If your skin feels tight after every shower, your hands crack by July and your face goes flaky the moment the heater comes on, you are not imagining it. Winter is genuinely harder on skin. Here in the Adelaide Hills we get proper cold: frosty mornings, dry air, wood fires and long hot showers. All of it pulls moisture out of your skin.
The good news is that winter skin is mostly a routine problem, not a skin problem. A few small changes make a real difference.
Why winter dries your skin out
Your skin holds onto water with a thin layer of natural oils. In winter three things work against it:
Cold, dry air. Cold air holds less moisture. The drier the air, the faster water evaporates from your skin.
Heating. Wood fires, reverse-cycle aircon and car heaters all dry the air out further. You warm up, your skin dries out.
Hot showers. The one we are all guilty of. Long hot showers feel great and strip the natural oils that keep moisture in. The tight, itchy feeling afterwards is your skin telling you it has lost its protective layer.
What actually helps
1. Turn the shower down a notch
Warm, not scalding. Shorter if you can manage it. Your skin will thank you even if the rest of you protests.
2. Swap foaming cleansers for cream cleansers
Foaming face washes can strip winter skin. A cream cleanser cleans without taking your natural oils with it.
3. Moisturise while your skin is still damp
The best time to moisturise is within a few minutes of washing, while there is still water in your skin to lock in. In winter you may want to step up from a light moisturiser to something richer. The Hydrating Face Moisturiser suits most skin day to day. If your skin is properly dry or weathered, Intensive Face Nourishment is the richer option made for exactly this time of year.
4. Use an oil to seal everything in
A few drops of a facial or body oil over your moisturiser helps slow water loss through the night. Nourishing Body Oil works all over. For the face, Hydrating Face Oil is the simple one-step option.
5. Do not forget lips and hands
Lips and hands cop the worst of winter because they have thin skin and constant exposure. Keep a lip balm in your pocket and a hand cream by the sink so it actually gets used.
Common winter skin questions
Should I moisturise more often in winter?
Usually yes. If you moisturise once a day in summer, twice a day in winter is a reasonable rhythm: morning and after your evening shower.
Why does my skin feel tight after a shower?
That tight feeling usually means the shower has stripped the natural oils from your skin. Turn the temperature down, keep it shorter and moisturise straight afterwards.
Do natural oils actually help dry skin?
Plant oils like jojoba, rosehip and hemp seed are rich in fatty acids that help support the skin's own moisture barrier. They will not fix dry air or hot showers on their own, but as the last step in a routine they help hold moisture in.
Not sure what your skin needs this winter?
Every product we make is handmade in small batches here in the Adelaide Hills with natural and organic ingredients. Take the 60 second skin quiz and we will point you at the right ones.
Take the skin quizOr read our three-step routine guide for the basics.