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Origins GinZing moisturizer. From Origins.

I think I’ve found a new favorite moisturizer in Origins GinZing moisturizer. Formulated with ginseng and coffee beans, this creamy gel provides a get-up-and-go kick beyond just hydration that makes my skin look brighter and more alive.

But let’s talk about that hydration, shall we? For my oily-to-combination skin, Origins GinZing moisturizer provides near-perfect coverage. My skin feels hydrated without feeling greasy, and unlike my previous favorite moisturizer, Origins GinZing doesn’t leave my skin wanting more in its drier places. This is all kinds of amazing.

Origins GinZing moisturizer doesn’t include sunscreen, but since it’s not oily, it layers nicely with my still-favorite Jan Marini Antioxidant Daily Face Protectant.

I’ve also been using Origins GinZing eye cream with favorable results, so I think I’ll be sticking to this skin care line for a while.

Eslor Replenishing Scrub. From eslor.com.

I think I’ve found my new favorite skincare line: Eslor.

Started by a pharmacologist who wanted to create a natural skin care line for his wife, Eslor has some really effective products with ingredients such as aloe vera, safflower oil, algae extract and almond meal extract. Eslor products are also free of parabens, sodium lauryl sulphate and sodium lauryl ether sulphate.

I had the opportunity to try out almost all of Eslor’s products, and I’ve decided on some favorites.

First off, the Soothing Refiner & Cleanser left my skin feeling really clean without any residue. It also left my skin feeling soft without being overly moisturized. Likewise, the Soothing Cream moisturizer, while thicker than my usual moisturizer, didn’t leave my skin overly oily. It’s much lighter than it seems, which works well for my combination-oily skin.

I also liked the Replenishing Scrub, which reminded me of St. Ives apricot scrub but without the thickness. Eslor’s scrub has big pieces of something (almonds, I think) that felt a little harsh but left my skin smooth. It’s a little hard to use because if you add too much water, it falls apart, but when you get the water-to-scrub proportion right, it’s effective. But the Botanical Peeling Gel is my favorite. You leave it on for 10 to 15 minutes, then rub to peel it off. It left my skin feeling really clean and smooth.

Overall, using these products made my skin look and feel healthier and more youthful. And the best part may be that the products aren’t cost-prohibitive. The most expensive product is the Brightening Activator at $110; many others fall well below that price. Effective and affordable — score!

Note: These product samples were complimentary.

Oxygen Pur serum. From Oxygen Pur.

Oxygen Pur serum is billed as a cure-all of sorts for the skin. The idea behind the clear, fragrance-free gel is to saturate the skin with dissolved oxygen to help circulation and “revitalize, regenerate and rejuvenate.” So, does it work?

I tried it out in different circumstances. First, I brought it with me on my recent trip to Greece. While it was suggested that I use it after traveling many hours on an airplane, I always get really oily when flying, so I opted to try it out after spending lots of time in the sun. Then, I started using it regularly — morning and night — and really started seeing results.

My skin is smoother and plumper when I use Oxygen Pur serum. It actually looks and feels healthier. And I think it does aid in the absorption of other products. It doesn’t seem to react with any of my other products, including my prescription rosacea cream. That’s good news for people with sensitive skin like I have. It’s also not greasy, which is nice since I have oily skin.

According to the product’s website, nitrogen is removed from water and replaced with oxygen, which is then infused and stabilized to deliver dissolved oxygen directly into the deeper layers of the dermis. This high concentration of oxygen supposedly promotes skin cell renewal, stimulates collagen and elastin production, and reduces the effects of free radical damage, among other things. It also claims to be hypoallergenic and free of parabens, fragrance, phathalates and sulfates.

Time will tell if this product continues to satisfy. Considering its hefty price tag — $80 — it better work, right? But, so far, so good.

Note: This bottle of Oxygen Pur was complimentary.

Root Beauty deodorant

Do you make it a point to buy and eat organic food? Do you also pay attention to what you put on your body as much as you do to what you put in it? If you do, then Root Beauty is for you.

Root Beauty is a local L.A. company that makes organic facial moisturizer, hand cream and deodorant from recognizable ingredients. For example, the hand cream contains organic shea butter, cocoa butter, jojoba oil and sweet almond oil. That’s it.

