Sensitive skin: the routine & tips that change everything

Are you looking for organic cosmetics that are right for your skin? Discover our article dedicated to sensitive and reactive skin: we share with you all the keys to recognize truly sensitive skin, the good gestures to take care of it without aggressing it, and a selection of the most gentle green beauty products to pamper it!

In this section you will find:

Click on the part that interests you to access it directly!

I SHOP THE BEST ORGANIC SKINCARE FOR SENSITIVE SKIN

Do you really have sensitive skin?

More and more of you are convinced of having sensitive skin, but is this really true? What is sensitive skin?

Not to be confused with a cosmetic allergy or a temporary reaction, sensitive skin is a permanent state of skin that has specific characteristics: redness, tightness, tingling, discomfort, feeling of heat ...

Often fair and thin, it is a skin type that reacts excessively to external aggressions (sun, cold, wind, pollution), but also stress and emotions, hormonal change, cosmetics ...

At the border of atopic skin, sensitive skin has a very low threshold of tolerance, and a greater tendency to develop eczema, rosacea, rosacea, orpsoriasis.

6 tips to recognize sensitive skin

I have sensitive skin if: 

• I have redness 
  

• I often feel tingling, tugging, itching

• My skin strongly reacts to changes in temperatures, cold, wind...

• My skin strongly reacts to stress, emotions, and hormonal upheavals

• I easily burn in the sun

• I have a hard time finding cosmetics that my skin tolerates

Sensitive skin and dry skin, same struggle?

Careful, sensitive skin is a skin condition and not a skin type. Contrary to popular belief, sensitive skin does not necessarily mean dry skin, it is possible to have both combination and sensitive skin.

To find skincare products suitable for your sensitive skin you will have first to determine your skin type (dry, combination or oily), in order to avoid cosmetics that are too rich and not adapted.

Why do I have sensitive skin?

Sensitive skin is often hereditary, but it can also be linked to the environment, stress, the use of unsuitable or overly aggressive cosmetics…
It is characterized by an alteration in the barrier function, which prevents the skin from being properly protected from attack and helps the penetration of irritating factors.
At the heart of sensitivity: inflammation, which we seek to soothe by all means. But be careful of what you do ...

Sensitive skin: 5 mistakes to avoid

Are you doing the right things to take care of your sensitive skin? Discover the most common mistakes and our solutions

• Rinse your face with tap water: Hard water is the enemy of sensitive skin! Often the cause of tightness, dryness, and itching, limescale can weaken the epidermis and accentuate skin sensitivity and redness. 
  
  Our advice: Replace tap water with thermal water or floral water. Take the test at least over a week to banish hard water completely from your routine and see for yourself :)

• Micellar water, a fake friend of sensitive skin: Too often people who have sensitive skin have the reflex to wash it with a cotton pad soaked in micellar water, in order to avoid rinsing the face with water.
  The problem? Micellar water contains micelles, small cleansing particles which are surfactants and shouldn't remain on the skin. It must be rinsed off, at the risk of weakening and permanently irritating the skin.
  
  If you absolutely want to keep micellar water, choose organic preferably to avoid the most aggressive chemical surfactants, and do not skip rinsing, with thermal or floral water.

• The friction of cotton: a daily gesture that tends to irritate the most sensitive skin.
  
  Our advice: Replace your discs of disposable cotton with reusable squares, softer for the planet and for your skin. Our favorites for sensitive skinare those made from eucalyptus;) Cotton muslin is also ideal for rinsing off your makeup removal

• Really hot water: the heat is bad for blood circulation and tends to dry out and accentuate the redness of sensitive skin.
  
  Our advice: avoid too hot and too long showers, and do not hesitate to leave a mask with honey on your skin during the shower or bath to keep it protected. 

• Changing your routine constantly: this is not generally recommended, and even less when you have sensitive and reactive skin! If your skin has finally found treatments that it tolerates, you might as well avoid destabilizing it again.
  
  Our advice: Adopt a routine as minimalist as possible, and change it only every 3 months at the earliest.
  
  

How to choose cosmetics for your sensitive skin?

Finding beauty products that suit sensitive skin is often a complicated path ... Generally, it is preferable to avoid irritating chemical ingredients as much as possible, so it is better to use organic and natural cosmetics.
But beware, not all organic cosmetics are suitable for sensitive skin! To avoid missteps, follow the guide.

We avoid: 

• alcohol (drying)
• perfumes (sensitizers)
• surfactants and sulfates (to strippers)
• too abrasive grain scrubs
• peels and acid-based treatments
  
  

Should you avoid essential oils?

Be careful about essential oils, which can sometimes sensitize the skin.
Favor treatments formulated without essential oils, low doses, or based on synergies of specific essential oils to soothe sensitive skin.

The rule to follow? Less is more! The ideal is to stick to a routine as minimalist as possible, with some "safe value" products with short and clean compositions.
Not multiplying the stages of care, brands and different ingredients allows the limitation of skin reactions risk.
Choose hypoallergenic and gentle formulas, as natural as possible.

7 natural active ingredients that save sensitive skin

We bet on anti-inflammatory and anti-redness active ingredients for soothed skin

• Calendula, the star of sensitive skin. Known for its calming, antiseptic, and healing action, it helps relieve and heal irritated skin.

• Niacinamide, also called vitamin B3 or PP, treats many skin conditions while having the advantage of being less irritating than retinol and more stable than vitamin C. Niacinamide is known to reduce sensitivities and redness and improve skin texture, it will be ideal for sensitive skin prone to imperfections and irregularities.

• Probiotics, these living micro-organisms naturally present in our body can be qualified as "good bacteria", which contribute to the health of the skin. They help to restore its balance and strengthen the skin barrier to protect the skin from external aggressions that weaken it.

