Lacura Q10 Anti- Wrinkle Day Cream

Having recently discovered Aldi and their large array of discount foods and produce I was surprised to also find for sale a skin care line called Lacura. This line of products retails for under $10. and includes a serum, eye creams, day and night creams, mature skin cream, a moisturizing cream, wrinkle-filler, cleansers and body creams. According to the Aldi website they will begin selling make-up as well.

The Aldi website says of this product: "An intensively caring cream for every type of skin, this anti-wrinkle formula really gets results. Bioflavonoids, coenzyme Q10, provitamin B5, vitamins C and E, aloe vera and our powerful moisturizing complex help protect against the damaging effects of the environment, reduce wrinkles and keep your skin supple."

I must say, this is an excellent product. Shockingly low cost and it appears to be well formulated. According to some articles I've read online, this cream was put to the test with creams costing many times more and most people thought it was not only better but far more costly than it actually is. The Aldi website indicates tt has also won some sort of award(s). In addition, according to what I've read, many Aldi stores cannot keep the products stocked because people are buying it up so quickly.

This is a thick, dense, pale yellow cream that is very concentrated and applies easily. Once dry my skin was left somewhere between matte and dewy and it felt very soft, not the least bit oily or greasy. The scent is very pleasant and light and reminds me a bit of soap although someone mentioned to me that it reminded them of the original ponds cream scent. This cream, thus far, has not broken out my extremely sensitive, acne-prone skin. The cream is full of vitamins including B5, C and E along with Sodium Hyaluronate and numerous plant extracts that rivals some of the high-end products available at more expensive department stores.

My only complaint about this cream is that while it does have two sunscreen ingredients (Octocrylene and Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane) it is doesn't list an SPF Factor thus I will not rely on it to protect my skin from the sun's rays. The only other thing about it is if you reapply it throughout the day without first washing your face the product will ball up slightly which is something I have noticed with creams costing hundreds more.

Overall, I am amazed that a company can manufacture quality products and sell them for so little. The packaging is quite attractive, the jars are glass and they will not look out of place on the bathroom vanity. This line of products is manufactured in Germany for Aldi, the exclusive retailer for the Lacura line of skin and body care products and make-up.

If you're in the market for skin care and don't want to take out a loan to buy it, maybe the new Lacura skin care at Aldi is worth trying.

The 1.7 ounce glass jar retails for $3.99 at Aldi stores.

Ingredients: Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Glycerin, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Cetearyl Isononanoate, Coco-Caprylate/Caprate, Diethylhexyl Adipate, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sorbitol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Cyclopentasiloxane, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Octocrylene, Panthenol, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Cyclohexasiloxane, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Phospholipids, Ubiquione, Algin, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Sambucus Nigra Flower Extract, Carica Papaya (Papaya) Fruit Extract, Disodium Adenosine Triphosphate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Chondrus Crispus (Carrageenan) Extract, Fragrance, Propylene Glycol, Carbomer, Alcohol, Tocopherol, Phenethyl Alcohol, Lecithin, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Glyceryl Oleate, Citric Acid, Glyceryl Stearate, Sodium Hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Benzoic Acid, Dehydroacetic Acid.

Update: Clinique Youth Surge Age SPF 15 Decelerating Moisturizer

After receiving a sample of and using Clinique's new Youth Surge SPF 15 Age Decelerating Moisturizer I have been able to get a pretty good idea of this product.


Youth Surge is a thick, white cream with the normal "Clinique" scent. The scent is hardly discernible and not enough to really consider scented, in my opinion.


The cream being so thick doesn't spread as easily as a lighter, more fluid, product might but none the less spreads pretty well. It seems to absorb/dry quickly, however; it leaves behind a white hue on the skin. This is especially noticeable on men who have stubble as it seems to cling to the hair. I imagine this product, as with so many Clinique products, uses Titanium Dioxide as part of the sunscreen formulation. There is much debate right now about the safety of sunscreens and which type is best, chemical or physical. This is something best left to scientist to debate. For my skin, the answer is simple, I cannot use physical sunscreens, they break me out.


I noticed after application that any fine lines vanished. My skin feels the slightest bit oily after using this product but it doesn't look greasy.


Some blog authors and posters have been slightly irked by the ad campaign for this product which some say alienates older clients. People just have to remember that an advertisment can practically say anything it wants, the product's performance is what really sells it. So far, the reviews on the Clinique website for this product are good with an average 5 stars.


For those who prefer physical sunscreens and those who use and like Clinique products, I imagine this will be a welcomed addition to their skin care routine. If Clinique would come out with a night version of this product, no sunscreen, I would certainly consider using it.


This product is available from most department stores and the Clinique website. A 1.7 ounce/ 50 ml. jar sells for $46.50 and comes in three formulas for different skin types.


Ingredients: Unavailable.

Ingredient Spotlight: Mica

I went round to Kohl's yesterday to check out two of their new skin care products by Beauty Bank, a division of Estee Lauder.

I had read some post on them online and wanted to see what they were all about. One is a rather costly moisturizer by American Beauty that contains diamond particles, the other is a cream with Vitamin C and sunscreen by Grassroots. Both of which contain mica and titanium dioxide.

You may be reading this and think, so what?! However, as many of us have learned those of us with acne prone/sensitive skin tend to breakout if we use products that contain mica in them and titanium dioxide can also be problematic.

Mica, a mineral, is used in a product because it is light diffusing and can make lines appear somewhat smoother, it can also make dark circles under the eyes look lighter. Most mineral make ups contain mica. However, this is cosmetic effect and not because the mica reduces fine lines and wrinkles or lightens the under eye area. So, it is therefore used in many make up products for this very reason. However, using it in a skin care product, especially a moisturizer doesn't make much sense to me, especially if a company is trying to appeal to a broad group of consumers and here is why. If I buy a new product that promises me it does this and that but causes me to develop, painful, cyst like, breakouts, I will either return it for a refund or throw it out and likely not purchase anything else from the company.

I have learned over the years that if I use anything with mica and/or titanium dioxide that I will develop, painful and long lasting, breakouts. It doesn't matter how much I like the product or how well it works, I cannot risk causing myself breakouts and so must avoid those, and numerous other, ingredients. Two years ago, for several months, I dealt with painful cyst like pimples deep in my skin after using a product that contain titanium dioxide just once. Tin oxide is another ingredient that I try to avoid, it seems to be used mostly as a colorant.

Now, many people use mica containing products everyday with out even so much as a hint of breaking out, while people like me get zits if we use the product even once. It would be nice if companies would leave out the mica in their facial moisturizer and treatment products and save it for their make up products instead so that more of us can use their great products with out the fear we'll break out. Certain high end dermatologist tested, allergy free products contain mica which seems odd since mica is something that can clog pores.

I also wonder if, since so many products contain high levels of silicones, (silicones are a a relatively cheap cosmetic filler that makes the skin appear smoother than it is) and since silicone traps everything beneath it, if it might force the mica particles into the pores? I'm not a scientist so cannot say that with any authority, it's just something that sort of makes sense to me.

If you tend to break out and aren't sure why, you may want to read the ingredients on all the skin care and make up products you use and see if any of them contain mica. You can also research, online, what others say about it and their opinions on this particular ingredient.