Do you have dry skin? Have you been using expensive soaps and body washes in the shower to try and correct this problem? If so, you might be shocked to learn that an inexpensive, off the shelf product is rated better for dry skin than more expensive alternatives.

That’s according to Dr Laura Baumann, skin care specialist, who has this to say about buying expensive soaps and body washes in her article Mass vs Boutique Brands : …but you’ll be shocked to learn that Dove is a much better choice for your skin since it deposits fatty acids on the skin that leave it soft.

Dove soap. That’s right. That old faithful you’ve been using for years is better for your skin than even the $125 dollar a bar soap that her clients use. (And who pays $125 for a bar of soap, anyway? Is that not the most ridiculous waste of money you’ve ever heard?)

If you want to soften and moisturize your skin, use Dove soap. I’ve been using it since I was a child, and though I strayed once in a while, I always went back to good old Dove. Why should I pay lots of money for a soap that promised to make my skin soft and smooth when I could get better moisturizing and skin softening with Dove?

I use the Dove soap for sensitive skin, which is hypoallergenic and fragrance free. It leaves my skin feeling as smooth as silk.

So I’m taking the advice of skin care professionals and crossing that expensive body wash off my list. From how on, I’m never going to stray. I’m going to use my Dove soap, and my skin will thank me for it.

Do you use Dove soap? Let me know on twitter, Facebook, or leave me a message here on the blog.

Do you have complexion problems? Makeup can be hard to apply when you don’t know how to make it look good. Here are some common complexion problems, and tips on how to correct them.

Do you have a sallow or olive complexion? You want to warm it up, and take away the yellow tones. Use a pinkish primer before you put on foundation. To warm up a sallow complexion, start with a pink-based primer, focusing along your forehead and cheeks. Then, blend on a foundation that matches your natural skin tone.

Do you have a red or ruddy complexion? Redness is usually concentrated around and on the nose and cheeks. Use an illuminating foundation on those areas. Blend the areas and fill in the outer edges of your face with your regular foundation.

If your face is paler than the rest of your body, you can even it out with a self tanner. Jergen’s Daily Glow Face Moisturizer is perfect for this. It will tan you gradually while giving you the daily moisturizer you need. It also comes in tanning for your specific skin tone, which is great. You don’t want to get your face darker than the rest of your body. If you need to even your face out immediately, brush on a little bronzer. Don’t go overboard – hit the high points of your face. Cheeks, nose, and jaw line dusted with bronzer give you the illusion of a tan. All over bronzer on your face just makes you look too made up.

Is your complexion dull? This quick trick can give your face a glow you won’t believe. It will exfoliate gently, and make your skin soft. Dab Pepto Bismol on your face with a cotton ball, skipping the eye area. Leave it on for three minutes, then wash it off. The ingredients in the product are the same as in a lot of exfoliating peels, but with an added ingredient that makes it gentler. Don’t do this more than once a week, and don’t leave it on for longer than three minutes. Your skin will be unbelievably pretty. Try it!

Do you have any skin care tips? Let me know on twitter, Facebook, or leave me a comment here on the blog.

Are expensive skin care products really worth the money? According to skin care specialist Leslie Baumann, M.D., the answer is no.

In a nutshell, beauty behemoths … have deep pockets, so they have more resources to research, develop and test their products.

Smaller boutique brands, on the other hand, conduct their research and development on a much smaller scale. While they may create their formulations in smaller batches and with more rare or expensive raw materials, these costs are passed along to the consumer. But does this mean these products are more effective? Not always—and they seldom have the independent clinical studies to back their claims because clinical studies cost a lot of money. It is important to look for the words “clinically tested” on the packaging to know that the actual formulations have been studied.

One of the brands Dr. Baumann recommends is Olay. Olay makes a great line of inexpensive skin care products, and she calls them fantastic options that won’t break the bank. Olay skin care products have been tested and re-tested, and time after time their products come out on top. I couldn’t function without my Olay Total Effects. It gives me the total anti-aging power of a moisturizer fused with vitamins and anti-oxidants. It’s also color and fragrance-free, dermatologically tested, and won’t clog my pores. It’s oil free, and it absorbs quickly. As far as I’m concerned, it’s the best daily moisturizer on the market.

Do you use Olay products? If you don’t, you certainly should. Let me know on twitter, Facebook, or leave me a message here on the blog.

You’ve got an important event, and there are dark circles under your eyes. What are you going to do? Camouflage only works so well – you’re still going to see them. Don’t panic. There are things you can do to reduce your under eye circles.

The night before, go light on the salt, alcohol, and caffeine and don’t over indulge. All these things can cause puffiness and dark under eye circles. Use an eye lifting serum to moisturize your eye area, instead of a cream moisturizer. If your eyes are still puffy when you wake up, put cold tea bags on them. The combination of caffeine applied to the skin and the cold will help to drain the fluid out from beneath your eyes. Weird, right? When you consume caffeine, it causes puffiness. When you put it on your skin, it reduces puffiness. It will also reduce any dark circles you might have. It works on cellulite, too. Not that you’ve got any of that on your eyes – just a little tidbit of knowledge I thought you might like.

