When the weather gets cold and we’re forced to brave the elements, it can cause stress to our skin.
Blasting the heat in our cars, heading to the slopes for the day, and even just walking outside with the wind in our face can cause our skin to become dry and irritated.
The majority of us spend the season trying to find ways to infuse moisture and life back into our complexion. Courtney, our Esthetician from our Kirkland location, tells us how to beat the odds and keep skin looking beautiful this winter!
1. Moisturize
It is essential to keep skin well moisturized and hydrated to maintain skin’s natural barriers. Use a lighter moisturizer during the day and a richer moisturizer at night.
Our daytime moisturizer pick:
Thalgo Energizing Vitality Cream. This moisturizer is rich in peach milk and provides hydration to help the skin regain its natural softness and suppleness. Skin will be well hydrated throughout the day without feeling greasy.
Our nighttime moisturizer pick:
Thalgo Relaxing Cream. This moisturizer promises to replenish moisture and essential fatty acids skin needs for in-depth hydration and regeneration. Richer and creamier than day cream, it contains barley milk (reconstructing) and hemp oil (regenerating). Skin will feel softer, smoother, and free of all traces of tiredness.
2. Don’t Be Too Harsh with Cleansing
Many of us were trained to like the “squeaky clean” feeling from cleansing and we use cleansers that may be overly drying to our skin to achieve this. It is important not to over cleanse because in doing so we may be stripping our skin of its’ natural barriers and defense mechanisms. Unless you tend to have oilier skin, staying away from foamy cleansing which tend to be extremely stripping is ideal. Using the right creamy, gel, or oil based cleansers will clean your face without being overly drying.
Our cleanser pick:
Thalgo Velvet Cleansing Cream. This is a rich and velvety creamy cleanser. It helps to cleanse the skin and eliminate impurities while leaving the skin smooth and youthful looking. It is formulated with mango extract which revitalizes the skin and fights off free radicals.
3. Exfoliate Regularly
Exfoliate to remove dead skin cells with a mild exfoliant once or twice a week. Dead skin cells absorb the products we put on our skin, preventing our moisturizers, serums, and masks from being absorbed by our live cells where we need them. Your exfoliator should not contain large particles with jagged edges, such as apricot scrubs, which are too harsh to the skin. Small granules or beads are preferred. Removing dead skin cells also makes our skin appear brighter, more vibrant, and stimulates the skins cellular renewal process.
Our pick for exfoliating:
Thalgo Softness Exfoliator. This is a gentle and effective exfoliator. Rich in jojoba oil microbeads, it removes impurities and dead cells while preserving the natural protection of the skin.
4. Boost Your Moisturizer with a Serum
Sometimes moisturizers alone aren’t quite enough to keep our skin moisturized and glowing. Using a serum can add that extra boost your skin needs. Serums are water based moisturizers that contain higher concentrations of active ingredients such as vitamins, antioxidants, or plant extracts. They do not contain emollients such as shea butter so they are able to be absorbed more quickly.
Our serum pick:
Thalgo Absolute Rehydrating Serum. This is a powerful and restorative serum that produces an in-depth hydrating effect. It limits water loss while boosting the skin’s natural barriers. It hydrates immediately and continuously throughout the day leaving your skin feeling and appearing brighter.
5. Treat Skin to a Facial Mask
Masks are a great way to give your skin the extra attention it deserves. Using a mask catered towards dry or dehydrated skin once or twice a week gives your skin that drink of water it needs to rehydrate!
Our mask pick:
Thalgo Moisture Quenching Mask. This mask is truly hydrating and relaxing. It limits water loss, boosts the skin’s natural barriers, softens the skin, nourishes, and rebuilds the skin’s surface. It helps the skin to regain its smoothness and all uncomfortable tightness vanishes.
6. Keep Skin Protected
We often only think of protecting our skin during the summer months from getting sunburned but it is equally important to protect your skin during the winter. Just because Washington’s Winter is gray doesn’t mean we’re safe from harmful UVA & UVB rays. There are actually more cases of skin cancer in the state of Washington than in the state of Florida. Unless it’s dark outside, you need to apply SPF! If you are planning to be on the ski slopes, keep in mind that those beautiful hills covered with snow act as reflectors. Make sure you reapply throughout the day!
Our SPF pick:
iS Clinical SPF 25 Treatment Sunscreen. This lightweight cream combines powerful antioxidants and sunscreen which have been clinically proven to reduce UV-induced redness. It protects the skin and treats sunburn at the same time. It also provides broad-spectrum UVA/UVB protection while soothing inflammation, hydrating, and softening the skin.
7. Get a Professional Peel
Winter is the perfect time of year to see your esthetician for a peel because you are less likely to be out in the sun directly following your treatment. There are a variety of different types of peels, but a Glycolic Peel works best for dry skin.
Glycolic acid is a natural skin exfoliator. It works by deeply exfoliating dry, rough, and aged skin and revealing the softer, healthier looking skin underneath. Glycolic acid has been researched and shown to be among the most effective of the AHAs for the renewal of skin cells. It also works to decrease hyper-pigmentation, reduce acne scarring and helps to fight fine lines and wrinkles. Glycolic acid has the ability to draw out dead skin cells while pulling moisturizers into your skin. For best results, do a series of five glycolic peels, receiving one every two weeks.
8. See Your Esthetician for Monthly Facials
Working with an esthetican is like having your own personal trainer for your skin. Receiving a facial every month guarantees that you will have the knowledge and tools you need to achieve your skin care goals.
During your facial your esthetician may use products that are reserved just for treatments done inside a spa. Steam used during your treatment will allow these specialty products to penetrate deeper into the skin and be absorbed on a deeper level. Massage done during a facial is not just performed for relaxation, it also helps to encourage the cell turn over process, stimulate collagen and elastin providing a temporary firmness to the skin, increase blood flow leading to the release of toxins and brighter skin, and moisturize depending on what cream or oil is used.
9. Add Moisture into the Air
With furnaces running, doors and windows closed and air being re-circulated constantly, dry air is all around which enables dry skin. A humidifier will help add moisture to your home’s air and to your skin.
10. Drink Lots of Water!
Your skin is not only a reflection of what is going on externally, it also reflects what is going on internally. Your esthetician can tell by looking at and feeling your skin if you have not been drinking enough water.
How much water should you drink? Divide your body weight in half, take that number, and that is how many ounces of water you should be drinking per day. Coffee and caffeinated beverages act as diuretics. If you consume ten ounces of coffee, caffeinated soda or tea, then match that with ten extra ounces of water. Try this for at least a few days and see how much better you feel overall!
