Preteen Skincare

A friend recently asked me for some beginning skin care suggestions for her preteen. I've come up with some suggestions that I think are a great start to taking care of your skin, yet don't contain harsh anti-aging ingredients that a young girl doesn't need.

Cetaphil has long been a favorite line, and I think that's a great place to start. Their Daily Facial Cleanser (1) is unscented and won't strip your skin. The standout product in their line has to be the DermaControl Moisturizer SPF 30 (2). I've been using it for at least 6 months and love how it gives me sun protection without clogging my pores and leaving me greasy.

My friend mentioned that her daughter is self-conscious about under-eye puffiness (which I have never noticed on her!) so I looked for a product that could help with that while still being gentle. I think the Garnier Skin Renew Anti-Puff Eye Roller (3) would be a good product to try.

Although I think items 1-3 would make a great skin care set, if a girl is interested in using the same line for all her skin care, Simple Skincare has a great line. Their Moisturizing Facial Wash (4) is a great basic product. I'd then recommend trying their Protecting Light Moisturizer SPF 15 (5), although I'd really prefer a higher SPF. As a last step, I'd suggest their Revitalizing Eye Roll-On (6).

If you've got some great preteen skin care recommendations, please let us know in the comments!

Disclosure: This post contains NO referral links.

Review: Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase

In March I posted about the launch of Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase...... a drugstore version of one of my favorite high-end lines, Kinerase. The Dr. LeWinn line is carried at Walmart and Walgreens.
(Note that the prices at Walmart appear to be a bit better.)


Here's why I was (and still am) so excited about this new line... the Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase products are budget-friendly versions of the very-very-very expensive products in original Kinerase line. I even did a little comparison for you.
I was recently invited by BzzAgent to join in a campaign for this line, and I jumped at the chance. I have faithfully been using the Under Eye Recovery since I purchased it in March and I still love it. I've been wearing contacts for over 25 years, so my eyes can be a bit sensitive to eye creams. This eye cream doesn't irritate me in the least, yet still seems to be effective.

Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase Under Eye Recovery

$25 for .5 oz

A few weeks ago I was visiting my mom and dad and my mom mentioned needing some eye cream. Luckily I had one of the $5 coupons that BzzAgent provided me to pass on to friends with me, so we went to Walgreen's and picked up a tube for her. I asked her last week what she thought, and she reported that she really liked the cream and would definitely be re-purchasing it because it was working well for her.

For you locals, I still have four coupon booklets available, and they have a sample of two other products in them: Instant Dermal Wrinkle Filler, and Lift & Resculpt Anti-Wrinkle Night Cream. If you would like one, just holler at me and I'll pass one on to you!

Disclosure: BzzAgent provided me a full-size product for review and word-of-mouth purposes.

Again, Get Thee to the Walmarts

I'm very very behind on my magazine reading, especially beauty mags, although I have been finding time to read US and TV Guide. I can explain my priority ranking of TV Guide because we all know it's important to know when The Amazing Race starts, but I'm not sure why it's important for me to know who Justin Timberlake is dating. Some things you just can't explain.

Moving on..... The downside of my failure to keep up with Glamour was that I was totally clueless about the launch of Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase...... a drugstore version of one of my favorite high-end lines, Kinerase. I actually just ran across it on the shelves at Walmart last week.

And here's what you really need to know.... the Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase products are budget-friendly versions of the very-very-very expensive products in regular Kinerase line.

For example, let's do a comparison.

Kinerase Under Eye Rescue

$78 for .7 oz (equivalent to $111 per ounce)

Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase Under Eye Recovery

$25 for .5 oz (equivalent to $50 per ounce)

From what I can tell, both products have similar ingredients as well as claims. I've used both and honestly love them equally. I've also been testing out the Dr. LeWinn by Kinerase Lift & Resculpt Anti-Wrinkle Eye Cream (also $25) in the evenings and am impressed with it as well.

Bottom line: I would definitely recommend stopping by your local Walmart and giving this line a try- they seem to be well-priced versions of high-quality expensive products.

Disclosure: I actually have nothing to disclose, I purchased all products discussed above myself.

Review: L'Oreal Paris Youth Code Skincare

L'Oreal Youth Code Skincare

I wanted to like this, I really did. But I have tried it twice (with a few weeks separating the trials) and have gotten terrible, painful breakouts both times- in strange places, like my cheeks. So it's a no-go for me.

I purchased a kit containing three of the products (Day/Night cream, Day Lotion, and Eye cream) for about $25 at Walgreen's.

I suspect it was the Day Lotion that broke me out. But I also found the Eye cream to be absolutely useless- the cream was not moisturizing at all, and actually settled in my lines under my eye and dried white without soaking in. I actually had to wipe off the dried product with a tissue.

I am back to my beloved Avon Rejuvenate line- I just don't think there is anything better for those of us in our 30s.

Help! I have major under eye wrinkles!

I know that my under eye wrinkles are due to wearing contacts for 26 (!!) years, and to all those years of sunning my face, both outside and in tanning booth (I'd even search out the booths with the "extra face tanner"). But that doesn't make it any easier to look at and accept!

