9 Life Changing Skin Care Habits for the Winter

Skin care habits for the winter that will prepare your skin for the cold winter air.

Skincare | December 23, 2020

Winter is not my favorite season. The idea of having to put on three layers to feel somewhat warm or how my skin feels like I never moisturized it after five minutes of being in the cold is the worst. During the summer, my skin is an oily mess. During the winter, it is the complete opposite my skin becomes dry and itchy. My mistake with dealing with my skin was that I did not have any skin care habits for the winter. I was using the same products and doing the same skincare methods year-round wondering why all this effort I am putting in, but I am not seeing any positive results.

It was later on that I learned about adjusting my skincare routine for the upcoming season. So if you want to avoid making the same mistakes I did with my skin then, I advise you to start using these tips and make them your winter habits. Your skin will thank you once you make these life-changing skincare habits for the winter. Also, you will always have the perfect winter skincare routine, so say goodbye to dry skin.

1. Avoid Hot Temperatures

Sadly the cold winter weather is setting us up to make mistakes with our skin. As it gets colder, we usually choose to keep the thermostat at a higher temperature. Also, we sometimes decide to leave the heat on all day at that high temperature. Understandably, nobody wants to feel that brutal winter air at home, but you don’t know how that is negatively affecting your skin. You could be unconsciously drying your skin out if you prefer the heat to be over 75 ℉ or higher when it is cold outside. If that is the case, you should consider keeping the temperature at 68 ℉ to 72 ℉. This is the best temperature to avoid drying out your skin.

Consider Your Shower Temperature Too

Heating your home is not the only culprit to drying out your skin. Taking hot showers can also strip your skin’s natural moisture especially if you enjoy taking long hot showers. These natural oils are needed more than ever, and once again, you are letting the cold winter air negativity affect your skin.

I know these hot showers can feel great when you come from being outside in the cold, but you could be damaging your skin in the process. As for, the temperature lukewarm is considered the best. Also, the time it takes you to take a shower should not be over 15 minutes every day. So, try changing your shower habits by dedicating days to when you need more time for extra shower shower activities such as shaving and exfoliating. Try to keep regular showers under 15 minutes. Once you do that, you will finally give your skin a chance to maintain its natural oils.

2. Add Humidifiers to Your Skincare Routine

It is kind of crazy how the things we need to keep ourselves warm can be the same thing that could be hurting our skin. As I said earlier, as the days become colder our homes become warmer. Now, to go deeper into why you should avoid high temperatures. Having heat over 72 ℉ for a long time decreases the amount of moisture in the air. The dry air at home could be a reason why your skin constantly feels dry. So, to combat this issue, you can use a humidifier to bring moisture back to your home.

Also, for double protection, you can buy two cool mist humidifiers. You can have one for a room you spend the most time in besides your bedroom and another for your bedroom.

Tip: The humidifier in your bedroom should face your bed before going to sleep.

3. Use a Gentle Cleanser

The purpose of cleansers is to clean any dirty surfaces, and sometimes companies will add harsh ingredients so the product can do exactly that. The issue with these cleansers is that they can strip away your skin’s natural oils.

So, look at your current cleansers and check to see if it contains any drying or irritating ingredients such as fragrances, additives, or soap solvents (ex: sodium lauryl sulfate). Also, try not to use facial cleansers with a high acid content too often.

You want to make sure you are using a gentle body wash and facial cleanser that does not strip away the moisture you need for your winter skin care routine. Try using a moisturizing cleanser, a gel-like cleanser, or a creamy cleanser.

When changing your cleanser, make sure the label says fragrance-free. You do not want to be fooled by a product labeled unscented. Unscented products could still contain fragrances.

Some ingredients to look for when buying a new cleanser is:

Vitamin C
Evening primrose
Formulated chamomile
Turmeric
Formulated oatmeal
AHA
BHA

Side note: If you are using a toner in your skincare routine, I would advise you to use it once or twice a week. Sometimes toners contain alcohol in them which can be drying.

4. Get Into the Habit of Exfoliating

Do be fooled by the idea that exfoliating could be bad for the skin during the winter. No matter what, you still need to remove the dead skin so other products you use next will absorb better. You do not want dead skin cells to build up which causes your skin to have a dull appearance.

What you should know is how strong your exfoliator is. During this season, you want to avoid using strong exfoliators too often during the week. Using gentle scrubs with ingredients such as lactic acid or mild glycolic acid will be better for your skin at this time.

