You know how it goes. You have been perfecting your skincare routine for the last six months, and it works wonderfully for you. Your skin is glowing! But all of a sudden, you start noticing that you’re getting more blemishes, and your skin feels a bit tight and uncomfortable. So it’s time to readjust your routine all over again and get your perfect winter skincare routine.
Three main rules for winter skincare
I know it can be very confusing when your perfect skincare routine isn’t enough anymore, and you are lost in the sea of products and don’t know what to do anymore. So to keep things simple, there are three main rules as to what to change in colder months and get your perfect winter skincare.
1. Go gentle
Regardless of your skin type, you should always try to use products without drying ingredients such as alcohol denat. But you should definitely avoid them in your winter skincare. Enough is going on to dry out the skin, so we don’t need to use products that will do the same.
Also, swap your cleansers to milder ones. Use cleansing milk or lotions instead of your gel washes, especially in the morning.
Oils and balms you use as the first step of your double cleanse can sometimes be a little bit drying. Using cleansing milk can help prevent dehydration as they have a higher water content than oils/balms.
Even though we should have a more gentle approach in winter, that doesn’t mean to stop exfoliating. It’s actually important to keep doing it to help with the absorption of all those layers we will be putting on. So keep your acids but maybe use them only once a day instead of two times a day.
2. Moisturise more
That means swapping your light textures and fluids for something more substantial, like creams and balms.
Whit harsh winter winds and cold weather, our skin’s barrier can get a bit unbalanced. And the dry air in heated houses can dehydrate our skin even further. So that’s where our creams, balms and oils come into place.
The first thing I recommend adding is a moisturising cream for both evening and night. That can be the same cream or different ones – depending on your skin type. You might already be using one, so you can just swap that one for something a bit heavier with more emollients and lipids. The moisturising cream (or even a balm) will provide that layer of protection from those cold winds.
In my case, I wasn’t using a moisturiser in the summer as my skin is prone to congestion and acne. Instead, I was only using an SPF after my serum, but as I am ditching SPF in winter, (sometimes) I will add a moisturiser instead.
If your skin is still dry, think about using oil instead of your serum. Or you can add a few drops to your moisturiser. Something like pure squalane oil would be great.
And the last step in increasing the moisturising effect would be to change your thermal water spray to hydrating toner. And if you’re already using a hydrating toner, then good job!
3. Ease on on SPF
This might sound a bit controversial, but you don’t need an SPF 50+ every single day in winter. Some days you don’t need any SPF at all. It all depends on where you live, what kind of weather you have and how much sun you see. Usually, an SPF 25 should be enough in most countries that have somewhat of a winter. And if you’re not even leaving the house, you don’t need an SPF at all.
Also, if you’re using mineral makeup instead of regular, you mightn’t need any SPF at all. There is enough protection in the mineral foundation for those dark winter days.
I wrote more about mineral powder and its benefits here: What Is Mineral Makeup (Benefits And How To Apply)
How will I be adjusting my winter skincare
I’m not just writing this advice here and doing something totally opposite. I am also implementing these changes into my winter skincare routine.
1.
That means that I will be changing my morning cleanser that I also use for my second cleanse for a cleansing milk.
I will use a balm instead of oil in my first cleanse, but if that shows to be drying, I will just use the same milk as in the morning.
My routine already consists of products without alcohol denat (or very little), so I don’t need to change anything there.
2.
I will add a heavier moisturiser in the evenings and mornings instead of my fluid. I will still be looking out to avoid ingredients that I know can clog my pores and cause breakouts on my skin. That ingredient is shea butter for me.
And if I feel like my skin is still not moisturised enough, I will add a drop or two of squalane oil before my moisturiser.
3.
I will stop using my SPF every day. I wear my mineral powder every day anyway, so, as I said above, I feel I have enough protection there. And for sunnier days (if they ever happen here in Ireland), I will simply use an SPF 25 instead of my regular 50 one.
There you have it. Those are my top three tips for adjusting to your winter skincare routine.
Do you already follow some of these, or are you going to start now?
Let me know which products you will include and which ones you will stop using.
