MY SENSITIVE SKIN NON-NEGOTIABLES

I’ve mentioned it so often, but in case you are new around here – My name is Gemma, and at the ripe old age of 38 I got perioral dermatitis. It’s a pretty common skin condition that causes angry, red, scaly inflammation around my mouth. (sounds sexy!) Over the years I’ve worked out how to keep it at bay, what products will cause a reaction, and what products will help to nourish my skin.

There are a few new additions to my skincare routine that have surprisingly not caused a reaction, and that I now can’t live without.

1.Medik8 Calmwise soothing cleanser: Whenever I have a flare up, or my skin is more red than usual, I use this to cleanse. It’s soothing, and calms down the redness almost immediately. It has mild cleansing agents in it so you feel properly clean after using it, without any irritation. One pump covers the whole face, and I use very slightly warm water (never hot, that just aggravates sensitive skin!)

2. Biossance oil: A new addition to my skincare collection. I LOVED oil for years. Nothing beats that feeling of lathering it all over your face and knowing you’ll wake up with drenched skin, rather than it feeling dehydrated. But so many oils I loved caused irritation, until I discovered this. It’s 100% squalene, so it’s plant based and doesn’t aggravate my skin at all. Super hydrating, and can also be used on your hair. Because facial oils tend to be occlusive (lock in the good stuff, block out the bad) I tend to put moisturiser on cleansed skin, then lock it in with oil on top.

3. Medik8 Crystal Retinal: This is the one that has surprised me the most. I always thought that retinol (with an ‘O’) was too harsh for sensitive skin, and then I learnt about retinal (with an “A”) which acts 11 times faster than retinol and has totally proved me wrong. I started on Retinal 1, and now have worked my way up to number 6. I know, I can’t believe it either!! It’s given me clearer, less congested skin, less defined wrinkles and more of a glow. I use it 3 times a week, on cleansed skin at night. It’s on the pricier side for skin care, but I don’t want to do anything cosmetic to my face as I want to grow old as naturally as possible (!) so I feel like it’s absolutely worth the investment as no other skin care ingredient will be as powerful. If my skin feels particularly tight or dry, I follow it with Medik8 Ultimate Recovery cream which is a rich & restorative moisturiser.

4. Bubble Tinted SPF: Bubble was a brand I haven’t paid much attention to because I thought it was more for my tween daughter than myself, but then I tested out their new mineral SPF and I’m sold. I use mineral SPF because it has zinc oxide, which can prevent skin from being irritated, and chemical SPFs have more chemicals in them which cause my skin to react. This one from Bubble is very lightly tinted so there is no need for make up as it blurs the skin ever so slightly, and doesn’t dry out throughout the day.