Expensive face creams and other beauy products: Do they actually work?

[oxocube]

I am having one of those days when you wake up and look in the mirror and see an old, tired crone looking back and you think "that can't possibly be me!" !! As a week in a health spa is as likely as a trip to Mars, I am seriously considering the many ridiculously expensive products on the shelves which promise to 'restore and revitalise', to 'let the real me shine through' etc etc.

As a bit of a Boots Own Brand girl, I would love to know whether anyone has any opinions as to the effectiveness of such products before I break the bank! Any recommendations would be more than welcome

I love expensive creams and have cupboards full. Unfortunately, I don't think any of them really work. Sleep, lots of water and a regular exfoliation is the only thing that makes a difference. Oh, and botox probably

Having said that, I find the magic combo of Touche Eclat for under your eyes (Yves St Laurent) and Clarins Beauty Flash balm pretty convincing. And a bit of blusher works wonders.

I love Origins.

I started using that Olay "Total Effects" moisturiser after seeing it "well-reviewed" on here, and it is better for my skin than the more expensive Lancome stuff I used to use.
Like Enid, I find the Clarins Beauty Flash really effective, although unfortunately you can't really use it every day.
I think it really is a matter of finding what suits you best, budget or lux range. The problem is with so much of it around to choose from, it makes it much harder to track down your personal magic product.
Also as Enid says, drink water, get sleep and eat plenty of veg. My sister does all this, slaps on cold cream and no other make-up, and looks fab. She doesn't have any children though.
Does anyone use the Imedeen skin supplements? I've often wondered if they really work and at the price that's charged been reluctant to give it a try.

Oxocube, I think they're mostly a load of b***ks! The claims they make are incredible and mostly would mean that they would have to be classified as medicines rather than make up if they actually worked. Preying on womens' insecurities and selling them magic potions that will supposedly make them look younger...Hmmm. I never thought I'd be interested in them but have looked at them and thought "if they really do that, should I use them?" But my opinion above and the feeling that I'm being conned stop me. I agree with Enid, sleep, water etc. I do like make up but it's often how you use it rather than the price. Am also lover of Touche Eclat and would seriously consider Botox.

Botox works - but you can't have it while pg or breastfeeding. The moment I stop feeding ds I'm going to have it done again (had it done twice before). It is brilliant at getting rid of those between the eyebrows frown lines and forehead lines and makes you eyes look more alive and woken up. Expensive though (£150 +).

I think all creams work to a certain extent but none will make you look very different IMO. I think concealer, blusher and lipgloss do more to make you look younger/better.

aloha - so did people notice/comment on your appearance? Do you think it was money well spent? A good friend of mine is about to have it so I can't wait to see her and judge for myself as I have been sorely tempted...

Batters, Anne French! I remember that from girls mags and the like!!! Oooh Aloha, right, might have some botox then, does it hurt?

I didn't find Botox unbearably painful - less so than a bikini wax, I'd say, but a bit more than plucking your eyebrows. Some doctors use anaesthetic cream beforehand which is a good idea IMO - you just apply about 10mins beforehand and it really takes the edge off. The injections around the eyes for crows feet are more painful (but still not as bad as a bikini wax), but you can take a a couple of paracetamol half an hour beforehand which helps. Afterwards there's a little redness, that's all, which makeup can cover. I didn't do anything special afterwards like massage the area or anything. I definitely looked better. Nobody notices anything specifically - it's quite subtle, more that you look well and rested and happier. My frown lines absolutely vanished - just disappeared (I'm 39 and was 37 when I last had it) and the funny 'rumples' that you catch in photos when you make a face also went, so I could smile and still look serene and the crows feet didn't appear when I grinned. I could still raise my eyebrows but couldn't frown, but I didn't feel numb or anything - you still have total sensation in the injected areas. I didn't look like a wax dummy either! A friend with a more rumpled face than mine had it done and she looked very, very good afterwards - years younger. And no, I'm not on commission. Doesn't do anything for jowls etc, but is great for expression lines. Also, because when you frown you pull your eybrows downwards, after Botox, they lift upwards, taking away that beetle-browed look. Of course you can overdo it, but overall I think it's a good treatment. I felt happy with it because it's been used for medical purposes for many, many years, largely to cure tremors and twitches and for cerebral palsy. Any more questions??? Happy to answer!

Slightly off-topic but for those of you who advocate water - how much is enough? I have read differing opinions. And 6-8 glasses is not very meaningful - I have a variety of glasses in a variety of sizes. I've really started trying to drink more water which is OK at work when I sit at a desk and can sip as I work but not so easy on the other 4 days when I am out and about and busy with DS.

1.5 liters !

Thank you Pupuce. It seems a huge amount but I have drunk 1.5 l today sitting at my desk with little trouble. The only way I find to do this is take a 0.5 l bottle to the water cooler 3x a day and pour it from there into a cup. And I have noticed a difference.

Thank you, batters

I've been determined to try Botox ever since seeing the 'victim' on 'Would like to meet' ( I LOVE that program!!!)having it done - and she just looked YEARS younger - up until then I'd thought it was a bit of a con - but now I'm just waiting for my next b'day!

Oh Bayleaf, me too. Would Like To Meet is the highlight of my whole week. I thought this week's was good. So glad that nice girl didn't have to spend the rest of her life alone in her tracky bottoms..

Aloha, how long does the effect last? Just how much are we talking about? And one last thing, how do you find a reputable practititioner? Thanks

Vain? Moi?

I love bodyshop stuff, all of it for everything. I like it so much I started doing parties and now have alot of friends and family buying all the time and filling their bathroom cupboards after trying lots of different things. Watch out for their new make-up coming out soon it is brill.

The effect lasts at least 3-4months, though I found my frown lines didn't really return for six months and I still think they are much better than they would have been if Ihadn't had Botox (you sort of break the habit of frowning for a while so don't reform the lines). It costs from £120 a go IME. I went to Jan Stanek in Harley Street (Directories have his number) and thoughI think he charges more now - perhaps £200 - he's excellent. I think Boots have started doing it now so they'd probably be cheaper. It's really not dangerous so the only problem would be that they weren't experienced enough to nix all your lines while keeping plenty of expression but it seems unlikely that a company like Boots would employ cowboys. Madonna goes to Louis Sebagh in Harley Street, I believe. Kylie definitely has Botox but I don't know who does it!

Thanks aloha, that's it, I'm off to have it done!

www, take a photo before hand. That way, if we ever get to meet, I can give you my honest 'did it work' opinion

Bron

Have to admit, the effect of ds sleeping through the night after 8months was v similar to Botox

Also, no smoking or sunbathing stops you looking like your leather handbag at the age of thirty!

Sorry to be a party pooper! My vices are strictly non age inducing, just fat inducing

So what you're saying, aloha, is that botox can change you from to without losing :0

If so, I'm a convert!