SKINFIX | BARRIER+ FOAMING OIL CLEANSER

This review was originally part of my blog article titled, My Winter Skin Savior: Skinfix Barrier+ Lipid Replenishing Skincare. You can catch the full piece here.

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As much as wintry weather terrorizes my daily life, it terrorizes my skin. Early on in the cold weather season, beginning in late November, I was combatting the drying effects of the cold air with a heavier face cream, a hydrating mist (make it six!), and a good humectant face serum. Honestly, a well-formulated humectant is everything. A few weeks ago, I published a piece titled, My Favorite Humectant Serums from Paula's Choice, The Inkey List, Ghost Democracy and More.

That earlier article includes product reviews of what I consider some of the best Hyaluronic Acid serums I’ve come across in my skincare travels. Locking hydration into the skin is essential during the winter months — and it gets more and more challenging as the temps descend into madness.

MY FAVORITE HUMECTANT SERUMS FROM PAULA'S CHOICE, THE INKEY LIST, GHOST DEMOCRACY AND MORE

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But humectants aren’t the only tool in your arsenal for preventing dehydration and trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL) in brutally cold air. A thick, rich, replenishing moisturizer is also essential for maintaining optimal skin health during the dry winter season. In my series on heavier face creams titled, Winter Moisturizers Part I – Some of the Best Face Creams for Dry Skin and All Skin Types in Cold Weather, I first introduced the clean, clinical Skinfix brand and their Barrier+ franchise. (More on that in a few.)

Skinfix is having a moment in the sun (and the cold!). Suddenly, serious skincare bloggers and enthusiasts, what the brand refers to as “skin nerds,” are raving about its exceptional skin barrier repairing skin care.

The brand’s founder and chief skin nerd, Amy Risely, is a real expert in skin barrier health and common skin issues related to a compromised barrier, including sensitivity and eczema. In fact, Skinfix has an entire range of eczema treatments called Eczema+. If you struggle with eczema, as I sometimes do in the winter months, you’ll want to turn to Skinfix. The products simply work!

Skinfix products are clean, vegan/beegan and highly efficacious treatments that are just shy of prescription strength —particularly in the treatment of dermatitis.

“At Skinfix, we have come to understand that the skin barrier is vulnerable to many factors and there truly is not one solution to fit all. We meet skin at its most distressed, and formulate clean, highly effective, yet gentle solutions to bring it back to a state of wellness and help keep it there.” - Amy Risley, Skinfix founder

As a clinical brand, Amy and her expert team are focused primarily on protecting, maintaining and enhancing the skin health of their users. Notably, much of what the brand espouses centers on the health of the skin barrier itself. Just as Skinfix offers some of the best face creams for eczema, the brand also has a broad collection of products that target skin barrier health called simply, Barrier+.

The Skinfix Barrier+ collection is formulated to replenish and restore lipids in the skin barrier, also known as the moisture barrier or lipid barrier.

What are lipids in the skin?

Lipids are a hot skincare topic of late. While the power antioxidant Niacinamide has been everyone’s favorite active for a couple of years now, lipids are all the rage. What are lipids? Well, lipids are the skin’s natural fats. And they’re essential components of the skin barrier.

The lipid content of the upper layers of the skin includes fatty acids, ceramides and cholesterol that combine to support skin barrier function and fortify against TEWL, or trans-epidermal water loss. The loss of moisture through the skin barrier is one of the leading causes of dehydration, dryness and weakening of skin barrier defenses that can lead to common skin conditions like sensitivity, irritation, eczema and dermatitis.

As proponents of barrier health and the role that lipids play, there’s an insightful piece on the Skinfix website titled, Do you know the importance of lipids to skin health? (You can read the full piece here.)

What is the lipid layer of the skin?
The lipid layer of the skin is composed of fatty acids, ceramides and cholesterol – all natural fat substances that play an important role in skin health. Although research regarding lipids is an emerging area of skin research, studies suggest optimal levels of ceramides in human skin to be approximately 50% of the skin’s lipid layer, cholesterol 25%, and other fatty acids at about 10-15%.
You may know the lipid layer by one of its other names: the skin barrier or moisture barrier. However it’s referred to, this natural barrier serves key functions that are linked directly to skin health.
One of these essential tasks is to act as an environmental shield against external aggressors including pollutants, free radicals and microorganisms like viruses and bacteria. Additionally, this layer of skin fats functions as a moat to hold moisture in the skin and prevent loss of water and electrolytes through the skin barrier.
In fact, optimal lipids in the barrier help all of the skin’s functions to operate more effectively. Examples of these vital functions are: immune response and wound healing; skin’s response to UV radiation and its regulation of melanin; the natural production of protective antioxidants; and the support of dermal functions, including the production of elastin and collagen in the dermis.
How can I improve my skin lipid barrier?
So, proper lipid barrier function is the key to skin health. But did you know that we lose skin barrier lipids like ceramides and fatty acids as we age? Over the course of our lives, the skin’s lipid content steadily declines as the skin is unable to replenish depleted lipids like fatty acids and ceramides at a youthful pace.
By our 30s, we may have lost up to 40% of vital skin lipids.
By our 40s we may have lost up to 60% of vital skin lipids.
This absence of lipids in the skin compromises skin barrier defenses and accelerates signs of skin aging. The solution? A lipid-rich moisturizer that helps replenish ceramides and fatty acids to maximize optimal functions and preserve the youthful behaviors of the skin. Even what may be considered the best face creams for dry skin can fall short of skin’s most essential needs. When it comes to skin barrier health, these needs transcend mere moisture.
Studies have shown that using a face cream with skin-similar lipids that mimic the skin barrier’s own lipids is the most effective way to replenish lipids.

