The best in cosmetics — according to the experts

By Samantha Critchell
Associated Press Fashion Writer

NEW YORK — Beauty products are personal: What works for one oily-skinned woman with brown eyes and thin hair might not work for her dry-skinned friend with blue eyes and thick, color-processed hair.

But some products have better batting averages than others.

The editorial staffs of many magazines, their readers and an industry group called Cosmetic Executive Women try to navigate through the slew of new beauty products with awards and best-of lists.

Many of CEW's winning products this year are multitasking, says the group's president, Carlotta Jacobson.

"Moisturizers have gone beyond being a moisturizer. You just can't be a moisturizer, it also has to correct skin tone or have total protection from the sun," she says.

The other undeniable movement in the beauty industry is all things green, Jacobson says, although no one wants to compromise on effectiveness.

Women's Health magazine editor in chief Tina Johnson and beauty editor Liesa Goins say readers ask about the environment along with sensitive skin and acne. Goins notes that many of the products Women's Health highlighted, with help from a panel of experts that included salon owners, makeup artists and dermatologists, were inexpensive standbys.

"I'm always surprised how many products you can find at the drug store. We're conditioned to think you have to spend a lot of money to get effective products," she says.

Count Johnson as one of those drugstore fans: She has been a longtime user of Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser and also is a fan of Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock SPF 45 and RoC Retinol Correction Deep Wrinkle Night Cream.

CEW's Jacobson, meanwhile, is interested in the "buzz" products DiorShow Blackout Mascara and two-sided L'Oreal Infallible Lips. A potential breakout product with consumers is Clinique's men's concealer, she says.

"It's taking the first step that says men can have their own products — they have been using women's products," she says. "Like everyone else, men can have blemishes and dark circles, plus they can have shaving nicks."