You also might try an illuminating eye treatment. If you have got an event to go to right away, you don’t have enough time. If you’ve got 6 or 8 weeks, you can reduce or totally banish the dark circles and puffiness underneath your eyes. It works.

To conceal your dark circles, use a shimmery eye cream on your under eye area. Then use a yellow based concealer on your under eye area. It should be one shade lighter than your skin. Then set the concealer by pressing powder lightly into your skin with a powder puff.

You can also draw attention away from the dark circles under your eyes. Apply dark brown or black eyeliner to upper lids only. Leave the liner off your under eye area, because you don’t want to draw attention to it. Put mascara on your upper lashes, leaving bottom lashes plain. Wear a shimmery eye shadow in a neutral shade on your eye lids – brown or taupe or even gold is good –to draw attention up and away.

Do you have problems with dark circles? What do you use to minimize or hide them? Let me know on twitter, Facebook, or leave me a message here on the blog.

You haven’t had a breakout since your teens. Now you’re getting acne all over again. That whole range of skin problems you never thought you’d see again are back. What’s going on? Don’t panic – many women start having breakouts later in life. It can be caused by hormones, stress, or even medical problems or medications. If it’s severe- see a dermatologist right away. Otherwise, taking good care of your skin is the best way to fight acne.

Make sure you cleanse your face every morning and every night. Always, always, always remove your makeup before going to sleep. If you’re absolutely too tired to wash your face, keep makeup remover wipes by your bedside and clean your skin. You can toss the used one in your garbage can without getting out of bed. Make sure that it’s a gentle cleanser – you want to clean your face without drying out your skin.

Use a deep cleansing mask once a week. Clay masks are great – they’ll get rid of skin impurities and everything that clogs your pores. You’ll also get rid of dead skin cells, and reveal a more radiant complexion. Don’t use a harsh scrub – you’ll just redden your face and you might even make your acne worse. You want to exfoliate, but you don’t want to cause damage.

Use the right moisturizer. You want to use a gentle moisturizer that will keep your skin from breaking out. Also use non comedogenic makeups and oil free powders. This will keep you from breaking out further. They also make foundations that have acne fighting compounds in them – be careful, though. These can be incredibly drying, and you can still have dry skin AND acne. Not a good feeling, so check those ingredients and test them out before you start to use them long term.

What do you do when you have a breakout? Let me know on twitter, Facebook, or leave me a comment here on the blog.

Here’s a video that tells you the vitamins best for skin:

Whether you’ve got normal, dry, or even oily skin, you need daily moisturizer. If your budget can only stretch to fit one skin care product, it should be a good moisturizer.

You can literally take years off your face with a mild cleanser and a good moisturizer. When your skin is dry, it accentuates wrinkles and fine lines. You can plump up your skin with moisturizer, taking the emphasis off those lines and making them look reduced.

And don’t wait to start moisturizing into you’re in your thirties or forties; you should really begin in your twenties. It will give your skin the protection it needs. It will also keep the skin of your face from prematurely aging. Don’t forget the skin of your neck and chest when you’re moisturizing. The skin there is just as delicate as the skin on your face, and they are exposed to the elements just as much. You want to protect them, as well.

What’s a good moisturizer? You want to gently add moisture to your face. The type of moisturizer you choose should be based on the type of skin you have. If you need moisturizer for dry skin, you might want to look for a product that helps the skin produce more moisture, or seals in the moisture you already have. If you need moisturizer for oily skin, you want a light moisturizer. Don’t be tempted to skip it – oil is not moisture.

Is your skin sensitive or prone to breakouts? You can find a non comedogenic moisturizer that won’t clog your pores, and won’t make your face greasy or irritated.

You also want to think about a daily moisturizer that contains a sunscreen, to cut down on the UV damage your skin receives. This is important, no matter what type of skin you have.

Start moisturizing your skin now. Don’t wait. It should be an important part of your beauty routine. No matter what your skin care regimen contains, make sure a good moisturizer is part of it.

I started using Oil of Olay Anti Aging products for the purpose of review several weeks ago. I started with Olay Total Effects and was pleased with the product. I decided to go on to try the Olay Regenerist Micro Sculpting Cream, as well.

Olay Regenerist Micro Sculpting Moisturizer says that it provides intracellular hydration. That means it will provide volume and shape across the skin’s cells, lifting and micro sculpting. It will firm sagging prone areas, even the jaw line, smooth the skin’s surface, and restore elasticity. We’ll see.

One thing I didn’t do was wear this moisturizer during the daytime. I have oily skin, and this is a fairly heavy duty moisturizer. I didn’t think that it would sink into my skin enough to allow me to wear makeup over it during the day. I decided to put it on at night before I went to bed. I thought that would work out better, and I’d still get the same effect.

