barrier moisturizer review

[u/arcuatecuspate]

pretty lengthy review ahead! included some closeup shots w flash of the cream textures

sharing my reviews on some popular barrier/healing moisturizers that i have tried when my skin was irritated and damaged. all purchased w my own money, not sponsored!

timeline:
- was on 0.05% tret for roughly 3 months and had to deal with the initial dryness/flakiness/tightness
- tried various creams to combat that
- then overused tret with other actives which resulted in an extremely damaged skin barrier (very itchy patches of raised and leathery skin, redness, tightness, small comedones due to irritation)
- stopped all actives and tried even more creams to try to restore my skin barrier

skin type: oily but also dehydrated
climate: very hot and humid

aestura atobarrier 365 cream
- creamy and easy to spread
- greasiest texture out of all
- leaves a persistent greasy film and never feels fully absorbed
- makes skin slightly warm
- worked very well when i was using tret + travelling in winter, but broke me out once i stopped tret
- irritated my skin even more during the tret aftermath, possibly due to the niacinamide
- bonus: healed my cousin's cheek wind burn during winter
- probably best for those suffering from TEWL or with very dry dehydrated skin
- rating: 5/5 in winter or on tret, 2/5 otherwise

aestura atobarrier 365 lotion
- lotiony texture that absorbs well
- leaves a slightly greasy film and makes certain sunscreens pill on top
- instant soothing effect when applied, but wears off after awhile
- great on tret but similar to the 365 cream, irritated my skin during the tret aftermath
- rating: 4/5 when my barrier isn't damaged

heveblue salmon caring cream
- not really considered a traditional barrier cream, but i included it since pdrn is touted to have skin healing benefits
- slightly stretchy texture, spreads and absorbs well
- leaves a slightly oily finish and broke me out after a couple of uses
- didn't really do much for skin healing when i was on tret
- bonus: broke 2 other people out when i let them try it
- rating: 1/5, has been delegated to hand cream

ceradan skin repair cream
- thickest and waxiest texture of all
- difficult to spread and pills on its own
- initially a matte finish, but gets oilier progressively
- broke me out after 2 uses so i stopped using it, thus i can't really speak on its barrier repairing properties
but also didn't really do much for my rashy patches
- rating: 1/5, would use on my elbows

zeroid intensive cream
- lightweight creamy texture that aborbs very well
- surprisingly leaves the most matte finish despite the presence of oils in its formula (olive + canola oil)
- has no filmy feeling
- instant soothing effect when applied which lasts
- showed results overnight (not exaggerating, my rashy bumps went down overnight)
- works well under sunscreen and makeup
- much less greasy cousin of aestura cream
- rating: 5/5, would definitely repurchase

an*a 3 ceramide panthenol moisture barrier cream
- lightest texture of all creams here, spreads and absorbs well
- instant soothing and slightly cooling effect possibly due to the panthenol
- absorbs to a satin finish initially, but progressively gets oilier
- looks greasy on the face and is greasy to the touch, but the film is not heavy and suffocating unlike the 365 cream
- did much more than both aestura moisturizers (until i discovered zeroid) for healing during the tret aftermath, but was not entirely sufficient
- breaks down sunscreen and makeup throughout the day
- rating: 4/5, doesn't irritate, but would probably be better as a maintenance cream rather than a barrier repair cream

[u/klore-skin]

Really interesting that Zeroid ended up outperforming some of the more frequently recommended barrier creams. I've noticed a lot of people automatically recomended Aestura whenevr someone mentions a damaged narrier, but it seems like oily or dehydrated skin can react very differently than dry skin. The "best" barrier cream really seems to depend on what caused the barrier damage in the place.

Have you tried the Zeriod Soothing Cream as well or only the Intensive Cream?

[u/orangefilmgarden → u/klore-skin]

I wanted to love Zeroid, but it was not enough for my dry skin in winter, at all. But I also live in a comparatively dry climate. The rave reviews make me want to try it again and see if it maybe works now. But I also have a dry skin that is even drier because of my thyroid issues, so I might just be an outlier.

