Beauty Tips For Body Care
Avene - The story begins with the Marquis of Rocozels, a nobleman who lived close to the spring in the mid-1700s. One of his horses had a skin disease and, fearing it would infect his other animals, the Marquis turned the horse loose. After some time the wild horse returned, completely healed of its complaint. That’s right, you’ve guessed it – it had been rolling in and drinking the water of the spring. And so the healing properties of eau thermale Avene were uncovered.Once word got out and demand grew, a thermal spa was built in 1743 to treat people with dermatosis and skin complaints. By 1871 the fervour surrounding water’s benefits had travelled around the world, leading to it being exported by the bottle load to America to help treat the victims of the Great Chicago Fire. The biological signature of the Avene thermal water is truly unique. Its low mineral content (a 2:1 ratio of magnesium to calcium) is ideal for sensitive skin, and the high level of silicates ensure an exceptionally soft texture. Avene spring water is made up of rain water sourced from both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic oceans, which is filtered through a mountainous area covered with vegetation. The rocks at Avene are dolomite: meaning they are porous, calcareous and rich in magnesium, providing the perfect home for special microflora known as ‘Aquaphilus Dolomiae’. You’ll find that Avene products tend to favor mineral oil, glycerin, and Shea butter. I’m going to state this up front Avene mainline products are for dry, dehydrated and sensitive skin. If you have combination or oily skin you should check out their Cleanance line which does not contain mineral oil.Word on Mineral Oil - I keep seeing responses that mineral oil ‘clogs the pores’. Mineral oil can’t clog pores as it cannot penetrate skin—its molecular size is simply too big to get into the pore lining where clogs happen. Instead—and this is good news—mineral oil remains on the surface of skin, where it does the most good—although those with oily skin may not like how products with a high amount of mineral oil feels or looks on their skin. The claims that mineral oil is unsafe to use are unfounded and are perpetuated by cosmetics companies and people who use information about non-purified, industrial-grade mineral oil (which isn’t used in skin care) as a scare tactic. The truth is that the mineral oil you find in skincare products is perfectly safe, and even better – very good for your skin, especially if it’s dry or sensitive. Source and Source and Source.Also, Mineral oil reduces TEWL (transepidermal water loss) by 40%, is equally as occlusive as coconut oil and more occlusive than linoleic acid, yet it does not induce acne. Mineral oil and petrolatum provide inhibition of excessive inflammatory activity superior to 1% hydrocortisone is treating soap induced contact irritant dermatitis conducted by this author. It has also been documented these ingredients have anticarcinogenic and mild antibacterial effects. Source. You’ll find many anti-mineral oil ‘facts’ are just scare tactics by ‘holistic’ websites trying to sell their own products and push their practices (coconut oil is practically holy!). Usually these same website push using baking soda and lemon juice straight for ‘skincare’. I used to be a part of this way of thinking years ago when it was fringe rather than mainstream quackery.Long story short - if you have dry, dehydrated, and sensitive skin, Avene is a great product for you to try out. If you have oily skin or combination skin…I’d try their Clenance line or another French pharmacy brand instead.Cost - If you are the in UK and Europe, Avene is quite affordable and considered a pharmacy or ‘drugstore’ brand. In America the cost is higher and might be considered ‘mid-range’ or typical department store prices, hence why Americans tend to really stock up and hoard French pharmacy like Avene when they travel - it’s way cheaper.Onward to the reviews:Avene Hydrance Optimale Light - My first Avene product. I picked this up due to a ‘recommended French pharmacy skincare’ article. This is a light hydrating moisturiser for dehydrated sensitive skin that is normal to combination. I use this mainly during the summer and warmer months.Avene Hydrance Rich Hydrating Cream - The richer sibling to the Light. I prefer to use this one at night, but also great for the daytime. Perfect For dry to very dry dehydrated sensitive skin. I would not recommend this for oily skin.Avene Hydrance Optimale UV Rich - Same product as above but