When I moved to San Luis Obispo in September, I knew I had a lot of new things to get used to. Unfortunately, while I adjusted to college life, my skin refused to adjust to the new climate. SLO’s bipolar weather left my skin literally peeling on my face and body (super sexy). It’s been a months-long struggle to get my skin back on track. Read on if you’re looking for perfect products to keep your skin soft and moisturized all year long, at least in SLO!
The first few days, my skin was fine. About a week in, I started experiencing disgusting dry skin all over. Nothing I tried worked. My first thought was to buy a new, firmer loofah, since I didn’t bring one here. But my skin kept flaking.
My second step was to try a body scrub. Body scrubs do help you, but you have to have a good moisturizer to layer on your skin after! I like Tree Hut Brazilian Nut ($7.49), found at Ulta. It’s a sugar scrub that smells like vanilla and makes my skin crazy soft. I switched my body wash from a Nivea one to Olay Ultra Moisture ($7.99) which can be purchased at drugstores. This did help, but the smell was really overwhelming! So I switched to a Dove Go Fresh Body Wash (starts at $7.79) and has a less intense smell.
Next up was changing my body lotion. At home I used an Aveeno lotion, but obviously in SLO it wasn’t up to snuff! Here are my attempts and results:
- Amlactin (starts at $15.99). It’s made with lactic acid, which is supposed to help your skin’s PH, but this lotion was really sticky and never really sunk into my skin. NEXT!
- Curel Ultra Healing, ($5.99). This lotion is really great, but when it’s hot out, it slicks sweat off me. I can really only use it when I have a few hours to let it soak in before I put on pants — there’s nothing worse than pants sticking to your lotion-y legs! NEXT!
- Ahava Mineral Body Lotion, ($26 from Ulta). The smell is really overwhelming and it’s a little watery, and was too pricey for a body lotion. NEXT!
- Hempz Age Defying Moisturizer, ($25 from Ulta). It didn’t last all day. NEXT!
- Almond oil was really greasy and it didn’t dry for hours, even after wiping it off. NEXT!
Finally, I found THE ONE: Boot’s No.7 Protect & Perfect Intensive Body Serum, ($19.99 for 6.7 fl oz, which you can buy at Ulta and Target). Typically, perfumed body lotions aren’t super moisturizing, but this one is. It smells so amazing, sinks in quickly and, most importantly, lasts all day. Finally, something that works for SLO bipolar days!
The most important aspects of a good skincare routine are as follows: a great body wash, a loofah and short, mild-temperature showers. After your shower, try to put body lotion on as soon as possible so your skin seals in the moisture fast and doesn’t have time to dry up on you. A few times a week, use a body scrub and moisturize every day!
There are many other things that I am in process of trying out right now, but at this moment in time, my skin looks, smells and feels great. Most importantly, it’s not flaky anymore! When you’re looking for the perfect lotion, try to buy them at places that allow returns so you don’t really end up losing money — because as you can see, it took me a while to find my ideal product. Hope this helps you on your own skin-perfecting quest!