"I have incredibly sensitive skin; a good skin care line?"

Shop With a Vengeance Response:

Hi Misti!

Are you looking for a higher-end line, or a drugstore line? I know it's frustrating to have sensitive skin, especially with so many enticing products out there you must want to try them all! My skin is part-sensitive too, so I feel your pain.

To start off, a couple really gentle drugstore picks I could recommend are the Purpose line by Johnson & Johnson. The cleanser is fragrance free and very gentle, but at the same time cleans a lot better than Cetaphil, which I will not bother to recommend. Although Cetaphil is super-gentle, I have found it ineffective as a cleanser and not too exciting as a moisturizer either. I do like CeraVe, another drugstore find, for their Lotion.

However, another product that I like is the Redness Control Calming Gel Cleanser from the Skin Effects line by Jeffrey Dover (available at CVS). This is a product that feels great to apply, washes clean, and takes off most makeup. It is thicker in consistency than Cetaphil, but I liked it even though it did not foam. It is also fragrance free. I believe there might be a dye in there though to give it its blue color, which is meant to offset the effects of Rosecea. The Redness Control line also has a corresponding SPF 30 face cream, which I thought was okay as well. Overall, the line didn't do too much for my skin because I am acne-prone, but it also did not irritate me. It's slightly pricey for a drugstore brand (products are around $13-$20 each).

Lastly, if you are looking for a high end line, I would suggest DDF (or Doctor's Dermatologic Formula). I have yet to actually try their products, but they were recommended to me by another reader. They make a Sensitive Skin Cleansing Gel which has received good reviews on MakeupAlley and should likely have other products that are okay for sensitive skin as well.

Most importantly, be sure to read your labels. Anything that contains too many ingredients is likely to upset your skin! Stay away from Origins, too, because they overload their products with irritating fragrant oils. One Origins counter woman even tried to convince me that their oils are not the kind that make you break out, after I tried to explain that I had an ALLERGIC reaction. Whatever. Anyway, try to stick to products that are fragrance free and dye free.

OH, also... I noticed a small allergic/itchy rash on the side of my face a few weeks ago, and upon reading some recommendations online, I applied Boudreaux's Butt Paste - a diaper rash cream, to the rash (yes, I put Butt Paste on my head) for a few days straight, and it completely got rid of the rash. I was surprised because the ingredients on the Butt Paste said mineral oil, petroleum, etc, so I wasn't expecting much... but it settled down right away. I'm not joking, this stuff is amazing for irritation.

Anyway, I hope that helped out somewhat! Good luck, Misti!

Any more recommendations for a sensitive skinned lady?

Feel free to share :)

"Sometimes my liquid foundation becomes lighter or darker than my face. What's the deal?"

Shop With a Vengeance Response:

Hi Apple! I believe this phenomenon you speak of is called "oxidation". There are many theories on why it occurs, and to be honest I'm not 100% sure as to the reason. In researching, I have found that it can happen because of changes that occur within the foundation after it touches and mingles with the air, oils, or the acidity of your skin.

There are many theories on what happens when your foundation changes color, one of which claims that the oils on your skin will intensify pigments in the foundation. So, if you are noticing that the foundation changes color well into the day, perhaps this is occuring.

Another theory claims that liquid foundation, when exposed to air, begins to break down. If you think about it, if you look at an old bottle of foundation that has been opened and closed a lot, it tends to appear broken up and discolored. So, that kind of makes sense.

The acidity theory I'm not really too sure on, but apparently if your skin has a more acidic pH than most other skins, you could find your foundation oxidizing a bit more often.

Back when I used liquid foundations, I found that L'Oreal's True Match Liquid Foundation would turn orange on me within a few hours, whereas Revlon's Colorstay would never change color. Some foundation formulas now will claim to have anti-oxidizing agents, so that this color change can be prevented. All in all, if your foundation is consistantly doing this to you, I'd suggest getting a new foundation!

I hope that helped somewhat!

This week is reader appreciation week here at Shop With a Vengeance! What does this mean? As a way to say "Thanks" to all my beautiful readers, I've decided to do a few nice things for ya'll.

For example, instead of just one giveaway this week, I will be hosting two! That means two chances to win an awesome prize! Also, every week day I will be putting up a response to a reader question, in addition to some normal content.

There might also be a few surprise mini-giveaways or contests along the way, so stay tuned and keep on reading!

Congratulations go out to Katy Morris, winner of the Sothy's Skincare Giveaway as per Random.org! As part of the giveaway, I asked my readers to tell me what they do to keep their skin looking it's best.