A New Year’s “Revolution” in skincare

It’s time for a skincare revolution in 2013 – time to look beyond your Cliniques and Clarins and embrace something new.  Once of the greatest skincare brands to emerge in the last 10 years has to be Murad.  It quietly crept up on us – no full page spreads in Cosmo or XYZ celeb tweeting about it – they have quickly and confidently snatched market share from department store brands and developed a cult following.  They did appear in the Beauty Boxes for a while – a great way to introduce the brand.

This comes from having awesome products of course – no-one gets a cult following by peddling tat.  The first product I tried was their AHA/BHA Exfoliating Cleanser.  I used it during the summer and left my skin baby soft but not raw even considering the amount of sunshine I was exposed to.  It contains a trio of healthy skin acids – glycolic, lactic and salicylic as well as gentle jojoba beads to buff away dead skin cells and improve cell turnover.

This lead me to investigate the brand further and read more about its founder.  Howard Murad MD.  He’s quite the dermatological guru – a clinical professor, fellow, board member and holds 18 dermatology related patents.  I guess if your skin is safe in anyone’s hands it would be his!  Murad also carries specialist skincare lines for acne control, redness/sensitivity and many of the products contain SPF where-ever possible and tend not to define mens/womens ranges – the products are suitable for all.  There is a range for mens shaving however I’m sure the Razor Burn Rescue would work for ladies legs/under-arms too.

Here’s a few top picks from us – give your skincare an edit early on in 2013 and reap the benefits throughout the year!

Essential-C Cleanser – 200ml £34

Murad carry 11 cleansers in their range – I mentioned the AHA/BHA one earlier that I loved – the Essential-C  is perfect for winter skin or any skin facing environmental damage – this could be windburn, sunburn, extreme cold, smoggy conditions.   It packs a powerful anti-oxidant punch – A, C and E all work overtime to repair damaged skin and protect from those naughty free radicals and secret ingredient Allantoin soothes and moisturises.  This is a lovely, gentle cleanser – also ideal for those who don’t like fluid/lotion or cream cleansers – I use this in the shower as part of my pampering routine and as I’m doing a fair bit of skiing this winter I feel like its protecting my skin and giving it back the nutrients it needs.  You really don’t need much either – a little goes a long way.

Complete Reform – 30ml £69

Now this stuff packs a punch!  Rich in glycolic acid – you need to take care and not use over spots or broken skin as it will sting!  The studies show it increased skin tightness by 61% in one application.  I had no way of measuring this 61% lift but it does lift and tighten as well as refines the skin and brightens the whole complexion as the glycolic acid has an exfoliating effect..  Although it’s not an age-reversal product (claims of which by other brands are often over exaggerated anyway) it will leave your skin tightened, refreshed and noticeably more radiant.  Complete Reform can be purchased here.

White Brilliance Wrinkle and Pore Refining Treatment – 30ml £73

There’s 5 items in the White Brilliance range – cleanser, moisturiser, toner, night cream and the Wrinkle and Pore Refining Treatment.  Having horrid large pores I’ve been on a quest to find a product that doesn’t just smooth over them or fill them in.  Surely there must be something that can tighten them?  I’ve read various articles commenting that they can’t be reduced once appeared – the best you can do is keep them clean and free from debris so they don’t get any bigger.  Murad’s studies showed 62%  reduction in their appearance so I was keen to try this out.  It’s recommended for use twice a day and the targeted ingredients work on wrinkles as well as the pores.  They use lentil seed extract to diminish the appearance of pores – they are careful not to promise total reduction and removal but enough to make you feel happier.  Your skin will also appear more radiant due to the added whitening technology – vitamin C and botanical extracts will reduce pigmentation to reveal flawless looking skin!  This is a great product, it’s easy to use and the powerful ingredients get to work immediately leaving your skin looking healthy and refined.  It’s designed for use under a moisturiser so you will still get your skin nourishing ingredients with your chosen moisturiser.

I use the Complete Reform in the evening, the Wrinkle and Pore lotion in the morning so I am covering both bases.