Having cleansed and then toned your face, you're going to need to do a little mending. Those first two stages can be a little rough on the skin and even if you use products especially designed for your face's chemistry, you may nevertheless have dried it out a little. In any event, you will want to create a protective barrier on your newly pampered skin. Moisturizers act in two ways: by throwing up a barrier that traps water in your skin, and by pulling water out of the air. One kind acts like a dam (occlusive moisturizers), the other acts like a humidifier (humectant moisturizers). The most famous occlusive is petrolatum. Humectants may include ingredients such as urea or hyaluronic acid.
