Budget Skincare is a topic that I find quite difficult. The main reason is that everyone’s version of budget is different. Coming from Australia (where things are generally more expensive due to what I like to call an ‘isolation tax’), my outlook on what is budget may be very different to someone in the US who has endless brands, more competition and ultimately a lower cost to choose from. I also find it really difficult to find budget skincare products with a decent ingredients list that doesn’t contain mineral oil or denatured alcohol. In some products I find that these ingredients are often one of the first few listed! For me, my definition of budget would be something definitely under AUD$50, and would depend on the results and what the product does for your skin. In no way would I call a $50 cleanse a ‘budget’ buy, as $50 for a cleanser is already looking at a mid to high value item. However, $50 for a serum or a great face mask, is something I am willing to call budget, especially if you get quite a lot of product in what you purchase as well.
In this month’s Skincare on a Budget, all products are under AUD$40 and whilst the most expensive item might be considered to be a little bit more than what most people would pay, keep in mind that it does often go on sale!
La Roche Posay Serozinc
This product is an absolute god send when it comes to hot and humid weather and also when it comes to soothing the skin. I use this as a toner whether it be after an acid toner (to soothe) or as a toner to overall just calm down, hydrate and soothe my skin after a hot day. It’s a great product to hydrate and reduce any redness from the heat. After a spritz of this, I notice that my skin feels less red and it immediately has a cooling effect. On days where my skin is super inflamed from the heat, a quick spritz of this will calm it right away and offer instant relief. Its slightly more complex than La Roche Posay’s simple thermal water but the ingredients are the following:
Ingredients:
Water, Sodium Choride, Zinc Sulfate
The water comes from La Roche Posay’s thermal springs in France where the water is rich in vitamins and minerals but what sets this aside from your average thermal water is the addition of zince sulfate. Zinc Sulfate is an anti-inflammatory, which explains why I find I have that immediate soothing effect with less reddening. There has also been some evidence to say that it aids in the treatment of acne, which makes some sense as acne is a type of inflammatory response. Whilst I can’t vouch for its anti-acne effects, I can vouch for the fact that this is a great option for my skin when it is feeling hot and inflamed from the heat and soothes my eczema right down.
This is available in a 150ml bottle for AUD $23.95 from Priceline and is also available in selected US and UK drugstores. It is also more readily available (and at a much more cheaper price) in France as well, so if you are travelling and you love this, stock up!
Grown Alchemist Deep Cleansing Masque
My cousin purchased this for me recently and had my mother take it over when we caught up in Vietnam. For the price (you can often get it on sale), what it does and the quantity you get (75ml of product) I find its an absolute bargain. This masque is a great dupe/bargain option to the Omorovicza’s Deep Cleansing Mask which is priced at 3-4 times the price of the Grown Alchemist. It’s effect isn’t as deep as Omorovicza’s mask but it’s close enough in terms of detoxing the skin and really purifying it. I find that it brings out the impurities in the skin, helps in clearing the complexion and reveals a smooth and glowing complexion. It’s a must have treat for those who are on a budget and really want to give their skin a really deep cleanse.
Ingredients:
Aqua (Purified Water), Bentonite (Mineral), Kaolin (Mineral), Cetearyl Olivate (and) Sorbitan Olivate (Plant), Cetyl Alcohol (Plant), Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Glycerin (Plant), Sodium Dehydroacetate (Organic Listed), Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Sorbate (Organic Listed), Tocopherol (Plant), Pelargonium Graveolens(Geranium) Oil, Citric Acid, Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Oil, Centella Asiatica (Gotu Kola) Extract, Ginkgo Biloba (Ginkgo) Leaf Extract, Rosa Damascena (Rose) Flower Oil, Vaccinium Macrocarpon (Cranberry) Extract, Linalool (Plant), Citral (Plant), Geraniol (Plant), Citronellol (Plant)
As you can see, the ingredients list of this is quite natural and botanical extract heavy with the exception of alcohol ingredient phenoxyethanol which is used as a preservative. I normally don’t love alcohols but I do have some products with this ingredient listed and have found that my skin doesn’t react the way it normally would. It is also just one ingredient out of the many wonderful ingredients in this mask which is rich in skin balancing and purifying clay, emollients and skin hydrators such as almond oil, cetyl alcohol, vitamin E and unique ingredients such as Gingko leaf extract to smooth out the skin to give it a more luminous complexion.
You will find that this often can go on sale in Australia in both Myer and David Jones and also the Grown Alchemist website (sign up to their emails) – it retails for AUD $39.95, in the UK this can be purchased from Cultbeauty which often has coupons and its RRP is GPB£24.00 and in the US, find it on the US Grown Alchemist Store for USD $39.00.
Go-To-Skincare Lips
This one is for the Australian readers out there! The one and only lip-balm I ever use is Go-To-Skincare’s Lips. I have been naughty and I have deviated slightly from this lip balm before but after using another lip balm and not getting the same results, I immediately came back to this. This is THE holy grail of lip-balms for me, as my lips feel softer, smoother and less flaky almost instantly. After about 1-2 days of an application of this once both day and night, I find that my lips are back to their soft normal self. Its a wonderful product that looks great, smells delicious and just does what it’s supposed to do.
Ingredients:
Ultra medical grade lanolin, shea butter, apricot kernel oil, beeswax, sweet almond oil, evening primrose oil, vitamin e, fragrance (pure pomegranate), pomegranate seed oil, calendula oil, jojoba oil, avocado oil
As you can see from its ingredients listing, this lip balm is packed full of true moisturising ingredients which explains why this product works so well (for me anyway). It a very nourishing formulation, that isn’t too sticky and doesn’t leave your lips too shiny either.
This is available on the Go-To-Skincare website for AUS $15 for 15g, which I think is quite reasonable for a lipbalm and well worth the price considering the plethora of moisturizing ingredients in this. Its a great solution for dry, chapped, flaky lips. Go-To-Skincare WILL ship worldwide, so if you are from somewhere other than Australia, it might be well worth buying a few products to make your postage worthwhile (might I suggest the Exfoliating Swipeys, my review on this is here).