Wednesday, February 22, 2012

New York City drugstore haul


        You know you're in New York City when you see a duane reade pharmacy on every block. On Mr. Lovey's last trip to Manhattan, I asked him to pick up a couple French skincare products. Avene and La Roche Posay might be commonplace on New York shelves, but they're largely absent elsewhere in the U.S. I decided to start with Avene Eu Thermale Cleanance Soapless Gel Cleanser and La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo Dual Action Acne treatment. I'll share some initial impressions below.


           Avene's products are based on a thermal spring water. The silicates and trace elements are thought to benefit the skin. According to their site, the thermal water is directly connected to the manufacturing center; the first time the water 'sees the light is when it touches your skin'. So far I'm enjoying my Avene Cleanance Soapless gel cleanser. It's not sudsy, but a small drop can be spread easily over my face. My face feels quite clean afterwards. The cleanser is scented lightly with what I imagine to be a thermal spring smell. If you've visited Yellowstone or other springs you might be familiar with the warm sulfur scent these pools emit. Incidentally, sulfur has antibacterial properties which I surmise could be a mechanism behind Avene's effects on skin.

The Black Pool: a thermal spring in Yellowstone
          La Roche Posay is a part of L'Oreal's portfolio. La Roche Posay Effaclar duo is a benzoyl peroxide based acne treatment (as opposed to salicylic acid or retinoids). I've saw such good reviews that I had to try it for myself. After eating too much chocolate recently, I've had to battle with some breakouts. I'm hoping the effaclar duo can help. I've used it for a few days and it hasn't had a magical skin clearing effect yet. It may have gotten rid of larger breakouts, but I still have really tiny bumps on my skin; I can't tell whether they're a reaction to the product or whether they're blemishes that have been shrunken in their tracks. I'll report back when I know more!

           It's too early to declare whether my new skincare goodies work, but I'm excited to use them. I particularly love the scent, feel, and packaging of my new Avene cleanser. If these warm feelings continue, I'm sure I'll find myself back at the display to pick up a few more things.

          Thanks for reading! Have you tried Avene or La Roche Posay? Does your drugstore stock them? Are there any brands that are exclusive to your region or city?

Love, Dovey.


P.S. Drugstore and drugstore display photo credit: Mr. Lovey

Note for cruelty-free beauty lovers: It is worth noting that L'Oreal  is not cruelty free (what a shame). If it weren't for that, I'd be singing their praises. I really hope that one day this will change.

26 comments:

  1. Squeeeeee! Duane Reed! Great products :)

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  2. It's so weird that you guys can't easily find those lines. Here in Canada they're at every drugstore. Guess that's a benefit to French being the official second language here!

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    1. Hi Tracy, that is really odd! You bring up a really interesting point about the language--- I wonder if French cosmetics aren't as embraced in the US in general?

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  3. Awesome! I want to go to America just for the beauty product shopping... eek! Haha so envious! Yay for new stuff :)

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    1. Hi Dustyn - thanks! shopping in other countries seems like it would be fun--- you get to discover new things!

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  4. I loved Duane Reade when I visited New York last year. It's literally everywhere (and that's a good thing ;))

    I never tried anything from Avene or La Roche Posay, but they are quite popular for sensitive skin here in Germany. Most People buy it in pharmacies here.

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    1. Haha, I agree that it's a good thing! Thanks for giving me the scoop on German drugstore shelves--- it's really fun for me to hear what beauty is like overseas :)

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  5. Highly jealous of the amazing selection on New York shelves. I wish we had nearly as much around here.

    Enjoy both!
    ♥ Jessica

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    1. If only.... :) Although I admit some of the allure is the effort it takes to hunt things down!

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  6. I hope that Effaclar duo works as well for you as it did for me!

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    1. I hope so too--- anything to keep bad at bay is a good thing!

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  7. OMG - LOVE DUANE REEDE and I always make it a point to stop in whenever I'm in NYC. This drives my husband nuts!

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    1. HAHA, erm, I do have a tendency to drag the Mr. into drugstores too. Even when I'm browsing as fast I can, it's always too slow :P

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  8. Glad you got these!!!!!!! that sucks its not all over the US.. the brands are a great option. I have tried both products. The Duo i love for my acne prone skin and the cleanser i am using now with the clarasonic its very gentle and simple which seems to be the best for my skin! hope u love em!

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    1. Hi J! The reason I went for them was because I saw them on your blog :) So far I'm loving them--- I hope it stays that way! I think you're right about the Avene--- it's gentle but cleans well!

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  9. I love La Roche-Posay Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50. I got sucked in after reading it is Charlize Theron's favorite sunscreen.

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    1. Hi Rola, that is a juicy tidbit! I'll check it out next time too!

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  10. i swear that DR store looks very much like the one i pass by almost daily. (i mean all DR stores are the same but did Mr. Lovey take the pic near Park Place?)
    Avene is my favorite (high-end) drugstore brand with thermal water. i just blogged about their anti-aging range. :)
    i usually order from a french website for these because the price is less than 50% of the u.s. price.
    i can give you the link if you like ;)

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    1. Hi Lena! I think it was somewhere near Park Place (although I'm not sure how many are in the area!) What a coincidence! I will definitely have to seek out your review--- if you have time you can leave a link too for easy access!

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  11. wohoo! the duane reades downtown close to the seaport have HUGE beauty sections. I'm sure other ones do too lol.
    you can get la roche posay and avene from apothica.com and drugstore.com! also i know a lot of my CVS stores have la roche posay... hope these options help you! :)

    anyway, i'm glad they're working well for you. can't wait to hear your full review! i want to try some new skincare...!

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    1. Hi Bronzerbunny - thanks so much for the recommendation! I will have to look into CVS stores and see if they carry it too. I love trying new skincare too, but it takes so long to find out if things are actually working :P

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  12. Gosh I can't wait to hit up the drugstores in NYC on my trip there next week. I, too, am fascinated with French pharmacy brands. I like Bioderma quite a lot. I have tried Avene before and I would say they were good products but I bought them in Singapore and they were quite pricey for "just okay" performance so I stopped after several months. I just bought a La Roche Posay Tolerine sample kit and can't wait to try it!

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  13. Hi Beauty Box, that's so exciting! I haven't tried Bioderma yet, but I want to. I'd love to hear what you decide to get when you're there :)

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