The topic of today's Friday Forum is facial cleanser. A New York Times feature on Bar Soap's resurgence, published on October 4, got me to thinking (as Southerners say). I never use bar soap on my face. I use cream or liquid cleansers designed for gentle and effective cleansing. I seldom use bar soap on my hands. I do use it in the shower, although it's an ultra-gentle aloe/shea butter soap.
Now, the Times has suggested that bar soaps are back. Erno Lazlo's Dead Sea Mud Cleansing Bar never went away. AVEENO's oatmeal soap, available in drugstores, is a popular staple for many. Now there are new entries that are formulated to be non-irritating.
There's something about the tactile pleasure of holding a bar of soap that is attracting customers back to this neglected market. Can bar soaps pick up and hold bacteria? Apparently, yes, if storage conditions are right. Liquid soaps, on the other hand, may contain harsh surfactants, like sodium laureth sulfate. You must read labels. Perhaps it's a draw on the pros and cons of the two competitors.
What do you use on your face? What do you prefer? Does holding a nice bar of soap make you feel good? What about when it loses its luster and doesn't look as pretty as it did when it was new? I'm not sold on bar soap for my face - no matter how well-formulated it might be. Maybe my preference is the ease and speed with which I am pump an application of cleanser straight to my palm and onto my face.
The cloudy weather earlier in the week - and last week - left me desperate for photos. Finally, the sun returned and I was able to take a few. I can't tell you how happy that made me. I have another Armani Eyes to Kill Palette to show you later this morning.
I'm really looking forward to two makeup events this weekend. I'll see Eddie Hernandez from Chanetecaille today and Tim Quinn from Giorgio Armani tomorrow. It's going to be a beautiful weekend!
Let's talk about your week of beauty. It's time for the Friday Forum, our open chat. I love this part of our week. Have you selected your favorite holiday collection - and purchased a few new treasures? What new products did you discover this week? Did you find any deals you couldn't resist? Are you using a fabulous product and want to sing its praises? Did you find a beauty product disappointing? Do you have a question others might be able to answer? Want to talk about skin care? What's new in your life? Just use the comments. Don't be shy. Just make sure to ask any question you might have over the weekend. By early the next week, most (not all) readers will have moved on.
Don't forget the NARS Walk on the Wild Side giveaway contest. The deadline is tomorrow, Saturday, October 13 at midnight. It's a nice set. Why not give it a shot?
Photo courtesy of newfoundlandnature.blogspot.com
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23 comments:
In answer to your question, Charlestongirl, I've been happily using Cetaphyl for probably the last 18 years. I think it was Allure magazine that started singing it's praises and got my attention. I really don't think I'll ever be using anything else. Hope you have a nice and relaxing weekend!
I just received a bunch of samples of Sunday Riley skincare from Bergdorf Goodman. I love the tinted primer. I also like the good genes but am unsure about the Juno face oil. I find the strong smells in the Good Genes and Juno a little off putting. I mean the Juno oil smells like salad dressing. I also like the Cashmere spf 30 but at $125 I am sure I could find a cheaper dupe. The only thing is, it has yet to break me out. Have you tried any skincare items from Sunday Rile? What are your thoughts?
Cg, remember the LMDB Modernist Merlot eye kit? It reminds me of the Guerlain Turandot. What do you think? MMeanwhile, I do not use Cetaphyl bc it contains propylene glycol. My derm at the U of Michigan dissuaded me from using that ingredient. I love cleansers. I now use CHANEL cleansing milk, their Le Blanc and another one I can't recall the name of. Tiny amounts turn in to lots of lather and are extremely gentle. Burt's Bees cleansers, like the Orange Essence, are superb and I use them, too. I also use a Clarisonic.
I love bar soaps but have yet to find one I love for using on my face. The Clinique one is SO drying!! At the moment, I use Nivea eye makeup remover, and Nuxe Eau Micellaire for my the rest of my face. I used to use GM Collins foaming cleanser, but now that I wear MORE makeup, especially around my eyes, it is no longer effective.
