If you've ever dealt with any skin problems, you know how hard it can be. And if you ever had problems with atopic dermatitis, I feel you. You probably know that creams are practically the last and the first step when it comes to importance related to the overall issues. Creams can give you that initial protective barrier to keep your skin safe from environmental aggressors, but they are also the last step at maintaining all the good you did with lifestyle changes and still protect your skin with that first line defense. 

I have been testing some new creams that have quickly become my favorites, but instead of writing just one review, I decided to finally gather my favorite creams under one post as I think it would be more useful to a lot of you dealing with the same problems. 

This is one of the first creams I started using regularly after going off of corticosteroid creams. It has all the basics of a good cream - triglycerides, glycerin, niacinamide and oat extract. It has 95% naturally derived ingredients and is geared to those with dry and atopy prone skin. Oat extract is soothing and helps with irritation and niacinamide helps to restore skin barrier. 

Rich white cream has a very modern smooth texture which blends easily and absorbs fast, but still leaves that protective nourishing barrier on your skin that has a bit of sheen, but feels lightweight. It doesn't feel sticky or greasy at all. It is also fragrance free which is very important for atopic skin, as fragrances are often just irritating. 

200 ml costs around 18€ and you can get it in most pharmacies in Slovenia (online as well). You can also get it in online stores like Notino.

This was one of the creams that had very good reviews when I was browsing through this brand and most people loved it for atopic problems. It's mineral oil based (as are most emollient creams) and has shea butter right on top. There are more soothing and nourishing ingredients in it like glycerin, squalane, borage seed oil and centella asiatica. Squalane is very similar to natural oils in skin, glycerin is great for moisturizing, borage seed oil has the essential oils needed for skin barrier and centella asiatica is one of my favorite soothing and healing ingredients for irritated skin. It's nourishing, protective cream that soothes and brings long lasting comfort to the skin. 

This is another rich white cream which has that smooth silicon glide to it and is very easy to spread. It absorbs into the skin, but definitely leaves more of that shiny mineral oil layer on the skin that protects your natural barrier. It's a bit richer than A-Derma cream which I actually loved for this cold season. It sort of sticks on the skin longer and shinier finish makes drier parts of the skin look better, though it becomes less shiny with time. It all depends on which texture you prefer. It's lightweight, but gives you that nourishing soothing feel to the skin and doesn't feel sticky. It's also fragrance free. 

200 ml costs around 13€ and you can buy it in pharmacies, on Notino, Lookfantastic and Feelunique.

A-Derma and Uriage are your daily multi-use cream great for any part of your body to keep the skin moisturized, nourished, soothed and protected. Cicavit however, is for when I have either scratches or any open wounds. I also love to use this on blemishes, because it's my "fast healing" cream. This is treatment cream that repairs and soothes damaged and irritated skin. It contains shea butter, glycerin, polysaccharides and prebiotic sugar which essentially create protective film on the skin to prevent bacteria getting in and stimulate growth of bacteria that help heal the skin faster. 

It's rich and thick white cream which has that silicon glide to it, but it feels thicker than both previously mentioned creams. It also has that shiny protective layer on the skin. There is no added fragrance, but it gives soothing cool sensation to the skin. It stays on the skin well, so I prefer to use it at night, that's also when my skin has more time to heal without me disturbing it. For any wounds, cracks, redness, blemishes, scars this is great, because I notice my skin heals faster when I use this. 

100 ml costs around 15€ and you can get it pharmacies, on Notino, Lookfanastic and Feelunique. 

I've had atopic cream as well as a few mini testers to try from Skin Fairytale before and those I didn't like. Most creams felt too heavy and  didn't have as refined smooth texture as A-Derma and Uriage. But Zincbalm is an exception that I still keep in my stash. I love it for one reason only - dyshidrotic eczema. I have dyshidrotic eczema on my hands which is basically small blisters on the palms and fingers of my hands that are filled with fluid. Once they're full of fluid they are itchy and when they break, my skin cracks and stings. Zinc is one of those ingredients that is great for drying up fluid in them. You can find zinc in a lot of anti-acne products, especially those two phase ones that have zinc on the bottom and oil on top. 

Zincbalm is made of sunflower seed oil, zinc oxide, jojoba seed oil, rapeseed oil, mango butter, triglycerides and allantoin. It's a very natural vegan formulation without and fragrances or other unnecessary ingredients. It's thick, almost looks a bit clay like, white cream which you can spread with ease, but it doesn't really absorb in completely. It leaves white cast on the skin. If you don't know, zinc oxide is also used as SPF filter in sun screens which gives physical sunscreens that white cast look.  I use this almost only at night, because it's quite greasy and will transfer to any other surface I touch. But it definitely helps to dry out blisters full of fluid and it almost gives them that protective layer that doesn't overly dry out skin around them. It has herbal scent to it.

50 ml costs around 20€ and you get it on Skin Fairytale or Superskin.

This is sort of multi-use ointment for number of skin problems like dry patches, wounds, rashes and any other problem you may have with your skin. It's based on pro-vitamin B5 or dexpanthenol which is essentially helps to repair skin and sooth any sort of irritation. Other ingredients support it by keeping the skin moisturized and protected. 

This is the thickest cream out of all of these. It's white, greasy and sticky, not elegant formulation at all, but that is also its main advantage. I tend to use this when I have severely dry and dehydrated skin. This can be mixed with any other cream to give it that really thick occlusive layer on top of the skin that stays sticky right through the night and protects the skin from further drying out. It's also my main "lip mask" that I use every night to keep my lips from becoming dry or cracked. It's basically the only thing that helps me and prevents my lips from drying out. 

100 ml costs around 14€ and it lasts forever. You can get in pharmacies. 

These are just a few options of cream that I have in my stash and use. A-Derma and Uriage are my go to for daily maintenance. I have repurchase A-Derma several times and I think I will buy Uriage again, because it's actually a bit cheaper and I like the formula. I don't like the squeeze tube, because it's very hard to get out the last bit of product. On contrary, A-Derma has this pump system that actually sucks out every last bit of the products, which I love. I use these multiple times a day, mostly when I feel my hands are dry or when I wash them. I also use both of these on my back, where I have atopic dermatitis as well.

SVR Cicavit+, Skin Fairytale Zinbalm and Bepanthen Ointment are more for targeted use of specific problems, like dyshidrotic eczema blisters, faster healing and emollient nourishing protective layer. Most of these creams can also be used on babies and children.

Through the use of many creams I have found out that atopic skin likes anything that is more emollient, thicker in texture, as it stays on the skin longer and therefor protects it longer as well. You want to look for ingredients that moisturize, help protect your natural skin's barrier, soothe and nourish. Look for mineral oil, glycerin, allantoin, panthenol, ceramides, oat extracts, borage seed oil, centella asiatica, niacinamide and other similar ingredients. Avoid anything with fragrances.

For more advice on atopic skin check out Tixibeauty, Cosmedoc and Antiageanasan.