I ran across a really good deal for the new Aveeno Active Naturals Ageless Vitality Elasticity Recharging System, Eyes, so I am currently testing it out and shall report back.

It's a two-step system- the first is a serum and the second a cream. I've been using it for close to a week and I like it so far, although that's not really enough time to decide if my wrinkles are reduced. It doesn't sting or have an odor, and my makeup goes on nicely over it. So as far as I'm concerned, it's a win so far.

If you purchase it from www.walmart.com for $40.97 (that includes shipping, but not tax) you'll get a bonus $15 eGift Card to use later at www.walmart.com.

Then you submit your receipt along with this rebate form (must be purchased before 7-15-10) and get $20 back from Aveeno.

Net price:
$40.97 plus tax
less 15 gift card
less 20 rebate
Final price $6 plus tax

Not too shabby.

And although I myself forgot, you can go through ebates for an additional 1% off.

My Skincare Routine

Y'all. I'm getting old! I turned 36 in December- hard to believe!

The past few years I've really been trying to take good care of my skin and I've found that I absolutely love Avon skincare products. Let me also get this out of the way and say that I've been purchasing these products I am recommending myself- no free items are being discussed here.

Avon has a line called Anew Rejuvenate that is marketed specifically for women in their 30s. It's made for women experiencing the first signs of aging, including fine lines, uneven skin tone, dullness, rough texture and tone and visible pores.

Right now they have the cutest set of all the products in the core line (pictured above) available for $17 ($58 value) when you spend $10 on select skincare. These products are all the perfect size for travel since they are all under the TSA ounce requirements. The website shows a price of $34 but it will change to $17 once you add another $10 in select skincare to your cart.

The eye cream itself (both a day and night cream in one package) is a full-sized product and is a $28 value.

Really, this is a must buy! In order to qualify to buy the special set, I purchased a full-sized Rejuvenate gel cleanser for $7 and a trial size of each of the day and night Reversalist cream (meant for age 40+) for $1.99 each.

My rep Valeri is always so nice to let Sasha Says readers use a free shipping code! Please follow these steps so you can use the code and give Valeri credit.

1. Visit Valeri's site to make her your default rep

2. Log into ebates to get 5% back by going through them to get to the Avon site

3. Once the Avon site pulls up again, you should see Valeri's name near the top of the site

4. Choose your products and then use code FSANY or REPFS to get free shipping

Happy Shopping!

disclosure: This post contains my ebates affiliate link, but readers will also get $5 if they sign up under my link. Avon links are not affiliate links and I receive no compensation for sales of Avon products.

Moisturizer Find

Poor WC. She has the worst skin ever. It's so sensitive, and she's very prone to random rashes on her bottom and legs. I use All Free and Clear and Downy Free and Sensitive, but she still has itchy spots and sometimes Cetaphil doesn't cut it. I've been using hydrocortisone cream on some of the worst spots, but I just don't like to do that very often because it can thin the skin over time.

So I was excited when I was contacted by Skin MD Natural a few months ago. They asked if I'd like to try their Shielding Lotion and of course I said yes with WC in mind. I have been using it for about two months now on WC when she gets a rash and have been amazed at how well it works to clear it up. Typically, when I apply Cetaphil to her rashy area, she complains that it stings, but when I use the Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion ($18 value), she doesn't complain at all!

Head over to my giveaway blog for a chance to win a bottle for yourself! Hurry- giveaway ends tomorrow!

Disclosure: I was provided a free bottle of Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion. The value of this is $18.

New Skincare Routine?

I am toying with getting the Olay Professional Pro-X Anti-Aging Starter Protocol.

It contains Age Repair Lotion SPF 30 (day), Eye Restoration Complex (day and night), and Wrinkle Smoothing Cream (night).

Right now, Walgreens has it for $61.99 and there was a $5 coupon in the Sunday paper. The Olay website has a $25 mail-in rebate, and I know I have a Wags giftcard laying around from a script transfer. So I really wouldn't be OOP any....

Makeup Alley reviews are mixed, so I'm torn.

Have any of you tried it?

Good Deal Alert: Walgreens

Oh girls, have I got a good deal for you! I think I've mentioned before how much I like the L'Oreal Skin Genesis line. I have been using the serum and moisturizer at night and Mr. Sasha and I both love the way it smells! This line is marketed to those of us in our 30s. Their tagline is "Layer by layer, create skin that looks younger, tighter, brighter."

Right now Walgreen's is offering a fabulous deal on the Skin Genesis cleanser- either the gel pictured above, the cream, or the towelettes is FREE after their mail-in rebate. I can't speak for the cream or towelettes, but I LOVE this gel cleaner. My favorite packing is always a pump, and this cleanses so well and leaves my face looking and smelling fabulous.

It looks like you can print a $1 coupon from their website, which would make this a money-maker. Basically, they'd pay you $1 to take this product from their store! I'm registered at their site and I have a $2 coupon I received in the mail sometime in the last month, so I'll be using that and profiting $2, less the postage stamp for the rebate of course.

Have you tried this line? What did you think?

My Favorite Moisturizer

There's a new post up at A Million Little Glosses about my favorite moisturizer... check it out!