AYOND | TAOS BLUE DAY CREAM

This review was originally part of my blog article titled, Winter Moisturizers Part 2 – Some of the Best Face Creams for Dry Skin and All Skin Types in Cold Weather. You can catch the full piece here.

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Last week, I kicked off my winter series of my top ten moisturizers in a blog article titled, Winter Moisturizers Part I – Some of the Best Face Creams for Dry Skin and All Skin Types in Cold Weather. If you missed it, by chance, you can read it here.

The first five was a collection of moisturizers from more popular, better known brands and included my favorite and what I think is the best face cream ever, the Paula’s Choice Omega+ Complex Moisturizer. I’ve been through maybe a dozen bottles of it since it launched. You don’t want to sleep in this baby.

So, I’m excited to bring you the second five of my winter moisturizer picks — a more eclectic collection from more niche brands. Among them, Josie Maran’s Skin Dope Inner Strength Protein Boost Cream powered by Josie’s signature Argan Oil as well as nutrient-rich Hemp Seed Oil. I reviewed the brand’s initial Skin Dope range over the summer in a piece titled, Products I Love: Josie Maran Skin Dope Clean Facial Skincare with CBD.

In addition, there are picks from guy’s brand, Jaxon Lane; ethereal, natural skincare brand, Ayond; the fruit-crazed Glow Recipe; and Youth to the People –– oddly, my first product review from the brand in a long time.

Let’s take a look at the Ayond Taos Blue Day Cream…

Ayond. Where have I heard that name before?

Well, you might recall a recent blog article of mine titled, The Best Cleansing Balms for Dry Skin, Oily Skin and Sensitive Skin. In it, I featured perhaps the best cleansing balm I’ve ever tried, the Metamorph Cleansing Balm. And it’s from new, indie brand Ayond.

Ayond is an exquisite, natural skincare brand with exceptional, luxurious formulas that make a lasting impression.

And that’s certainly the case with the brand’s Metamorph — I have literally been blown away by it. The stuff is a next level cleansing experience! It’s a thick, emollient-rich balm that has a texture like a delicious panna cotta — the very same panna cotta that I savor as much as I savor those moments with Gillian Anderson in The Crown.

At launch, Ayond offers four products in all: the Metamorph Cleansing Balm, Rock Rose Face Serum, Amber Elix Face Oil, and the Ayond Taos Blue Day Cream — one of my top ten moisturizers for dry skin in winter.

At AYOND,

our philosophy is informed by the desert – a vast, enigmatic landscape where hidden reservoirs nourish and sustain life in beautiful ways. Such extreme environs are home to highly efficacious botanicals that have evolved over millennia to preserve water, store nutrients and protect against harsh aggressors.

That’s why high desert actives like Rock Rose, Wild Indigo, Blue Butterfly Bush and Sand Verbena – imbued with potent therapeutic benefits from intense hydration to renewal and repair – are the soul of our skincare.

Ayond’s Taos Blue Day Cream is perhaps the richest in the entire collection of cold weather face creams. I love that Ayond describes it as a “sanctuary for your skin.” It’s that rich and certainly meets the challenges of even the driest of skins. I applied it again just last night and as I write this, my skin still feels soft, plump and healthy!

Like all of Ayond’s formulas, it’s infused with hearty botanicals indigenous to the super dry “high desert” climate in the Southeastern United States, specifically New Mexico.

At the heart of the Taos Blue Day Cream formula are two indigenous botanicals, Blue Butterfly Bush and Blue Corn Extract. Both potent antioxidants, they’re purported to “help protect against the damaging effects of blue light, free radicals, and pollution while encouraging repair, for soothed, hydrated, re-energized skin.”

FOR A LIMITED TIME

SAVE 25% OFF ALL AYOND NATURAL SKINCARE

CLICK HERE AND ENTER CODE BLACKFRIDAY AT CHECKOUT. ENDS 11/29.

Water in skincare has no benefits for the skin beyond a temporary humectant effect. Wisely, in place of useless water, at ingredient number one is Rock Rose Leaf Water Extract that helps nourish and recharge the skin as it boosts radiance.

But the key to the formula’s richness, and what makes it ideal for the harsh cold air in winter, is a blend of six organic and nutrient-dense botanical oils, including – Sacha Inchi Oil, Prickly Pear Oil, Cacay Oil, Rosehip Oil, Jojoba Oil and Babassu Oil. Each is enriched with antioxidant vitamins to defend against environmental damage.

Two of my favorite non-fragrant plant oils, both Rosehip Oil and Prickly Pear Oil have additional anti-aging benefits on the skin beyond their antioxidant potency. Notably, Prickly Pear Oil is a bit of an unsung hero among the 87,000,000 plant oils, with extraordinary benefits on the skin.

What Is Prickly Pear Oil?

I found a wonderful piece on the Byrdie website with terrific insights into the anti-aging benefits of Prickly Pear Oil titled, Prickly Pear Oil Has the Highest Vitamin E Content on the Market. The highest Vitamin E content! That makes it ideal as an effective moisturizing antioxidant in winter.

