Body care products you might need (or not)

Self-care is ingrained in us (see Cleopatra and her milk baths, the Romans with their oils). The line between self-care and self-optimization is thin, though, and easy to cross. And, of course, the danger with self-optimization is that there’s no limit to it. There’s always room to be better, to look better, to be thinner, more sporty, a better wife, friend, mother. In the end, you’ll never be enough.

I love skincare. It’s as much as an intellectual challenge (chemistry and biology don’t come easily to me), as a daily ritual, and, of course, the possibility to connect with others. 

Recently, though, I started to look for more. I’ve done nails, makeup and skincare. I’m a well-known idiot when it comes to hair (I can’t even handle a curling iron), so all that’s left is – body care.

My routine

I delved into a whole new world, but for the first time in my beauty life, I was baffled. 

Admittedly, the skin on my body is usually low maintenance. I’ve to care for a spot of eczema, but all other parts? Easy peasy. I exfoliate whenever it crosses my mind, and I moisturise every time I take a shower or a bath. (Which is, I guess, already pretty diligent.) But then I realised that there’s actually body care products out there that include actives. Wondering, I perused websites, asking myself: do I need that? Should I use retinols and acids on my body, just as I use them on my face?

But then my face is a finicky little diva, prone to tantrums, and like every diva, hard to understand and even harder to please. 

Do you have specific body concerns?

Sure, if you’re suffering from Keratosis Pilaris (those annoying little bumps on your arms and thighs), an AHA moisturiser is a good idea (more on that at The Beauty Geeks). Bacne? A good body wash and moisturiser with salicylic acid might make a world of a difference. But “uneven skin tone and (…) skin feeling softer and looking firmer” (as per Paula’s Choice) or “improve the looks of scars, stretch marks, cellulite, dehydration, surface irregularities and discolouration” (as per Deciem) – I don’t know why, it just rubs my the wrong way.

Reader, weirdly, for the first time in my life – I walked away. I saw all the marketing language and their promises (and their fear inducing and shaming as well) – and turned away. Because I truly think I don’t need that, and maybe, maybe my skin could look better, but honestly? I absolutely and utterly do not care. 

How to adress skin concerns

I still love beauty and makeup, but this one instance? I honestly don’t give a fuck. And after being baffled for a bit, I find that truly liberating.

I can’t tell you today if it’s a good idea to use actives on your body if you don’t have any pressing skin concerns, as I had planned at first. Generally, I’d try to treat your body like your face: don’t go for harsh products with a lot of fragrance or alcohol, and I guess some good moisturising ingredients won’t go amiss. Ceramides? Sure! Peptides? Why not? Shea and almond oil? Hell yes.

The optimisation machine

But I still love a nice fragrance in my body lotion (although, as my personal concession, I now mix my Body Shop and Lush creams with Cerave and Paula’s Choice). I like my physical exfoliators as well. (After all, the skin on your body is thicker than on your face.) And if I need to finish an unloved serum, my body will get a dose of actives. I’m over 40 now, I have cellulite, and my décolletage starts to get a bit wrinkly. It deserves a bit of pampering, from time to time.

But I don’t feel the need to do more, you see: because I truly don’t see the need to optimise my skin.

Products featured in this post

Paula’s Choice Daily Replenishing Body Cream

My newest acquisition. I like it: it does all things a good body moisturiser should do. It moisturises, sinks in quickly and my skin doesn’t feel sticky, but soft after use. It promotes a lot of nice ingredients, like antioxidants, ceramides, and shea butter. (Here.)

Cerave Body Cream

Not as fancy as Paula’s Choice, this is a non-irritating, basic moisturiser with ceramides and hyaluronic acid. Again, I like to mix it with fragranced lotions for a bit of added goodness. It’s decent on it’s own, but I find the texture just a tiny little bit to sticky on its own. (Here.)

Eucerin 10% Urea Lotion

I use this one when my eczema bothers me, and it has served me well over the years. Urea has mild exfoliating and water-binding properties, and this also has some lactic acid and sodium lactate that serves the same purpose. This is why this is used on people with neurodermitis, psoriasis and other skin problems. It does calm itchy and dry skin, while it (very mildly) exfoliates, so that there’s no build up of flaky skin cells.  You can use this all-over, but it’s a little to rich for me to do so. (Here.)

Please note that this review is not sponsored in any way. We buy products ourselves, with our own money, and don’t accept exchanging goods, or money, for reviews. We are completely independent, and our reviews reflect that.