Face and eye creams...cosmetics
 

Are there any brands there in Italy that you particularly like and can not find here? Any special shops to try and if so, where are they located.

Highly recommend you visit www.paulaschoice.com

It is utterly ridiculous, I've learned - over many years and considerable spending, to bother with purchasing products that promise but do not deliver results.

Lest you wish to invest megabucks in the latest injections, or plastic surgery, the best bet is to simply take care of your skin with ordinary, and very cheap preparations, available at your local drug/grocery store.

For sure, I've done this myself. I got caught up in Sisley products during a visit to Paris some years ago. Then, discovered that you can purchase same at strawberrynet.com and sasa.com at considerably reduced prices and no charge for shipping. And, they, truly, are not superior to mayonnaise and Crisco, as Joan Collins would tell you.

Ah, how I like themes like that! They call me The Queen of Creams.
These are the places in Rome where you can go:
SEPHORA (Termini Forum, lower level)= top brands like Estee Lauder, Versace, Clinique, but also Pupa, Loreal and Deborah.
Upim (Termini Forum, upper level near platform 22)= lots of brands like Deborah, Max Factor, Loreal, Edith, Revlon.
Bottega Verde (Termini Forum, lower level, near the pharmacy)= italian franchising shop selling lots of creams, bath stuff and other pampering things.
Body Shop (Termini Forum, upper gallery)= everybody know it!
Lush (Via dei Baullari, going towards Campo de' Fiori), bus #64 stop nearby= by far my fave shop. Mainly natural soaps, but also natural creams. You can try them, addicting, but expensive! It is not an italian brand though..
Limoni (Via del Corso, going towards Piazza Venezia)= large perfume shop, lots of choices
Rinascente (Via del Corso, near Piazza Colonna)= large department store selling top brands. It is like american Gottschalk .
I particularly like VICHY though it is a French brand. I use a lot of the products of this line. There is the Novadiol face line which is my favourite. I cant find it in the US. They have face masks, eye creams, foundations etc. You can find the Vichy line in large "farmacie".
Some other italian line? L'ERBOLARIO is also a fantastic line, lots of creams for the body and for the face, delicious scents, incredible scent mixes. Sold in "erboristerie" and good "farmacie".
Also worth to be tried is the PLANTERS line, despite the name I think it is italian. Sold in erboristerie and farmacie.
There is also La Via LAttea and Perlier.

You forgot to mention the most aristocratic bath and beauty product line in all of Italy, Officina Profumo Farmaceutica Santa Maria Novella, 16n Via della Scala, Florence. They made face cream and perfume for Catherine de Medici, the Visconti, the Sforzas, and the d'Estes.

YES!! YES!! YES!! I printed these posts!

Still, unless you opt for plastic surgery or injections or peels at the dermatologist, you're wasting your money.

PS None of the above will render you looking all that much better.

On a cruise last year, there was a wonman who followed us all around. There was something odd about her, but I just couldn't determine what it was. After about a week, I realized it was that her face was "stretched". The skin tone/age spots remained, but the sking was "unlined". Though, her neck hands gave it all away. To me, anyway, her face loked AWFUL. Though, without "lines/wrinkles".

I, personally, believe that the best bet is to just take good care of your sking - with cleansers, moisturizers that enhance its condition without aggravating it.

You know, aging is unavoidable for everyone. And, to mess with it just makes you look silly.

Lush is my favorite. I can't get enough when I go to Vancouver BC. We don't have it in the states except San Fransisco I think. The scents that they use are the best. the soaps are the best. I would call it a bath store more than a beauty products store, although they have a some great facial cleansers etc.

I also love face creams and am very particular about what I buy. To me it is not a waste of money. It not only makes my skin feel good, it makes me feel good - what was that song - "I enjoy being a girl"?

tinarose-

FYI, there are 5 lush stores in the US:
San Francisco, CA 240 Powell Street
Boston, MA 166 Newbury Street
Santa Monica, CA 1404 Third Street Promenade
Washington, DC 3066 M Street N.W.
New York, NY #105 - 1293 Broadway (34th & Broadway)

Plus, you can buy it online in the US.

we're not talking about looking for the fountain of youth here... the woman just wants some nice face creams. LOL Good luck, my two cents is I have heard from friends that Creme de la Mer works wonders (but is $$$$) and its readily available in the US.

thonglori-

Interesting you brought up La Mer. When I was in Florence 3 months ago, I went to look for La Mer, thinking that it might be cheaper with VAT refund. I only went to 1 store, but it was a lot more expensive than in the US.

