French Pharmacie Beauty Haul
By Vanessa Gibson | October 9, 2023 | 1 Min ReadNood
Thanks, it’s French
Whoever said the French do it better was spot on. You don’t even have to visit the country to know that French-made products, whether beauty products or groceries, are much cleaner and safer than what we find swamping our shelves in the U.S.
French ‘pharmacies’ are magical little hotspots carrying high-end skincare lines and beauty products that have that je ne sais quoi. Because the French have higher standards for what chemicals are allowed in skincare and beauty formulas, any product on the shelves is naturally cleaner and safer. But you know us noodies, we love to deep dive and take matters a step further.
Below, we’re sharing our French beauty must-have moisturizers that will give you the most hydrated skin of your life, even in the depths of winter. These ultra-clean creams boost our natural beauty (the French way), and we’re proud to have them on display in our skincare shelfies.
The Haul
The crème de la crème of any French pharmacie are their moisturizers. And if you don’t already know this Re-Plumping Cream from Orlane is a godsend for my girls who want to fight early signs of aging like wrinkles and fine lines. It naturally plumps and stimulates revitalization with ceramides and black tea concentrate for fuller, younger-looking skin. This one is definitely a necessity, not a need (wink, wink.)
Pierre Fabre
This ultra-gentle face cream is ideal for super dry skin (hello desert girlies) and xerosis or atopic dermatitis. Like French fashion, the formula is minimal but mind-blowing. It immediately soothes any signs of dryness, itchiness, or tightness—which is crucial during arid winter months. Keep a bottle on deck in your handbag or makeup bag to nourish vulnerable areas like the hands or dry patches.
Ialuset
Even the most basic skincare routines need a dose of hyaluronic acid. It occurs naturally in our bodies, making skin flexible, plump, and hella hydrated. Unfortunately for us, our HA stores dwindle as we age, so getting it in your skincare routine is crucial for aiding healing, preventing dehydration, and minimizing signs of aging.
Enter Ialuset’s Hyaluronic Acid Cream. Hero ingredient HA and other soothing emollients keep your skin oh-so-fresh and dewy by pulling water deep into the cells. You can use it as your daily moisturizer or as an overnight mask to repair and revitalize. So even when you wake up after a night of too much sushi and way too much wine, your skin shows no evidence.
Biafine
This emulsion from Biafine is a no-brainer addition to anyone’s medicine cabinet. Made of soothing ingredients like squalane, avocado oil, sodium alginate, and our good friend H2O, it returns skin to total health. Here’s the tea:
Its primary role is to treat superficial wounds and burns (including sunburns for my girls who spend too much time in the sun). But it’s also perfect for delicate post-procedure skin, as you can use it after microneedling or laser treatments to speed up recovery.
As if this wonder in a tube doesn’t do enough, you can count on it to minimize irritation and peeling when you go overboard with your prescription retinol (iykyk). Definitely don’t use this as your everyday moisturizer—there are better creams on this list for that. This is for those emergencies when you really need to protect sensitive, irritated skin.