For luxurious times, I love Liz Earl's Cleanse and Polish. It's a wonderful product but difficult and expensive to get locally, so that's why it's got that 'luxurious times' label next to it ;-)
What I'd LOVE to find is an all-in-one product that removes dirt, makeup, etc, on the face and around the eyes, effectively. I have yet to find it. The Shu oil doesn't take off all the eye makeup either.....sighhhhhhh.
Anyway, I've been eyeing that Guerlain Turandot. I wonder if I'd be able to pull it off. It might be tricky for someone with deep-set eyes, particularly the reddishness. What do you think?
Have a great weekend!
I use bar soaps in the shower mostly because the rich body washes tend to clog our pipes with the shea butter and all (yes, it is strange!). For my face I use Chanel's mousse douceur which I love and it has helped tremendously with its toner to clear up my skin. Impressive after all those years of Neutrogena, Dove, Clinique, Cetaphyl, etc. A tube lasts me months and months as well.
I'm surprised how well Koh Gen Do's cleansing water takes off my eye makeup. I just bought another bottle.
The exciting news of the week is that I put in an order for the new Du Dragon Meteorites and Altoum nail polish from Guerlain! I still need to wander over to Saks to buy the palette. I also came across Lancome's holiday collection and I picked up an eye shadow and a new eye glitter which is super sparkly. Being a Leo I love sparkle so I couldn't resist. I also got the new highlighting blush with the rose imprint. I swear it's a close dupe for Guerlain's Cruel Gardenia, at least on my skin. I'll need to look at it under better lighting to be sure. It's a sparkly holiday season coming up!
Have a wonderful weekend & keep warm!
Hi CG!
I hate bar soaps. I find them awkward to use and too drying for my skin. For my face, I am currently using Philosophy Purity Cleansing Oil, which is fine for warmer weather; very soon, I am going to have to switch to my L'Occitane Shea Cleansing Milk for the colder weather. I have never used a bar on my face and don't feel clean when I use one in the shower. I do like to buy bar soaps to use to add fragrance to drawers/luggage/etc.
I received my Chantecaille Lip Chic and Elephant blush this week and love them both. I can't wait to play with them this weekend. We are supposed to have a heat wave next week, so I will be enjoying the fall weather this weekend while it's here.
Thanks to your swatches, CG, I have to have the new Guerlain lipstick in Lou-Ling. I thought it would be way too dark for me, but it looks much lighter in your swatches. I love the formula of the RA lipsticks too. I can't wait to get it.
I hope everyone has a lovely weekend!
Hi CG,
I would recommend L'occitane
shea butter facial soap - not to be confused with the shea butter
hand/body soap. It is the only facial bar soap that I've found to be non-drying. All others that I have bought get relegated to my hand soap dish because they are irritating (no matter what the label says.)I have always used bar soap, even now in my 50's. When my face feels especially grimy,I really like using bar soap - it feels really clean!
I love fragrant guest soaps for the powder room and guest bathroom, but other than that, I use gentle, moisturizing liquid cleansers for hands and body. I have a bunch of them in different scents and pick the scent to suit my mood. For my face, I love Tatch'a's cleansing oil and think it is the best one I've ever used. I follow it with Tatcha's gentle water-activated enzyme powder. It's the best exfolient I've found for my dry, sensitive skin.
This week I bought my Guerlain goodies and some Armani and have been in heaven ever since :-) From Guerlain, I bought the Perles du Dragon Météorites, the Liu Perfumed Shimmer Powder, Rouge Automatic Shine in Lou-Ling and Altoum, the nail polish in Altoum, and the quad in Turandot.
Turandot is a classic palette for those of us with warm complexions (fair, medium, or dark) and warm, medium to dark eye colors. Christine at Temptalia is a perfect example of the type of woman who looks radiant in Turandot. Think burnished and smoldering when you think of Turandot. It's definitely not for those of you with cool toned complexions and eyes.
Altoum, the lipstick! This was the surprise purchase because, like Charletongirl, I already have a couple gold layering glosses. Altoum, though, is different. It is a very modern take on a gold layering product. It is not the usual glossy or wet looking gel with golden sparkles suspended in it. Altoum is a satin-smooth wash of glistening gold that seems fresh and modern especially in view of the shift towards more velvety textures in lipsticks. For those of you who love to layer gold, Altoum is a very nice update.