I like the way it works, so far. My skin is definitely firmer around the jaw line – always a problem when you’re aging. My skin is smooth. I don’t know about the elasticity, really. Again, how do you measure something like that? I guess I could pinch my own cheeks…or have someone else do it.

The only thing I didn’t like about it was that I couldn’t wear it during the daytime, under makeup. I have a fairly oily t-zone, and while putting it on at night was no problem, when I tried the once to wear it during the day, it made my makeup slide. If you have oily skin at all, you probably should do the same. It’s a fairly heavy moisturizer, but it didn’t break me out at all. I have sensitive skin, so that’s a plus. It doesn’t say non comedogenic, but it obviously is. It doesn’t clog pores, and I was happy with the overall effects of this moisturizer.

Do you use Olay products? Let me know on twitter, Facebook, or leave me a comment here on the blog.

Summer time is all about showing your skin. It’s hot, and a lot more of your skin is going to be on display, so you want to make sure that it looks good. Skin that glows with good health is the best summer accessory you can have. Here are a few things you can do to make that happen.

• Exfoliate
Your body is constantly shedding skin cells, and if you don’t get rid of them, your skin will never look glowing and healthy. If you want to make your skin glow, don’t use lotion. Exfoliate. All over. Paul Mitchell Lavender Mint Body Wash and a pouf work wonders. Scrub in a circular motion (not roughly), and let the lovely scent of mint and lavender refresh your senses as you refresh your skin. It’s also lightly moisturizing, so you won’t dry out your skin while exfoliating.

• Moisturize
Now you can use lotion, after you’ve exfoliated. Rub it all over, paying special attention to your knees, elbows, and anywhere else you have dry skin. It’s best to moisturize right after your shower, so that your skin absorbs more of the soothing lotion. I like Curel. I use it pretty much exclusively. I use either the Curel Original Lotion, or some of the new Curel Life Stages Lotion. It’s simply the best as far as I’m concerned.

• Foot Care
You’re going to be wearing sandals or be barefoot half the summer if you’re anything like me. Take care of your feet, and make sure they look pretty, too. I like the Curel Targeted Therapy Foot Cream. It softens that dry, cracked skin and makes my feet all nice and pretty.

• Sunscreen
Now, just take care of your skin with sunscreen. You don’t want sunburn; it’s a miserable way to spend your summer, and it’s bad for your skin. Pick out a good broad spectrum sunscreen, and wear it every time you go outside. Really. Even if it’s cloudy, you still need sunscreen.

What skin care products do you use to get your skin summer ready? Let me know on twitter, facebook, or just leave me a comment here on the blog.

Ouch! Bright red skin that’s tender to the touch: You stayed in the sun too long, and you’ve got sunburn. It’s summer time, and your sun exposure time has lengthened; it happens to the best of us. Don’t make a habit of it, though. While you’re enjoying the warm weather, or you’re at the beach or pool, you’re going to have to be careful or you’ll wind up looking like a lobster. Sunburn can be very painful.

The best way to avoid sunburn, of course, is to wear a broad spectrum sunscreen with a high SPF. Reapply after you swim or if you’re perspiring excessively. If you’re already burned, however, there are some things you can do to soothe your skin and quiet your pain.

Sunburn can cause a mild fever and a headache. Lie down in a cool, quiet room to get the rid of the headache. Your head might actually be hurting because you’re dehydrated, so drink plenty of water. This will help your skin heal itself, as well.

If you have blisters, avoid wearing close fitting clothing or shoes that rub against them. Try not to irritate the blisters while they’re healing, and for heaven’s sake, don’t pop them. You don’t have to cover them unless they’re rubbing against your clothing and causing you pain. If you do bandage them, use a large bandage and tape around the edges, far away from any blisters.

Don’t take hot baths or showers; lukewarm works best and will soothe your sunburn. Go as cool as you can, but don’t use all cold water. You’ll feel worse when your teeth are chattering from the cold, not better. Lukewarm water is best. It will take the heat out of your sunburn and make you feel better, I promise.

Chamomile compresses work well for the swelling and pain of mild sunburn. Just put a few drops of chamomile extract into icy cold water and dip a washcloth in it. Hold gently against the most painful parts of your sunburn and repeat as needed.

Aloe gel is antibacterial and helps in healing. They use it in hospitals on burn patients. Spread it gently over your sunburn, but be careful of your clothing. While it won’t stain, it is very sticky.

There is nothing you can do to stop your skin from peeling after a sunburn. You’re just going to have to go around looking like you’re molting for a while. It is part of the healing process. A good quality moisturizing body lotion may help relieve the itching.

The best advice for sunburn is, of course, not to get one. We’ve all done it at one time or the other. I hope these tips help ease your sunburn pain. If you have any tips or tricks, let me know on twitter, facebook, or leave me a message here on the blog.