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Winterize Your Skincare Routine
Chicago is well known for winters that verge on polar. Biting cold temperatures and scarce humidity is enough to send your skin into moisture-fatigue. To make matters worse, the solacing warmth of indoors heaters seriously strip skin.
Bottom line: as the weather changes, so should your skincare.
Skincare 101: Winterize Your Routine
Avoid hot showers, which dries skin out. Try to avoid temptation and keep the knob turned to lukewarm.
Plug in a humidifier to add moisture to the dry air.
Your diet affects your skin.
Drink more water and less diuretics like alcohol and caffeine. If you can’t control your coffee craving, drink extra water to compensate.
Use gentle products in the winter. Use a gentle cleanser and exfoliater, followed with a moisturizer containing SPF 15 or higher (the sun still shines in the winter, and rays can be particularly harsh when reflected off snow).
Check the ingredients in your skincare products. During the winter months, Salon & Spa Blue esthetician Julie Sandness recommends products containing Vitamins A, C or E and hyaluronic acid, powerful ingredients for retaining moisture. Try Cellex-C, available at Salon & Spa Blue.
Apply lotion to damp skin to trap water in the outer layers of the skin.
Dayna Delaurentis, owner of Urban Spa Chic, advises keeping your moisturizer or body oil in the shower so you can easily apply it while skin is still damp.
Delaurentis uses products containing copper, an antioxidant which protects, moisturizes and promotes collagen and elastin production. Try products from the ProCyte’s Simple Solutions line, available at Urban Spa Chic.
For extreme circumstances (such as skiing, snowboarding and waiting 20 minutes for the Brown Line) Urban Spa Chic recommends a heavy-duty product like Dermalogica’s Climate Control to keep from chapping, cracking and flaking. Use only when necessary to avoid clogging pores.
Stay away from products that contain alcohol. In a glass is one thing – on your face is another story. Alcohol is a drying ingredient which will strip skin of moisture. Additionally, experts say to avoid products with heavy fragrance, which can irritate dry skin.
Chapped lips and dry hands are common problems – be sure to protect these sensitive areas with heavy moisturizers. According to dermatologist Dr. Amy Forman Taub of Skinfo Specialty Skincare Boutique, dry skin should be combated with creamy moisturizers that coat the skin’s surface and trap the water inside.
She has found that the ingredient dimethicone, found in the hand-moisturizer Theraseal, helps to seal in moisture and keep hands soft and supple. Find more skincare products online at Skinfo Specialty Skincare Boutique.
Seek the help of a licensed esthetician or physician to examine your skin and your skincare regimen. If you don’t already receive them on a regular basis, treat yourself to a facial.
Recommended Winter Facials:
Tourmaline Charged Facial, at Asha SalonSpa. Locations in Bucktown, Gold Coast and Schaumburg.
This facial features products that are based on finely powdered tourmaline, an energizing mineral, that amplifies the performance of ingredients. The result is radiant, healthy skin.
Price: $125. Click here for the Facial for all Seasons special offer.
Hot Toddy Winterizing Facial Cocktail at Urban Spa Chic in River West.
Perfect for severely dry and sensitive skin, hydrating serums are massaged into the skin, followed by a creamy mask. A second mask of warm paraffin is then applied to help skin absorb the serums for added moisture.
Price: $95. Click here for $10 off this facial.
Decleor Deluxe Facial at Salon & Spa Blue in Lakeview.
Relax as 100% pure, natural essential oils by Decleor are massaged into your skin, followed by a creamy, ultra-hydrating mask. A second mask of linseed, sunflower and wheat germ is applied over the first for added absorbtion.
Price: $140. Click here for a complimentary brow shaping with your facial.
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