As I walk through the cosmetics aisle of my local department store, I am amazed at the selection of lotions, serums, creams, potions and all kinds of products claiming to make me look younger.  I’m also amazed at the prices; apparently, I can find the best product ever as long as I am willing to spend anywhere between $35 and $600!  Admittedly, I have tried many of these department store products over the years as well as many other products that don’t get enough mention in beauty marketing and many of them are at a surprisingly affordable price point.   

We are going to embark on a new adventure of profiling a product each week with a description of benefits and where to buy.  In addition, to profiling products we will be discussing beauty terms and define beauty ingredients to assist us all in navigating our way through those aisles and aisles of beauty products. 

My own story started playing with beauty products at the age of 12.  I fondly remember my first trolley ride to Filene’s, a local department store in Newton, Massachusetts where I grew up.  I was fascinated with all the beautiful women behind the counter and quickly moved toward the Clinique counter.  Seriously, there was something safe and comforting about the Clinique counter.  The sales staff wears white lab coats and their approach is a gentle one that makes you want to try the shiny pink lip gloss on display.  So I tried the shiny pink lip gloss and was soon asked about my skincare regimen; I was 12 and didn’t have one!  So they showed me what I needed to do to take care of my skin, and at that moment I was hooked!  I bought my first ever department store beauty product; it was Clinique Clarifying Lotion 3 – a product I still use today! 

That day changed my life.  Since then I have always had a passion for skincare and style, and through this new article I hope to bring everyone beauty tips and industry trends so we can all be better educated consumers.   

In the next article we will begin profiling products – there are so many product lines out there to choose from and we want to make sure you get to know all of them!   

In future articles we will discuss skin types – it will important to know whether your skin is dry, normal, combination or oily and, in addition to your skin type – you will need to know whether your skin is sensitive to product.  Let us be your guide!  

Rosemaria is a licensed Esthetician in both California and Massachusetts.  She has worked with many product lines over her career specializing in skincare, and as a make-up artist for Department stores and Spas. Follow her on Instagram @RosemariaBeauty 

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