• Blue tansy or annual tansy is an excellent anti-inflammatory that soothes irritated skin and relaxes the mind thanks to its calming properties. It helps to combat stress and anxiety and promotes relaxation.

• Donkey female milk, a treasure of sweetness with a composition close to that of human breast milk, is ideal for caring for the fragile skin of babies but not only! Rich in minerals, vitamins, and trace elements, it softens the skin, relieves irritation, and helps the skin to regenerate.
  
  
• Aloe vera, a must-have for all skin types. Known for its moisturizing, soothing, and healing benefits, it is an antibacterial and antiseptic that effectively treats inflammation and stimulates cell renewal. Ideal for soothing a sunburn!
  
  
• Camomille has always been appreciated for its soothing and anti-inflammatory properties which make it the ally of sensitive and allergic skin.
  
  
• Oat, known to soothe reactive skin, improve the appearance of damaged skin and protect it from environmental factors.
  
  

There are many others, such as all marine active ingredients in particular, and ingredients with venotonic properties that stimulate blood circulation to reduce redness (this is the case, for example, of the artichoke or buckwheat used in Nominoe care) 

Which clay for sensitive skin?

white clay and pink clay would be ideal for sensitive skin. Be careful not to let your clay masks dry on the skin, you must keep them moist by spraying a lotion, thermal water, or hydrosol to take advantage of all the effects and not dry the skin.

Which oil for sensitive skin?

Among the best vegetable oils for sensitive skin we can find:

• hemp oil

• sweet almond oil

• camelina oil 

• avocado oil

• jojoba oil

• borage oil

• apricot oil

Always choose your vegetable oil according to your skin type, in case of combination to oily skin be sure to select a non-comedogenic oil.

Which hydrosol for sensitive skin?

We recommend rose water, orange blossom, lavender, or chamomile.

Sensitive skin routine: simple, effective, and organic

We share with you our perfect routine for sensitive skin, you can modulate it according to your skin type.

How to clean sensitive skin?

Exit micellar water and aggressive surfactants, in the evening we opted for the double cleansing with an oil followed by an ultra-gentle cleanserfor perfectly clean and soothed skin.
The oil, balm, cream, and milk textures will be ideal for dissolving makeup, pollution residues, and impurities while restoring the hydrolipidic film.

Rather than rinsing with tap water, we use a eucalyptus makeup remover or a muslin soaked in alcohol-free floral water such as rose hydrosol, orange blossom, or lavender.

In the morning no need for a cleanser, we just pass a square of eucalyptus soaked in floral water to gently purify.

Which serum for sensitive skin?

If sensitive skin tends to restrict itself to a minimum of care, the serum is far from being superfluous! Concentrated in active ingredients, it is a real ally in treating inflammation and redness. With probiotics, niacinamide, adaptogens, chamomile...the serum boosts the effectiveness of your routine. One thinks in particular of the serum CA + C Odacité.

Which sensitive skin organic cream to choose?

We always choose our moisturizer according to our skin type:

Combination to oily skin? Pai Skincare's The Pioneer cream or the Nominoe Moisturising Fluid Face Creamwill be ideal.

Dry skin? Choose Josh Rosebrook's Vital Balm Cream, Mukti's Marigold Hydrating Creme or On The Wild Side's Day Cream, without essential oils.

In the evening, swap your cream for an organic face oil or a soothing balm full of anti-inflammatory active ingredients, to regenerate and calm redness during the night.
The goal is not to shine brightly, 3 drops of oil or the equivalent of half a pea of ​​balm are enough. You moisten your skin beforehand with its hydrosol for optimal penetration.

Exfoliation, the enemy of sensitive skin?

exfoliation is often feared by sensitive skin. Between too abrasive grain scrubs and sensitizing chemical peels, hard to find happiness ...
The solution? Favor gentle enzymatic scrubs without grains, scrubs made from jojoba pearls that do not irritate the skin or konjac sponge.
In any case, one exfoliation per week is enough, followed by a soothing mask.

What organic mask for sensitive skin?

You can offer a mask to your skin from time to time when it needs it.
We avoid peels, over-drying purifying masks…
We adopt honey masks which have the advantage of cleaning the skin while moisturizing it, ultra comforting cocooning masks.

A dietary supplement for sensitive skin

Because sensitive skin cannot apply any care to their reactive skin, what better than to treat its concerns with a food supplement that acts directly inside? The dietary Atelier Nubiosupplement "We want... Rose petal skin" rebalances and soothes the skin thanks to its formula based on detoxifying active ingredients. Ideal for combination to oily skin, prone to imperfections, it hydrates, softens and illuminates the skin while respecting its balance.

Which makeup for sensitive skin

100% natural mineral foundation is ideal for sensitive skin, with a minimalist and hypoallergenic composition that lets the skin breathe.
This type of foundation is particularly suitable for combination, oily and acne-prone skin because it helps to control shine and imperfections thanks to the presence of antibacterial zinc.

To neutralize redness, use a green concealer locally before applying your foundation.

Do you have dry skin and you can't stand powder textures? Instead, choose a creamy organic foundation like Kjaer Weis. Its modular coverage makes it possible to hide redness and imperfections perfectly.

To not accentuate the redness, avoid blushes that are too pink and choose a peach shade or with brown shades. Prefer cream textures if your skin is dry, and powder textures if you have a combination of oily skin.
If your redness is very marked, you can also do without blush and replace it with a bronzer for a healthy glow effect.

More beauty tips:

I have dehydrated skin: what can I do? 

Taking care of my mature skin

Dry skin: how to pamper it?

MonCornerb beauty ritual 

Our solutions anti blackheads and large pores