Winter is Coming!

According to the clothes I’ve been wearing and the amount of blankets I’ve been using at night, it seems Winter is Coming. It’s bad enough that it’s getting dark early, but really? Our skin has to suffer now, too? With winter coming, it’s time to prepare your skin to deal with the elements, just like you winterize your home, your wardrobe and your life.

The Mean Ole Environment and Dry Skin

When the environment changes — cold temperatures, low humidity, wind — skin can dry out, and even become more sensitive than usual. In the winter we turn up the thermostats in our offices and homes — but that heating removes humidity from the air and dehydrates our skin. Symptoms of dry skin are severe roughness, cracking, scaling and flakiness. This is usually seen on knees, shins, elbows, and if you’re like me, hands! But your face can feel it as well. Even worse than looking older, wrinkled, and leathery is it can FEEL uncomfortable, too.

Not so fun fact? Severe dryness can also weaken the moisture barrier, so skin isn’t protected and moisture actually leaks out. Yes, leaks. Then our defenses can become compromised, allowing irritants and allergens to get past the barrier and irritate skin. You know I’ve got to plug one of my winter go-to’s here. I’ve said it before, I don’t really have sensitive skin, but I always have components of the SOOTHE Regimen with me. Especially in the winter. The step 2 Sensitive Skin Treatment protects the skin against weather conditions like wind and low humidity. Also remember that when the moisture barrier is compromised, dry skin can lead to premature skin aging and we all know what that looks like. :O

Just when you thought it couldn’t get worse — there’s something called lichenification — yup, like dry, thick elephant skin. So, make sure not to scratch dry skin. Another condition is flakiness, when the uppermost layers of skin are having difficulty with their normal cycle of shedding.

So What Can You Do About It?

OK, so I just gave you the doom and gloom truth about skin in the winter. So now what to do about it? Well, first step is exfoliate. Micro-Dermabrasion Paste offers maximum exfoliation, so the flakes don’t build up. It also nourishes and moisturizes skin, and can be used on the face and body, leaving skin looking more even and healthier after just one use. It’s recently been repackaged and slightly reformulated to be even better than before. I just opened a new jar and it looks the same, smells the same, and even feels the same. But better. Is that even possible?!

Then hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! You want to replace all the lost moisture the environment is stealing from you–I hate thieves, but I sure like this replacement! Active Hydration Serum for the face and Active Hydration Body Replenish both contain our proprietary 3D3P Molecular Matrix with Glycerin and Hyaluronic Acid that attracts moisture from the air, replenishing the moisture reserves on our skin. Then it locks in moisture, so you’re not “leaking” in the winter! If you’ve ever heard me talk about our products you’ll know I say there is no one miracle product, but if there were… it would be this Active Hydration Serum. Y’all. Young, old, acne, clear—you need this in your life. I promise.

Oh! And don’t forget your lips. The skin on your lips is even more fragile and more susceptible to drying out, not to mention exposed to the elements. Ever since I did a couple rounds of Accutane in my early and mid 20’s, my lips have been one big dry hot mess–chapped, dry, cracked. If it was pitiful and lacked hydration, those were my lips. I even refrained from using lipstick for YEARS because it never looked right on my poor lips. UNTIL I started using the REDEFINE Lip Renewing Serum. Seriously. This stuff has changed the composition of my lips (bring on the lip pencils and matte lipstick!!). It comes in capsules rich in antioxidants to help lips retain their natural moisture. And here’s my frugal tip–I use each capsule about 3 times. It’s the last thing I do before I go to sleep and I use just a tiny bit on my lips. I leave the capsule on my medicine cabinet shelf until the next night. So the jar of 60 capsules lasts me forever (or you know, about 5-6 months).

Extra Tips for Dry Skin

And remember, when washing your face and body, keep the water temperature warm, not super hot. Exfoliate mid shower (I turn the water off or pointed away while I do this so it’s not washing off right away and I have time to scrub-a-dub). And slather on your hydrators and moisturizers right after your bath or shower when skin is still DAMP. It helps lock in that moisture and hydration.