Lush is quite popular in Italy but it didn't do a thing for me. All those fruity scents made my nose itch. I couldn't wait to get out of the store to breathe some fresh air. Unless you're 14, I don't understand why a woman would want to smell like a piece of cheap candy or a fruit salad. I do appreciate the MTV style marketing, even though it seems very gimmicky.

Great skin is inherited but I disagree with djkbooks. Even Paula recommends a good moisturizer twice a day to keep dry skin at bay.

I've been using La Mer on my face for years and I love it (and nobody can guess my true age). I also love Jo Malone's body creams and bath oils. So luxurious.

Thank you, Batuffolina, for the comprehensive list. Nice work.

Hi all,

I think unless you just want to pamper yourself (and that's okay) most people realize that the marketing ploys behind cosmetics are just that...ploys. But sometimes they make us feel good about ourselves.

My mother always told me that the best skin care is a diet that includes lots of fruit and water... and a skin care regimin that includes the following...

1)wash your face with warm water and pure soap and use a washcloth please...doing so with just your hands doesn't open the pores or get the dirt off, or help loosen the old dead skin.

2)Rinse your face with cool water (not cold because extreme changes will cause tiny blood vessels to burst)

3)IMMEDIATELY follow with a very very light application of petroleum jelly...just enough to seal the moisture in.

4)wait about 10 minutes then apply makeup.

the jelly helps to seal the moisture in your skin and also prevents chapping or dry patches.

DO THIS TWICE A DAY FAITHFULLY!

I challenge anyone to try it and tell me what they think!

I am in my early 40's and a 2 pack a day smoker and 4 cup a day coffee drinker. I should look tired and old!

I have very few wrinkles or even smile lines. And I spent most of my youth out in the sun....basking in it for the eternal tan.

erinb, I like your regime, but a question: does the pet. jelly clog up your pores? I would think even a small amount would make the little bumps of pore clogage (is that a word?) How about toner? If you don't have wrinkles it must be working!

I always buy Helena Rubenstein in Italy, the Urban Active age defense system daily moisture is really good for my skin.

One other Italian brand is Diana de Silva. The facial products are marketed under the name Cosmetactive, I believe.

Their web site is http://www.dianadesilva.com/default.html

Look at the catalog for more info.

I prefer either Darphin (French) or Babor (German) and I do believe there is *some* difference among product lines. I love Caudalie soap, for example, but their facial products clog my pores. FYI, for Sisley fans, in France, the Biguine hair salon line of facial products are virtually the same as Sisley at half the price...they're made in the same place.

A lot of how your skin holds up is genetics+sun exposure. Keeping out of the sun (and not smoking) helps your skin more than face creams! Also, I think as you age, you're either a wrinkler or a sagger. The elderly women in my family have very few wrinkles--they fall into the sagging category. So I guess I know where I'm headed..bad news for us saggers: face creams won't do much, good news: we respond MUCH better than wrinklers to face lifts ;-)

Look at this.. laughing to myself.
I truthly wanted the information of some nice cosmetic brands. La Mer does work wonderfully. It is always nice to find a new place to shop or something different to try.
Do they all work to do what they claim? No, but our skin does need moisture and a bit of help with cell regeneration even though our skin sloughs off by itself, never hurts.
Plastic surgery is out of the question for me so any help I could get with some good moisture would help.

I had never heard of Paulaschoice.com. I learned a few things here. It is now bookmarked and appears to be a great resource. Thank-you.

My friend saids her mother uses retin A and it keeps her skin looking very good (she is almost 60, and looks around the same age as my mom who is 45). In the US this is by perscription only (i think is for acne, so i dont know how she got the prescription) But in france they sell it over the counter. I like the suggestion about P. Jelly, i am 22, and i want to start buying stuff to keep my skin looking young (prevention is the best medicine), i was thinking about buying avons anti-ageing cream, has anyone every tried it, or can reccomend a cream you can buy in the us that dosent cost the equalivent of my rent every month?

Paulaschoice.com is interesting reading, but I see a conflict of interest between her product reviews and her selling her own line. Also, when you read a comprehensive list of reviews, you realize she gives very little praise...even the picks are called "standard" or "basic", yet she uses higher praise for her own line. Also, some ingredients that she called irritating in other lines are not labeled as such when used in her own. Nonetheless, she makes a lot of good points.

The best way to keep skin looking young is by using a sunscreen when you go out in the sun, even in winter.