Many years ago I used to use a deodorant that would, after a few weeks, leave painful lumps beneath the skin. But because these were ignored by my doctor and would dissipate as quickly as they appeared, I ignored them. Until I casually mentioned it to a friend and she was horrified. Thankfully, that deodorant is now not available, but it did make me think how we overlook the skin under our arms. Hairless or not, this skin is still skin and we should treat it with the same care and attention we would give to the skin on our face or our body. Which means paying attention to ingredients and the way in which a product is made as opposed to focusing solely on the end result. When choosing your deodorant, consider how skin-friendly it is – the formulation ideally should be aluminium-free. Yes, many of these are a little more pricy than the bog-standard deodorants you would pick up in your local supermarket or chemist, but I must say, beyond the thoughtful approach to the creation of these products, I love the idea of taking something so banal and elevating it. This also makes the experience much more pleasurable. Which, when surrounded by a consistent cycle of bleak news, is a small joy but a very welcome one.
1. Caudalie Vinofresh Natural Deodorant £13, caudalie.com
2. Aesop Deodorant £25, aesop.com
3. Fresh Sugar Roll-On £19, cultbeauty.co.uk
4. Megababe Rosy Pits Daily Deodorant £8, cultbeauty.co.uk
5. Sol de Janeiro Rio Deo Aluminium-free Deodorant £12.99, boots.com
6. Glossier Deodorant £18, uk.glossier.com
7. Le Labo Inc Deodorant £24, libertylondon.com
8. Malin + Goetz Botanical Deodorant from £12, spacenk.com
9. AKT The Deodorant Balm £19, aktlondon.com
10. Typology Bergamot and Green Mandarin £12.90, uktypology.com
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