What is Prickly Pear?
It's not often anyone will tell you to put cactus on your face. Largely, this is because cacti are spiny and in fact we wouldn't suggest touching them at all. However, the insides of desert plants are frequently beneficial because the desert is so sparse; think of aloe as an example. Prickly pear isn't only used for beauty products, it's actually often eaten (ever heard of cactus fries?) or consumed in a distilled, syrupy form. In fact, you've probably seen it in cocktails or (for those who don't drink) as an ingredient at your local juicery.
How Does Prickly Pear Benefit Skin?
To help us understand all the benefits of prickly pear, we spoke with Munemi Imai, founder of the celeb-favorite prickly pear–based skincare line Mūn. “Prickly pear is extremely high in essential fatty acids, omega-6 and -9, and the natural antioxidant vitamin E,” she tells us. “It’s also rich in amino acids, which stimulate collagen production to promote faster cell turnover. And finally, it also contains vitamin K, which brightens under-eye dark circles and also promotes your skin’s elasticity.” Kypris, another natural skincare line, features prickly pear in its Beauty Elixirs and claims that prickly pear oil contains 150% of the vitamin E contained in argan oil and is more sustainable.

Again, Ayond’s Taos Blue Day Cream is the richest face cream of the collection. If you are dry year-round and, thus, very, very dry during the colder fall and winter months, then the Taos Blue Day Cream is ideal for your skin. It forms a wonderful, occlusive veil over the skin for lasting comfort all day long. In fact, it’s great for nighttime, too!

SHOP THE BLOG: For a limited time, save 25% on all Ayond natural skin care with code BLACKFRIDAY. Purchase the Ayond Taos Blue Day Cream for $82.50 (reg. $110) here. Ends 11/29/2020

BUY AYOND TAOS BLUE DAY CREAM

SHOP THE BLOG:

**Josie Maran Skin Dope Inner Strength Protein Boost Cream**
**Jaxon Lane Relax and Repair**
**Ayond Taos Blue Day Cream**
**Youth to the People Adaptogen Deep Moisture Cream**
**Glow Recipe Banana Soufflé Moisture Cream**

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The Ingredient List of the Josie Maran Skin Dope Inner Strength Protein Boost Cream:

Water (Aqua)**, Isoamyl Laurate**, Propanediol**, Glycerin**, Cetearyl Alcohol**, Cannabis Sativa (Hemp) Seed Oil*, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Kernel Oil*, Cetearyl Glucoside**, Cetyl Palmitate**, Xanthan Gum, Benzyl Alcohol, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract**, Phenoxyethanol, Vegetable Oil, Fragrance (Parfum)**, Tocopherol, Dehydroacetic Acid, Rhodomyrtus Tomentosa Fruit Extract, Sodium Phytate, Helianthus Annus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax**, Galactoarabinan, Alcohol**.

The Ingredient List of the Jaxon Lane Relax and Repair:

Water, Glycerin, Methylpropanediol, Niacinamide (Vitamin B3), Alcohol, Ceratonia Siliqua (Carob) Gum, Chondrus Crispus (Seaweed) Extract, Tamarindus Indica Seed Gum, Potassium Chloride, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Swiftlet Nest Extract, Butylene Glycol, PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract, Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Root Extract, Schizandra Chinensis Fruit Extract, Coptis Japonica Root Extract, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Asiaticoside (Centella Extract), Propolis Wax, Ethylhexylglycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Xanthan Gum, Adenosine, Disodium EDTA, Dextrin, Potassium Hydroxide, Sodium Hyaluronate, Carbomer, Polysorbate 20,Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7,Chlorphenesin, FragranceThe Ingredient List of the Ayond Taos Blue Day Cream:

The Ingredient List of the Ayond Taos Blue Day Cream:

Cistus Ladaniferus (Rock Rose) Leaf/Stem Water Extract, Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe) Leaf Juice so|h, Cetyl Alcohol emo|emu|vc|surf 2 2, Opuntia Engelmannii (Prickly Pear) Seed Oil, Orbignya Oleifera (Babassu) Seed Oil emo 0 1, Plukenetia Volubilis (Sacha Inchi) Seed Oil goodie

aox|emo|h, Polyglyceryl-3 Rice Branate emu, Caryodendron Orinocense (Cacay) Seed Oil emo, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil goodie

emo 0 0-2, Propanediol solv|h, Cetearyl Alcohol emo|vc|emu|surf 1 2, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Zea Mays (Blue Corn) Kernel Extract, Squalane goodie

sii|emo 0 1, Tocopherol (Vitamin E) goodie

aox 0-3 0-3, Buddleja Davidii (Summer Lilac) Extract, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate h, Xanthan Gum vc|emu|surf, Orobanche Rapum (Broom Rape) Extract, Buddleja Officinalis (Butterfly Bush) Flower Extract sunsc, Trehalose goodie

h, Sucrose Stearate emo|emu|surf 0 0, Saccharide Isomerate goodie

h, Vetiveria Zizanoides (Vetiver) Root Oil perf, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract goodie

aox|so|amic, Citrus Aurantium Amara (Neroli) Flower Oil icky

, 1,2-Hexanediol solv, Shea Butter Ethyl Esters emo, Water solv, Phenylpropanol perf|solv, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Extract, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Extract goodie

so|emo, Citrus Aurantium Amara (Petitgrain) Leaf/Twig Oil, Cuminum Cyminum (Cumin) Seed Oil perf, Triethyl Citrate perf, Glycerin superstar

sii|h 0 0, Thymus Vulgaris (Thyme) Flower/Leaf Extract, Citric Acid buff, Cananga Odorata (Ylang-Ylang) Flower Oil perf, Sodium Citrate chel|buff, Sodium Benzoate pres, Cistus Ladaniferus (Rock Rose) Oil emo, Canarium Commune (Elemi) Gum Oil, [Benzyl Benzoate solv|perf|amic, Benzyl Salicylate perf, Farnesol perf, Geraniol perf, Limonene perf|solv, Linalool perf