Help Your Complexion Fight Winter Woes

Though I like winters, but with this unpredictable season, your velvet-coated manicure, best lipstick shade and your perfect outfit for new year can fall out of style. In this chilly cold weather, your skin can act weird and crazy. This can ruin your Christmas and new year's plan and moreover can interfere with your confidence. In this festive season, your skin can look parched and dry while looking greasy and flaky at the same time. Personally, my skin just doesn't hold enough moisture to fight that dry winter breeze, which forces me to apply a lot of oily moisturizers, making my skin worse. Lets just find out, what is the reason behind it and what should be done to fix it:

A Splash Of Water to hydrate and relieve the skin
In winters, our skin becomes dry, and we think by applying more and more moisturizer, it will be fine. Moisturizer can be helpful, but to rehydrate the skin, it is important that we put water back into the skin. Alcohol depletes skin cells of their natural moisture. Moreover, if you are one with skin that is acne-prone, applying layers of moisturizer can lead to clogged pores.

Take a small bucket and fill it with cold water and add about 10 ice cubes in it. Leave ice cubes for melting, after that splash your face with that icy cool water, about 25 times. The best solution is to fill up the sink with cold water and add about 10 ice cubes. Once the ice cubes melt, splash your face 25 times. It offers water to thirsty cells and cold water also helps relieving puffy skin and even headache that you may experience after drinking all night. 

Move away from the expensive stuff
In winters, when your skin feels tight and dry, you tend to reach out for that expensive moisturizing cream that you got from a high-end store. Since, you cannot use it in warmer season, so you try to use it anyhow. One thing to be made clear here, is that skin needs water in winter, not fats or wax or any occlusive ingredients, mineral oil, or any petroleum byproduct for that matter. All these cover layers of skin making it difficult for the skin to expel its waste resulting in clogging and skin congestion. These irritate your skin follicles and if your skin gets inflamed by using this, you must part with these products containing artificial fragrance and colors.

Chuck foam and bars
In the first place, stop using them entirely. Yes, weird, but true. No need to wash up every day with foams and bars, simply pouring water can also do. Because high-foaming bathing products and shower gels just increase dryness, though leaving some fragrance. Similarly, scented soaps and antibacterial bars add insult to injury, since they strip the skin of lipids and leave a residue. Switch to gentle, non-foaming bars and washes to replenish lipids and soothe the sensitive skin.
 

On early days of month, I add some milk to my bathing water, this is practically not possible for everyone, but I do it only when I am high on cash.

Lube up after shower
After quiting those terribly dangerous foaming washes and bars, learn to apply those moisturizing lotions to the warm, damp, freshly cleansed skin to allow greater product penetration. A few pumps of an aromatherapy massage oil will further make your body lotion soothing and comforting. You'll remain moisturized for the whole day.
 

Oil also help you get rid of that itchy skin. I do it everyday after a warm water shower. Yes warm water! Hot showers can make your skin worse in winters – dry, scaly and itchy, embarrassing, isn't it?
 

Easy on exfoliation
Assertive scrubs and exfoliators can make skin more lacerated, resulting in more water loss. If there is a need, use some skin friendly exfoliators, which are safe for sensitive skin and removes dirt gently from the surface of the skin. I prefer going all natural -- honey with lime water and some milk and sugar can make a perfect exfoliator, that too very smooth and gentle. After exfoliation and cleansing, pat dry your skin but don't rub. And if you wish to brighten the complexion further, you can use Revitol skin brightening cream or Rich feel skin brightening cream or Olay white radiance. They are gentle on sensitive skin and gives you brighter looking complexion.

Plant products
Natural bioactive moisturizing ingredients such as shea butter, cocoa seed butter, avocado oil, argon oil, and Vitamin E filled products are best for winters. They provide hydrating and soothing lipids and hydrators to skin, even in extreme rough and dry conditions. 

Ice rollers
A popular product among Asians and Europeans, this is a wonder product that instantly massages your skin for any occasion. I am recommending this because of my personal experience with it. Ice roller is a hand held device filled with gel and water, which is rolled across the face. It massages your skin instantly to reduce that puffiness and redness making it firmer. This is an amazing product, it helps you get that instant glow and refreshed look fo any winter occasion.

These were some informative and educational tips for you to fight that winter wrath. I know, it is difficult to avoid and adopt so many things at once, but at least you can try so that your skin is ready for the coming spring.  Get ready to flaunt that perfect skin, that you have been hiding under layers during the winters.