Winter is not kind to our skin. We’ve said it before but it’s worth saying again. All those cold winds, rain and frost. All that stuffy, over-bearing central heating. Extreme changes in temperatures as we go from indoors to outdoors and indoors once more. Lack of sunlight. Comfort food. Coughs, colds and illnesses. Lack of exercise. All of this adds up to a skin crisis! The biggest tell tale sign that winter is not good for your skin is the dryness. Winter skin is dry. Flaky. Itchy. Not good. But never fear! As always, we are here- this week with three little secrets to soothe dry winter skin.
HYDRATE!
I bet you just knew this would be the number one tip! Your skin needs hydration. You can get this from drinking plenty of water, and eating watery foods too. Winter is not the time to ditch your healthy eating plan, no matter how tempting stodgy comfort food is! Go for raw foods, leafy vegetables and fresh fruits- cooking strips foods of their natural water content and in turn this strips your skin of the hydration it needs.
Make water your first drink of the day. Have it fresh from the bottle, or boiled with a slice of lemon. This will wake your digestive system for the day, and hydrate your skin at the same time. And keep it up too- regular water breaks through the day will keep your hydration levels high as you move around more.
Drinking lots of water will help to flush out toxins from your body (those nasties that can wreak havoc on your skin!) and keep you feeling fuller for longer after meals- so less likely to snack on foods that are less than nutritious. It boosts the immune system, refreshes the body and helps to restore lost moisture in the skin- resulting in less wrinkles and more dewy shine. Why would you not drink more water?
Watch what you put on your skin
We recommend organic, natural skin products all year round but in winter this is even more important. Alongside the fact that whatever you put on your skin is absorbed into your body, if you don’t use the right things you can make your dry winter skin even worse! Avoid foaming cleansers and opt for gentler methods that won’t strip your skin of essential natural oils.
It’s also a great idea to exfoliate your dry winter skin, to remove dead layers and to promote healthy circulation- but not more than twice a week. Here’s a great exfoliator that you can make at home:
Rosemary and lavender salt scrub
We love lavender! Remember this post? This body scrub will help to restore your skin’s glowing appearance and the lavender will relax and soothe so this is a great one to do at the end of the day. You need:
- 8 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon culinary grade lavender
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
- Half a cup sea salt
To make the scrub, simply mix all ingredients together and apply to skin. Rinse well and pat dry.
Winter is the time to moisturise well too, so don’t skip this step whatever you do! Keep your winter skin routine simple- for very dry skin just a splash of water followed by moisturiser is enough in the mornings.
Cleanse the air
The air around you affects your skin, which is why winter can dry your complexion quite quickly. A humidifier can help to keep skin moist by adding water vapors to air that has been dried out by central heating. If you can’t afford a humidifier, a bowl of warm water or damp towel on top of the radiator does the job just as well.
You can also cheat the dry winter air by adding a few tropical plants to your home too. Plants such as English Ivy and Areca palm can actually improve air quality quite effectively.
What are your top tips for soothing dry winter skin?
