little white truths

Now that the weather is cooling down here in Australia, like many dry-skinned lasses I'm starting to think about what I can do to protect my skin as the temperature drops.

Every winter, almost without fail, the hydration seems to vanish from my skin and I'm often left with red, flaky patches around my nose and mouth. This is a beauty-lover's nightmare: not only does your skin feel uncomfortable, but applying makeup over this mess is like walking on eggshells, and so often you're left with little foundation-coloured flakes on your face that are a dead give away if you're going for a natural look. They also don't look that great either ; )

So what I thought I'd do is set out some tips I've learned over the years to help stave off dry, winter skin. I don't always manage to avoid the dreaded flake-fest, but I've certainly learned to minimse it over time so it's not as bad and doesn't last as long.

Don't over-exfoliate

Gosh it's tempting to do this when your skin starts to flake in winter! One look at those dry patches makes me want to take to my face with sandpaper on a daily basis, but over-exfoliating can make a bad situation worse.

You know your skin so just exfoliate as much as you can tolerate: for me, I stick to once or twice a week and I tend to opt for chemical exfoliants over rough scrubs these days because scrubs can be overly harsh and do more damage than good. So go gently on the scrubby matter and treat your skin to hydrating products, rather than trying to hack off the dry surface with heavy-duty exfoliants. Your skin will thank you for it ; )

Go easy on the treatments

Related to the above, while I personally feel I can go to town with hydrating treatments and masks in winter, be careful of treatments that can have an abrasive effect on your skin. It's not a good time to go overboard on harsh peels and drying masks, which if used too often can have an adverse impact on skin.

So add more hydrating treatments to your skincare routine if you need to, but steer clear of anything that's going to dry your skin out even more if used too often. If in doubt, do your research: there's a lot of helpful information online these days from skincare experts (eg Caroline Hirons) so have a look at what they say about the kinds of treatments you're using.

Analyse your skincare

Now's the time to go through your skincare and work out if anything you own contains ingredients that may be drying or irritating for your skin. 

That toner you use could be loaded with alcohol, and some of your cleansers may be too astringent and are better off saved for summer or avoided altogether. I've recently learned to be careful of foaming cleansers and rough scrubs, so have a look at what you own and see whether anything could be contributing to your dry winter skin.

Don't forget the sunscreen!

In summer we're more likely to remember our daily SPF, but in winter it's easy to believe that you don't need it. Wrong! I personally wear SPF all year round, and while I may save my SPF 50+ for summer, now's the time when I slap on hydrating products that contain enough sunscreen to see me through the cooler months.

I think people are much more sun-smart these days than they used to be, but winter's the time when we get lazy with our sun protection. Don't! Look at it as 'future-proofing' your face against premature ageing, and use sunscreen even on those cold days when the sun is all but forgotten.

Reconsider your makeup

This one's often forgotten, but I think it's important. Analyse your makeup as you would your skincare: are you using a drying, silicone-based primer; is it time to forgo the powder foundation and use a liquid instead; are any of your products getting old and potentially irritating?

Makeup can be drying and ageing on the skin, so don't wear too much powder and try to let your skin breathe. It's also worth washing off your face as soon as you get home and slapping on the hydrating moisturiser, to give your skin as much rest from makeup as possible.

In sum

That's it! I could go on and on about this topic for days, but I think that's more than enough for one post ; )

I hope there's something in there that's useful for you, and do let me know any tips you may have for staving off flaky skin in winter: I'd love to hear.