Anti-Aging : Beauty and Fashion Tech

Peter Thomas Roth Un-Wrinkle Pressed Powder

Peter Thomas Roth is generally known for their excellent skin care products instead of cosmetics. But now they have a nice combo cosmetic/skin care powder, Peter Thomas Roth Un-Wrinkle Pressed Powder. It also had an appearance in the Get Smart movie, starring Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway.

From the company:

The new powder is lightweight, translucent and instantly improves the overall look of the skin while delivering anti-aging peptides and neuropeptides, which helps to reduce the appearance of fine lines and deep wrinkles. The powder blends seamlessly for a flawless, luminous finish, helping skin retain moisture while working to set makeup. The key anti-aging ingredient behind the product is SYN-AKE – a synthetic neuropeptide that mimics the wrinkle relaxing properties of snake venom from the Brazilian Viper.

I gave it a try and found it to be pretty nice. The powder is finely milled and goes on smooth. The black compact is also attractive, with a flip up compartment for the pad and an interior mirror. So as a powder alone, it is rather nice–that it also has anti-aging properties is a bonus! Overall, it is nice stuff!

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Popularity: 7% [?]

The New Science of Perfect Skin by Daniel Yarosh, PH.D.

Daniel Yarosh, Ph.D. is a thirty-year veteran of the beauty business who comes from the development end of the industry. Among his accomplishments are the invention of new ingredients for brands such as Estee Lauder, L’Oreal, and Shiseido. Now he has an excellent book out, The New Science of Perfect Skin: Understanding Skin Care Myths and Miracles For Radiant Skin at Any Age, along with an accompanying skin care line, Remergent, from his laboratory, AGI Dermatics.

I will cover the Remergent line in a few weeks. For now, I want to focus on what I think is one of the best beauty books to come along in a great while—at least as far as skin care and anti-aging is concerned. The book provides a thorough and accurate overview of everything a person needs to know about skin, from protecting it, to treating its problems.

From the get go, Yaraosh tells it like it is, with early chapters on “Cutting Through the Hype,” and a glossary of product ingredients. He then painstakingly breaks down cosmetic products into chapters with explanations of what to avoid and why, and what to focus on for the best results. Each chapter includes specific product recommendations by brand across various levels of cost. Yarosh also provides a wealth of information on skin cancer and sun care, along with antioxidants and wrinkle treatments, including descriptions of various lasers and injections. The book also contains skin care regimes for men and children. Throughout the book, Yarosh does a nice job of recommending products that will do double duty by addressing multiple skin conditions at once—something I am quite a fan of.

Overall, The New Science of Perfect Skin is a book with a great deal of information, written for the everyday consumer. Wonderfully informative, to the point, and easy to read, it is a book that you can pick up, understand, and learn from without any specific scientific background. If you do have some background, you will find it to be a well informed and handy reference tool.

I recommend The New Science of Perfect Skin for any person who is concerned about skin care and who seeks to separate the products that have the most chance of success from those that are unlikely to work. Isn’t that most of us?

Popularity: 14% [?]

Freeze 24/7 Anti-Wrinkle Cream and Freeze & Go Instant Smoother

Yeah, this one is expensive. But I do love the stuff. Freeze 24/7 Anti-Wrinkle Cream is a skin firming cream that stiffens and plumps up the skin so that fine lines and wrinkles are less apparent. In many ways, it is similar to the Athena 7 Minute Lift, which I reviewed last week.

The cream produces a noticeable tingle and tightening sensation, and firms enough that I could notice a lessened appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. I find that its effects are generally good for about 4 hours. Freeze 24/7 is simpler to use than the Athena product, which is a big bonus for me. But it is pricier, and I think the Athena 7 minute Lift worked slightly better–albeit just a little.

Another similar item from Freeze 24/7 is the Freeze 24/7 Freeze & Go Instant Smoother & Brightener, which comes in a funky case with a mirror. Freeze and Go is cheaper, but I had less success with it. First, it took some time for me to get any product to come out of the container. So if you have one of these and are turning and turning the applicator, keep going– the product will eventually come out! I did get some nice firming from it, but the visible results on my lines and wrinkles were not noticeable like they were from using the anti-wrinkle cream. With that said though, Shannon at A Girl’s Gotta Spa, had wonderful results with Freeze and Go and posted pictures to prove it. So maybe it is just me!

Freeze 24/7 also makes one of the best lip plumpers out there, and has other firming and anti-aging products. Watch for their products on sale or comparison shop though, because they tend to run on the expensive side.

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Popularity: 7% [?]

Lorac Breakthrough Performance Foundation

I am loving LORAC Breakthrough Performance Oil-Free Anti-Aging Foundation with SMS Complex - SPF 14. This foundation pretty much matches the name.

First off, the makeup is oil free, yet it has a moisturizing feel to it that I love. It is quite lightweight, but gives medium coverage. Best of all, it adds some anti-aging properties and SPF.

I have been wearing the Lorac Breakthrough performance Foundation for about a week now and have found that it both lasts all day, and quite simply has a very nice look to it. I have had no issues with it looking flaky or dry like I sometimes experience with many oil free foundations. It also provides enough moisture for my dry areas, without making the oily spots look shiny. This means that I don’t end up with foundation settling into fine lines and wrinkles, but I don’t end up looking like an oil slick by the end of the day either.

Another bonus: This one works quite well without a primer. It also is nice with one– pretty much all foundations are– but I have been very happy wearing it alone when I usually find the need for a primer with some other brands.

Bottom line is that Lorac has created a winner with this one. I definitely recommend it!

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Popularity: 5% [?]

