Foundation/make-up makes my lips sore! Anyone else have this?

[StarsAreShining]

Title pretty much sums it up. Eye make-up (particularly mascara) makes my eyes bloodshot, whether hypoallergenic or not. Foundation or concealer etc makes my lips swollen, very red and sore. Takes a few days to recover. I don't put the make-up on or near my lips, but I can feel it happening. Also makes my nose feel slightly stuffy and red.

Any ideas on how to deal with this? It's very frustrating as I have quite a lot of redness and acne scarring but covering it up causes problems! I've used various brands at various prices, but it hasn't made a difference.

You are allergic to one of the ingredients.

This happened to me - I cannot use Dior, Maybelline, Clinique and many others. Almay, Chanel, Physicians' Formula, Revlon are fine on me.

Just a touch of one of the products from the first list and I have sore, itchy, red eyes. I had to get rid of all the irritating products and find new ones by trial and error. Slow and frustrating.

I wonder if you should try mineral makeup. Lily Lolo for example and a mascara like Blinc or Clinique curling mascara which are a sort of rubber formulation which sets and so doesn't react with the oil from your skin.

Thinking on the same lines as Spanishring. I have very sensitive and unpredictable skin. I use Lili lolo foundation, eye make up and blusher. Also Blinc mascara. My dd who has similar skin uses the same. I've not had any irritated dry patches or runny, red eyes since using these products. The good thing with Lili Lolo is that you can buy sample sizes of their foundation which will last you a few days so you can see how you get on with them before splashing out on the full size.

And you can also get a sample size of blinc mascara too. Forgot about that!

Mineral makeup may or may not work - if you are allergic to bismuth oxychloride, you are allergic to one of the pigments itself. If you are allergic to a perfume / preservative, some other product or series than what you are currently using may be the answer.

Natural / organic may be iffy too. Natural extracts are in general more allergenic than synthetics (because naturals contain hundreds of different molecules).

Your best bet is to ask for small samples or trial sizes at counters and religiously return everything that gives you a reaction.

And "hypoallergic" and "dermatologically tested" on product labels are pseudoscientific claims (what they mean is really unclear) - I get really bad reactions to Clinique products for example.

Thanks for your replies. I just can't get used to the idea that I'm having a reaction to it. It only ever happens with make-up. My skin is not at all sensitive to any other products.

I forgot that I do actually have some Lili Lolo stuff. I don't know why I stopped using it. I think it's just cos I feel really terrible about my skin and mineral make-up doesn't seem to cover up anywhere near as much as I'd like. I did try to put on more layers to build extra coverage, but couldn't get what I wanted.

Are you able to ask for sample sizes for free? Beauty counter women often make me feel quite uncomfortable.

I always ask for samples Stars. I just tell them I have really sensitive skin and can't afford to write off £28 or whatever, if it brings me out in dry itchy patches and I need to test it for a few days first. They're usually really fine about it.

I find the worst reaction I have is to Clinique foundation/cleanser/moisturisers etc. Some I'm absolutely fine with such as Benefit, Dior. I think it's really trial and error and I'd have no hesitation in asking for samples otherwise it's a huge outlay.

Lily Lolo doesn't have bismuth oxychloride.
Also if you can get to a Cover FX counter in (House of Fraser I believe). They might help. Try your lily Lolo again but have a look at the flocked sponges for heavier application.

Stars Revlon Colorstay liquid foundation is a godsend - cheap, great coverage and good shade range also in the pale end. And I'm not allergic to it.

When my eyes became itchy for the first times, I tried to ignore it (for about a month) because I had quite a few high-end products I was allergic to. (Dior concealer was great stuff but also the worst offender.) But having painful red eyes just wasn't worth it, plus the reactions got worse. I've been symptom-free for a couple of years now after avoiding those products and being very conservative and careful with new purchases.