Face up to what creams work

OR a week in December, my skin looked amazing.

It was soft, supple and silky, thanks to the right make-up and moisturiser.

After several months of my skin feeling lumpy, prone to breakouts and reactive to different products, Giorgio Armani’s Maestro Fusion makeup, €45, left my skin looking like fine porcelain.

My skin is not usually like this, but I had hit on the right combination of products for my type and the moisturiser I was using (Olay Regenerist three- point treatment cream, €41.49) was working its magic.

If you want flawless skin, it’s essential that you start with a moisturiser suitable for your skin type. This isn’t an easy task.

Talking to female friends over the past month, many of them say they have not found the right moisturiser — even after 20 years of trying. Finding a brand to suit their skin seems to be an odyssey.

But it doesn’t have to be complicated.

Do you have sensitive skin? Look to brands such as La Roche Posay and Liz Earle.

Do you want an anti-ageing product? Olay and Boots No7 are likely to have the answers.

Do you want something ethical and organic? Try Voya, Elemental Herbology, The Organic Pharmacy, Neal’s Yard or Spiezia Organics.

Don’t be afraid to go beyond the brands that you normally see in department store beauty halls.

The online beauty market has come on leaps and bounds over the last ten years with an incredible array of products.

Beauty websites such as Lovelula.co.uk (for natural/organic), feelunique.com, and spakenk.co.uk are excellent places to go beauty hunting, while salons and spas stock great spa brands, such as Elemis, Ole Henricksen and the very excellent Decleor, among others.

Check with friends and do some research online. With so much at your fingertips, finding the perfect brand for you has never been easier.

The next thing to sort out is your skin type. If you’re feeling confused, Rona Berg, author of Beauty, the New Basics, has a great little trick: “Take a few pieces of tissue paper and press on different spots on your face,” she writes.

“If your skin is oily, the paper will stick, pick up oily bits and become translucent. If the paper doesn’t stick or pick up any oily spots, your skin is dry. If it sticks in your T-zone (forehead, nose and chin), then you have combination (or normal) skin. About 70% of women have combination skin.”

Women with dry skin tend to do worse in the cold, winter months, but you can also suffer if you have a combination skin type — where you just suffer from oily skin around the T-zone, and drier skin on the cheekbones.

Going for a richer cream can help enormously, and when the elements ease up come spring, move to a lighter lotion.

Stuff we like

* For sensitive skin: Sensitive skin tend to be dry but this is not always the case. Start with Liz Earle products. Made with the gentlest ingredients, the brand uses plant oils and extracts with excellent moisturisers. The Superskin, €42.50, is one of my favourites of all time. If you’re on a restricted budget, try Aveeno, ultra-calming daily moisturiser, €12.13.

* For dehydrated skin: Hydraphase intense riche, €22. This moisturiser contains hyaluronic acid fragraments (one of the most powerful moisture-infusing ingredients) and it locks in water (dehydrated skin lacks water; dry skin lacks oil). It’s paraben-free and has been rigorously tested, making it also perfect for sensitive skins, as with all La Roche Posay’s line. For a more affordable offering, try Simple kind-to-skin moisture boost hydro cream, €7.35.

* For dry skin: Nuxe Reve de Miel ultra comfortable face cream, €27.45. This is a perfect skin cream for winter — it has a real depth and leaves your skin feeling protected throughout the day. I love the substantial, creamy texture, the gentle scent and the effect that it had on my skin. A winner for January. Try Eucerin dry skin replenishing face cream, €6.12, at mccabespharmacy.com, for a more budget option.

* For oily skin: It can be tricky finding an oil-free moisturiser that doesn’t make the skin feel tight, but Dermalogica active moist lotion, €26.55, at skinsense.ie, has the answer. It’s a very lightweight formula, with silk amino acids and plant extracts, that feels comfortable on the skin.

* For combination skin: Clinique ’dramatically different’ for dry and combination, €42. This is a good choice for winter, as combination skin can get especially dry in places, owing to central heating, harsh winds and bitter cold. Clinique’s award-winning ‘dramatically’ is a classic — and for good reason. It works really well and it comes in a chunky, fairly priced bottle that lasts for ages. On a tighter budget? Try Nivea Visage ’pure and natural normal/combination skin’, €7.11.