This is Part 2 of Lisa’s List! Check my last post for most of my top-rated skincare of 2021. This one includes wash-off products (cleansers and masks), actives (retinol, exfoliants and vitamin c), sunscreen and other skincare like lip and body products.

Wash-Off Products

Banila Clean It Zero Cleansing Balm

I. Love. This. Cleansing. Balm. Truly. The Banila Clean It Zero Cleansing Balm easily turns into an oil, and emulsifies and rinses super cleanly, without stripping. I did not find that it irritated my eyes or caused any blurriness, even when using it to remove eye makeup, though I know some folks do. This does have a light scent to it from the acerola extract, but I find that that actually helps me enjoy it more. There’s definitely a reason it’s a cult classic!
Number Emptied: 2
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: no (using PKY)
Price: $19 USD/100 mL

🐌 Peach Slices Snail Rescue Intensive Wash-Off Mask

Peach Slices really nailed it with their snail line. The Snail Rescue Intensive Wash-Off Mask has a funky jelly texture due to its use of potato starch as a thickener, but it doesn’t dry out if you, like me, tend to leave your masks on for too long. True to its name it has 95% snail mucin, but also includes centella asiatica extract, licorice root extract, strawberry fruit extract and birch juice for an extra soothing, brightening and antioxidant boost.
Number Emptied: 2
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: no
Price: $17 USD / 100 mL

🍯 I’m From Honey Mask

The I’m From Honey Mask is a cult favorite for good reason. I love this mask for use after a clay or exfoliating mask to help restore my skin, and for an additional boost if I’m experiencing inflammation. I leave it on for 10 minutes or up to 60 (or over, if you’re me) and you’ll experience no ill effects. This mask has honey, propolis and bee venom, as well as, moisturizing oils like sunflower and jojoba, and humectants like bamboo water, lotus water, aloe water, beta glucan and glycerin. This is one of the few products that I’ve ever actively hoarded until I could get a replacement.
Number Emptied: 2
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: yes
Price: $38 USD / 120 g

Actives

🥬 Krave Beauty Kale-lalu-yAHA

I’m a big believer in AHA 3-4 days a week to keep my seborrheic dermatitis at bay, and Krave Beauty Kale-lalu-yAHA fits that bill. The 5.25% glycolic acid puts it slightly stronger than some of the other AHA toners out there (Ren, Pixi) but less strong than The Ordinary. The aloe juice and other extracts are a nice added benefit to make it feel like you’re doing more for your skin than just getting rid of the dead bits. I personally put it on a cotton pad to apply, to ensure I could get it everywhere, but you could potentially just apply with your hands — just make sure you spread it evenly.
Number Emptied: 1
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: no
Price: $25 USD/200 mL

🍒 Good Skin Days C’s the Day Serum

If you’ve been reading my empties and openeds for a while, the Good Skin Days C’s the Day serum should need no introduction — I go through a bottle every 1.5 to 2 months. This is an incredibly non-sticky vitamin c that is great for more sensitive skin. This vitamin c serum includes 10% ascorbic acid, so it will oxidize slowly but surely. It also includes niacinamide, licorice root, camu-camu, ginseng and mushroom for some great brightening and hydrating power. I cannot evangelize the Good Skin Days C’s the Day serum enough.
Number Emptied: 5+
Number in Stash: 3
Currently in Use: yes
Price: $26 USD / 30 mL

💜 Versed Press Restart Retinol

Versed Press Restart Retinol is my holy grail retinol. After working up my frequency (start slow! Once per week), I found that I could use it daily, even on exfoliation days. This has a very low (.03) percentage of encapsulated retinol, as well as bakuchiol, but it’s enough to be effective. In particular, I’ve noticed that improves the redness around my nose where I had previously thinned my skin from overuse of cortisone on seborrheic dermatitis. It takes me about four pumps to cover face, neck and chest, but I also give it credit for keeping me from pronounced tech neck, and love that it’s gentle enough for me to use there.
Number Emptied: 2
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: no (using the SANA retinol toner)
Price: $22 USD / 30 mL

🌃 Stratia Night Shift

Stratia Night Shift came highly recommended from a dear friend, and I think the hype was very fair. This is a night cream with encapsulated retinol and skin-barrier-supportive ingredients like ceramides and cica (would we expect anything less from the creator of Liquid Gold?). More normal or oily skin types could certainly use this as a night cream, like it’s billed. My poor dry skin needed another moisturizer, a facial oil and a sleeping mask overtop. A great starter retinol, if you’ve been debating taking the leap. Once I built up my usage I found this usable every day, even on exfoliating nights.
Number Emptied: 1
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: no (see note above re: Versed)
Price: $28USD / 50mL

