TruSkin Skincare

Nowadays you no longer need to spend a fortune on skincare as so many effective products are in the aisles at Target, Walmart, Amazon, and local drugstores, there's no need to look elsewhere! Selling at affordable prices -- with monthly promotions to boot -- making transformative skincare almost a steal!

TruSkin is a brand committed to producing advanced premium formulas with superior ingredients in the right combinations and potencies. It's made in the USA without fillers or animal testing. The elixirs treat all skin concerns, and they are budget-friendly, which is exactly what we want! After you know what you desire to be treated, you can select skin products that are right for you to do the job.

I will feature a few of the company's offerings:

1. Vitamin C Serum - To nourish the skin and fight free radicals. Creates a glow by treating dark spots, fine lines, wrinkles, and uneven skin tone. Use every morning.

2. Retinol Serum - Improves fine lines, wrinkles, skin tone, skin texture, color, pigmentation, as well as your skin's hydration levels. Clinical-strength retinol that is gentle enough for sensitive skin. Use nightly.

3. Hyaluronic Acid Serum - Supercharged with a powerful anti-aging complex that includes Vitamins C and E, Green Tea, Aloe Vera, and MSM to plump the skin with moisture. Use in winter, or as needed to soothe dry skin.

4. Tea Tree Super Serum+ - A blemish-bursting blend that includes tea tree essential oil, vitamin C, retinol, niacinamide, and hyaluronic acid. Use 2 - 3 nights per week, or as a spot treatment.

5. Vitamin C Brightening Moisturizer - Layer up with this ultra-hydrating vitamin C brightening cream containing Retinol, Hyaluronic Acid, Niacinamide, and Salicylic Acid. It targets discoloration, firmness, fine lines, and blemishes. Use daily or as needed to "cocoon" the skin so it stays soft and supple.

6. Retinol Moisturizer - Provides a layer of moisturizing cream to your face that contains hyaluronic acid, vitamin E, B5 green tea, and propolis. Improve fine lines, wrinkles, skin tone, skin texture, color, pigmentation, as well as your skin's hydration levels. Use nightly.

TruSkin has a wide selection of affordable cleansers, toners, moisturizers, treatments, sizes, and skincare kits for every type of skin ... and it's so convenient to find. I found it at CVS. Next time you go to your local drugstore, check the beauty aisle.

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Sheltering At Home Essentials

Photo: Napa Valley Register

In the New Year I aimed to turn over a new leaf: In lieu of stocking up on supplies, I vowed to buy one, plus one of the common essentials like food, beauty and personal care items, or household cleaners. My reason was: Hey, I live 3 blocks from supermarkets and closer to drugstores, why should I continue to stock up as if I can't get to a store?

Well that was before COVID-19 hit us, and I'm definitely re-assessing the wisdom of that new course of action! My old habit will not change anytime soon!

For 2 months the following much-needed items have been sold out everywhere ... and seemingly they don't get restocked. Thankfully having a small stash at home has saved my butt!:

Photo: Austin Cronicle

• 70% isopropyl alcohol - I have 2.5 - 32 oz bottles
• 3% hydrogen periode - 1 - 16 oz bottle
• Clorex bleach - 1 - gallon bottle, 1 - quart bottle
• toilet paper - 1 - pack of 12 mega rolls (=48 small rolls) + 3 - individual mega rolls from the old pack
• 1 - 32 oz liquid soap and about 12 - bars of soap
• about 6 - mini hand sanatizers to carry in my purse

Fortunately, food has been easier to get. The supermarkets are sometimes out of stock of what you go for ... but you can make substitutions and not starve. Moreover, what helped me before our pandemic started is: 1) knowing exactly what I like and need; 2) buying the biggest package available; and 3) usually restocking before I completely run out. So I had the following in my cupboard but sometimes see an empty grocery shelf now:

• 64 oz bag of dry powdered milk + part of the old bag
• 5 lbs of unbleached all-purpose flour
• half of a 5 lb bag of whole wheat flour
• 4 lbs of sugar
• eggs - 2 dozen - I know it sounds crazy but I often buy 2 dozen when they are $1.99 each, which I did right before the pandemic. In the refrigerator, they never go bad on me. Good for puddings, cakes, bread, egg drop soup, tuna salad, french toast and snacks. They get eaten! Now they rose to $5 a dozen, which I will dislike paying while being grateful to get them!
• 4 - 16 oz boxes of whole wheat saltine crackers
• 5 lbs total of extra sharp cheddar cheese (my favorite snack! I tend to buy on sale and let them age longer. Little did I know, it also sets you up good to ride out a pandemic!)
• 5 cans of solid white tuna

  

  Photo: Duluth News Tribute

• 2 cans of Alaska wild salmon (I should've bought 5 cans!)
• 5 cans of sardines (because I don't rush to eat them!)
• pasta - different shapes - long spaghetti, bow tie, rigatoni
• Oatmeal - big Quaker (1-minute cooking) cylinder + a small cylinder (5-minute cooking)
• other whole grains - Quinoa + rice
• cans of tomatoes + sauce
• cans of kidney beans (for chili)
•  2 - 16 oz bags of dried pinto beans + split peas
• 1 - 3lb bag of cornmeal (I don't eat cornbread enough to buy a 5 lb bag.)
• 2 L bottle of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 - lb packages of butter
• 4 - 13 oz Chock Full o' 'Nuts Coffee
• wine and Champagne (delish with the cheddar and crackers↑)
• dark chocolate + Kraft caramels + SweatTarts

As I'm sure you will agree, Sheltering at Home has been nooo picnic, but at least I have the basics to get me through it! See you, my lovelies, during ... and on the other side!

