It’s been a rough week, I’m not gonna fake it. Migraines every day, and I’m feeling increasingly isolated and alone in my thoughts. This whole thing is starting to feel like one big mind-f___k!

I’ve tried to manage my mental health by getting outside safely, as much as possible. Just going for long walks — with friends when they’re up for it. The challenge is everyone is mentally drained and managing (or not) at their own pace. So I spend nearly every moment either alone, with complete strangers — or with Orpheus when he’s not cat-napping! 😽

And, when friends are up for it, I’ve been making deliveries of skin care and baked treats. (Shhh…it’s just as much for me as it is for them!)

Hey, not everything is so glum. I’ve continued to meditate and practice my morning yoga each day. There have been a few highlights in the week — including my coronavirus antibody test results. They came back negative which, in a sense, gave me some relief and bizarre satisfaction that everything I’ve been doing to stay safe and healthy has actually worked! I just have to do more of it for a little longer. Gotta stick it out, as they say.

And, of course, I’ve been baking up a storm. In the last week, I’ve made two New York cheesecakes, a quiche with roasted tomatoes and French beans, pizza on my new pizza stone, my second-ever lasagna — and even a Japanese soufflé pancake. Who knew there was such a thing? You can try the recipe out for yourself here.

But maybe my most heartfelt and fun creation was the coconut cupcakes for my godson, Gabriel, and his twin brother Julian. Gabriel loves anything orange; Julian loves all things blue. “The Coo” as they call me, came through!

I guess the big lesson — or one of the big lessons — from all of this is patience. “This too shall pass.” Nothing is permanent, everything is ephemeral. It reminds me of the Old English epic poem Beowulf which I studied back in college in Worcester, Massachusetts. The concept that all things — life, situations, occurrences — come to an end. That’s always stuck with me and couldn’t be more relevant than it is now.

This too shall pass.

I adapt. We all do. Everything we experience in the present becomes the past. What torments us nearly always passes to make room for what nourishes us.

That’s really what it all comes down to for me. I need more, crave more, nourishment. Bingeing on MTV’s Catfish isn’t nourishing me. I desperately crave human interaction. But not just any human interaction. In New York City, even during an unprecedented total lockdown, there are still people everywhere; you can get that at its most basic level.

What I miss is my friends and family. I miss going places just to get away for a few days, a few hours, even a few minutes.

That said, I’ll take meaningful interactions when I can get them. I’ve actually gotten to know my next door neighbor a bit more as we’ve encountered each other in the hallway, elevator, or out in front of the building. From behind our masks, we’ve shared what we’re dealing with on a personal level. Last week, we exchanged treats of sorts. She gave me four huge pot brownies; I gave her a huge bag of skin care. I don’t think she really understood what it meant to live next door to a skincare blogger until now!

Now, some skin care! Not just any skin care, some really good skin care. And a really good giveaway too…

The Paula’s Choice Omega+ Collection

If you’ve been following my blog musings for a while now, you know what a big fan I am of Paula’s Choice Skincare. And, more so, of Paula Begoun herself. I often share how much she’s inspired me over the years — and frequently rely on her advice on skincare ingredients, formulas, and rituals.

Paula’s namesake brand offers some of the finest skincare products available — many of which I consider beauty icons. Among them, the Paula’s Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster which I reviewed previously on my blog here. It’s simply the best Niacinamide serum on the market. And, it was the first!

Another of the three products I called out in that earlier blog was the Omega+ Complex Moisturizer. It’s one of a three-product range of omega fatty acid-powered clean skin care that’s quite unique — and quite pro-skin health. The Omega+ collection comprises an anti-aging facial moisturizer, anti-aging serum and an anti-aging eye cream — honestly, one of the best eye creams I’ve come across.

So, I thought it would be cool to review and share what I consider to be three underrated and under-appreciated facial skincare products from one of my favorite brands.

Omega+ Complex Moisturizer

In the last six month or so, I’ve talked quite a bit about what has to be my favorite moisturizer discovery of 2019.

