More than ever, skincare products are accompanied by accessories, to prime the skin or optimise the effectiveness of serums and creams. Are they merely gimmicks or do they really enhance performance? Here are some innovative offerings worth checking out.
Wondrous wipe-off
The Philosophy brand employs "miracle workers" to help you turn back time. It's actually the name of an anti-ageing range, featuring lotion, eye balm, moisturiser and retinoid pads.
The fresh-pour system requires the pouring of a retinoid solution into a container to soak the pads before usage. One side of the pad is for wiping the face, and the other for the neck and décolleté, leaving the skin soft and smooth from the gentle exfoliation.
Peter Thomas Roth is said to always carry Complexion Correction Pads to the gym. The double-sided pad has a soft side to help cleanse the skin and a textured side for pore-refining exfoliation.
Home clinic
Be your own dermatologist, urges Korean skincare company PhD, whose AC (Aesthetic Clinic) line was created in collaboration with Myer's clinic in Seoul.
The range includes a box of five syringes, not to give the skin a jab, but to apply the content on the face and neck, particularly sagging areas. Besides a lifting mask to apply as a thin layer on face and neck, a shaping mask with an ear hook is placed in the centre of the lower lip to stretch across the chin to the sides of the face. The AC system is also recommended for double chins and sagging necks.
Y for youth
YSL Beaute skin science department developed the Youth Index, which shows that 50% of signs of ageing appear on the lower part of the face, neck and décolleté. A gradual loss of tissue support within the skin leads to sagging and loss of definition, broadening the face into a U-shape resting on a blurred neckline.
The latest beauty obsession goes beyond the V, and extending to the neck, making a Y-zone ideal.
Similar to how fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent introduced an androgynous tuxedo suit with sleek lapels to create a Y-silhouette for the woman who wears it, YSL Beaute takes it to the face, giving it the ideal outline by using a massaging tool inspired by firming massage techniques.
The design of the massager spans the jawline, so that it can administer motion and pressure to each side of the jawline, neck and décolleté. The massage ritual involves three steps and movements to reshape the oval of the face, to firm the underchin and neck, and to stimulate the décolleté.
The DIY massage is performed before application of Forever Youth Liberator Y-Zone Concentrate and Crème.
French lift
Lancome also recommends a little massage before applying Renergie French Lift cream, which comes with a disk to perform the massage as the first step of an evening skincare routine.
With a galvanised handle, the beauty tool is used on well-cleansed and bare skin, for a dry massage that involves four steps for a refined neck, a defined facial contour, a lifted cheekbone and a smooth forehead.
The disk was designed with ideal ergonomic form and a balance between suppleness and resistance, to effectively massage each facial section for a deeper stimulation.
The massage tool and cream duo, according to the French brand, opens the door to to a new era of instrumental cosmetic lifting, suggesting that more beauty tools will come out in the future.