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Smallflower Apothecary ... A Web Shop Find

Ahhhhh, a well stocked drugstore. There are a myriad of practical things laying in its aisles, ranging from medicine, makeup, snacks, cleaners, office supplies and housewares, etc.

Am I the only person who thinks perusing inside a drugstore is a must-stop-and-do in a foreign country? Nowadays I don't have to wait for a vacation. There is an online international apothecary that offers 14,000+ European and world products on the web. I'm in apothecary heaven!

Smallflower.com opened in 1875 in Chicago, Illinois as Mertz Apothecary. Back-in-the-day, the shop's clientele consisted mainly of European immigrants who lived in the neighborhood. Therefore in addition to modern (allopathic) medicine, the drugstore also offered the herbal medicines and formulas, which were already familiar to its international customers. In the old days, a pharmacist advised and hand mixed remedies for each customer's specific ailments. Today customers can order health and personal care items from around the world, including Great Britain, Germany, Asia, South America, Africa, or Australia.

When looking for an item, you can shop by brand, country or scent. Featured in the blog are two German products my Mamma favors: 

4711 Original Eau de Cologne is a unisex scent containing notes of citrus, basil, lily, Bulgarian rose and jasmine. It smells refreshing and clean, as opposed to, overpowering and perfumey. Although not created for headache relief, my Oma (grandma) treated her headaches by spraying the cologne on a moist towelette and rubbing it on her temples.

Penaten Cream - Mom swears by Panaten Cream to treat winter's dry, broken skin and rashes. It contains zinc oxide, Panthenol, Hamamelis Virginiana extract and Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil among its healing ingredients. Mom calls it cream with medicine.

With over 140 years of experience and a focus on internal and external health, as well as, affordable prices, Smallflower Apothecary is a terrific find! Cost-wise, it's international inventory is very competitive with the corner drugstore. 

Thankfully, now we don't have to fly oversees to pick up a few personal care items!

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Drugstore Beauty Buys To Beat The Winter Doldrums

Photo by Duane Reade

Baby, it's cold outside ♬♪♪ and dreary.  Time to hydrate skin and wake-up your features with color.  Have you checked the aisles of a drugstore lately?  You will find a treasure trove of affordable beauty products.  If you need help to battle Old Man Winter, then try a few of the top-notch products listed below.  Pamper yourself with:

Skin Care: Face (formulas with retinols and rich moisterizers)

1. L'Oreal Paris Revitalift Triple Power Concentrated Serum

2. L'Oreal Paris Revitalift Triple Power Deep-Acting Moisturizer

3. Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Night Moisturizer 

4. Neutrogena Wrinkle Repair Eye Cream

5. Olay PROx Intensive Wrinkle Protocol - a kit that includes (1) Age Repair Lotion with SPF 30, (2) Deep Wrinkle Treatment and (3) Wrinkle Smoothing Cream

6. Roc Retinol Correxion Deep Wrinkle Serum

7. Roc Retinol Correxion Deep Wrinkle Night Cream

8. Roc Retinol Correxion Max Wrinkle Resurfacing System - to remove old, dry skin and encourage the growth of collagen.

Skin Care: Body
1. Aveeno Daily Mosturizing Lotion
2. Cetaphil Moisterizing Cream - hidrates chapped, sensitve skin; 
no fragrance to dry skin.
3. Bio-Oil - moisturizes dry skin and smooths stretch marks. Apply after a shower.
4. Nivea Smooth Sensation Daily Lotion - with Shea Butter.  Nivea has a new line of skin care just for men. [Or try Neutrogenia just for men].
5. Tree Hut - Certified organic shea is infused into the body scrubs and body butters.

Makeup
1. Physicians Formula - Includes (1) organic wear mascara, (2) shimmer strips eye liner, (3) ph matchmaker (all-in-one) lip and bronzer.
2. Cover Girl - Blast Flipstick Lipcolor - 13 duo shades: the 1st side is shimmer,  the 2nd side is cream, which you blend together to create polished looks.
3. Presitige - a full line of (1) face primer, (2) lipsticks and (3) mascaras.
4. Neutogena - Shine control (1) face primers, (2) foundation and (3) powders - they contain a rice protein complex.
5. L'Oreal - (1) Infallible 24HR Eye Shadow, (2) Magic Lumi Light Infusing Primer, (3) Infallible Le Rouge 12HR Lipcolour - created to last.
6. Black Opal - a full line of True Color (1) lipsticks, (2) face power and (3) blush.
7. Revlon Just Bitten Kissable lip balm stain in 7 pretty colors.

Nails - For all you nail fashionistas.  (Personally, I'm slacker: buffed nails or one coat of shimmer nail polish is what I do.  Still ... it looks like fun!)
1. Revlon Colorstay - new bright colors with gel-like shine that lasts up to 11 days.
2. Sally Hansen (1) Gem Crush (for glitter) and Sally Hansen (2) Magnetic Nail (nail art).
3. imPress - 20 press-on nail colors; no messes, no waiting to dry.
4. Kiss Nail Dress - fun press-on jeweled nail strips.

Hair Care
1. Ren - A shampoo so gentle it's called a "cleansing conditioner."  Contains coconut oil, karatin and shea butter.

2. L'Oreal Ever Sleek Intense Smoothing shampoo and conditioner - Turns frizz into smooth.
3. Pantene Expert shampoo and conditioner - (2 formulas: Keratin Repair and AgeDefy) - Prevents and retores damaged hair to health.
4. Organix - Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo and Conditioner.
5. Clear Scalp And Hair Therapy shampoo and conditioner - I received a sample and like this new brand.  It's rich, gentle and smells nice.

Beauty products are expensive. Drugstores offer variety and bargains.  If you watch for sales (buy one, get one free) you can walk out with some steals.  Use your rewards card for extra savings.

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