When Winter Wrecks Havoc On Your Skin

Don't get me wrong, I love winter. I love any weather that is not hot, sticky or dry, because I'm free from the things that usually follow me when Summer rolls around, such as the fleas and mosquitoes (Warning: ALLERGIC!), some symptom of heat exhaustion or stroke such as nosebleeds, fainting, dizziness, headaches and vomiting. Despite being born in the summer, I hate it with a passion. Especially the sunburn and the peeling skin that comes with it. Just... no, please take your peeling skin and leave me alone. Don't pick at it in front of me. So, late Autumn, all of Winter and early Spring are my buddies, I'm happy during those times of the year.

The problem with winter is that we're constantly in dry heated rooms, and I don't know about you all, but that really does my skin a world of crap. My skin starts drying up like the desert and stings when I try to wash it or apply a toner. It feels scaly, rough and just altogether unpleasant to touch. Gone is that hydrated softness that I expect from my skin on a daily basis.

Obviously, prevention is the cure, but sometimes it gets too cold that no matter how many blankets and layers you've got on, the cold still seeps into your bones and makes your nose run, so on goes the heater. With the three of us, we have varying degrees of toleration for the cold, so the heater is used more often than I'm comfortable with, especially because my housemate's back acts up when it gets cold. Greg is moving to Cairns soon, where the weather is nice and toasty so he won't have to deal with the pain anymore. I've been to Cairns once when I had to change planes for my trip to Japan back in 2010. It was blisteringly hot at 9:30 in the morning. Never again. No. Thank. You. Kind. Sir!

Anyways, back to the main point, my skin's a bitch while the heater's running all day long and now it's all kinds of dry, lifeless and poopy. What now?

First of all; ease up on the cleansing. I'm talking about cleansing your face once a day instead of twice, and ignore the exfoliating scrub until your skin is all better. Cleansing twice a day may strip your skin of its natural oils and moisture, which would inhibit the healing process. Use a gentle cleanser, such as a gel or cream cleanser. I don't have any of those, so I used my YesTo Tomatoes Activated Charcoal Bar. I find it to be gentle enough for my skin and doesn't dry it out. Use lukewarm water, as hot water is counter-productive.

So says the one that stands in a very hot shower reciting Daenerys Targaryen's full name "Daenerys Stormborn of House Targaryen, First of Her Name, the..." till she passes out from the heat.

I'm digressing again. If a toner is stinging your face when it normally doesn't, don't use it, just make sure your face is damp before you add the moisturising components. When you add moisturiser or oils to the water, it helps to seal in the hydration which then speeds up the healing process.

I prefer to start with my jojoba seed oil, as it glides really easily over the dampness and you need only a small amount for your whole face. Then next comes the moisturiser, and in this case, that's my Formula 10.0.6 Picture Perfect Day Gel Moisturiser. It's better to use a thick and hydrating moisturiser with some added nutrients and benefits, but this one does not fit that bill. It's not emollient enough for this purpose, but I'm still waiting for Priceline's 40% Off Skincare sale so I can pick up a few more things (please, hurry up!). Because this moisturiser doesn't quite do the job of properly hydrating my skin and protecting it, I apply rosehip seed oil to the badly affected areas, namely my cheeks and forehead, and the rose hip seed oil does wonders for my skin and really speeds up the healing. Two days later and most of the crusty flakiness is gone, though there were still some areas that need some more help.

I did this step two or three times a day, and five days on, most of the dryness is gone. I've got to keep at it with the moisturising because the heater is still being used and it's much easier to prevent more dryness than it is to try and reverse the damage when it really gets in the way of wearing makeup properly. I literally had to wash my entire face of makeup off the other day just because the flaky skin was making an awful appearance, and the foundation just wouldn't blend in properly, and powder accentuated the flaky areas.

What do you do when this happens to you? What are your holy grail winter skincare products?