The weather out there might be frightful, but your clients’ skin doesn’t have to be. Wintertime is particularly drying to skin because it reduces the sebum in the skin; the naturally occurring oil that literally “saves face” while holding moisture in the epidermis and protecting it from the elements. Humidity is low, both outdoors and indoors, due to cold air and indoor heating. That means the lack of moisture in the air strips hydration from the face and body, creating lasting flakiness, discomfort and even chapped lips, hands and feet. This dryness may even cause clients to scratch, causing the skin to become red, inflamed or scaly. As the stratum corneum dries out, it shrinks, causing small cracks to occur. This exposes the underlying living cells to irritating substances and germs in the environment. Soaps, harsh chemicals, aging, hormonal changes, diet and a lack of exercise can all aggravate winter dryness.
Check out the following tips to fight this winter weather warfare:
Winter Care Basics
Harsh cleansers and exfoliants can cause severe dryness and worsen winter skin by stripping the skin of its natural oils. Use a cleanser that’s mild, creamy or milky without harsh alcohols and fragrances. Choose face and body cleansers or soaps that have a “fatted” base, or oils such as olive oil or coconut oil added to them. Encourage your clients to limit their bath and shower time to ten minutes and use warm, rather than hot, water as prolonged water exposure can wash away the skin’s natural protective oils.
Encourage clients to use a humidifier in their homes. They replenish the moisture in the air and counter act the drying effects of heating in the winter months. A humidifier adds moisture by filtering air across a water-saturated wick, reducing dryness and irritation to the skin, nose, throat and lips. It also eases flu and cold symptoms.
Clients can protect their skin from the elements by using gloves, a scarf and a hat when outside. Offer your clients hydrating gel gloves with natural oils and humectants to wear at night while they sleep.
CTMP (Cleanse, Treat, Moisturize, Protect)
To keep winter skin healthy, stick to the basics. Think CTMP or Cleanse, Treat (Serum), Moisturize and Protect (Sunscreen). Use gentle, milky cleansers to cleanse the skin and remove makeup. These cleansers won’t strip the skin of its natural oils. Avoid gel formulas, which tend to be more drying. This is very important for maintaining the oil and moisture balance in the skin. Don’t use hot water when cleansing, only cool or tepid water. It’s difficult for sebaceous glands to produce enough oil to counteract harsh winter conditions. Skin will appear redder, flakier, chapped, irritated and may even develop rashes if it is over-washed.
Serums are great for combating winter skin, as they are formulated with active ingredients such as vitamins and antioxidants that are designed to penetrate the deeper layers of the skin to treat conditions like dryness and flaking. For a hydrating treatment, try a stable vitamin C oil or serum. This anti-oxidizes and protects skin immunity during the winter months. Vitamin C also keeps skin even and glowing. It protects skin from free radicals and reduces pigmentation, fine lines and increases collagen production. Choose a more occlusive moisturizer than the one you would normally choose for that client in the summer. And, definitely don’t skip out on the sunscreen just because it’s cooler outside. Continue to apply SPF 30 and encourage clients to reapply throughout the day.
reapply throughout the day. For immediate relief from dry winter skin, encourage clients to keep skin hydrated by moisturizing immediately after cleansing their face and body to replenish what skin loses in cleansing. Offer those suffering with winter skin an extra hydrating night cream or luxurious face oil to apply at night in their humidified room. Don’t forget the extremities! The skin on the lips has no sebum-producing oil glands to help protect it, so carry a rich balm available for retail to insulate the lips that clients can carry in their purses as well.
Moisturizing Ingredients
When selecting products for winter skin facials, avoid those containing alcohol. But remember, not all alcohols are drying. Simple alcohols, such as methanol, ethanol, propanol and denatured alcohol used as anti-bacterials can dry out the skin. Aromatic alcohols such as benzoyl alcohol or fragrance components can dry and irritate the skin as well. Whereas fatty alcohols, such as cetearyl alcohol and isostearyl alcohol, have emollient and occlusive characteristics and can actually keep the skin hydrated.
Opt for non-clogging natural oils like jojoba, olive, coconut, primrose, almond and sunflower, apricot kernel, borage seed, argan and tocopheryl acetate (vitamin E).
Other powerful natural skin care moisturizers include cocoa butter and shea butter for supple, conditioned and glowing skin. In addition, seek out products with natural humectants to help attract water to the surface of the skin and deliver hydration and nutrients to the deeper layers as well, helping skin keep itself hydrated on a regular basis. Look for ingredients such as aloe, honey, hyaluronic acid and glycerin.
Hydrate, and Then Hydrate Again
Skin is made up of 64 percent water and is largely dictated by your hydration levels. Water not only plumps the skin, but it also encourages collagen production, which ensures the cohesion, elasticity and regeneration of skin. It also flushes toxins out of the body that lead to acne and scarring. Without adequate water levels, the skin becomes dull and fine lines, wrinkles, scars and pores appear exaggerated as the face essentially shrinks into its tightest position. So to fight winter dryness, encourage clients to drink eight or more glasses of water a day (at the minimum). Clients should drink water that is clean and nutritious; spring water packed with minerals or filtered water that is not exposed to BPA.
Exfoliate Less
Switch to more gentle exfoliators like lactic acid or fruit enzymes and reduce the amount of physical exfoliating you do on your clients. Over exfoliation can cause skin reactivity in the form of dry patches or oily oozing. If you use toners, switch to a gentle formulation with soothing ingredients like rose water or calendula. Reduce the strength of your exfoliation, and encourage clients to reduce their at-home exfoliation to once or twice a week. Apply a retinol one percent cream to breakdown the drying skin barrier and encourage cell turnover to prep the skin for resurfacing and hydration.
Customize To Every Skin Type
Dry skin may need even more moisture, so seek out oil-based creams and cleansers to lock it in. Double down on the moisturizer as well. Double apply or use two different moisturizers in a row. Allow the first application to penetrate and absorb and then re-apply the second layer. For extra-dry skin patches, apply a layer of thick balm to create a layer of insulation from the cold or dry air. Apply an oil or mask for some extra quench.
Sensitive or Rosacea skin can benefit from a gentle exfoliation wash with citric acid instead of hydroxides. These skin types require gentle and non-fragranced products for maximum soothing. Add a chamomile or calendula based moisturizer to your facial protocol to calm irritation.
Oily skin needs moisture too, particularly if you are using treatments for breakouts. Overly drying products can trigger more dryness, itchiness and even breakouts. Use oil-free moisturizers or a concentrated serum that’s lightweight in place of a heavy cream. More often than not, what is typically eliminated from serums is the oils (nut, mineral, seed, etc.) in a bid for a purer solution.
Over 50: Reduce use of products with retinoid or alpha hydroxy acids. The skin is thinner and more sensitive than it used to be so focus on hydration. All the wear and tear from the sun thins out the skin, so baby it with gentle massage and cooler water temperatures when cleansing.