In fact, as I stated at the time, the Omega+ Complex Moisturizer was a serious contender for the Skincarma Product of the Year that I announced in early January. You may recall that I opted for Herbivore’s Bakuchiol Retinol Alternative Smoothing Serum. If you missed my review of it, you can still catch it here.

Last fall, the Omega+ Complex Moisturizer played the starring role of dream moisturizer in my Complete $175 Skincare Routine, accessible here. There’s just something so fluffy, creamy and deliciously wonderful about the Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Moisturizer.

Texture is a funny thing. Back when I was working at Kiehl’s, any time the product developers talked about texture, I kinda scoffed. That always came across to me as a way of tricking the consumer into thinking a product is well-formulated and, thus, worth their money. Not that we didn’t make great products at Kiehl’s. I’m just saying that texture is often overplayed by the beauty industry.

So to this day, it’s funny to me when a brand describes a moisturizer as having a “whipped texture.” Honestly, it’s almost always fluff! But here, with Paula’s stellar skin-replenishing treatment, it’s actually true.

The PC Omega+ Complex Moisturizer is a really well-formulated product that all skin types can benefit from. To start, like the three products in Paula’s Omega+ collection, it’s loaded with superfood omega fatty acids, replenishing ceramides, and so many antioxidant botanicals and non-fragrant plant oils that I couldn’t count them all. I’m gonna take a guess and say there are 75-80 ingredients in all — nearly all of them with notable benefits for the skin.

The formula’s plethora of skin-strengthening omega fatty acids is found in the INCI in the form of Linseed (Flax) Seed Oil, Chia Seed Oil, and Passion Fruit Seed Oil — each rich in some variation of omega 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids.

What are fatty acids?

Well, they’re substances that are found in both plant and animal lipids — aka fats. Because fatty acids are bio-compatible, they also happen to be super healthy for our skin as they’re recognized by the skin as friendly, active ingredients (as are Hyaluronic Acid and amino acids by the way!). Because they’re found naturally in the skin already, they’re quickly and readily absorbed so they can get right to work.

How did I learn all of that? From Paula, of course! There’s an excellent article on the brand’s website titled, How Omega Fatty Acids Help Skin.

Omega fatty acids are truly remarkable ingredients for skin. They serve as the essential building blocks of skin’s surface layers, creating a smoother, more even, younger-looking, and healthier complexion, no matter your age or skin type. And if the idea of putting fish oil on skin sounds a bit gross, don’t worry—the plant-derived omega-3 fatty acids are just as remarkable for skin!

Here are just a few of the things that topical application of omega fatty acids can do for your skin:

Reinforce and smooth skin’s surface.
Increase hydration without feeling heavy, and help keep skin hydrated.
Calm signs of external stressors, including redness and sensitivity.
Eliminate signs of flaky, dehydrated-looking skin.
Visibly strengthen skin against signs of environmental damage.
Deliver antioxidants for anti-aging results.

Because Paula’s Omega+ moisturizer is so light on the skin, I believe it would work well for all skin types — from very dry to oily and everything in between. The only skin type I would imagine it not agreeing with would be super oily, blemish-prone skin.

Omega+ is available for just $35 — a steal for such a well-formulated, pro-skin health treatment!

SHOP THE BLOG: Purchase the Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Moisturizer for $35 here.

BUY PAULA'S CHOICE OMEGA+ COMPLEX MOISTURIZER

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**Omega+ Complex Moisturizer**
**Omega+ Complex Serum**
**Omega+ Complex Eye Cream**

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Omega+ Complex Serum

Think of the Omega+ Complex Serum as the lightweight, highly concentrated layering version of the aforementioned Omega+ Complex Moisturizer.

The Omega+ serum has a higher concentration of fatty acids, similarly derived from Linseed Seed Oil, Passionflower Seed Oil and Chia Seed Oil. But the real standout here is the inclusion of multiple ceramides including Ceramide EOP, Ceramide EOS, Ceramide NP and Ceramide NS.

Like fatty acids, ceramides are bio-compatible, already occurring in the skin. In fact, skin is composed of 50% ceramides, 25% cholesterol and 15% fatty acids. Ceramides perform a vital function in the skin, helping skin to retain water and limit water loss to keep skin plump and hydrated.

