Top Ten Winter Skincare Products from Mary Kay

You might wonder whether Mary Kay products are really worth it. Maybe all you know about the company is that the top people drive pink Cadillacs! That was the extent of my knowledge until recently when my daughter became a Mary Kay Consultant. As part of her training she needed "faces" to practice on, and of course mine was kind of available! I wasn't at all interested in buying any of the products when she started. I don't think of myself as a person who spends much time on skincare and make up. But when I tried them I changed my mind! I'd been using the cheapo stuff from the local supermarket or drugstore, or whatever anyone gave me as a gift. Not the best way to choose what's right for your skin!

I soon found that Mary Kay products are really not very expensive, especially since most of them last for months, almost a year even, with normal usage. So I've stocked up on a whole collection. Now I'm excited to be able to take good care of my skin this winter, even if it's a really harsh one! Oh, and if you decide you want any of the products, just buy them online - the links are right there under the products. Some products come in combination to oily as well as normal to dry, so make sure you get the right one for your skin. And the "Big Arrow" is a link to my daughter's Mary Kay website!

This Cleanser is called a 3-in-1 because it does the cleansing, exfoliating, and freshening of your skin all in one step. Mary Kay is all about being practical in how you take care of yourself - save time by combining several steps!

This cleanser is part of the age-fighting collection, and being of that age when skin starts to look old even if I'm not really that old of course, I can relate to the concept! But for younger skin, like my daughter's, it's really great too. No reason to deny younger skin all the goodies it will really need in the future when it can start benefiting right away. Especially in winter when skin has to face cold harsh winds outside and desert dryness inside!

3-In-1 Cleanser

I can say this products works for me. No harsh chemicals that cause allergic reactions, though I do avoid getting it in my eyes of course. And it definitely leaves the face with a good clean feel afterwards!

Winter is the time my skin really needs a moisturizer - the raw cold outside and the dry heat inside really challenge even the best of skin. And while my skin survives pretty well (I do have to appreciate it for that), without a moisturizer it would have given up the ghost long ago.

This is really the best moisturizer I've ever used! Since I have that awful combination skin - dry on the cheeks so it gets horribly tight if I don't put lotion on it after it gets wet, and greasy on the nose and around the edge - I have trouble finding good moisturizers. Too greasy and my nose feels like its dripping oil; too light and my cheeks feel like they're about to crack.

Age-fighting Moisturizer

This Mary Kay moisturizer, also part of the age-fighting collection, is perfect. I hate to feel a heavy moisturizer on my face so I love the smooth light feel of this one. I just put it on and my face feels happy all day! Of course I get the one for combination to oily skin type, but I hear the normal to dry skin type is also really great.

This Day and Night solution set is really a miracle product! It really preserve the skin's youthful elasticity and restores any vitality that has already been lost due to aging and the harsh treatment of winter. You just add it in easily to your normal skincare regimen, applying after cleansing and before moisturizing. Doesn't feel greasy or anything, and you just need a little to do the job. It's great stuff!

And it comes in these lovely little bottles, really stylish. Definitely one of my favorite skincare products.

The Day Solution is a great product that not only softens and nourishes your skin it also contains an SPF 25 sunscreen. Yes, the sun does shine in the winter, and when it does you can easily get sun burned especially if there's lots of snow around to reflect all those UV rays! I'm actually amazed at this solution because this summer I used it every day. On days when I forgot to put on any sunscreen but ended up spending time outside in the sun, I never suffered and sunburn because of this product. That is amazing for me - my nose usually goes red every summer from the sun!

This solution goes on after cleansing and before moisturizing. It smells a bit odd, not exactly unpleasant but certainly no artificial perfume! It doesn't give me any allergy problems though, and it must have good stuff in it because my skin enjoys it.

Day Solution

This is the other half of the Day and Night solution pair. Together they give your face that youthful unwrinkled and hydrated look. The beads contain vitamins, antioxidants, and collagen-enhancing peptides that nourish and restore your skin while you sleep.

The Night solution comes in a clear bottle so you can see the pretty colored beads suspended in the lotion. When you press down the top to use the lotion it breaks the beads and the good stuff is freshly activated to go to work on your skin. I love a product that works while I'm sleeping!

Night Solution

Yes, you can buy the amazing items described above together as the "Miracle Set" - saves money of course! You can choose a set for normal to dry skin, or for combination to oily skin.

The complete set has 11 age-defying benefits: Used on a daily basis the products cleanse, exfoliate, freshen, energize, hydrate, smooth, firm, soften, protect, and rebuild skin, reducing fine lines and wrinkles. Not bad!

And you can also add a foundation for a little extra cost - Mary Kay has liquid foundation, mineral powder, and a cream to powder foundation as well. But details on those products are a different story!

Miracle Set

The Microderm Abrasion set was something I thought I didn't need at first, but now I really love it! I mean, all those 11 benefits in the Miracle set seemed like they should be enough for me. But once I tried this, I was hooked. Even though it seems like a bit of an extra expense, I only use them once or twice a week, so they last a really long time.

