Winter skin presents a different set of challenges than the routines you normally follow for summer skin. Challenges with humidity, temperature extremes, wind, can all wreak havoc on your skin. Renée
Rouleau (www.ReneeRouleau.com) is a
trusted skin-care expert and licensed esthetician who has been helping women to
attain healthy, glowing, beautiful skin for more than 20 years.
At the
start of her career, Renée recognized the skin care industry had relied on a one-size-fits-all
approach to skin care. Not satisfied with that approach, Renée
began formulating her own exclusive brand of products based on nine distinct
skin types to ensure her clients the result they desired. Her philosophy
is simple: With the proper tools, effective products and a disciplined
approach, anyone can have great skin.
Instead of over-moisturizing, increase your exfoliation
When the heat is on in the house and the air is cold outside, your skin will be depleted of its natural moisture, leaving your skin feeling tight and dry. People tend to load on the extra moisturizer to compensate for the dryness. This will not always solve the problem of dry skin. If your skin is dry, tight and flakey, it means that you have dry skin cell build-up on the surface of the skin. So rather than putting on extra cream to re-hydrate dead, dry skin cells (it doesn’t make sense!) try increasing your exfoliation with a gentle facial scrub containing an alpha-hydroxy-acid to remove the dry skin cells so that when your cream goes on, it hydrates the new cells rather than the dry cells.
Avoid greasy hand creams if you’re prone to breakouts
You may suffer from a condition we call ‘hand cream acne’ if you sleep with your hands on your face at night! We are more likely to use hand cream during the dry winter months than during the summer which leads us to using heavy hand cream to alleviate the dryness. Most often, this cream is applied right before you go to bed. If you sleep on your side with your hands on your face, the cream may be getting into the skin and clogging the pores. If you find that this may be happening to you, sleep with cotton gloves or change over your hand lotion.
Change up your routine
Your skin acts differently from summer to winter and the best strategy for healthy, beautiful, problem-free skin is to adjust your skin care routine each season. In winter, the skin produces less oil, so for many skin types, oil must be added back into the skin to maintain its balance. Look for moisturizers containing Safflower Oil, Avocado Oil and Shea Butter. Switch from a gel cleanser to a cream-based cleanser and eye creams are a must in the winter. Spring and summer products will likely expire or reduce their effectiveness for the following year, so it’s a good time to purge your products.
Don’t neglect your neck
The friction caused from turtlenecks and wool fibers in sweaters can rub on the neck causing it to be dry and irritated. Use a hydrating cream mask on your neck once a week to replenish essential moisture. Make sure to exfoliate in upward motions with a mild facial scrub.
Properly care for your skin at the gym
After working out at the gym, make sure to wash your face, use an alcohol-free toner and a nourishing moisturizer. At the end of the work out, the salts created from perspiration can have a drying effect on the skin, combined with the cold, dry air outside and the heat in your car. So removing the salts and locking moisture back in the skin will greatly reduce dry skin.
