Want to know what’s hot right now in beauty products for pregnancy? We have a guest post from Sarah Powell of Parentdish, who is currently just over 22 weeks pregnant and sharing her expertise.
There are so many great perks to being pregnant, I’ve discovered – seats on buses, partners who take to hoovering, an excuse to eat pies, oh and a baby at the end of it!
Another bonus is the chance to go beauty shopping for lovely new stuff especially suited to mums-to-be and new mums.
What makes a product suitable for mums-to-be? Well, a few things. Firstly, in my opinion, it will be free from potentially harmful chemicals and is possibly even organic. You’re ridding your diet of nasties so why still slap them on your face and body? Your skin is your biggest organ after all.
Secondly, these products can be more gentle and nourishing to account for the fact that skin during and post pregnancy can often be more sensitive, and certainly needs extra feeding on those parts that are doing a lot of stretching – bump and boobs basically.
Finally, it’s a suitable beauty product for a mum-to-be if it’s really treaty and makes you feel gorgeous. Pregnancy and childbirth is no walk in the park, and if a fabulously girlie bit of pampering makes you feel better for half an hour I say go for it! Here are my top five suggestions:
1. Pai Chamomile & Rosehip Organic Moisturiser for Sensitive Skin, £22
It’s common for women to develop sensitive skin during and post pregnancy. Mine has definitely become more prone to spots, random rashes and redness.
I asked my friend Sarah Brown, founder of Pai, the award-winning natural skincare products, for advice on the best moisturiser to use as mine began to make my skin itch. Sarah recommended Pai’s Chamomile & Rosehip Cream. Apparently, chamomile contains azulene, a natural anti-inflammatory which can help soothe away redness. Rosehip is also a skin healer and regenerator, and works to strengthen the skin making it more resistant to flare-ups.
I’ve been using the cream for about a month, instead of my usual moisturiser, and as well as feeling very pampered each day my skin has definitely calmed.
Sarah offers a free personalised Q&A service. Visit the Pai website here to ask a question.
2. Dr Alkaitis Organic Nourishing Treatment Oil, £58.75
Have a go at warding off the dreaded stretch marks with this king of oils and celebrity favourite.
It’s my personal choice, and so far no marks. Instead I have a tummy more nourished on the outside than the inside most days! The key ingredients are Virgin cold-pressed organic oils (organic jojoba, St.John’s Wort and Andean mountain rose hip seed oils), Indian madder, country sarsaparilla, Amazon root and liquorice and turmeric.
If it’s out of your price range, you could try Cowshed’s Udderly Gorgeous Stretch Mark Oil instead, currently available at BigGreenSmile for £18. It contains sea buckthorn oil, an emollient packed with vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids to pamper and protect the skin. It contains no nasties.
3. Suki Exfoliate Cleanser, £28.35
A quick check with my pregnant friends and a good handful of us confirm that drier, more grainy-feeling skin is appearing on various body parts. For me it’s my back and shoulders. Blissfully smooth before, since getting pregnant my skin seems to be finding it harder to regenerate itself.
I’ve come up with a great solution – dollops of Suki Exfoliate Cleanser massaged in by my surprisingly adept partner, while in a lovely warm bath. It’s blissful, honestly.
Suki is available at organic and natural beauty store Content. Buy online, or for a real treat, pop into their gorgeous West London boutique to experience Content’s infamously lovely customer service.
4. Abhana Bath Foam, £20
Another great product that I can personally vouch for. I’m finding that the most comfortable, relaxing and regenerating place for me to be right now is my bath, and this bath foam makes the experience feel like a mini spa holiday.
Abhana prides itself on understanding the “ceremony of bathing”, and I’d have to agree they do. The whole process feels utterly indulgent and rewarding.
The gorgeously feminine packaging alone gives me a psychological boost at the end of a hard day at the office. Plus, I find the foam is richer, the scent so lovely (I use the Frangipani and Orange Blossom one) and the effect softly moisturising.
It’s so relaxing it’s a shame you can’t pop this stuff in the birthing pool. Labour pains? Pah!
5. Frais Hand Sanitizer, £6.50 
I don’t know about you, but I’m hyper-aware of swine flu at the moment, and have turned into a bit of a clean freak. Another friend of mine (I have useful friends!), Alexa Inge of CultBeauty, the beauty webstore of choice amongst beauty industry experts, recommended Frais Hand Sanitizer.
I carry Frais in my bag at all times now, and pop it on at regular intervals – no water needed. It’s my product of choice because it contains none of the harsh chemicals in run-of-the-mill sanitizers. According to the blurb, it contains 66% natural alcohol that (according to the Centre for Disease control and The Mayo Clinic) kills 99.9% of germs encountered in everyday life, including influenza, the common cold, MRSA and many others. It also contains eight essential oils and doesn’t leave my hands feeling tight and itchy.
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