Very dry and sensitive skin: need moisterizer reccomendation

[Blueberry]

Has anybody tried bulk ordering shea butter from a soap supply place? Somewhere like Snowdrift Farm (no connection, never ordered from them). Doesn't look like you have to be a re-seller to order. Just an idea

Otherwise - it's hard. Shea works best for me. But I still have dry spots on my finger tips.

[SadieKate]

Yeah, it's a veterinary cream but it's fabulous for hands and feet. I use it intensively for flyfishing trips and my hands will be in better shape than when I started the trip. Think about it - a week of wet hands in the wind and cold. There's isn't much more challenging conditions (unless you add freezing temperatures also and even then it works).

http://www.horsemansdream.com/products/vetcream.html


I swear by the stuff and have converted many a flyfishing guide who gets cracked hands.

[badger]

Has anybody tried bulk ordering shea butter from a soap supply place? Somewhere like Snowdrift Farm (no connection, never ordered from them). Doesn't look like you have to be a re-seller to order. Just an idea

Otherwise - it's hard. Shea works best for me. But I still have dry spots on my finger tips.

I bought on two separate occasions pure, unrefined, fair-trade shea butter online. One from ebay (it was actually a mix of eastern and western shea butter, very nice), and another from a direct wholesaler in England. I've been very happy with both products, and MUCH cheaper than buying retail. I got half a pound for $20 for the ebay one, and a smaller quantity, but one that's lasted me more than a year from the second supplier for about $10. Let me see if I can send you a link http://www.sliceofnature.com/.

I've been using shea butter around the sensitive skin around my eyes for over 10 years now, and I swear that's my secret to not looking my age.

I also use jojoba oil and coconut oil. I try to avoid prepared lotions, but for the really cold days where my hands feel like they're sandpaper, I use Uremol20. I find urea to moisturize like nothing else, but if you're overly sensitive, it might burn for a bit.

[deeaimond]

I've been using shea butter around the sensitive skin around my eyes for over 10 years now, and I swear that's my secret to not looking my age.

I also use jojoba oil and coconut oil. I try to avoid prepared lotions, but for the really cold days where my hands feel like they're sandpaper, I use Uremol20. I find urea to moisturize like nothing else, but if you're overly sensitive, it might burn for a bit.

wow. i never thought of that, but i don't have wrinkles ard my eyes yet so...

yup i have thought of buying shea butter in bulk online, but then i've only ever used the pure unrefined stuff that bf's mother gets in ghana. I think i will scout around online, but then i think i will also need to find a supplier who'll ship to Singapore. thats gonna be the expensive part. But bf's going back to ghana in jan, so maybe i'll ask him to get me some and post it to me... I'm more worried about the source, coz sometimes they're chemically treated, then it changes the quality of the shea butter. I will check out the source that you linked

I also use jojoba oil as a night moisturiser! its the only thing i've tried that doesnt break me out hugely.

my skin has been super dry since i got here (new york) so i use the clinique moisture surge, topped with jojoba oil. my face skin does not hurt anymore.

[badger]

wow. i never thought of that, but i don't have wrinkles ard my eyes yet so...

neither do I! best time to start using is BEFORE you get wrinkles. That's the whole idea of prevention. I started when I was 25, and 13 years later I'm proud to say I don't look my age.

[NbyNW]

+1 on Aveeno lotion and the shower & bath oil

Lubriderm and Eucerin are also good, but I have found the Eucerin to be a bit oilier.

I've been trying out Bag Balm for my chapped hands -- it has the consistency of vaseline when you're rubbing it on, but it absorbs into the skin really nicely and leaves a very thin waxy (not greasy) coat on the skin -- I guess that's the lanolin working.

[snowroo]

It's really important to cream within a minute of coming out of the shower. You might even consider a dollop of olive oil in a bath soak. Makes for a messy tub but it works well.

+1 on the humidifier

if your skin has split, you may be suseptible to bacteria getting in there which makes your skin hard to heal. Make sure you wash your hands BEFORE dipping them into a tub of cream. Alternatively, use a clean popsicle stick to get it out.

Don't use overly hot water when you bathe.

M

[VeloVT]

Plain old Nivea cream (the kind that comes in a tub, not a bottle) is great for very dry body skin. The key is to put it on every day right after you shower.

I've used small amounts of aquaphor on, of all place, my eyelids, before -- when I've restarted Retin-A after some time off and my skin goes crazy flaky for a few weeks.

[shootingstar]

Don't use overly hot water when you bathe.

M

THis is true to prevent drying out one's skin. I like my showers a little more than just lukewarm/warm.

[KnottedYet]

Has anybody tried bulk ordering shea butter from a soap supply place? Somewhere like Snowdrift Farm (no connection, never ordered from them). Doesn't look like you have to be a re-seller to order. Just an idea

Otherwise - it's hard. Shea works best for me. But I still have dry spots on my finger tips.

I get my shea butter from Alaffia: http://www.alaffia.com/
It's a local company that gets their shea butter from the owner's home village/region. They do a lot to support folks there, including shipping a container of bikes there every year.

[zoom-zoom]

Another thing to consider is running a big humidifier in your home. We have one that can spit out 6-7 gallons of water/day when it's really cold and our heat is running a lot. It makes such a difference in my skin.

[snapdragen]

Jojoba oil is supposed to be very good; I've never tried it. I have very dry skin too, I use Johnson's 24 Hour Moisture on my arms and legs, Aveeno for sensitive skin on my face. The Badger Balm people make some body butters that work well, although they can feel a bit greasy. I use Badger's Cuticle Balm on my nails and cuticles.

For hands I have a couple of different ones -- Philosophy Handmade ($$$ and it no longer comes in the big jar ) and Neutrogena's Norwegian Formula.

I have mild psoriasis on my elbows, when it acts up I slather on Gold Bond Ultimate Healing.

[badger]

I dug this thread up because in another forum that I go to, there was a thread on washing without soap. Yes, without soap.

I stopped washing my nether regions with soap some time ago. And once upon a time in university, this girl on the next floor up never washed her face with soap, just with water and she had great skin. Unfortunately that experiment went bust after a few days when I started breaking out like there was no tomorrow.

So I'm not completely blown away by the concept of no soap.

I stopped using soap on my legs and arms last week (do we really need soap on our legs and arms? especially in the winter??) I've also stopped using moisturizer on my legs, and guess what? My legs are not flakey like they would if I soaped and didn't moisturize. I still feel the need to soap my armpits, though...

I doubt I'll ever go without shampoo, though. Some people are able to, but I have a feeling I'll be very greasy and miserable.

[shootingstar]

Probably alot less soap needed on legs and arms

Depending where I cycle in shorts season, it interesting that leg skin can have a fine layer of dust, sand when one goes for a few hrs. and rack up mileage on paved roads. Hence, I would need soap to remove the grit properly..

Really do need on soap on face and shampoo in hair even at this point in life. These areas probably have 40% less oil than when I was a teen.

oh well. At least my hair has a natural gleam. I rarely use hair conditioners at my age still. Useless. When I do, it feels heavy and dead.

I do not have the problem of dried out hair yet...and I wash my hair daily. Still. But then my hair has not been chemically treated with any colouring agents nor perm solutions.

[ny biker]

I use soap on the sweaty parts. For my face I use Cetaphil at night and just rinse with water in the morning.

I only use soap on arms and legs if I have to wash off sunscreen, grease, etc. or if I'm washing out a cut.

I still need moisturizer in the winter.