As we head into the cooler months here in Australia, I wanted to share the importance of adjusting the way you take care of your skin, to ensure it remains strong, resilient and healthy, during the Winter season.
As the cool air moves in and the indoor heating increases, it’s natural for our skin to become drier and often more sensitive.
Let me share my top tips when it comes to giving your skin a little extra TLC during the cooler months.
Why Winter Weather Calls for Extra Care
Winter brings with it a host of characteristics that can challenge our skin: from the crisp outdoor chill to the dry, heated air indoors. This constant change change in indoor vs outdoor environment, can strip our skin of its natural, nourishing oils, leaving it feeling dry, tight and sometimes irritated.
Here’s how we can wrap our skin in the warmth and care it deserves, ensuring it maintains a healthy skin barrier, to protect it against these harsh, external elements.
1. Gentle Cleansing is Key
During the cooler months, it is essential to switch up your daily cleanser to a gentle, more nourishing one. Rather than a gel-based cleanser, look towards a milk or oil based cleanser, free of harsh ingredients such as lauryl sulphate, artificial fragrance or acids, that instead, aims to gently cleanse the skin, removing dirt and surface build up, without stripping it of its natural oils.
Our top pick:
Fresh Face Skin Soother cleanser
2. Increase hydration and moisture
Increase your daily skin moisture levels, by increasing the use of hydration and oil-based skincare products or more rich moisturisers, in your daily skincare routine both morning and night.
Ingredients like hyaluronic acid, ceramides (omega-based ingredients), yarrow oil and jojoba oil, assist with your skins water and oil levels - ensuring that your skins barrier remains strong and your skin maintains its moisture levels, when competing against harsh external environments.
Our top picks:
Fresh Face Skin Soother treatment
Fresh Face Skin Hydration Booster
3. Don’t Skip the SPF!
Just because the sun isn’t as present during the Winter months, doesn’t mean we can forget about daily protection! UV rays are still in play, rain, hail or shine! A daily morning application and reapplication (if you are indoors and outdoors, driving or sit by a window throughout the day) of SPF is still your number 1 go-to for protecting your skin against cell damage that can lead to premature ageing or skin cancer, as well as helping to prevent skin redness and sensitivity.
4. Night-time is Recovery Time
Winter is the perfect season to indulge in more self care, night treatments. Think of overnight face masks or oils rich in ceramides, vitamins and antioxidants, allowing your skin to repair and rejuvenate as you dream of warmer days.
Our top picks:
Fresh Face Skin Recovery mask
Fresh Face Skin Soother treatment
5. Embrace the Power of Exfoliation (But Gently)
Removing dead skin cells is vital for maintaining a radiant complexion, even in winter and often due to the harsh external conditions, dryness can become more apparent during the cooler months, making regular gentle exfoliation a must. We recommend using an exfoliant that is gentle in its exfoliating action, helping to renew your skin’s surface without stripping away essential skin moisture.
Be cautious of physical (granular) exfoliants - and ingredients such as crushed almonds or jojoba beads - these granules can often cause micro tears in the skins surface, causing skin dehydration and surface redness and sensitivity.
Additionally, be mindful of acids such as salicylic acid or glycolic acid. Ensure you use these exfoliators in moderation & continue to listen to your skin - heat, burning or intensifying tingling are all signs that your skin is dehydrated and your skin's barrier is impaired and if this is the case, pull back on exfoliating & focus on nourishing & hydrating your skin.
Our top picks:
Fresh Face Skin Recovery mask - for dry, sensitive, dehydrated skins - use 3-7x per week as a mask or overnight sleep mask
Fresh Face Skin AHA enzyme exfoliator - for a combination-oilier skin, with mild-moderate congestion - use 1-2x weekly in the shower - massage, leave on for 2-3 mins and rinse.
6. Be mindful of caffeinated beverages throughout the day
Often, when it's cold outside, we tend to skip drinking the cold water and instead, turn to tea and coffee. Remember - for every 1x cup of a caffeinated beverage you drink, you’ll need to follow with 1-2 cups of water, to replenish your hydration levels.
If you get tempted by numerous daily teas or coffees during the Winter months, look at replacing your coffee or tea with a non-caffeinated herbal tea or broth. Both are warm and will help to top up your body's hydration levels and broth is in fact, is high in protein to fill you up and prevent sugar cravings, while helping to strengthen your skin's collagen and improve gut health.
Our top picks:
Nutra Organics Beef or Chicken broth - Miso Ramen flavoured - available in salon and via their website
Love Tea - Certified organic Herbal tea - available in salon and via their website
Another tip - is making your water more enticing, by adding a naturally-flavoured collagen powder to your water - making your water more tasty, while replenishing collagen, amino acids and antioxidants - to help strengthen your collagen fibres and maintain healthy skin function from the inside out!
Our top pick:
Nutra Organics flavoured collagen powders - available in salon and via their website
7. Focus on nourishing your skin from the inside out
Our skin is the last organ to receive blood, meaning it is often the last organ to receive nutrients and water. Because of this, introducing high quality supplements into your daily routine, will ensure that your skin is receiving the recommended amount of nutrients it needs, to remain nourished and hydrated from the inside out. The key nutrient for overall skin hydration and nourishment, is omega 3.
Introducing a high quality omega 3 into your daily routine will ensure that your cells are able to retain nutrition, while remaining hydrated and nourished, helping your skin maintain healthy moisture, long term
Our top picks:
Fish oil: Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega liquid - recommended dose: 1-2x teaspoons daily, after food. Tip - mix into a small amount of juice. - Available in salon and via iherb website:
Vegan alternative: Mega Omega Algae liquid - recommended dose 2ml of the liquid or 3 gel caps for 3 months then dropping back to 1.5ml or 2 gel capsules. Tip - mix the liquid into a small amount of juice. - Available in salon and via their website.
For added skin cell nutrient absorption and internal hydration support: Cell Charge - a high mineral supplement. Recommended dose 1x drop, per 10 kgs of body weigh 2x daily for first 2x weeks, then drop back to 1x daily ongoing. Available in salon and via their website.
8. Tune into Your Skin’s Needs
Remember, skincare is deeply personal. What works for one may not suit another. Listen to your skin and adjust your daily routine as needed. Sometimes, a little extra nourishment in the form of a hydrating serum or oil or skipping the exfoliation when your skin feels sensitive, can make all the difference - preventing further skin barrier impairment and preventing further dryness and sensitivity.
As we navigate the winter months, let’s approach our skincare routine as an extension of self-care. Each step is an opportunity to nurture your skin while taking a moment for yourself. With the right tools and knowledge, we can all emerge from Winter with a thriving skin, that’s ready for the warmer months!
