Health and Fitness: Skin Care: All You Need for $50

Sure, there are luxury products we'd all like to try, or pampering treats we splurge on for their yummy scents and cute packaging.

But when it comes down to it, I firmly believe that anyone can have a highly effective, type-specific skin care system without breaking the bank!

In my book, The Skin Type Solution, I describe my 16 skin types - and suggest lots of excellent products for each of them. Here's an example of one of the most common skin types: oily, sensitive, non-pigmented, and wrinkled (OSNW).

This type of skin may be prone to acne, but is too sensitive for many of the harsh anti-acne treatments on the market. Instead, the challenge is to control oil and potential breakouts while using anti-inflammatory ingredients that can soothe redness and irritation. And like all wrinkled types, OSNWs need to do it all while taking appropriate measures to fight skin aging.

These products can help:

Cleanser: Aveeno Ultra-Calming Foaming Cleanser is a great option - it's not too moisturizing, as many sensitive-skin products are, and includes anti-inflammatory feverfew to calm the redness often associated with this skin type (around $8).
Toner: Don't use one! Very few skin types need toner, and your skin can actually become more flushed and irritated by these harsh products ($0).
Moisturizer: Very oily types might find that they don't need moisturizer, and that's perfectly fine - if that describes you, consider a facial serum like Olay Regenerist Daily Regenerating Serum to treat your skin to beneficial ingredients without feeling greasy (around $20). If you're closer to the middle of the dry-oily spectrum, I love Aveeno Ultra-Calming Daily Moisturizer (around $15) - and it includes SPF 15, which cuts down on separate products!
Sunscreen: If you don't use a moisturizer with SPF, you'll need to add a sunscreen - no exceptions. Oily types often find gel or lotion sunscreen like Banana Boat SunWear Faces Oil-Free SPF 30 (around $9) more comfortable than potentially greasy creams.
Eye Cream: Who needs 'em? Your daily moisturizer can do double-duty as an eye cream - just delicately pat another layer around your eyes, and you're all set ($0).
Blemish Spot Treatment: This skin type has a tendency to break out. If you do develop blemishes, try Clinique's Acne Solutions Spot Healing Gel ($13.50).
Retinol product: Products with retinol (or prescription-strength retinoids) are a great anti-aging measure for everyone - and they're imperative for anyone who falls into "wrinkled" skin types. Try Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle Cream, Night Formula (around $13).