WINTER MOISTURIZERS PART I – SOME OF THE BEST FACE CREAMS FOR DRY SKIN AND ALL SKIN TYPES IN COLD WEATHER

Read Article

The cornerstone of the Barrier+ regimen is the Skinfix Barrier+ Triple Lipid-Peptide Cream. Skinfix refers to its top-selling face cream as “a lipid filler” that is rich in vital lipids, peptides and Sodium Hyaluronate — the salt form of Hyaluronic Acid that is more compatible with the skin. The Triple Lipid-Peptide Cream is clinically proven to help restore skin lipids like ceramides and fatty acids — and support barrier function by reversing lipid depletion.

When paired with the Skinfix Barrier+ Triple Lipid-Hyaluronate Serum and Foaming Oil Cleanser, the three-product Barrier+ regimen has been clinically proven to replenish skin lipids by nearly 24% in 28 days — or just about 1% per day. That’s serious barrier replenishment and repair!

Let’s take a look at the Skinfix Barrier+ Foaming Oil Cleanser…

WATCH MY VIDEO REVIEW OF

WINTER MOISTURIZERS PART I – THE BEST FACE CREAMS FOR DRY SKIN WITH PAULA'S CHOICE, SKINFIX & MORE!

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Skinfix | Barrier+ Foaming Oil Cleanser

If you want a gentle cleanser, look for one made with natural coconut oils, derivatives and extracts.

The Skinfix Barrier+ Foaming Oil Cleanser is formulated with several mild, coconut-derived surfactants that gently cleanse the skin without stripping it of its vital oils. Among them are Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate and Sodium Lauroamphoacetate. Each has been evaluated by the experts on the Paula’s Choice Research Team as well-tolerated by skin and good for use in facial cleansers.

The Barrier+ Foaming Oil Cleanser has a remarkable texture for a cleanser — and you may know that cleansing is my favorite skincare step.

Early in the fall, I published a piece titled, New Cleansers That Get Me Excited To Wash My Face. Had I gotten my hands on this cool Skinfix cleanser, it would certainly have been on that list.

As with both the Barrier+ Triple Lipid-Peptide Face Cream and Triple Lipid-Hyaluronate Serum, the 98% naturally derived, vegan Foaming Oil Cleanser formula is powered by the brand’s patented lipid revitalizing Triple Lipid Complex “that helps replenish skin barrier lipids, such as ceramides and fatty acids.”

The formula has a transformative quality to it that I love, morphing from a silky, oily cream to a gentle foam that’s reminiscent of K-beauty cleansers infused with snail mucin. It feels supremely hydrating as it works its cleansing magic. As with all Skinfix products, it’s 100% fragrance free and 100% pro-skin health.

And, most importantly, as part of the three-product Barrier+ regimen it has been clinically proven to replenish skin lipids by nearly 1% per day. That means more fatty acids and ceramides to keep skin as healthy and functioning as it should be.

What are ceramides?

Of course, I go straight to my most trusted source — the experts on the Paula’s Choice Research Team. There’s a rather in-depth piece on the site titled, What Are Ceramides and How Do They Work in Skin Care Products? You can read the full piece here, if you’re so inclined. Here’s what I loved most from the article:

As far as anti-aging ingredients go, ceramides have a proven record, but are often overlooked, and rarely explained. Here, we’ll dive deep to clarify how ceramides help skin retain moisture, fortify its protective barrier, and keep its appearance firm and plump—especially given the recent research clarifying ceramides’ unique ability to rejuvenate skin’s appearance. Below, we’ve gathered the research-supported answers to your top ceramide-related questions:
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.
If my skin already contains ceramides, why do I need them in my beauty products?
Age and sun damage reduce the effectiveness of your skin’s natural ceramides—and can eventually deplete them, which weakens your skin’s barrier. The results are drier, rougher skin, wrinkles, irritation, redness, and visible signs of dehydration. This is where skin care knowledge comes into play—because it really is possible to significantly restore what’s been diminished.

Ceramides are everything! That’s why the Skinfix Barrier+ collection is so effective at promoting skin health.

In addition to the lipid boosting complex, the Foaming Oil Cleanser contains multiple humectants, including Sodium Hyaluronate, Glycerin, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice and Chondrus Crispus Extract — the signature nutrient-rich red algae featured in the Barrier+ Triple Lipid-Hyaluronate Serum.

Come on, name me a cleanser that does anything as beneficial as this one does for skin. I’m waiting…

SHOP THE BLOG: Purchase the Skinfix Barrier+ Foaming Oil Cleanser for $28 here.

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