Dealing with difficult, dry skin

Okay, so I’m super excited to have my sister write a guest post for my blog! My sister is my best friend, my soulmate and my inspiration. I’m honestly so happy to have her write a post for my site.

She has the complete opposite skin type to me – I’ve got oily skin and she has dry and sensitive skin – so her knowledge on skincare offers a fresh, new perspective for my blog. I love it when people with a different skype to me offer to write a guest post for my site, as it’s an area that I can never cover myself.

It turns out my sister’s writing is also actually better than mine, which I’m kinda mad about because I write for a living. But, hey, it just means my blog now has an awesome post from my even more incredible sister!

I hope you enjoy the post and learn about some fab products for dry and sensitive skin.

So let me introduce myself first of all. I’m Charlotte, Sarah’s younger sister. I love her blog so much and I’ve been dying for a chance to finally be a part of it and hopefully to contribute something different.

I’m a 20-year-old French student and just like my sister, I am also interested (maybe even too much) in all things lifestyle and beauty. I guess I must have caught the bug from my glamorous, older sister.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had really troublesome skin. A challenging mix of dry skin which is also very sensitive, I’ve had a lot of tears over how to not only make my skin look good, but also how to make it feel hydrated and comfortable. After years and years of trials and tribulations, I have finally found some great routines and products that work for me.

Personally, the most important thing to tackle with dry and sensitive skin is the way it feels physically, as we should all feel good in our own skin – literally!

Oftentimes, my skin is very painful and feels very tight, especially in the winter with all of the central heating or if I use products that are too harsh. The best method to keep this at bay for me is to use as few products on my skin as possible.

I try to avoid heavy exfoliators or high-chemical facial washes. Mostly, I wash my face with just water, but three times a week, I will use a gentle face wash designed for sensitive skin.

I think the Boots Cucumber Facial Wash is a great option. It’s suitable for all skin types but it isn’t too heavy duty, so for dry skin, it doesn’t strip away much moisture while still making my face feel really clean. At £1.50 in Boots stores, it is hard to say no to!

Any time I use water on my skin, I without fail follow up with using a moisturiser. After patting (not rubbing) my skin dry with a clean towel, I will either use a cream or gel moisturiser, or oil, depending on the time of year and the state of my skin.

If my skin is doing pretty well for once, I like to use a gel moisturiser as they are lighter on the skin and leave a really nice dewy finish that is great under makeup, or just as it is.

If my skin is at its norm, I like to use a cream moisturiser. These are more heavy-duty and are especially good at reducing irritation of the skin too. Oils are great for adding lots of moisture to the skin. However sometimes they don’t penetrate the skin so easily, so you can use a thin layer of cream moisturiser and then add oil.

One thing I tend to find with oils is that they can make your makeup not last so well throughout the day, so try to let them soak in for as long as possible before applying makeup.

My favourite gel moisturiser is Sephora’s own Rose Moisturizing Cream.

You can buy this at Sephora, where I spent a lot of time on my year abroad in France, or online on Amazon for around £11. Even though it’s called a cream, the texture and look are much more like a gel.

For cream moisturisers, I am in love with Kiehl’s best-selling Ultra Facial Cream, available at Debenhams for £24.50 – totally worth the price.

And finally, I love Bio-Oil for a really intense moisture boost. It’s really gentle for the skin and also reduces blemishes, redness and scarring. You can find it at Boots, starting at £9.99 depending on the size.

I hope some of these products or suggestions can help anyone else out there who also struggles with a similar problem. If you have any other life-saving products or routines for dry skin, please drop me a message in the comment section!

I’ve actually used the Boots Cucumber Facial Wash myself and it’s lovely, very lightweight, while effectively cleansing your face and leaving it feeling refreshed. It’s so cheap and it’s a great everyday face wash for any skin type.

I can also 1000% vouch for the benefits of Bio-Oil to my sister’s skin over the years, it’s really helped nourish her skin and reduce any redness she might have.

Charlotte has the nicest-looking skin ever (I say ‘looking’ because I know it can be very problematic for her), so for people with dry or sensitive skin, I’d listen to her every word. I’m pretty jealous actually lol.

Thanks so much for this post Charl!

Sarah Sarsby is the owner of A Woman's Confidence. With over 6 years' experience of writing in the fields of beauty and lifestyle, Sarah is passionate about all things content, makeup, skincare, wellness, and lifestyle. She has oily skin, is obsessed with lip gloss, and loves cookie dough.