Most of the time we've been over here, it's been in worse condition than it ever was back in black-bogie central London - incredibly dry, big old painful-but-not-squeezable lumps on my face, and intermittent rashes on my chest and back. The lack of moisture in the air is probably a big factor, alongside the bad pollution. The water too possibly. After a few years of goodie bags and beauty sales and years before that using my Boots discount to try every product going, I thought I had the skincare/cosmetics thing down, but new battle lines had been drawn. It's a spotty new world, my friends, and I was floundering in it like a wacky-waving-inflatable-arm-flailing-tube man.
What then? Well, I am lucky enough to have a friend whose very job is to sift through fragrant mountains of glossy beauty crap in order to find out what works. As a writer, she may have a duty to bring the bold and the new to her readers, but as my friend (I gently suggested) she has a duty to help me in my time of epidermal need. I stocked up on toiletries on her recommendations while at home over Christmas and at Sephora over here and now, over a month later, my new skincare regime is yielding results. Really, it is. It's made a huge difference and ticked one thing off the list of things that have made me feel a bit icky.
That's this then - I'm going to list the products that have worked for me, and some I’ve used for a while and really rate. I believe those in the know might call them something like hero products (or are those the ones that do everything?) but you'll be pleased to know that this might be the first list in the history of putting shit on yourself that does not include Elizabeth Arden 8-Hour Cream. These things might help someone googling 'What's good for bad skin in Beijing?' or someone who wants to try a new foundation or my stalker who needs to know whether that old mascara in the communal bin is mine or not. Enjoy.
Sephora Soothing Cleansing Milk
¥129.00 (around £13)
I’ve always been a bit sceptical of cream cleansers, partly because I believe they were developed for laydees back in the day who wore a dab of powder and some Avon lipstick, and to effectively remove the amount of product I wear surely requires nothing less than a steel brush. However, I was advised that the key here is something gentle and calming, so to give makeup wipes (too much scrubbing) and oily removers (pore-blocking) a miss. This – most definitely a cream not a milk by the way – has done the trick so far. It never quite takes off all my eye makeup, so I use greasy Lancome Eye Makeup Remover for heavy looks, then go over again with this afterwards to get rid of the oil. I can’t find it on their website so I can’t guarantee it’s also available wherever you are.
Clinique Clarifying Lotion 2
£16.50
Cream cleansers are great because they’re gentle, but never quite get rid of all traces of makeup, especially not the amount I wear, so a toner is essential. The three-step routine we all know about but heartily ignore is probably a good idea when the very air is trying to kill you off. Given that the air is so dry, anything too harsh would worsen the problem, so this clarifying lotion/exfoliator (it’s a toner for God’s sake) is formulated to be non-drying while being oil-free. It leaves my skin feeling fresh and clean, though that may simply be a misleading tingle from the menthol it contains. I use it twice a day if I remember, but always at night.
Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair
£48
This is an expensive recommend I know, but I really, really think this has been the major factor in the difference I've seen. It's a serum to be used alone or under moisturiser, and in theory, protects as well as repairs with antioxidants and hydrates without being too heavy. The bumf on the website is all anti-aging, but also points specifically to it counteracting the effects of a bad environment. I usually use it at night, but if the air looks bad, I'll put some on in the morning too. Sinks in easily, doesn't feel greasy at all and my skin has seriously perked up no end. Very nearly glowing and fingers crossed for the forehead grooves also.
Sephora Instant Moisturiser (If You Only Try One)
Around ¥120 (£12) but can’t see it on the website
Again, from Sephora's own range. After being told to look at all the things with antioxidants, this one was averagely-priced compared to the rest of the brands in Sephora. Look, I know this sounds like a sponsored post but it’s the easiest place for me to shop toiletries in Beijing without having to speak Chinese because I'm being followed round the aisles by a shop assistant I can’t communicate with pushing various products in my face. Nice texture, light but moisturising. No complaints so far.
Dermalogica Multivitamin Power Firm
£37
It sounds ridiculous when all eye creams/gels are far from solid, but this one really feels, well, soft. It's a gorgeous, rich gel-type texture that feels like you're feeding your poor, overworked, oversmoked, overboozed skin some real luxury rather than slathering on something that doesn’t absorb properly. It’s marketed at people with mature or prematurely-aging skin, I figure it can’t do any harm. Y’know, vitamins, antioxidants, fighting free radicals, all that stuff. Or it just feels nice.
Rimmel Wake Me Up
£8.99
I've tried a lot of foundations. A LOT. Some were second-mortgage expensive, and some weren't. This is the only one I ever come back to, and my friends in the know say it’s often a winner against products five times the price. Lightweight, fresh-looking, but great coverage and never feels like you're clogging up your skin. Better coverage with a sponge, more natural with fingers. The Ivory shade is perfect for me - ridiculously, True Ivory left me looking like Tan Mom. Hmm, actually I’m a little worried after going on their website that the shade Ivory doesn’t appear to be there anymore. Don’t do this to me, Rimmel. Boots still has it [panic buys].
Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion
£16
Eyeshadow primers usually fare pretty badly in doing the job they’re supposed to - to be fair, it's hard for a product to battle against an actual fold in the skin. But this one works, it works, it works, it really does, even after being told repeatedly that Smashbox is the only primer brand worth trying. And now that I can wear eyeshadow without a crease line, it's just part of my everyday makeup. Screw special occasions, I wear what works.
Max Factor Masterpiece
£9.99
Another longtime love, this mascara gives great volume, definition and all those other buzzwords. Max Factor are often copied, but their classics – Masterpiece, Lipfinity – are still some of the best around. I cannot fault it and often stray to shiny new mascaras promising me the world, only to return with my head hung, weighed down with clumpy lashes and regret. This reminds me – while working at Boots, someone tried to return a Masterpiece mascara to my colleague, stating the brush didn’t look like the yellow brush on the adverts. The plastic brush was indeed yellow. The mascara that covers it is, of course, black.
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