My Skin Care Routine For Sensitive & Allergic Skin

Since having an allergic reaction to a Lush product (if you fancy finding out what happened, you can read that post here), my skin has been a mega sensitive mess, so I've had to be real careful with what I put on my face. Over the past few months I've developed a simple, stripped back, no faff skin care routine that my skin has been seriously loving.

Since adopting this routine I haven't had a rash or a flare up of itchy skin in a good while now so thought iId share with you guys my skincare must-haves... and if you have super sensitive and allergic skin like me, hopefully you'll discover a few products in this post that will work for you like they have for me (and clearly French skincare is the way to go! lol). I forgot to mention that my skincare routine is the same for both morning and night.

Whats my skin type? At the moment its a mixture of sensitive/allergic/dry and I do get the odd hormonal breakout, and sometimes I can get a bit of an oily forehead. Lets get in to my routine...

My ultimate ride or die cleanser is the Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micelle Solution.  Nothing compares to this baby. Its so cooling and calming on the skin and somehow manages to leave it feeling clean AND hydrated. I know they say to use a makeup remover and then go in with your cleanser, well I use this to take my makeup off and then to cleanse my skin and it works just fine for me.  I'm in love with my Bioderma and always have at least 2 backups in my collection. If you want to know the cotton pads I use, they're the Boots own double face oval cotton pads - they're my faves!

Once my face is feeling clean and fresh I like to apply my eye cream, I've been through a few but the No.7 Lift & Luminate Eye Cream (with SPF 15) is my current love. Its soothing, hydrating, hypoallergenic, which means it doesn't make my eyes water, and it has SPF in it - its the perfect all rounder if you ask me! I haven't noticed any drastic changes in my dark under eye circles but I'm hoping that by using an eye cream now it'll help with the eye wrinkles later in life.

After eye cream application I go in with my "treatment" step. Sometimes I get the odd hormonal breakout or my pores need a good seeing to, this is when I bring out the La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo [+] big guns! This is my little secret weapon I bring out when I feel like my skin isn't quiet behaving and needs to get back in line.  If I get a lil breakout on my skin or I've got a few pesky black heads or I feel like my pores are just getting out of control I put this on the areas that need attention and within a day or 2 my skin issues are sorted! I don't like to apply this all over the face just because it can dry my cheeks out a little, but it works wonders on my t-zone! I've recommended this to so many friends (so I guess its not really my secret lol) and they all love it too... I know this because I spy it on their bathroom shelves!

My current moisturiser love is the Eau Thermale Avene Tolerance Cream. It says "Rich Texture" but don't let that fool you - it has the perfect in-between texture, its not too light and its not too thick and oily, it manages to give my skin that perfect hit of hydration it needs. Its hypoallergenic and just so comforting and soothing on my skin. I'm all about the soothing! lol If you're struggling to find a good moisturiser, I'd start with this one. The only flaw though, it doesn't have SPF - this is where the next product comes in to play...

So ya'll know its not constantly sunny here in the UK, so when it is we like to spend as much time in the sun as possible! I can't put just any ol' SPF on my face as most of them tend to sting, so when we're off to the beach for the day I reach for the La Roche-Posay Anthelios XL 50+ suncream. This has a similar texture to the Avene Tolerance Cream, it doesn't irritate my skin, it doesn't block my pores and it makes my skin feel comfortable!  I would highly recommend this if you're going on your hols and are hunting for that perfect facial SPF, you cant get much better than 50+!

I don't tend to wear makeup everyday (maybe a bit of coverage under my eyes), but if my skin is breaking out due to "that time of the month" and I feel like I don't want to cover everything with a full face of makeup (because I'm just too lazy in the morning) but want something a bit lighter that still covers - I choose the La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo (+) Unifiant (in the shade Light).  I apply this after my moisturiser or my suncream (obvs I wouldn't apply this in the evening if i was just going to bed) and it really does help conceal the areas that I'm feeling uncomfortable or self-conscious about, it doesn't look cakey, and it blends in to the skin so easily. Its all the goodness of the Effaclar Duo [+] but with a hint of coverage, it helps treat the problem whilst covering the problem - whats not to love?! I've also applied makeup over the top of this and it works great as a primer too! If you love the Effaclar Duo [+] as much as I do, you'll defiantly want to add this to your collection!

A "sometimes" extra step: Sometimes if my skin is looking a bit lack lustre and needs a bit of exfoliation I'll use the Pixi Glow Tonic, I can only get away with using this once or twice a week max because it does dry my skin out, and I only use it when I feel my skin needs it.  I didn't include it in the main pic because I don't use it everyday/all the time.

If my breakouts are getting a bit too out of control (you know those painful spots that linger under the skin), I bring in the Origins Super Spot Remover, I apply a small amount of this where needed over the top of my La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo [+] - the pair together are like magic! Within a day or 2 the horrible spot(s) is gone! This does tingle slightly, but surely if you can feel it tingle on the skin it must be doing something right?

And finally, on to the mask section of my skincare routine.  I do love a good face mask! But who doesn't right? (FYI: All of these masks are suitable for sensitive skin) My top mask for hydration is the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask (how hasn't heard of this mask by now?!), this is an oldie but a goodie. It smells delicious and leaves my skin feeling plumped and hydrated - this is great to use when you're feeling hungover and your skin is looking the way you feel!

I don't really like to use scrubs on my face, so if my skin is looking a bit flaky-er than usual and needs a clear out I like to use the Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel Mask.  This does tingle ever so slightly when you first apply it, but its not painful or anything like that and does stop quite quickly. This is another product that smells amazing, very fruity (as the name of the product would suggest) and leaves my skin looking clear and feeling soft.

I also love using the GlamGlow YouthMud Treatment Mask when I want to give my skin a little treat but I'm not sure what mask to use. I did a pop up a review of this mask (you can read the full review here if you like) going on and on about how much I love it, so I won't go in to too much detail here, but not only does this give the skin that somethin somethin, its really firming too - an all rounder winner!

The last in my skin care amour is the Sephora Pearl Eye Masks - a pamper routine, isn't a pamper routine without an eye mask! They're quick, easy and this pearl one from Sephora really does work! It smells a little funky when you first get it out of the packet (maybe because it 's pearl?!) but this truly does brighten and tighten my under eye area - go check out my review here. You seriously need to put one (or more!) of these in your basket the next time you're making a Sephora order!

Aaand ramble over...breath! lol Sorry for the long one, I do love to talk about the products I love, but that really is everything I use in my simple, no-faff, everyday skin care routine. I think it's obvious that I love a good French skin care product and my La Roche-Posay products take pride of place! You just cant beat the quality for the price! 

I'm thinking about maybe writing up a post on my top products for sensitive skin - including body products. Its taken me ages to try and find a deodorant that doesn't make me want to tear my skin off and there are certain shower gels that are a no no  for me & I kinda wish there was a post out there listing some products for us sensitive skin gals - what do you think? xo