with SPF 20.Avene Gentle Milk Cleanser - I hated this at first because I used it wrong. I’ll admit it. This you apply to dry skin and either wipe off or use toner on a cotton pad to take off. In other words, use as you would a cold cream. This is surprisingly a really good makeup remover cleanser but I still needed a micellar water to remove mascara. This is meant for extremely sensitive skin but can be used by those with dry and normal skin as well.Avene Gentle Toning Lotion - Great for those with rosacea. Doesn’t dry the skin but also doesn’t leave any residue on it. I personally prefer Bioderma’s Sensible or Hydrabio toner over Avene’s, but it helps my husband’s rosacea.Avene Antirougeurs Jour Redness-Relief Moisturising Protecting Cream SPF20 - This cream works well for those who have acne rosacea. I’ve used it on my ruddy cheeks and nose area and it didn’t do anything for me, but as hubby as acne rosacea it’s really helped it keep the inflammation down.Avene Hydrance Intense Serum - I’m gonna be honest and didn’t find anything special about this serum. I usually like my serum’s to contain maybe some niacinamide or licorice root or something I’m not getting in my hydration lotions and moisturizers. This one does give dry and dehydrated skin a lot of ‘slip’ and a smoother feeling.Avene Soothing Eye Contour Cream - the cheapest eye cream I have in my eye cream arsenal. It doesn’t do anything for wrinkles but if your eye area is sensitive to the touch or dry and irritated after removing eye makeup, this eye cream really soothes the area and the Dextran sulfate in the eye cream also acts by relieving hypersensitive eyelids and eye area.Avene Soothing Moisture Mask - If you were to buy just one Avene product, I would recommend the Mask. Incidentally they also make an ‘extreme’ mask and an ‘anti-redness’ mask which I haven’t tried yet. Tolerance Extreme can be used by all skin types, Soothing Moisture by sensitive dehydrated skin and Antirougeurs calm for rosacea skin. I used the Soothing Moisture Mask this evening in fact and I’m always surprised how much is really absorbed by the skin and how little I have to tissue off after the 15-20 min is up. I could actually apply foundation (or primer and foundation) after tissuing off the excess and it leaves my skin feeling soft and satiny.Avène Gentle Exfoliating Gel - no plastic micro-beads in this one! This gel contains biodegradable jojoba wax beads for gentle mechanical exfoliation. You can apply this on dry skin or on wet. Personally I prefer to apply to dry skin, massage in, rinse off. Very gentle on the skin.Avene Thermal Water Spray - I know your thinking ‘why the hell would I want a water spray for?’ This spray is so incredibly handy in skincare kit. You’ll find a lot of Avene products state to spray this lightly on the skin after using (i.e. the Mask). This is how I use it. I spray this on my beauty blender lightly before tapping it on my skin to smooth out foundation. Spray my eyeshadow brushes lightly before swiping them across the eyeshadows to get a sheer, wet look on my eyes. Whenever I want to go foundation-free I tap on some powder, which usually starts to look a bit cakey, and give a really light spray with this which give a satin look to my skin. On hot days my kids love to get a fine mist spray of this on their necks, head, and face. Do you really need a fancy Thermal water spray? No, but the fine mist does come in handy when doing my makeup.Final Thoughts - I haven’t tried all the Avene products as my focus is dry, dehydrated and some redness in my skin. I really like that Avene has a nice line for those with rosacea (the Antirougeurs line up). Their products for oily skin aren’t that extensive, but the main focus of their products are for skin like mine. I really like Avene’s price point, simple, yet effective ingredients, and they also have moisturizers with SPF and also carry a selection of very high SPF mineral fluid. Avene also offers body care for psoriasis-prone skin (Akerat Body Care Cream), itchy and eczema skin (Xeracalm), acne (TriAcnéal), and a small targeted selection for ‘mature’ skin that targets wrinkles that is also retinol-free (Physiolift). It’s ingredients are simple and really no-frills. Your not going to find a bunch of essential oils or plant extracts in multitudes as Avene strives to be as allergen and irritant free as much as possible.Have you tried Avene? I’d love to hear from those who have tried the other products/line up.
Girls Blog 2015
Submitted by Millietops
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