Winter Skincare | Rejuvenate your face

Winter is in full force, with January and February offering you the coldest weather of the season, hitting temperatures as low as -8 so far; our skin has taken a real beating when being exposed to the cold dry air every day.

Whilst many of you will look after your skin on a daily basis, a staggering amount of you don’t, not realising the importance of keeping your skin healthy throughout the year, not to mention just in the Winter time. Blistering cold winds can wreak havoc on your once perfect complexion, leading to cracks in the skin, inflammation, and loss of hydration. As the battle with the cold continues, here’s our best tips on how to keep your skin forever glowing through the dark days.

General Tips

There are many great tips from dermatologists worldwide, offering their best advice on how to keep your skin youthful and wrinkle free. The following tips are great to work into your daily routine, whether you do it before bed or first thing in the morning.

• Pat down your skin; when drying off after your shower, be sure to not roughly dry your face with your towel, unintentionally stretching your skin. Simply pat off the excess water and allow the moisture to soak into your skin, you can then lock this in with the addition of a moisturiser; be sure to do this immediately to prevent the loss of the hydration boost from your shower.
• Say no to fragrance; skincare scents may seem like a great option, but unfortunately most skin will react negatively to synthetic scents, sometimes even natural scents. Opt for fragrance-free products to ensure no irritation for your skin.
• Ingredients; whether you believe in a more natural approach to skincare or you simply stick to the best thing off the shelf, consider the ingredients included in your products. For a more natural moisturiser, any oat based products work miracles for dry skin.
• Food intake; whilst it may not be an obvious tip for some, it is well documented that an increased intake of processed foods can cause a lot of damage to your skin. This is a year round tip, however, being more attentive to what you put in your body during winter will directly affect your skin; try cutting down on sugary drinks, alcohol, too much salt and instead increase your vitamin-packed foods.
• Suncream; if the sun is out, it will be subtly damaging your skin if you’re not protecting it. Whilst most only consider suncream whilst on holiday, it’s imperative to protect your skin all year round, if you know it’s going to be sunny outside, simply apply before you leave the house for that little bit of extra protection, it’s a great preventative for prematurely aging skin.
• The most obvious tip of all for any makeup user, be sure to remove all makeup before going to bed, leaving it on overnight can dry your skin out and often result in your skin breaking out.

Dry Skin

The most unlucky skin type of the bunch; with most people’s skin getting dry throughout the winter, regardless of type. Anyone suffering from dry skin throughout the year should be sure to double up on hydrating first and foremost. Using products that are oil based will prevent the loss of moisture, whilst using a moisturiser with ceramides and dimethicone will trap moisture in your skin. Hyaluronic based serums will give your skin that extra helping hand back to hydration and of course, plenty of water will always help.

Oily Skin

The luckiest skin type for the Winter months, the oily ones! Often staying away from moisturisers in hotter climates to prevent an overly oily face, people with this skin type would still do well to use a light moisturiser during the winter months. Be sure to use oil free products to ensure your face doesn’t overdose on the shiny stuff. Using retinoid based products can often control your oil secretion from the skin.

Combination

The best of both worlds? It can often be a tough feat to get the perfect state of skin when battling both sides, but most recognise that the use of a cleanser will remove any excess oil, whilst using a protective hydrating moisturiser in winter can do your skin the world of good. A good antioxidant based cleanser will protect your skin from any nasty chemicals in the air that may attack a winter blasted face.

Head to your nearest beauty shop to stock up on all the tools you need to ensure your skin in fighting fit this winter, it will definitely be worth it in the long run!