My Top 5 Tips to Combat Dry Skin in Winter

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Hi guys! Today I'm going to be sharing with you how I combat dry skin in the Winter. If you're anything like me, every inch of skin on your body just dries up and hardly anything seems to help. Well, I've come up with a regime that has helped me tremendously, and I want to share it with you all!

Tip #1: If you have dry skin all over your body, pretty much from head to toe, I recommend a chunky body scrub, and a nice thick body butter. The body scrubs I like to use typically have an oil base to them, along with sugar or salt as the scrubbing particles. The scrub I have pictured is The Body Shop Chocomania Sugar Body Scrub. This one is fantastic at scrubbing away any dry, flaky skin you may have, and it also is very hydrating as it has that oil base to it, but it's not overly slippery to where it makes you slide in your bathtub. In the Winter, I typically like to do a full body scrub about once a week because my skin can be sensitive to too much scrubbing. Everytime after showering, I slather myself up with a thick, rich body butter. The Body Shop Shea Body Butter has worked miracles on my skin. It keeps my skin feeling and looking hydrated all day long. I have so many different body lotions/butters in my stash, but the ones from The Body Shop are always my go-to. I've noticed as I keep up with exfoliating and moisturizing, I don't have those itchy red bumps on the backs of my arms or legs, which I tend to have all year around. 

Tip #2: Use a thick lip balm at night before bed. I don't know about you guys, but my lips get horribly dry in the Winter, to the point where they crack and bleed at times. It's so painful, and alot of different lip balms just aren't thick and hydrating enough. The two lip products that I tend to reserve for the colder months are the Bite Beauty Agave Lip Mask and The Body Shop Lip Butters. The Bite Beauty Lip Mask is pretty darn intense if you ask me, and I typically only use it when my lips are at the cracked and bleeding stage. You only need the tiniest amount of it to get the job done, and I wake up to brand new lips when I use it. The Body Shop Lip Butters are fantastic when my lips are still dry and flaky, but they don't work as well if my lips are to the point of no return. The one I'm currently using is the Sweet Lemon scent, and I like it alot. It doesn't give me a white cast to my lips, which some of those lip butters tend to do, particularly the Shea and Coconut scents. I still do love those scents though, and only will use them at night. 

Tip #3: Using a hydrating face mask. Now, this may seem obvious to most people, but I normally have oily skin that goes more towards combination in the Winter. I do also get dry flakes here and there, and my skin gets way more dehydrated in these colder months. My skin gets so finicky in the Winter because I still have oiliness and clogged pores, so I have to use detoxifying face masks, but they dry out my skin alot more when it's cold. That's where a hydrating mask comes in. My ultimate favorite one is the Glamglow Thirstymud Hydrating Treatment. After using a detoxifying mask, I slap on a hydrating mask for at least 30 minutes. I can't tell you how soft and hydrated my skin looks and feels after doing that combo. I do follow up with my treatments and a heavier moisturizer, but just adding a hydrating mask to the mix has changed the skin on my face so much. I use this mask sparingly since it is $69, but it's incredibly hydrating, my skin drinks it up, and it smells like coconut so I can think about Summer when it's on my face!

Tip #4: Use the thickest hand cream you can think of before bed. During Winter, my hands tend to end up dry, cracked, and bleeding like my lips. The only hand cream I've found to make that go away overnight is The Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector (I swear they're not paying me to mention all these products, I just love them!). I've gone through countless hand creams that seem to work at first, but the dryness comes back after a little bit. This hand cream is seriously a miracle worker. Many years ago before I found this hand cream, my hands where in so much pain from the little cracks that formed and started to bleed, and nothing was working. I decided to give this a try, and I swear to you, my hands were like new overnight. I slathered this on my hands, and while it is a bit greasy at first, I didn't care, I just wanted my hands to stop hurting. I woke up to brand new skin that was soft and crack free. The scent can bother some people (my husband hates it, but he has to deal with it), but it's the absolute best hand cream ever. If you work in retail, a restaurant, or in the healthcare field where you constantly have to wash your hands, I can't recommend this enough. It lasts through multiple hand-washings as well, which I loved when I worked in retail. 

Tip #5: Drink more water! I know, I know, water is important all year round. I really have major issues drinking alot of water in the Winter, because one, I'm always so cold now thanks to being on blood thinners, and two, I just don't feel as thirsty in the Winter. When I don't drink enough water, I notice my skin starts to get dry and it just looks parched. When I up my water intake, it goes away. Seems simple enough to just drink more water, but I know it can be tough. I've made it a point to drink just an extra glass of water a day from what I'm normally used to, and it really has helped me (even though it makes me feel really cold!). 

I hope these tips helped you in some way! What are some things you do to help combat dry skin?