Athena 7 Minute Lift from Greek Island Labs

I was bit skeptical when I first looked at the anti-wrinkle claims of the Athena 7 Minute Lift - Anti Wrinkle Cream (aka Face Lift in a Jar), but the stuff actually does have a noticeable short term effect on fine lines and wrinkles.

The Athena 7 Minute Lift is essentially a strong firming cream. It works by tightening the skin, which in turn makes lines and wrinkles smoother and less noticeable. The claim is that over time, this can also lessen the wrinkles because the skin is not as mobile–sort of like Botox on a much lower level. I can’t speak for that claim since I haven’t used the product long enough, but as a day to day and short term fix, I rather like it!

The 7 Minute Lift comes with a brush that is moistened to apply the product. Then, small amounts are brushed or dabbed on wrinkled areas, either before or after applying makeup. Very little is needed, so while a jar of the 7 Minute Lift is a bit expensive, it should last for quite some time. There is one difficulty with application though–you have to keep your face motionless for 7 minutes after applying the cream. During that time, it goes to work and tightens the skin. That is easier said than done! But I was generally able to keep my face still long enough for things to take effect (try doing something something boring like vacuuming during that time).

The tightening feeling is noticeable, and I felt that it lessened the appearance of lines, especially around my eyes and on my forehead. No, it isn’t a miracle, the wrinkles did not disappear, but they did look lessened. I found the effect to last a a few hours (around three) and then I needed to reapply. That wasn’t too difficult since the product can be used over makeup. The product was slightly drying, but not overly so and the instructions state that if you become dry and flaky, you are using too much.

Overall, Athena’s 7 minute Lift was an interesting item to try and I will definitely keep using it. If you purchase it, be sure to watch the included DVD because following the instructions is important with this one! The Athena website also has a pretty good FAQ.

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Popularity: 6% [?]

Anti-Aging With Neostrata Exuviance

OK, I can’t stop raving about these two items. I was sent them to try a few weeks ago and I am hooked on both!

Exuviance Evening Restorative Complex is a great evening moisturizer. This night cream is fairly thick, yet it does not feel particularly heavy. It absorbs well, and leaves no oily feeling. So I was comfortable using it, even with fairly oily skin right now. At the same time, I think people with up to fairly dry skin could also happily use this.

Exuviance Restorative Complex Night Cream

The Restorative Complex simply feel terrific. It has a light, but unobtrusive scent that reminds me a bit of Estee Lauder Day wear. I have also woken up each morning after using it thinking that my skin looked pretty darn good. Here is what the company says about it:

Rejuvenate while you rest. This intensive high-performance cream is designed to help repair dry, photo-damaged skin and fight the visible signs of aging while you sleep. Contains a bionic blend of gluconolactone and lactobionic acid (PHAs) to provide intense hydration, enhance skin texture and fight oxidative damage, while botanicals and lipids help soothe stressed skin.

Now here is the kicker: I thought this would likely be a pretty expensive product. It feels luxurious, and I rank it among some of the top night creams I have tried. Those almost always turn out to be over $60, and often in the over $90 range. So imagine my surprise when I learned that it sells for around $30! I think it is safe to say that I will be repurchasing this one when it is gone!

Exuviance Vespera Bionic Serum Mandelic Acid

Exuviance Vespera Bionic Serum is another item that I liked quite a bit. This serum has antioxidants, marine botanicals, and mandelic acid to brighten skin and improve texture. Madelic acid is sometimes recommended for melasma treatment, although I have to admit that I have never seen any real lightening from it. I like it quite a bit, however, as a general exfoliator and anti-wrinkle agent.The serum feels a bit oily. I have had no issues with breakouts from it, but also have been using it only on non-acne prone areas (mainly my forehead wrinkles). If you have dry skin, you will fine that it adds a nice bit of extra moisture and I like the general effect of it when used in combination with the Exuviance Restorative Complex.

At $55 it is a bit more expensive, but this is still a good price for a treatment serum. Many are running in the over $75 range these days.

Overall, my experience with Exuviance has been good. I am finding the products to be good value choices, because they provide high quality at a more medium price range.

Look for Neostrata Exuviance products at your local Ulta store.

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Popularity: 9% [?]

Prescriptives Px Vibrant-C Skin Brightening Lotion Moisturizer

Many people think of foundation when they think of Prescriptives, and they do indeed have great foundation. I highly recommend getting color matched if you have not done so before!

But Prescriptives also makes some great skin care items in their Px line. I have previously used their skin tone correcting serum, which I think is now discontinued, and I love the PX intensive Rebuilding Moisturizer.

Based on my past good experiences, I was pretty happy to have the chance to try out Prescriptives Px Vibrant-C Lotion. This light moisturizer reminds me quite a bit of the skin brightening serum, which also focused on Vitamin C, except that it comes in a lotion form. The product has a good vitamin C tingle, which if anything like past Prescriptives Vitamin C products, should be fairly stable and do a decent job of actually brightening the skin and lightening mild melasma or hyperpigmentation. Because it is a moisturizer, it also can be used nicely over other skin lightening serums for creating a combination approach to melasma treatment. For example, I have been using it over my favorite treatment cleanser and serum from PCA Skin Care. It makes for a very nice combination, especially if you like using both serums and lotions.

As a light lotion moisturizer, Vibrant-C also stands out. I found that it absorbed quickly and completely, with only a small amount needed to get the desired effect of adding some light moisture. I suspect that I will be purchasing more of this product when the bottle that I was sent is empty.

Prescriptives has also added a skin brightening moisture cream to the line if you need a higher amount of moisture. They offer a skin brightening eye cream as well. Prescriptives can be found online at various department stores. For example, I usually get their products at Macys.

I also am trying Prescriptives Intensive Rebuilding Moisture-Rich Cleanser. So keep an eye out for a future post on that!

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Popularity: 8% [?]