Three more months until spring. Yes, I’m counting down the days.

The sun may be staying out longer, but my skin is just getting drier.  Although this winter hasn’t been as bad as past Winnipeg winters (thanks el nino!), my skin is still taking a beating.  Skincare is important year round, but adding moisture to those precious pores is incredibly important during the harsh, cold winter months.

Although I do have a few favourite skincare routines and brands, I’m lucky that I get to try out loads of different things.  As long as it doesn’t break me out, I’m usually satisfied. Skincare is fickle as there’s always the hottest, newest thing on the market. Anti-aging, blemish reducing, pore minimizing, you name it, it’s out there. The prices for these products also vary as greatly as the benefits they give you.  Here’s the thing though, you don’t need to spend an arm and a leg to have fantastic skin. Just because it costs $50 doesn’t mean that it would work for you.

I’ve had luck with loads of skincare, but I have two in mind that are different price points, but both deliver great results.

Olay Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Cream is an anti-aging cream, which visibly reduces the appearance of lines, boosts hydration & brightness. This guy retails for $33.98 for 48 grams at Walmart Canada (often goes on sale though, or P&G offers coupons). This is probably my favourite drugstore moisturizer as it left my skin nice and smooth, and best of all, clear.  If you’re wondering why a 27 year old would use a anti-aging cream, it’s preventative. You want to stop the anti-aging early before it happens.

The moisturizer I’m currently using is the Ole Henriksen Invigorating Night Creme, which can be found at Sephora. I only apply this at night (I use The Body Shop Oils of Life for day) and it’s an advanced cream that retexturizes while hydrating. The potent glycolic, lactic, and multi-fruit AHAs enveloped in nourishing primrose oil and shea butter visibly reduce wrinkles and retexturizes skin, so you wake up to dramatically softer, smoother, younger-looking skin.  This moisturizer retails for C$62 for 1.7 ounces at Sephora.

In addition to a moisturizer, an eye cream is my other must-have for skincare. From the same brands, Olay offers the Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Eye Cream and Lash Serum Duo. Unfortunately this product has been discontinued, but I’ve always been a fan of it and I’m sure you can still find it at your favourite drugstore.

This double-ended product has a hydrating eye cream on one end with a nourishing lash serum on the other to give you the appearance of instantly thicker lashes, smoother lids, and softer fine lines and wrinkles in the eye area in just one week. Currently you can find it online at London Drugs on sale for C$17.99 (a bargain considering the regular price is $32.99!).

Right now I am using the Ole Henriksen Ultimate Lift Eye Creme (C$52), which is a multitasking hydrating eye cream that helps to restore firmness and diminish the look of lines and wrinkles. This eye cream is infused with a bio-peptide and hyaluronic acid complex, which leaves the eye area looking for lifted and refreshing.

Finally, and kind of related to skincare, if you’re not a foundation girl, but prefer the sheerness and skin benefits of a BB cream, there’s two products I highly recommend.

On the affordable spectrum, the Olay Total Effects 7 CC Cream is my favourite drugstore CC/BB cream.  This guy colours, corrects, moisturizes, gives you an SPF, and reduces the appearance of your pores all in one step. Apply a small amount to your face for a sheer, but good coverage, plus loads of other benefits.  I love wearing this during the summer months or  for days when I want to wear very minimal, natural makeup.  Although this is a drugstore product, it’s still quite pricey, but it’s on sale right now at Walmart Canada for C$19.97.

My new favourite BB cream is the which is a sheer-to-medium BB water with a liquid-silk texture that delivers multiple benefits in just one drop.  The oil-free formulation has a built-in primer water technology that creates a liquid silk-consistency to glide easily onto your face and moves with the skin. This product is perfect for the outdoors as it has SPF 30 and is available in eight shades, which is rare for a BB cream (usually there’s one or two shades to choose from).  You can find it at Sephora for C$50.

As I’m typing this I’m literally slathering on the hand cream cause my skin has been so dry.  Good skincare is important year round, not just in the winter months, but make sure you take preventative measures to keep your face looking fresh, regardless of the price.

What’s your favourite skincare products?

Like what you read? Check out these related posts:

• From BB to CC: Olay Total Effects CC Cream
• Snaps from Toronto part 2
• A trip to Toronto with P&G Beauty United
• Get whipped! Covergirl Clean Whipped Foundation