The Skin Nerd: loving the skin you’re in
Jennifer Rock aka the Skin Nerd.
If Jennifer Rock, aka The Skin Nerd, was ever to go on Desert Island Discs, there is no question what her desert island necessity would be—it’s got to be SPF. And not just on a sunny desert island either. Newsflash—it’s an everyday essential and “the best thing you can do for your skin”, even as we head towards an Irish winter.
However, the state of our skin isn’t just a result of what we put on it, and Jennifer’s new book, “The Skin Nerd Philosophy" delves into everything that she believes is relevant to the full picture of our skin health—from diet and exercise to the emerging field of psychodermatology (a relatively new discipline which looks at the interaction between the mind and the skin, aiming to treat skin disorders using psychological and psychiatric techniques).
Psychodermatology is something Jennifer believes we’re going to hear a lot more about in the coming years as people begin to take a more holistic view of their overall health, and its relationship to our mental health and this trend trickles down into the beauty world.
Being, famously, a complete skincare nerd, Rock is hungry to continuously investigate the latest information and science around skincare, and gathered around her a coterie of experts in complementary fields, who have contributed their wisdom to this new book.
“Something I feel so strongly about, that I don’t think is represented, is the need for a multi-disciplinary approach towards skincare,” she says. “There are many different professions in the sector; so I aligned myself with those I would see as the elite within each of their professions and interviewed them for this book.”
Whereas the bestselling first book, “The Skin Nerd”, was billed as a beginner’s guide to skincare, covering all the fundamentals, “The Skin Nerd Philosophy" is more like the advanced class. “This book is our DNA, it’s bringing all our philosophies to life,” says Rock. She intends it as a reference book above all, something to dip into when you need answers.
“By and large this book is for anybody that is interested in skin but wants to go that little bit deeper,” she says. “You’ll be able to create a personal action plan for your own skin. You should, by the end of this, know a lot about the sector, a lot about practitioners’ qualifications, a lot about how to identify different conditions on your own skin.”
Many of the questions have come directly from clients, in fact, that was the inspiration behind it. The frequently asked questions (FAQs) were compiled from messages from the 15,000-strong Nerd Network (subscribers to tailored skincare plans), and over 124,000 Instagram followers. “Our interaction through direct messages (DMs) in particular has escalated to the point where I’ve recruited people whose full-time job it is to reply to queries via DM,” says Rock.
Aside from FAQs—such as: How do I get rid of spots fast? Why does my skin look different when I’m hungover? How do you choose a good Botox doctor?—there is also a ‘True or False’ section aimed at cutting through some of the commonest misconceptions around skincare, a sector that is rife with ‘fake news’. Can you exfoliate away keratosis pilaris? (No.) Is toner absolutely necessary? (No again.) Are age spots caused by ageing? (Spoiler alert! No.)
Rock is gratified to see that the bestselling products from the many ranges stocked on the Skin Nerd online shop correspond to the messages she most passionately wants to get across:
“Interestingly SPF is always our bestseller and we’re proud to say that because, for me, you can use eye cream, you can sheet mask, you can spritz until the cows come home, but if you aren’t cleansing hygienically or if you’re not protecting with your SPF, then you’re not really giving the skin the protection or the care that it deserves as the organ that it is.
“It’s our job to educate you about what to do and what not to do,” Rock continues. “It’s not to take away what you’re currently using, because my job isn’t to make you fall in love with my brand only. I think that’s what allows us to build up so much trust, that we’re not so biased towards our own brand, that we do recommend others as well.”
As the seasons change, Rock looks forward to changing up her own skincare routine and upping the ante on retinol and acids which can sensitise the skin to sunlight, and are best used with caution (and lots of SPF!) in summer months. However, in line with her belief in a holistic approach, her secret skin weapon for winter is adding more foods containing Omega fatty acids to her diet.
“I really believe in an ‘inside, outside, on top’ philosophy. You can’t just depend on your outside skincare. You have to look at your diet, stress, even your breathing. There’s a huge connection, in my opinion between stress and the brain and the gut. Everything that happens inside does have an impact on the skin on the outside.”
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