If You Have Dry & Sensitive Skin, This Cream will be Your New BFF

Every time I go for a facial, the therapist tells me that I have “dry, dehydrated skin”. Because dehydration can lead to premature ageing, you can bet good money on the fact that I have searched high and low for a cream that will help to address those concerns, but that won’t cause an oil slick or create breakouts. This is a tough brief. But I’m here today and happy to tell you that I’ve found a product that works wonderfully. So if you too battle with skin dryness, read on.

French brand Avène‘s Tolérance Extrême is the shiz. It’s for extremely sensitive and post-op skin and restores the skin’s barrier and reduces skin reactivity. It is a cosmetic industry first when it comes to 100% sterile skin care and is safe for all allergy-prone skin types. It’s also great for skin that is unable to tolerate ordinary products. It restores the skin’s barrier, decreases skin reactivity and helps prevent skin irritation and allergies. It is also formulated with only 10 ingredients for maximum tolerance, and is preservative-free, colourant-free and alcohol-free, 100% sterile, 100% pure, 100% safe, and is hypoallergenic and non-comedogenic.

I do prefer slightly more ‘natural’ products, so was a bit conflicted about using this cream. It contains Avène Thermal Spring Water to soothe and soften, glycerin (yikes), squalane to hydrate, paraffin (eeeek!), safflower oils and cyclomethicone to moisturise. I do however love the fact that it’s paraben- and fragrance-free, so props to Avène for that.

I really enjoy using it and apply it every morning after my Ren Omega 6 Night Repair (I use it in the mornings, not the evenings) and every night after my Lâncome Genifique serum.

The only annoying thing about this product is the packaging. It’s the first tube of cream I’ve ever seen packaged this way and, in my opinion, it just doesn’t work. When you flip open the cap, you need to squeeze the tube only to have a mechanism pop out through which the cream comes oozing out. Inevitably you always end up squeezing too hard because gentle pressure won’t suffice. With the right amount of squeezing comes the wrong amount of cream and I always end up having too much, which irritates me because it’s wasteful. Let’s not  even talk about how much product you end up wasting towards the end of the tube because of this design flaw. Avène, if you’re listening, change the packaging!!!

My skin feels soothed and hydrated since using this product, and a friend even described my skin as ‘breathtaking’ the other day, so something must be working. I love.

Available from Clicks for R299.95 for a 50 ml tube.