Founder Kristin Lauterbach just launched the company in May, but she has been a proponent of living a toxin-free life for years. She started out buying local, organic food but soon realized there was so much more to think about.

“I started reading what was in the [beauty] products I was buying, and I couldn’t pronounce most of the words on the back of the bottle,” she said. “I realized I was putting chemicals all over me all the time. I wanted to know how I could reduce my chemical exposure while still maintaining my urban lifestyle.”

So Lauterbach started making her own skin care products in her kitchen. Through trial and error, and “a little art, a little science,” she came up with products that she would give to friends and family, who encouraged her to sell them. After a while, she realized this was her calling and decided to take a break from the film industry she was working in.

I took the Balance Face Moisturizer and the deodorant for a two-week trial run, both with better-than-expected results.

The Balance moisturizer, which contains organic grape seed, bergamot, niaouli, lavender and vitamin E oils, is formulated for combination and oily skin. Because it’s oil-based, I was a bit skeptical as to how it would balance my already oily skin, but almost immediately I could tell that my skin felt better and looked more balanced. It wasn’t the best option for me when it came to being a bit sweaty, as is the case in this current heat wave, but other than that, I have no complaints. I even used it with a prescription rosacea cream, and I didn’t experience any adverse effects.

When it came to trying the deodorant, I was kind of scared, actually. I’ve never not used an antiperspirant, and I was afraid I would be a sweaty mess without one. But the organic corn starch and the baking soda kept me pretty dry (under normal temperatures, not so much in this current heat), and the organic virgin coconut and rosemary oils kept me smelling almost good enough to eat (not really, but the deodorant on its own smells really tasty). Just remember to keep it cool because if you don’t, it’ll separate due to the addition of coconut oil. The fact that this natural deodorant works nearly as well as aluminum-laden antiperspirant is a welcome development for someone who’s married to the person who made a documentary about our chemical body burden.

Trying to buy beauty products that don’t contain phthalates, which often hide in the names of “DBP,” “DEP” and “fragrance” (try finding something that doesn’t contain “fragrance”!) and have been known to cause disruptions of the endocrine system, is really tough. But Root Beauty makes it easy, and it sounds as if Lauterbach is on to something here — personally and professionally.

“Root Beauty just became a natural progression of my journey,” she said. “I know this sounds cheesy, but I love when people try my products and they not only work for them, but they really enjoy them.”

Note: These products were complimentary.

If you’re anything like me, you worry about your skin — how it looks, how healthy it is — you know, that kind of thing. Well, never fear because Perricone neuropeptide is offering one lucky ShopEatSleep reader a skin-boosting product to help you deal with just that. Perricone’s products include anti-aging ingredients that help with elasticity, firmness and hydration, according to its website. It’s never too early to start taking care of your skin!

You can win any Perricone product valued at $150 or less. Need helping choosing? How about the Perricone Evening Repair, which works to smooth and illuminate while you sleep? Sounds good to me.

Here’s how to enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post by Aug. 24 at 11:59 p.m. PST stating why you’d like a particular product (remember, it can’t cost more than $150).

2. Either follow me on Twitter or “like” me on Facebook.

That’s it. I’ll pick a winner at random and make the announcement on Aug. 25. Good luck!

**Contest is closed.**

UPDATE: Congratulations to Sacha of Swirl Smell Slurp!

If you read my post on Marie Louise cosmetics last week and were intrigued, now is your chance to get the products at a discount. Marie Louise is offering ShopEatSleep readers 10 percent off purchases made through its Web site (www.marielouisecosmetics.com). Enter code SLEEPEAT to receive the discount. The offer is good through Oct. 31.

I’m always kind of weary of trying new beauty products because I have oily and sensitive skin, which makes it hard to find skin care that works well for me. So when Marie Louise cosmetics asked me to try their skin care line, samples of which I received in the Hello, Pretty! blog launch party gift bag, I wasn’t sure at first. But after taking a look at the Marie Louise Web site and the detailed skin care instructions, I figured sample-size products wouldn’t ruin my skin. So I agreed to try them out.

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