As you can see from my name I am deeply in debt thanks to my recruiter (*cough*family member).  I love what the skincare did for my skin and I'll probably use the foundation forever but does anyone know of cleanser/moisturizer/miracles duo type system that is less than wholesale?  Oh, and that actually works?  I know there has to be something out there but I had never used skincare before mk and I love how my face feels!  Thanks everyone for hours of reading, I love this site 

If you'd never used skincare before, then how do you know MK is the best thing out there?

One thing I have to thank getting "hooked" on the MK blogs/forums, etc. is that I have finally, at the ripe old age of 43, started to use "skincare" regularly.  See, I always had great skin so I really didn't ever do much (and surely not all the steps involved in MK).  I'd buy something here and there and then blow it off.  Usually go to bed with my makeup on, and put a little face lotion on if my face felt dry.  But I've been using Aveda religiously since February, and my face feels great.  I think anything would work as well, though.

Neutrogena is good, L'oreal is good.  Personally I like Nivea.  I've also heard that Oil of Olay has all sorts of new stuff, and I know that Walmart has Equate "Oil of Beauty" products that have similar formulations. 

My favorite place for trolling for cosmetics, etc. is a real drugstore like Walgreens or Eckerd.  The big ones have tons more stuff than Target or Walmart. 

So why not try something else....have fun shopping.  Like death and taxes, MK will always be there.

I like Dove. It's cheap and effective. I bought the cucumber and green tea face wash and their moisturizer for dry skin, and my face looks good. (Just as good as when I used MK)

The only thing I want to tell you is: PLEASE try the mineral foundations that are out there now. We had huge threads on them, and they are awesome. As soon as I tried the mineral makeup I threw all of my leftover MK liquid foundations in the trash, and I will never go back!!

good luck!

DwDIQ, check out the thread on Bare Minerals and Lynn's brand (also in this category) and there is more about mineral foundations in the comments on this topic of MK Sucks: http://marykaysucks.wordpress.com/2006/10/10/another-reformulated-mary-kay-product/ (I think they start around comment #55). I have seriously combination skin that is also very sensitive. I have dry patches but also get so oily that I used to have to reapply my makeup in the afternoon. The oil mattified from MK really helped, but I have also noticed a huge improvement with the mineral foundations. They blend better, they look more natural, and they don't rub off on my clothes and my cell phone!

I also have acne flair-ups and the mineral foundations covers it nicely and doesn't seem to settle on it like the liquid from MK did. I LOVE the mineral foundations and can't imagine ever using anything else ever again.

The Bare Minerals isn't cheap, but it's worth it, and it lasts a long time. Check into Lynn's brand too (Beauty Bliss Mineral Cosmetics) and you can get really cheap samples to make sure your colors are right and her full-sized containers are less than the BM too.