In the skin, there are nine distinct ceramides, several of which are available for use in topical skincare formulations.

There’s an outstanding article on the Paula’s Choice website entitled, What Are Ceramides and How Do They Work in Skin Care Products? In it, the team says that “as far as anti-aging ingredients go, ceramides have a proven record, but are often overlooked, and rarely explained.”

The article goes on to define exactly what ceramides are and what they do in the skin:

What are ceramides?
Simply put, ceramides are lipids (fats) that are found naturally in high concentrations in the uppermost layers of skin. They make up over 50% of skin’s composition, so it’s no surprise they play a vital role in determining how your skin looks (and how it responds to environmental threats).
What do ceramides do?
Think of ceramides as the mortar between bricks—if the bricks are your skin cells. Ceramides help hold skin together by forming a protective layer that limits moisture loss and protects against visible damage from pollution and other environmental stressors. In addition, ceramides — even more than retinol, niacinamide, and peptides — are one of the anti-aging “powerhouses” responsible for supporting skin’s dynamic nature. Two particular ceramide precursors—phytosphingosine and sphingolipids—actually help skin make more ceramides.

So the next time someone asks you what you recommend as a good anti-aging treatment, point them in the direction of ceramides and particularly, the Paula’s Choice Omega+ collection. I’ll do the same!

The skin-identical ceramides in the Omega+ Complex Serum help to supplement the work of skin’s own innate substances, nourishing and fortifying the moisture barrier.

In addition to the superb blend of fatty acids and ceramides, the Omega+ Complex Serum also contains multiple non-fragrant plant oils and butters as well as humectant Sodium Hyaluronate — the salt form of Hyaluronic Acid that’s most bio-compatible with the skin.

It’s a super lightweight, silky formula that soaks right into the skin, making it an outstanding option for incorporating into any regimen to instantly boost skin health — and combat the signs of skin aging.

SHOP THE BLOG: Purchase the Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Serum for $34 here.

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**Omega+ Complex Moisturizer**
**Omega+ Complex Serum**
**Omega+ Complex Eye Cream**

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Omega+ Complex Eye Cream

The final of the three Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex treatments is the Omega+ Complex Eye Cream.

As I’ve said multiple times previously, I’m not sold on the need for a separate eye cream. In fact, that’s a philosophy long espoused by Paula Begoun herself!

The only time I think you’d need to use a separate eye formulation is if you have a vexing concern for dark circles and puffiness.

But even Paula eventually came around to the idea of using a separate eye cream. Why? Because consumers have been conditioned to thinking that they need an eye cream. The truth is, you can and should be able to use a well-formulated facial skincare product around your eye area.

Need something a bit heavier in the eye area, the Omega+ Complex Moisturizer is a perfectly legitimate option for use around the eyes. Want something a bit lighter for the warmer months of the year? The Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Serum should and would do the trick.

But, if you’re one of those — that is, a skincare aficionado that believes an eye cream is essential in your routine, then at the very least reach for something well formulated that delivers real benefits to the delicate skin of the eye area.

And you cannot go wrong with the Omega+ Complex Eye Cream!

In terms of texture, it sits between the Omega+ Complex Moisturizer and the Omega+ Complex Serum. It’s a light, yet substantive formula that’s intended to moisturize and fortify even the driest of skin types. But it’s not too heavy if you have a concern for oiliness — though oily skin in the eye area is rare. The skin is simply too thin to hold a lot of oils.

Of the Omega+ Complex Eye Cream, Paula says the “sheer, lightweight lotion layers well and combines proven moisture-locking omegas, ceramides and amino acids together to plump skin’s surface and maintain hydration. Plus, a blend of niacinamide, mulberry, bearberry and licorice visibly brightens.”

SHOP THE BLOG: Purchase the Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Eye Cream for $52 here.

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That’s it, guys! I hope you’re well and keeping yourself healthy — mentally and physically. And be sure to check in on others in your life. As much as you’re going through now, someone else may be struggling even more.

🖤 SKINCARMA