So, are you new to Clinique? Considering if the three-step will be okay and if you should commit? Yes, you should. I used the three step for just over five years and it did a great job for me. It calmed down my skin, gave it a great glow, and left my skin looking great. I used the soap bar, the number three lotion and the gel. It was lovely. When the liquid soap came out, I quickly switched over. I never really did like the bars, but they were a necessary evil. The entire starter kit will run about 50 USD, depending on which product you choose. I say it is a worthy investment.

The three step is a super easy way to look after your skin. You do it twice a day and everything is great. Clinique also makes other products as well. In this post I’ll talk about the skin care products I like, then in another post I’ll talk about the color makeup products I like. The only thing I don’t like about the three step is that is cannot remove makeup. If you don’t wear makeup, or just a little makeup this isn’t an issue. If you wear a base, and eyeshadow plus mascara/liner, you’ll need a way to take that off before using the three step. Clinique makes a couple of cleansers that work well for this as well. I used them for a number of years until I discovered Philosophy’s Purity made Simple. I’ll talk about that product later, but Purity is a really good all-in-one product that removes your makeup, cleanses and tones. I love it for the simplicity.

So you still need a makeup remover. At least I do. I know, I just talked about how great Purity is, and while it can remove my base and eyeshadow and most liners, it can’t remove waterproof liner or thick mascara, or gloppy lipgloss very well. For those, I use the Clinique makeup removing balm.

This lovely product will last you forever. You get a generous 3.8 oz tub for 27 USD. I think I bought mine almost two years ago, and I use it almost every night. A little goes a long way. I just rub this all over my eyes and lips, then right away apply my Purity and that removes all my makeup and cleanses my face. If you choose to use a Clinique cleanser, you can use the balm, then use your Clinique cleanser, then use your Clinique soap.

I believe in eye cream. I know a lot of people think it is all hype, but I have hardly any lines around my eyes and I have been using eye crams since my early twenties. I like the Anti Gravity eye cream. It is the cheapest of them all. A 0.5 oz jar of his will set you back 33.50 USD and will last a little over a year with regular nightly use. Not to be tooting my own horn or anything, but here are a couple of eye shots of me, these were both taken in Dec 2007 a little over a year ago and I was 36 going on 37.

So you really should be using eye cream. One note about the anti gravity is that is is a bit heavy, so I only used it at night. If I used it in the morning, I would get my concealer and foundation settling in the under-eye area.

Moving along, we come to the City Block. This is a nice product, and I used it as my daily moisturizer since I have oily combination skin. I have likewise been using a sunscreen daily since I was twenty or so and I can’t stress how important this one step is. I have to admit it has been a few years since I actually used the Clinique product, and back when I was still using it you could get it in a tinted formula which was really nice on those summer days when you didn’t want to wear a base. I took a quick look on the Clinique site and it does not look like this is a product anymore. Oh well. The original sheer product works great though. You get a 1.4 oz tube for 17.50 USD. This also have a low odor, and does not have that “sunscreen” smell, so you really can use it year round.

So that was quite a post, I’ll leave it there for today. I’ll come back at a later time and discuss some of my other favorite products and my not so favorite products.

Post from: Pavlina: Life is Not For the Living

Clinique