The Lotion That Descaled My Legs
This story first appeared on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, in The Strategist Beauty Brief, a weekly newsletter in which our beauty writers share their must-tries, can-skips, and can’t-live-withouts. But we liked it so much we wanted to share it with all of our readers. If you want more first impressions of buzzy launches, quick takes on what’s trending on TikTok and Instagram, and deep dives into the week’s best beauty launches, sign up here. The Strategist Beauty Brief is delivered every Wednesday.
I’ve been locked in on CeraVe Moisturizing Cream for years as my go-to body lotion. It’s an effective year-round moisturizer, so I wasn’t looking for anything new. But Peter Thomas Roth’s Un-Crepe Body Cream dropped into my lap anyway. I was at my close friend’s house at the end of a long workday and noticed my legs looking a bit ashy. She handed me a tub of Un-Crepe and promised it was amazing. It absorbed decently on my dry patches. My friend said I could have the tub, and because I’m always down to test out a new thing, I’ve been using it for about a month since.
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After the first week, I wasn’t that impressed — a good moisturizer, but not better than my CeraVe. Serviceable. My skin was hydrated, but I felt like the formula was so thick and took too much effort and time to rub in completely. But one in-office workday, I was rushing to get out the door in the morning and put on the cream while my skin was almost entirely wet post-shower. I noticed the difference immediately. On wet skin, the cream was easy to work in and absorbed quickly, before I put on my clothes. I’ve been using it this way for two weeks and have already noticed big changes in my skin. First, it’s softer all over. My legs are satiny — they were pretty good before, but Un-Crepe has taken them up a notch. Second, the scaly sections on the outside of my calves are smoothing out. Third, and most impressively, I have some very fine bumps on the back of my thighs that are beginning to fade away. This is the kind of skin texture that one never expects to get rid of. But now, they’re gradually disappearing.
I looked at the Un-Crepe ingredients and didn’t find anything that completely explains its effectiveness. Shea butter is a prominent ingredient, but I’ve never had a lot of luck with that one. The brand highlights the cream’s “Clini-CAL complex,” a blend of calcium and amino acids. Some types of calcium are known to repair and support the skin barrier, so maybe that’s the secret sauce? I’m not sure. But I do know that I’m going to continue this routine for the next few months to see just how smooth my legs can get.
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