Sara Cox talks Radox, relaxation and rude ... - Beauty Magazine

S K I N C A R E
TREATMENTS
Everyone has a different area of specific concern, whether it’s ageing eyes,
smile lines, enlarged pores, sagging, dryness or spots. No single product
treats everything, but unless your customer has the time, budget and
appetite for multi-pampering, it’s seldom necessary to buy a dozen
different ones.
■ TEXTURE & COLOUR: A straightforward facial scrub immediately helps
to improve texture, flakiness, dullness and dryness, whilst
simultaneously clearing pores and revving the circulation for brighter,
more radiant colour. Older, drier skin should be exfoliated only once a
week; younger oily/combination skin twice.
Worth recommending: St Ives Gentle Apricot Scrub; Simple
Kind To Skin Smoothing Facial Scrub; Witch Gentle Exfoliating
Face Wash.
THE FUTURE:
This is an area where we may
see more gadgetry appearing,
ranging from simple rollerball massagers
(Garnier Eye Roll-On) to heat-activated
bacteria-busters for zit zapping
(Zeno Stop) and even home laser
machines. But with such a fractured
market, and prices ranging from £10 to
£100s, there will inevitably be more
attention given to ingredients
than mechanics.
■ EYES & LIPS: Often overlooked, these are areas that can benefit
from a little TLC. Eyes need minimal moisturising since they become
puffy when too much product is applied. Recommend using a light
moisturiser around the brow bones and cheekbones only, allowing the skin
to absorb and spread product to the rest of the eye area. Alternatively, a basic eye cream
(with anti-wrinkle ingredients if that’s a concern) can be beneficial.
For lips, daily moisturiser will do most of the work, but for times when the environment
dehydrates them more than usual, a good lip balm is a worthwhile add-on. Any pesky cold sores
will also need specific treatment.
Worth recommending: Nivea Visage Anti-Wrinkle Q10 Plus Eye Cream; Boots Vitamin E
SPF15 Eye Cream; Blistex Soothing Splash; Burt’s Bees Replenishing Lip Balm with
Pomegranate Oil; Cymex Cream.
■ WRINKLE-FILLING: Good anti-ageing moisturisers should already be doing most of the
work, especially if they contain hyaluronic acid, a natural moisturising agent that swells
on contact with water in the skin for a plumping, ‘filling’ effect, or peptide complexes,
which work to ‘relax’ wrinkles instead. They can be used all over, with an extra ‘dose’
applied to deeper grooves such as nose-to-mouth lines and forehead wrinkles.
Worth recommending: Eucerin Hyaluron-Filler; L’Oréal Paris Collagen Filler
Double Filler; Good Skin Labs Tri-Aktiline Instant Deep Wrinkle Filler; Olay
Regenerist 30 Second Wrinkle Filler (which also features a clever groove-targeting
delivery system).
■ ZIT ZAPPERS: Although nothing works instantly, some products work gratifyingly fast.
First, recommend customers deep clean the skin, blot up excess oil and reduce swelling with a
treatment mask. Next, they should kill bacteria and speed healing with a blemish-basher, then
finally, they should reduce redness using a camouflage that additionally contains calming ingredients.
Worth recommending: Mudd Original Mask; Freederm Gel;
Sudocrem Skin Care Cream; Eucerin DermoPurifyer
Cover Stick; Witch Concealer.
Freederm Sensitive Facial Wash
Specially formulated for sensitive skin that is prone to spots, this gentle foaming wash
is best recommended as part of a regular regime to beat the blemishes. It promises to
penetrate the pores and thoroughly cleanse skin, helping to control excess oil and
fight spots. Advise customers to team it with Freederm Zone Balancing Moisturiser,
adding the spot-fighting Freederm Gel for when blemishes break out.
Cymex
Cold weather can mean cold sores and cracked lips.
Cymex Cream harnesses a triple action healing formula
to soothe the tingling of a cold sore, while also helping to
control infection and relieve cracked lips. Alternatively,
Cymex Ultra is a five day cold sore treatment containing
5 per cent aciclovir to treat the itchy tingle and blisters
brought on by cold sores. The brand recommends
treatment five times a day for five days.
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