Step 1 is the exfoliator. It's really really gritty! Like rubbing fine sand on your face - doesn't hurt though, just a bit tingly! But make sure you wash it all off. There's nothing worse than finding the crystals making their way down to your mouth later. I use it in the shower and get a good rinse that way. The point of this exfoliation is to really get down to the lower layer of skin, getting rid of the dried dead cells and exposing healthy new skin for the next step.

Step 2 is the replenisher. This is an amazing rich lotion of vitamins, antioxidants, and anti-irritants - just what young healthy skin needs to grow! It really feels like you're feeding the skin, feels so good!

Microderm Abrasion Set

Before trying this product I always had several Chapsticks around, one in my purse, one in the bedroom, the bathroom, by the front door, you name it! I applied it several times a day, especially in cold weather, and still felt my lips were dry and chapped. Then came the Mary Kay Satin Lips and everything changed!

The Satin Lips set consists of a mask that is used first to remove the dry, dead skin from the outer layer of the lips. Without doing this, the moisturizer cannot penetrate sufficiently to provide a lasting effect. When you apply the mask it feels gritty and rather strange since lips are sensitive. But if you do it in the shower together with the cleanser it feels pretty good and washes off easily!

Applying the moisturizer feels really good, like the lips are really soft. And the best part is they don't dry out for hours! I usually apply the Satin Lips moisturizer in the morning and I'm set for the day. That's a miracle!

Satin Lips Set

Now for hands - this is a wonderful set that really does care for your hands! Even if you wear gloves outside, winter is tough time for hands. Not only does Satin Hands really work to make your hands smooth (and feet too if you want real luxury!) the scrub smells divinely of peaches. I love it!

There are three parts to this set. First, is the Extra Emollient Night Cream, a really thick goopy cream, that you apply all over the hands. Just remember not to have any jewelry on when you do this!

Next, comes the deliciously peach scented Hand Scrub. This comes in a pump dispenser, called "convenient" but actually the top of mine is hard to turn. It's impossible once that Extra Emollient Night Cream is on, so I have to remember to twist the top to unlock it before putting that on! The scrub is really gritty and you just rub it all over your hands and enjoy the peach fragrance. Then, you wash it off and your hands feel oh so smooth.

The final step is to apply the Hand Lotion. This doesn't smell of peach, but is quite pleasant in a neutral sort of way so the peach aroma lingers. The full Satin Hands treatment is necessary only once or twice a week, but I also use the Hand Lotion on its own on a daily basis to keep my hands soft and dry throughout the winter.

Satin Hands also comes fragrance free.

Satin Hands Set

This is a delightful body lotion. It is light and refreshing, not heavy and sticky, but at the same time very effective at hydrating the skin. Way better than all the cheap lotions I've not enjoyed in the past, it just does a great job of keeping skin from drying out in the cold and dry air of winter.

And the Lotus and Bamboo scent is lovely. It also comes in Red Tea and Fig flavor, which is quite delicious and equally effective as hydrating lotion. Even better there's a body wash in the same series, for those who want to luxuriate in the shower, which is me in the winter for sure! I just love the Loofah Body Cleanser which includes little bits of natural loofah to do a bit of exfoliating, or there's a simple shower gel in the same flavors. All good!

Lotus and Bamboo Body Lotion

This is a special treatment for the feet! It's wonderful to pamper your feet, they work hard and get so tired and that just makes you feel tired. "Mint Bliss" is called an energizing lotion. So, a little of this lotion perks the feet right up! I find I can use it when I want to wake up but my feet are tired, which is making me tired, or when I go to bed because somehow it helps my feet relax and all their stress just disappears and I can sleep.

This lotion really helps to hydrate feet in the dry winter months when an extra dose of lotion is such a joy. It's light and refreshing, not heavy and greasy. The mint fragrance is really nice too!

Mint Bliss

Now this is time to be honest! Do you have the perfectly toned body that you want to display in the summer? Of course not! So Mary Kay has products that help you firm and tone up your skin. I just love this product because it does the job of multiple products all in one, and by the time summer rolls around it's definitely time to speed up and simplify the process!

This body toning lotion is designed to fortify the skin, toning and firming it, energize the skin cells, minimize damage from UV exposure and protect the skin from future damage. It also smells delightful!

Toning Lotion

OK, so maybe you're not going to expose your legs or armpits so much in the cold winter months, but you can't just stop shaving them! This is a great product for those among us who like to multi-task. It's a cleanser and a shaving cream in one product, so you can use it in the shower for shaving without messing around trying to find the right product. I love it because I always ended up using body wash (better than soap!) for shaving in the shower and now I'm using something actually intended for that purpose.

2-In-1 Body Wash & Shave

Copyright © Jennifer P. Tanabe, 2009.
This page was created on November 10, 2009 and is the property of jptanabe (Jennifer P. Tanabe) and Squidoo, LLC. Please do not copy my material!