaphil There’s no bells and whistles with this baby-mild product that even dermatologists swear by. So why is this $10 cleanser such a must-have? It’s clean, simple and isn’t loaded with chemicals or perfumes that can irritate the skin. It’s considered the best cleansing skin care drugstore product out there.$ Clarins Gentle Foaming Cleanser This cleanser contains shea butter, which leaves skin moisturized as well as cleansed. $$ Dr. Hauschka Cleansing Cream This cleanser smells like almonds&doesn’t come with a lot of preservatives, so keep an eye on the expiration date. Lancome Galatee Milk Cleanser This milky cleanser is very moisturizing.

Best cleansers for oily skin:

Purpose Gentle Cleansing Wash. It’s like Cetaphil for dry skin, Purpose has few bells and whistles – a good thing for a cleanser. This soap-free, oil-free liquid lathers away dirt, makeup&oil but doesn’t leave skin so dry it reacts by overproducing oil. Pretty good job for only $6. $ Clinique Wash-Away Gel Cleanser This classic cleanser can be a bit drying, so test the product before you buy. Shiseido Pureness Cleansing Ge ~Best cleansers for sensitive skin:

Avon Clear Skin Foaming Cleanser Inexpensive, yet gentle. Oil of Olay Sensitive Skin Wash Works almost as well as Cetaphil. Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser Best drugstore cleanser. Period. Aveda All-Sensitive Cleanser Perfect cleanser,¦ too pricey.

Best cleansers for blemished skin:

Neutrogena Pore-Refining Cleanser This cleanser will soak up oil, but doesn’t dry skin. $ Oil of Olay Age-Defying Series Daily Renewal Cleanser Good, cheap&effective. $ Murad Acne Kit This is a kit, so at $60, it’s somewhat affordable. This kit features 4 parts: a cleanser with triclosan&salicylic acid to fight bacteria, a pore-cleansing gel with glycolic&salicylic acids, an exfoliating lotion with retinol, and a spot treatment with sulfur.

Winter can wreak havoc even on the best skin. The sub-zero temperatures of northern climates can inflict considerable damage very quickly even when you take care of your skin. The additional layers of clothing and blankets, environmental heating, wind and temperature fluctuations, all contribute additional drying effects on the skin. That’s why dry skin care is critical.

Moisturizing is the key. Adding moisture and providing a barrier to keep it in will greatly reduce or prevent the occurrence of dry, flaking and chapping skin. Check out the many moisturizers available online that will help you defeat the ravages of winter weather.

Other tips for dry skin care: Hot long showers and baths can damage your skin. As good as it feels when it’s 10 below out, try to avoid very hot water and long exposures to it. Warm water is best and limit the time in he shower to 15 min. or less (you’ll save water, too!). Pat the skin to damp dry and avoid rubbing. Add moisturizer before you are completely dry. Moisturize your hands as often as possible and particularly after washing. Also, be sure to use UV protection. It can be just as damaging in the snow as on the beach.