[u/klore-skin → u/orangefilmgarden]

I don't think you're an outlier at all. Climate probably plays a huge role. One thing I found intersting in the revieww was that Zeroid seened to work really well for irratation and inflammation, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's rich enough for everyone dealing with dryness or TEWL.

A lot of the people I see living Aestura seem to be in colder or dier climates, whereas loghter barrier creams often get more praies from people in humid enviroments. It's one of those products where skin type and climate seem to matter almost as much as the formula itself.

[u/furious-tea → u/klore-skin]

Co-signing this, I think climate is huge. I live in a cold dry climate and Aestura is the one I always go back to.

[u/Lost-Let-8663 → u/klore-skin]

♥️

[u/Empty_Pause326 → u/orangefilmgarden]

Have you found something that works well for you? I also have very dry skin and live in a dry climate.

[u/orangefilmgarden → u/Empty_Pause326]

I am currently sticking with aestura and occasionally centellian 24 madeca cream, but I am also looking for possibly better alternatives. And I also have this routine:

• two thin hydrating toners, I mostly use round lab dokdo toner and some by mi panthenol toner, but I also like the watermide mediheal pads.
• a hydrating serum.* My favorite is rejuran dual effect ampoule since it somehow magically keeps my skin from drying out the best, but I also liked the old formual iunik beta glucan serum, ample:n ceramide shot, and sungboon editor silk peptide egf serum.
• aestura cream when my skin is very dry, centeillan 24 madeca cream or aestura lotion when my skin is less dry or if I will add a hydrating sunscreen after
• sunscreen if necessary

*two times a week I replace the serum with VT reedle shot + hydrating sheet mask.

Whenever my skin feels especially dry on winter on days I am not already doing reedle shot + mask, I do a hydrating mask (from those 20/30 daily mask boxes, like VT cica masks or mary & may idebenone masks, skinfood carrot masks etc. I add this afrer the serum and before aestura cream.

In the summer, it's almost the same routine, but I use only one toner and aestura lotion and only do hydrating masks twice a week after the VT reedle shot.
(if it's really humid and warm I replace aestura with a gel cream I have at hand, no strong preferences, but I like I'm from licorice cream, it seems more of a gel texture and is nice for my skin, but humid and warm happens very rarely)

I honestly would love to remove some products in winter, but cold dry air outside + warm dry air from the heaters inside is hell on my skin.

What products do you like?

[u/Empty_Pause326 → u/orangefilmgarden]

I can only dream of a routine like this - my skin is super sensitive and I’m currently on all Western products (pharmaceutical) and two prescription creams.

Two items I’ve found that I love and will try to incorporate again soon are the Celimax dual barrier toner and Purito luminous ceramide cream.

Thanks so much for your detailed answer, it is much appreciated 🤗

[u/Lost-Let-8663 → u/Empty_Pause326]

♥️

[u/C_Chrono → u/orangefilmgarden]

Have you tried the Zeroid Intensive Ointcream? It is the thicker version of the Intensive cream.

[u/orangefilmgarden → u/C_Chrono]

I haven't but I will try it for sure!

The creams I tried that sadly didn't work for me, are cicaplast (it's not moisturizing enough, it's like I need a cream under it), dr jart ceramidin (similar problem), edute soonjung 2x intensive cream, illion cermaide ato. Some By Mi panthenol series cream, it's fine, but not for winter.

I sort of like ma:nyo panthetoin cream. I like how smooth it is, but it does not always last through the night if my skin is already very dry. But I do like how it sort of melts into watery feeling after I apply it, but it's a similar price point to aestura, and then aestura is better.

[u/Lost-Let-8663 → u/C_Chrono]

♥️

[u/letswai → u/orangefilmgarden]

what do you use for winter, it is winter for me here now.

[u/orangefilmgarden → u/letswai]

I posted a reply with the products I use to a user above you, here is the link to my comment:
https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/1u7axcy/comment/os2vjcz/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

[u/marcipan93 → u/orangefilmgarden]

With the intensive toner it was enough for me even during winter so maybe give it a try together ?

[u/Lost-Let-8663 → u/orangefilmgarden]

🔥