Vichy Laboratories, which is currently a division of L’Oreal, has been around since 1931 and have had a strong foothold in Europe.  Up until recently I hadn’t been very familiar with their line, not for any particular reason other than I just hadn’t made it around to check them out.  But I have now a little, and I do like very much what I’ve seen.  All of their products contain Vichy Thermal Spa Water (with the one exception of their Nutrilogie Lip product), a mineral filled spring water from Vichy, France,water which has been recognized by the French Academy of Medicine and recommended for sensitive skin.

Their skin care line is broken down into skin types: 

• Purite Thermale - for sensitive skin
• Nutrilogie - for dry skin
• Thermal Fix - for dehydrated skin
• NormaDerm - for acne prone skin
• Oligo 25 - for dull skin
• Meokine - for signs of aging
• LiftactivPRO - for skin that has aged
• NeOVADIAL - for hormonal related aging - saggy skin structure
• Reti-C  for wrinkles and uneven complexion
• Dermablend - makeup for skin imperfections
• Capitol  Soleil 15 - sun protection
• Lipo-metric - body care for cellulite
• Lipidose - for dry body skin

Each of these lines have specific products geared towards a particular skin type/problem.  While the huge list above might be a little confusing, Vichy has covered nearly every issue that you might need covered.  For me, I would probably jump back and forth between the NormaDerm and the Purite Thermale for my cleansing regimen and use the LiftactivPRO for moisturization, as I have discovered that only using acne products is causing my aging (aged?  ugh.) skin even more problems. 

Right now I am using one of Vichy’s best sellers, the Detoxifying Rinse-off Foam Cleanser (from the Purite Thermale collection - $15).  To me, this feels more like a cream cleanser, is super easy to use and does a fantastic job dissolving makeup.  I alternate this with their NormaDerm Deep Cleansing Gel ($14), because I have all of those acne issues to contend with.  So far, this program is working really nicely for me - my skin is looking better and better every day.  We will see what happens when “that time” of the month rolls around where the pimples roam free.

My next purchase will be the NeOvadiol - as sagginess is something I have really been noticing lately.  Thankfully, Vichy Laboratories skin care products are really priced reasonably, making finding what is just right for your skin a little easier on the wallet.  A little more expensive than your general drug store brand but nowhere near some of the more luxe brands.  Vichy has a long and great history, and I am happy to see them showing up more prominently in the U.S.

Have you had experience with Vichy Laboratories products?  How did they work for you?

All images:  Vichy Laboratories

‘ Tis the season for lizard skin.  It is for me anyway.  This time, every year like clockwork, my skin turns pasty white and disgustingly scaly.  Really, its not cute.  So I am always searching out body creams desperately this time of the year.  There are, of course, no shortage of good ones out there, but the one I have been using most recently is the new Vitalization from Bioelements.  Bioelements is one of my all time favorite skin care brands so I always really love to check out what they have out that is new, and Vitalization is, not surprisingly, a great, rich body cream. 

The key features of this multifunction cream are:  “Regulates moisture to banish dryness, smoothes away rough brittle surface cells (hello!), encourages a firmer body (uh huh), restores radiance to skin and surrounds the body with the enticing aroma of pure botanical oils.”  Pretty dreamy stuff.

Along with some groovy peptides and amino acids, Vitalization also contains 10 botanical oils, shea butter, red tea and beta carotene.   The fragrance is good, but light and nothing that clashes with your fragrance at all.  It is thick, but creamy, not REALLY thick like some of the other shea butter products out there. 

For those of you that are concerned about this sort of thing, Bioelements products are not tested on animals, use no artificial colors or fragrances and contain organic botanicals (have you visited Pretty by Nature lately?).  Vitalization is sold in a big 8 oz jar, and can be purchased at DermStore for $49.50.  DermStore also has a deal going on right now, with a $125 purchase, receive a free Pumice Peel (exfoliating cream - $48 value).  That’s a great product too - in fact, I really have never met a Bioelements product I didn’t really love.  Sleepwear - the best night cream going.  So spend a little time at DermStore and try out Bioelements if you haven’t - I am positive you will love it!