The Madness of Beauty Trends (or Skin of the Week)

 I was just recently talking about being more frugal with beauty purchases. We all want to take care of our skin and hair - or just look nice - and I'm glad there are a variety of products out there. The problem is there are too many products out there. Not just that, but there are trends coming and going so fast that it's hard to keep up.

The K-beauty trend is one I latched on to a few years ago. I immediately loved the whole idea of focusing on my skin's health and not just being vain. Also, I realized K-beauty as something people of my mother's generation understood, that good skin and hair care is not just about what you use but about consistency. One difference is, my elders stuck to a soaps and lotions while K-beauty can be very involved if you let it. I don't I stick to a wash, tone and hydrate routine, using the occasional mask.

So, while K-beauty is something I appreciate, now that it's become so popular in Western culture, it's getting a little crazy. I have to restrain myself from getting swept up in all the madness and just stick that what has been working for me.

I use a few basic K-beauty products along with a few others that have worked well, but I almost got hooked on the "glass skin" trend. Almost. I was this close to adding a bunch of things to my routine before common sense kicked in. And it's a good thing because, while glass skin was so the thing yesterday, a new thing is "silk skin". I just barely finished reading about that when I saw an article on "butter skin". What? The trends are just whizzing by in a blur!

Let's go through them briefly:

• Glass skin is when your skin looks almost Sim-like - super smooth and pore-free. Think of what some people look like after they've filtered the heck out of their Instagram photos. It looks flawless and glass smooth.
  
• Silk skin - the best way I can describe this is to say that it's smooth and flawless but without the glass skin shine. 
• 
  Butter skin (and this is what I think I've been trying to achieve without knowing about it) is a lot like silk skin except looking very matte. If you've ever seen an ad for a product that promises to "blur" skin imperfections, you'll know what I mean.

I expect the next trend will be to look as much like an AI as possible - no pores, no smile lines, no humanity. 

While I sometimes get a little frustrated by the adult fixation on skincare, I don't know how to feel about getting kids into the mix. These folks are starting a skincare line for kids and... I don't know. I think that it's enough to teach kids to use sunscreen (of course) and lotion or oil on their skin. I'm not sure I want to create more consumerism by getting them into using masks. Let kids be kids. Teach them good hygiene; protect them against harmful sun rays and ashy skin, and make sure they brush and floss. Isn't that enough?

Anyway.

I think people should stop jumping from skincare trend to skincare trend - because they all have a different set of products - and stick with what works. And that's coming from someone who loves trying a new product every now and then. I just try not to go crazy with every new thing that comes around. No one could possibly keep up with that.

Maybe next time, I can discuss haircare trends...

Peace

--Free

**REVIEW** Pyunkang Yul Calming Moisture Nourishing Cream

 Finding a good skincare product that works for your budget as good as for your skin... that's tricky. But this Calming Moisture Cream from a brand I'd never heard of before ticks the boxes as they say.

This is a really good face cream. It's not heavy but it is moisturizing. I like the smooth texture. It's not greasy, it's not wet, and it doesn't take a lot for a good effect. The best thing (in my opinion) is the price. It was 10 bucks. That's the part I can't believe. I hope it doesn't get pricier as more people discover it.

I like the cream and the price so much that I took a chance and got the toner from the same brand. I will review that soon. For now, let's talk about this cream.

This has all the good stuff my skin loves - 5 hyaluronic acids, ceramides, shea, collagen - but it's got some ingredients I'd never seen before Madecassoside, Centella Asiatica, and Lonicera. Those are the "calming" ingredients. What surprised me is that it has tea tree. I'm not a huge fan of tea tree for my skin but I don't notice any irritation so there.

Also, my skin doesn't need "calming" so I don't notice that effect. I just like the moisture because my skin can be so bone dry. 

When I first started using this, our weather was cold and drying and I had to lightly boost the cream with some of my CeraVe Ointment or Abolene. Once I got the toner, I didn't have to use those other things with the cream except for overnight. Now that the weather is warming up, I notice that the toner and the cream are a perfect duo and don't need any boosting. I wonder if I won't need more than the tiniest bit once the summer humidity hits our town...

For someone with skin that is a bit less dry and, um, mature, this cream is probably fine solo.

My skin is sensitive. Anything can set it off - which is why I worried about the tea tree ingredient - but this doesn't irritate me at all.

Again, the price is amazing. I've had the one jar, using it in the morning (and sometimes at night) for about 6 weeks. This is what's still left:

Only takes a couple of dabs

So when I say it doesn't take much, I'm serious. Of course, I also use a toner (most days) and sunscreen. Still, I'm impressed. The product is affordable and the jar will obviously last a while. I have looked over some of the other P.Y. products in the P.Y. Amazon storefront - especially for "dry and sensitive" skin - and they are all quite affordable. The moisturizer is above-drug-store quality but at a drug-store price. I don't need any of the other products right now but I hope they are just as good as this cream and the toner I have.

Peace

--Free