I tested 250+ anti-aging skin care products this year: Here's my Black Friday shopping list

This skin-soothing, color-correcting cream is made specifically for disguising angry, red post-blemish skin (essentially the period between when you pop a pimple and it heals), but I find it works well for any redness or dark spots on my face — especially broken capillaries around my nose, my weird red chin and brown-ish sun damage too. 

It has the texture of a lightweight, silky serum, absorbs fast and leaves areas where you want a "color correction" primed for your normal foundation or concealer. I can't guarantee it will work for your skin as well as it does mine, but at $6 (half off!) it's certainly worth a try.

If your under-eyes are looking puffy, dark and tired, we're happy to report that there's an easy — and tres affordable — fix. These eye masks are formulated to reduce the appearance of dark circles and puffiness while making you feel like you're getting a spa treatment in your own home. 

Made with real gold and ingredients like tea tree oil, glycerin, castor oil and collagen, these patches promise to revitalize your skin and reduce puffiness in 20 minutes.

There are loads of pricey treatments and potions meant to decrease facial puffiness, promote collagen growth and improve the texture of aging skin, but the ancient art of face rolling is the easiest, least expensive and arguably the most relaxing. 

This high-quality jade roller and face massager tool set has over 27,000 five-star reviews and, right now, it's more than half off.

My beloved snail mucin from CosRx is excellent for evening skin tone and making your face look softer and brighter overall. It's won multiple awards, has over 55,000 five-star Amazon reviews and impresses most beauty editors I know.

After using it the first time (here is my full review), my face was noticeably dewier and other users have boasted about its ability to hydrate, repair and improve dullness in the skin — all of which helps wrinkles look less deep and crepey. When I tried it again this month, after a medi-spa laser treatment, I found it soothed and calmed my skin as it healed, lending a healthy sheen. 

I've been loving this extra-firming eye cream from Derma E, a truly quality brand that makes natural, vegan and cruelty-free products that won't cost you a week's pay. Made of skin-revitalizing ingredients like copper peptides and plant stem cells, it's clinically proven to improve elasticity and firmness, and it lightens darker under-eye skin tone. I especially like it for my upper eyelids, where I've seen a noticeable difference in texture over just a few weeks.

More than 1,600 five-star reviewers also praise its lifting and tightening merits, calling it: "A miracle for your eyes — no time travel required!"

While it's not exactly meant as a face cream, this ultra-rich moisturizer is used for that purpose by most every seasoned beauty expert I know. It's extremely hydrating, packed with nourishing plant-derived ingredients and is especially good as a nighttime treatment for faces, hands, feet, necks and even the décolleté.

Do you have a moisturizer you absolutely love? If not, I'd certainly give this award-winning, highest-quality "repair cream" a try. We named it one of our best facial moisturizers for a reason: It's dermatologist-tested and recommended, good for even the most sensitive skin types and ultra-hydrating too.

Plus, if you're one of the millions of eczema sufferers in the U.S., it's made with colloidal oatmeal, which soothes skin instantly and protects and strengthens the skin barrier. This is an ample size for a top-notch product that will last you months — and you can't beat this price.

Incredible deal alert! These gilded, Jessica Alba-approved eye masks incorporate hyaluronic acid, amino acids and sea moss to hydrate the delicate under-eye area, reducing dark circles and puffy bags and blurring fine lines as they go — and right now, they're 60% off!

They're also paraben- and sulfate-free, vegan and gentle enough for most skin types. The luxe packaging makes them an excellent gift. 

This Jennifer Aniston-fave serum stick is the ideal delivery system for softening fine lines, prepping skin for makeup and targeting dry patches. Made of 80% squalane — a known skin fortifier — it's fragrance-free, cruelty-free and dermatologist-tested. We've tried this ultra-silky balm and it leaves behind a dewy finish plus it's beyond-amazing for smoothing the undereye area before applying concealer, to avoid makeup settling into fine lines.

This is the cream you want if you're, like, "I think tightening creams are BS but I also want to believe they are true because I currently hate my neck." The Gold Bond firming cream is no frills but gets the job done (the job being tighter jowls and a less reptilian neck). The formula is lightweight and on the thin side, but the product absorbs well and is gentle enough not to irritate sensitive skin. 

Note: You'll need to use it consistently for about a month to see results, and it won't, of course, magically make you appear 25, but being able to snag this ample size for less makes this product worth a go.

Albolene's inconspicuous, no-frills moisturizing face cleanser is one of those in-the-know beauty secrets, a product you'd never think to buy for yourself until a friend says, "YOU MUST GET THIS. IT'S CHANGED MY LIFE." Well, I am that friend, telling you this lush, velvety, mild, no-fragrance cream is about to transform your entire night skin-care routine and make your face a whole lot softer and happier in the process.

The gentle, century-old cleansing product removes makeup effortlessly, without water (though you can choose to take it off by using a damp washcloth or cotton pad). It's particularly effective for older women concerned with damaging delicate under-eye areas and causing fine lines by scrubbing away mascara and eyeliner. It's also safe for all skin types. Trust me, if you buy it now (for just $10!) it will become a can't-live-without beauty staple on your bathroom shelves and — if you're a good friend — those of every woman you know.

If I could, I'd buy every person I know a bottle of CosRx snail serum — it's truly a favorite product, one of the most effective skin-care items for complexion smoothing, skin softening and dark-spot lightening I've ever tried. But, because handing over a bottle of snail mucus on a major holiday might seem a wee but strange, these sheet masks are a quality alternative. 

They contain the award-winning snail slime, are highly hydrating and work for most any skin type. Users report they help with skin inflammation and even rosacea, and this pack of 10 is a solid entry point into the famous K-beauty line — and you can't beat the price.

If you're looking for an all-over tightening, brightening, hydrating, complexion-smoothing night cream for the face, neck and decolleté, you can't do much better than this clinically proven version by trusted brand RoC — especially at this price. 

The popular cream is nongreasy and noncomedogenic and beloved by both dermatologists and celebrities alike (Sarah Jessica Parker is a fan). And, according to the more than 4,000 five-star reviews, ordinary folks are all over it too: "I'm in my 70s and this cream has been my go-to for years. It works on my skin!"

If you'd like to complement your serum stick with another TRULY AMAZING Tatcha product, this rice polish is a beloved favorite of celebrities and skin-care experts alike. Meghan Markle once told Allure that she loves it because "it just sort of foams on your face and gives you a really subtle exfoliation.”

Every beauty editor I know uses this to cleanse their skin at night — it's especially good for those of us who are post-50.