I find myself keep coming back to this range although I am the kind of person who is always curious and eager to try new things!
Avene Eluage Rich Cream, Cream and Anti-wrinkle Concentrate
I am a recovered skincare junkie (boy, i am a recovered so many things...), and I have tried a lot from high-end brands like La Prarie and Sisely to drugstore range like Garnier, for example.
I also tried some of organic all natural products, but I never thought they were effective enough for me and some of the natural ingredients did not agree with me.
(A little sidetracked here, but I'd like to address that there are many people who are allergic to NATURAL oil.
Care to guess which oil people show least allergic reaction to? MINERAL oil!
Also, it is recently proved that the particles of mineral oil are too great to actually clog pores, generally speaking.)
Avene is my favorite drugstore brand for making amazing moisturizers for sensitive skin and effective anti-aging products.
I love how they are priced just right and the packaging looks very clean with no unnecessary frills yet they are high-performance products!
(Note - I am talking about European price.)
I usually order mine from an online store that is located in France since the Retinaldehyde range of Avene only cost half of the imported U.S. price.
There is a bigger charge for oversea shipping (and I could never order their Thermal water spray which is my other favorite due to the regulations) but all together it is so worth it.
Retinaldehyde is a patented form of Vitamin A that is potent but not as harsh as Retin-A.
I find this much more effective than Retinol products that are available over the counter but not as irritating as something with prescription.
Eluage range is designed for women in 30's and has an active ingredient called H.A.F. (Fragmented Hyaluronic Acid) which is also exclusive to Avene and works as a skin-firming property.
There is another range called Estheal. It is targeted for younger crowd and does not contain H.A.F but is more affordable and as effective.
Estheal is fragrance free where Eluage is scented very mildly. You might want to consider Estheal if you don't like fragrance in your skincare regimen.
They are also effective for keeping occasional hormonal breakouts at bay.
(Retin-A was one of those lucky accidental discoveries like penicillin. It was found to be effective on wrinkles while it was being developed for acne treatment.
Avene has another range called Diacneal, and this has the same active ingredients and more suitable for oily skin types.)
I don't believe the rich cream form of Eluage is available in the U.S.
This is denser and more emollient than the cream version. I usually use this on my neck.
The concentrate is designed to be used on deeper wrinkles as a targeted treatment, so I used this on visible lines and also around my eyes.
(I have used retinol products for a long time and I am not as sensitive compared to someone who just started using them. The concentrate is not designed to be used around eyes. There is Eluage eyecream available, fyi.)
They moisturize my normal/oily combination skin very well without being greasy or sticky and my skin always looks much better next morning.
The concentrate form is quite effective and makes visible difference. It seems wrinkles on my forhead are deeper if I skip this for a couple of days. ;(
Retinaldehyde products are not recommend to be used for daytime and should be avoided during pregnancy.
It is even more important to use photostable sunscreen daily when you are using treatments with retinol and alpha hydroxy acid.
If you look for effective anti-aging products with reasonable price, I would highly recommend this range. :)
(Sorry today's post is so text-heavy. ;p)
What is your favorite anti-aging products and active ingredients?
Do share with me. :)
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