I also made it to the Armani counter this week and picked up the Maestro Eraser and boy, we're you ladies right! This is an awesome product! The MA first applied a bit of Crema Nera mineral eye cream and then lightly patted on #3 Eraser with her finger. There wasn't a speck of discoloration to be seen. I was speechless. And, the best part was the way it wore throughout the day. It looked totally natural, didn't settle into any lines, and lasted until I removed it that night. Wow! I also settled on the new Maestro palette in Terra Siena. It's the perfect set of sculpting neutrals for which I've been looking. I chose it over Nudo because Siena has a bit of pink in the undertone which just made it look more natural on my eyes. Nudo was a tad too yellow for me. If that wasn't enough goodness, while at the counter, I also learned that my local Nordstrom will be getting an Armani counter just after the new year. Woo-hoo! :-)
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
Hi everyone!
I'm at work, but will join the conversation as soon as I get home.
i do not prefer bar soap, except to look at. for my face, i have become a fan of dr. bronner's liquid castille soap. i mix it up 1 part soap concentrate to 2 parts water. it cleans everything off, and somehow does not leave my face feeling tight and dry. i then follow up with moisturizer of course. but this is by far the simplest method i have found. and since i don't use waterproof type makeup, it suits my needs perfectly:)
Wow...here I go.
Hi Grlnxdor, I know that dermatologists love it. Mine recommended it years ago. I never fell in love with it.
Happy weekend!
Hi Anahita,
I have not tried the skin care, and I am reluctant. How much skin care can one use? I am already so tied to my favorite brands, I need another face. :)
Hi Nemo,
The Clarisonic was probably the single most revolutionary product in facial cleansing. That reminds me...I need to find our Clarisonic rep.
Hi Lovethescents,
Your skin is warm enough (right?) that you can probably wear Turandot.
Virtually nothing takes off everything, including waterproof and stubborn eye makeup. Some products are much better than others, but...
Hi Evelyn,
Weird, but Koh Gen Do did nothing for me. It didn't even touch my wash-off mascara.
I probably need to buy Lancôme online. The NM rep told me today she is still waiting to receive it. Sigh!
Hi Anonymous,
Always worth a try! We have a great boutique here.
Eileen, I give up. Tomorrow, I will buy Altoum. I can't stand not having it!
Isn't that Armani revolutionary?
Hey there, CGirl,
I guess I should have mentioned oil cleansers! I use Bobbi Brown's and Shu Uemura's. Love them!
Wish the Chantecaille artist hadn't taken sick and left today - right before our appointment. I wanted to see the look he'd create with those darling elephants.
Hi Erin,
That Dr. Bronner's Liquid Castille Soap has a huge fan base. Maybe I should test it. :)
You can't pry a liquid/oil cleanser out of my hands for face cleansing. However, I do like bar soap for washing my hands. There is something very refined about using bar soap to wash one's hands. But in all honesty I currently have liquid soaps at all the sinks for ease of use. I look forward to the day when the bathroom my boys use will become a guest bath again & I can have pretty soaps out. Pretty soaps are totally wasted on boys! :P
I'm a cleanser junkie - I've been that for years now, what makes me hoard a large number of cleansers and use them parallely, which is most probably not the right thing. I have dry skin so I don’t use foaming cleansers, but mostly creams and balms, eventually oils. I really like Eve Lom’s morning cleanser (balm), or Kahina’s Argan Oil based rich facial cream cleanser. My favourite at the present is though Cleanser27 from Cosmetics27 – it’s a rich balm, which forms a milky solution when in contact with water. It cleanses perfectly and leaves my skin supple.
Hi Lov2read!
When I entertained, a long-lost part of my life, I loved having pretty soaps in the powder room. It was so luxurious. Now I put them in my dresser drawers to subtly scent my clothing.
I do too, Lady Jane Grey!
I'm glad someone else is admitting a cleanser addiction. I must check out Cosmetics27!
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