Also, chemical exfoliators are overall better than physical exfoliators. Physical exfoliators make it easier to tear the skin if you scrub too hard. These tears can cause the skin to feel raw.

If you need a gentler option, try using a wet washcloth to scrub your skin. This option is mainly for severely dry or sensitive skin.

5. Use Thicker Moisturizers

During these cold months, it is necessary that you are moisturizing and what you use to moisturize needs to be effective. Usually, during the warmer months, we would choose to use a lightweight moisturizer. As for the winter months, you want to do the opposite.

If you have been using a lotion as your moisturizer, it is time to make a switch to something thicker like a cream. As for your body using, butters and creams instead of lotion will be more effective too.

You do not want to waste a product using large amounts because the cold air is causing your skin to dry out quicker.

You want your moisturizer to contain ceramides, hyaluronic acid, mineral oil, or lanolin. Ceramides are found naturally in the skin like hyaluronic acid. Ceramides hold our skin cells together to keep the skin barrier intact.

Unfortunately, ceramides can be broken down by environmental factors. As for hyaluronic acid, it is a humectant, and it holds about over 1000 times its weight in water. Harmful environmental factors can also negatively impact the hyaluronic acid in our skin. Lastly, mineral oil and lanolin help reduce water loss from the skin.

Using any or all of these ingredients will help protect your skin from the cold winter air.

Moisturizing Tips:

Use a thicker moisturizer on your face at night
Try a facial mist to add more hydration
- Ingredients you want in your facial spray: aloe, vitamin C, and vitamin E
After taking a shower apply body oil or a thick body moisturizer on damp skin
- Ingredients you want in your body oil: jasmine sambac oil, coconut, grapeseed, jojoba oil, and camellia flower (These oils will make your skin feel so soft!)
Do not forget to take care of your hands and nails
- Use a thick hand cream and cuticle oil
Be find full of what kind of mask you use
- Use Sheet masks with the purpose to moisturize the skin
- Charcoal or clay masks can make the skin feel a little dry and should be used significantly less

6. Use a Serum In Your Skin Care Routine

You cannot forget to add a serum to your winter skincare routine. As usual, with any product, you want the serum to be alcohol-free. Find an antioxidant serum that you can use throughout the year. Our skin can go through a lot as we age, and harmful environmental factors can cause more damage.

7. Make It a Habit to Use Sunscreen

If you are still not using sunscreen now, then I would advise you to start. I know you might be reading this and thinking this post is about winter skincare, so why would I need sunscreen.

Well, you will be surprised by how bright the sun can be during the winter. What you might not know is that the snow reflects the sun rays up to 80 percent. Also, on days that feel like you need three coats and the sky looks extremely cloud, ultraviolet rays are still present. No matter the season, you need to protect your skin from the sun by using sunscreen.

So, end your morning skincare routine with a moisturizing broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or more if necessary. Please do not forget to apply it to any areas that will be exposed to the sun.

8. Watching What You Wear

Unfortunately, those clothes you wear to keep you warm could be irritating your skin while it is in its sensitive state. The cold air makes our skin more acceptable to dry itchy skin, and wearing fabrics like wool or any clothing can irritate our skin.

So, another skin care habit for the winter is to avoid aggravating your skin is by wearing layers. You want the layer that will be directly touching your skin to be soft, light, and breathable. Fabrics like fleece or cashmere will make a great first layer. Then, you can wear your thick and heavy sweaters on top. Also, this could be a cool trendy look if you put the right garments together.

As for the last tip, you might be tired of hearing this, and you may not want to hear it, but it could help you.

9. Have the Habit of Choosing Healthier Options

Don’t hate me but trying to improve anything with your body, you also need to pay attention to what you feed your body.

Since it is wintertime, our focus is to improve dry skin, so you want a diet that will help your body do just that. You want to eat more foods with healthy fats and fatty acids (ex:omega-3 or omega-6) like avocados, nuts, olive oil, and salmon.

Also, try not to consume too much alcohol or caffeine as they can cause dehydration.

As always, drink a lot of water.

Overall healthy glowing skin is what we want year-round, and that is what we will work to receive. So, consider making these tips habits so your skin can improve for the better. You want to start making healthy skin care habits for the winter as soon as possible.

So to anyone not afraid to showcase their skincare mistakes, you should say it in the comment section, and any tips here you will start making a habit of doing this winter

9 Life Changing Skin Care Habits For The Winter