Fed-up with using hand creams that simply did nothing for very dry, sensitive skin, I decided I would have to pay more if I wanted a decent product. Unfortunately, many of the usual brands are just totally useless when you have skin allergies, and in the end, your skin ends up worse than it was before. In order to keep the cost of production down, the manufacturers of these products use cheap fillers that ultimately dry the skin out, and those of us with sensitive skin are left wondering why the more hand cream we apply, the drier our hands get!

Increasing the amount I was prepared to spend on hand cream by just a couple of pounds meant a wider choice of products, of course, but also that I could buy something more natural. Disappointed to find that the item I wanted was out of stock, I was told by the assistant that Lavera would be his second choice. At £5.95 for 125ml, it's more expensive than something like Nivea, for example, but then, I already knew I had problems with most of the widely-used brands, and compared to many natural and/or organic alternatives, it's still reasonably priced.

The pale blue and white tube is very simple and plain, which you often find with natural products, and this does a good job of reflecting the relative purity of the product inside. A quick read of the ingredients reassured me that this wasn't something that was likely to irritate my hands. The product is also vegan, which is a huge bonus.

The first thing I noticed about the product itself was the smell. It's so nice I keep sniffing it, but it seems that you can't smell it properly just by opening the tube; you actually need to apply some. It's very difficult to describe the smell, but the ingredients include shea butter, soybean oil, jojoba seed oil, sweet almond oil, calendula officinalis flower extract and some natural essential oils. It's a very natural scent, which is in no way overpowering, and is a pleasant surprise every time you use the product.

One concern I had, given the extreme dryness I was tackling, was that this cream isn't particularly thick compared to some, and doesn't seem to be all that rich. However, after using it for just a few days, my hands are softer and much less dry than they were. I would imagine this is thanks to the natural oils this product contains, and I certainly haven't experienced any kind of reaction to it so far. For just a few days use, the result is impressive, and since the product is thinner than previous ones I have used, it goes further, which means better value for money.

This cream is not at all greasy, yet it really feels as though it's hydrating the skin. If you have dry skin that's also sensitive to chemicals, but don't want to spend a fortune, Lavera is certainly a good choice.