The change of season can often be a happy thing: winter babies get excited for their birthdays, winter fashion makes a comeback, couples can officially cuddle without sweat fusing them together…
However, when we welcome the cooler months, we also say hello to a number of less-than-welcome annoyances. One of those things? Dry and flaky skin.
This can come as a huge pain in the backside to, well, everyone.
It can be exceptionally frustrating; you’ve just finished sorting out the perfect summer skincare routine (one that tackles sweat, redness and oiliness) and now you’re met with frustratingly disobedient, dry skin. Great.
And dry skin is the worst. Your foundation sticks to the rough patches on your face, your skin often feels itchy and you can begin looking quite flaky.
There’s a range of factors that cause this annoyance. Between heaters, the change in humidity levels and frequent nose-blowing, our skin (and lips) don’t stand a chance – or do they?
We’ve compiled a list of our favourite hydrating products and five things you can do to avoid dry skin on your face and body – these should help you avoid dryness altogether.
5 ways to avoid dry skin
Change your moisturiser to something a bit heavier during the cooler months. A cream moisturiser will work wonders on dry, lifeless skin! Keep in mind your skincare routine may need changing as the weather cools down. If you don’t already have a face oil in your skincare routine, winter is a good time to start incorporating one. Face oils can be used under a heavy or light moisturiser and add an extra layer of nourishment and hydration to the skin. Our favourite is Thursday Plantation’s Ultra Hydrating Daily Face Oil, it sinks into the skin seamlessly, is naturally-derived and leaves your skin feeling nourished and soft.
Use a humidifier in your house. Not only can adding a humidifier help ward off airborne viruses, they’re great for preventing dry and dull skin. As we have well and truly learnt, the cold air in winter reduces the moisture from our skin and can cause flaking, a humidifier can restore moisture to the air so you avoid this.
If you haven’t already, add an exfoliating step in your skincare routine – this will help buff away flaky dead skin cells.
Shower in warm water, not hot. Hot water can dry your skin out further – and that’s definitely not what you want!
Drink lots of water and eat lots of hydrating foods: think leafy greens (celery, we’re looking at you) and fruits like oranges and melons. Be sure to avoid dehydrating drinks such as coffee and alcohol… if you can.
Go-to products for hydrated and nourished skin
As we mentioned earlier, your skincare routine may need adjusting once the season or weather has changed.
Your facial skincare routine should look a little like this:
- Cleanse, tone (optional – make sure it’s alcohol-free as this dries out skin even more), face oil, eye cream, moisturiser and sunscreen (daytime).
Steps you can take for a hydrated and nourished body:
- Exfoliate in the shower, apply a body oil and use a lip balm to seal in moisture.
Here at Now To Love we like to use something a bit more natural to help our skin combat dryness – because the last thing irritated skin needs is nasty chemicals.
Which is why our pick for fighting dryness is Thursday Plantation’s Macadamia Dry Skin Range – a selection of nourishing oils and a hydrating lip balm that work hard to make your skin glow during winter.
The Macadamia Dry Skin Range is naturally derived and wonderful for hydrating the skin when it’s taken a beating from the weather.
The three key products – Ultra Hydrating Daily Face Oil, Ultra Hydrating Body Oil and Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm – slow water loss and support the skin’s natural protective barrier. Win-win.
Your skin rapidly absorbs the lightweight oil, and it quickly nourishes and plumps dry skin – which is something we desperately want when we’re becoming a bit scaly during winter.
So you can say bye-bye to dry and flaky patches and hello to healthy-looking, supple skin.
If you’re unsure about using an oil on your skin, try not to be too skeptical. Applying a few drops of a nourishing oil to your face will not make it greasy, in fact, you’ll be surprised that it may have the opposite effect.
Our skin produces oil to keep our skin soft, and if you’re stripping your face of its natural oils by using alcohol-based toners or over cleansing, it will compensate by producing more oil (which can quickly turn into clogged pores and breakouts). Which is why it’s important to keep your skin hydrated and balanced – this is where face oils come in.
Facial oils are actually wonderful for replenishing lost moisture and targeting different skin issues – and you only need about two to three drops each time you apply it, which make them very economical purchases.
Thursday Plantation’s face oil is perfect if your skin concern is dryness; the nourishing oil is a natural solution to dehydrated and dull skin. It sinks into the skin quickly, restores moisture and leaves your skin smooth and soft – something we definitely want in winter!
Unfortunately our faces aren’t the only part of our bodies to suffer in winter – dryness and rough patches can appear all over our bodies.
To hydrate your body, make sure to exfoliate and scrub your body before applying Thursday Plantation’s Ultra Hydrating Body Oil. The body oil is effective, hard working and leaves your skin nice and hydrated. Be sure to apply some straight after your shower when your body will absorb it best. A bonus? You’ll smell like lavender, too – the oil is infused with lavender oil.
For dry and cracked lips, the Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm is a saviour! It’s a handbag go-to – you never know when sore, dry lips will need re-hydrating and rescuing!
Thursday Plantation‘s Macadamia Dry Skin Range is available in leading pharmacies and health stores.