Sunscreens

😎 HYGGEE Vegan Sun Cream

The Hyggee Vegan Sun Cream is a recently released k-beauty sunscreen that’s been getting a lot of play because it passed external SPF validation and because, according to the ingredient list, it’s basically a dupe of Krave Beauty Beet Shield. Same color, almost all of the same UV filters, and a bunch of antioxidants including beet extract. Like Krave Beauty this does also include alcohol for stabilizing and dry-down purposes, but unlike Krave this doesn’t feel drying — the texture itself is actually quite creamy and moisturizing, so I actually don’t feel like I need a moisturizer under this (though I use a bunch of serums so your mileage may vary). You’ll definitely need to reapply this as you go out and about and it’s unfortunately a little pricey, but if you’ve struggled to find something good, give it a go!
Number Emptied: 1
Number in Stash: 3
Currently in Use: yes
Price: $25 USD / 50 mL

☀️ Isntree Watery Sun Gel

The Isntree Watery Sun Gel is officially my husband’s favorite sunscreen. After the Krave Beauty Beet Shield was pulled off the market, this has been a skin-saver. This is a lightweight, chemical sunscreen which uses modern filters and has been verified that it meets its SPF 50+ PA++++ rating. It holds up nicely during long wear, and is a great sunscreen for people who don’t like sunscreen, because it doesn’t leave too dewy or too drying a finish. We even used it down in Belize and, while it won’t hold up to long periods in the pool or ocean, it kept us from burning.
Number Emptied: 3
Number in Stash: 3
Currently in Use: no (using Hyggee Vegan Sun Cream)
Price: $17 USD / 50 mL

Other Skincare

🏭 Vaseline Original Healing Jelly

Vaseline has been around and in use as a skincare ingredient for ages, but it feels like it’s only really been having its moment lately. Many people use it for slugging, but I use it for my body. In June, my legs reached the point where it literally hurt to bathe because I had bathed so much for so long that I had stripped the heck out of my skin barrier. So I started slathering Vaseline on my legs before hopping in the tub. The very occlusive nature of petrolatum kept my legs comforted and protected for hours. I’ve now backed down to putting Vaseline on my legs one out of every two or three baths, and it definitely helps without feeling yucky or greasy.
Number Emptied: 1
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: yes
Price: $4 USD / 212g; or $2 USD / 49g

👄 Rohto Mentholatum Water Lip Color Balm SPF 20 PA++

As a card-carrying member of the dry lip club as well as an avid outside-in-the-summer human, an SPF lip balm is critical. The Rohto Mentholatum Water Lip Color Balm SPF 20 PA++ has no meaningful flavor, no noticeable smell and, at least on my lip color, on distinguishable color. It goes on smooth and does actually nourish the delicate skin of the lips. Other ones I’ve tried have either tasted awful (Aquaphor) or left a white cast (Vanicream).
Number Emptied: 1
Number in Stash: 1
Currently in Use: no (using another Rohto Mentholatum lip spf from a different line)
Price: $6 USD / 4.5 g

🔴 Cosrx Acne Pimple Master Patches

I’m a recent convert to pimple patches, but I’m a big believer in them. I don’t get many spots but I can’t not pick at them to save my life, and I get post-inflammatory erythema that sticks around for months literally every time. I love the sizes on this so I can use them on spots of any type, and there are enough of them that I feel able to put them on early and keep them on even after the white head comes out, which seems to help reduce the PIE.
Number Emptied: 1
Number in Stash: 3
Currently in Use: yes
Price: $6 USD / 24 patches

🧴 Derma: B Mild Moisture Body Lotion

The Mild Moisture Body Lotion was the first product I ever tried by Derma: B. Derma: B gives off strong drugstore skincare vibes, but comes to them with that classic Korean take on skincare which I very much appreciate. It features your standard drugstore lotion ingredients like caprylic triglycerides, glycerin, cetearyl alcohol and she butter, but ups the ante with grape seed oil, camellia seed oil, panthenol and allantoin. This lotion is incredibly nourishing without being greasy at all.
Number Emptied: 1
Number in Stash: 0 (though I do have another lotion from them)
Currently in Use: no (though I’m using the body cream from the same line)
Price: $18 USD / 400 mL

🛀 Bioderma Atoderm Body Cleansing Oil

Moisturizing after a bath is all well and good, but if you bathe as often and as long as I do, you might find that you can feel your skin start to be stripped mid-tub-time. But using a cleansing oil like Bioderma Atoderm Body Cleansing Oil as a bath oil really helps. Because of the surfactants it doesn’t just stay on the surface of the tub like some other oils do, but it also doesn’t strip my skin more like a bubble bath might. The one drawback? This does have a baby powder fragrance to it, but it fades fairly quickly.
Number Emptied: 1
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: no (using the pictured Neutrogena)
Price: $20 USD / 1 L (not pictured due to infeasibility of storing)

🛁 Neutrogena Body Oil

This is the best oil to use in the bath that I’ve found. I’ve tried many others and I keep coming back to this one. I prefer the fragrance-free version, but the one with masking fragrance is much easier to find It’s got the right amount of oils and surfactants in it to keep a long bath from feeling stripping while still ensuring that the oil doesn’t just pool at the top of the bath water. I like a good few squirts of this in with almost all of my baths, unless using a bath bomb.
Number Emptied: 3
Number in Stash: 0
Currently in Use: yes
Price: $10 USD / 250 mL (pictured in a 946 mL size)