Beauty tricks to help you beat the big chill
WITH temperatures dropping and experts predicting we could be in for the coldest winter in five years, now is the perfect time to tweak your beauty routine to ensure your skin isn’t stressed out by the cooler weather.
From nourishing milk baths to simple skincare swaps, we’ve rounded up all you need to know to help winter-proof your skin.
PROBLEM: DRY SKIN
Lower temperatures and biting winds combined with central heating can leave skin dehydrated and feeling tight and flaky.
Swap foaming cleanser for a milder creamy formula such as Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser, £8.99 (boots.com). Add a serum or facial oil to your skincare regime to give your complexion the extra support it needs. Avene Hydrance Intense Rehydrating Serum, £18 (avene.co.uk) contains thermal water and helps strengthen and rehydrate. A grainy exfoliator can dry out skin so use a peel that contains glycolic or lactic acid
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instead. These natural acids encourage exfoliation, leaving skin fresh and radiant. Filorga Oxygen Peel, £26 (salonskincare.co.uk) contains glycolic acid and hyaluronic acid to resurface and plump. If your complexion looks red or blotchy, break open an evening primrose oil capsule and apply the contents directly on to cleansed skin. Evening primrose oil is packed with essential fatty acids that will restore the skin’s moisture barrier and reduce redness in a few hours.
For extra hydration, use a moisturising mask once a week. Try Antonia Burrell Mask Supreme 7-in-1, £65 (antoniaburrell.com) to leave skin nourished and glowing.
AT THE CLINIC: Winter is the perfect time to have any sort of resurfacing procedure as you are less likely to be exposed to damaging UV rays.
Fractora is a radiofrequency treatment that revitalises and rejuvenates dull and dry skin.
It can be used all over the face and neck and will help tighten sagging skin, reduce pigmentation marks, fill out fine lines and boost collagen production. From £1,000. PROBLEM: DARK CIRCLES Eye bags can look significantly darker during the colder months. A lack of sleep as well as dehydration and lower vitamin D levels can all contribute. When choosing an eye cream, look for skin-strengthening ingredients such as coenzyme Q10, retinol and peptides.
Try La Roche-Posay Pigmentclar Anti Dark Circles Eye Cream, £25.50 (boots.com) which is enriched with light-reflecting pigments to conceal dark shadows.
Improve the quality of your sleep and give skin a boost at the same time with Amly Beauty Sleep Face Mist, £52 (amlybotanicals.com).
Spritz over skin and let the soothing valerian root calm your mind while vitamins C and A tackle signs of ageing.
AT THE CLINIC: Xela Plus Therapy is a new treatment that can help fade dark circles. The procedure involves having blood taken and spun in a centrifuge to separate the platelets.
These are mixed with hyaluronic acid and injected into the areas around the eye to stimulate the regeneration of cells and collagen.
Three treatments, two weeks apart is recommended. Results last up to a year. From £2,000. PROBLEM: CRACKED HANDS The skin on the hands doesn’t have many oil glands so has little natural defence against cold weather and can dry out quickly. Give dry hands
a treat by using a gentle scrub once a week and applying a rich hand cream throughout the day.
Try Woods of Windsor Gardeners Blackberry and Thyme Hand Scrub, £4.99, which is rich in antioxidants, essential fatty acids and healing thyme oil. Follow with Gardeners Blackberry & Thyme Intensive Hand Balm, £7.99 (woodsofwindsor.co.uk).
AT THE CLINIC: Biomimetic mesotherapy is a skin-plumping treatment that involves having multiple microinjections of a powerful cocktail of peptides directly into the skin. These increase hydration levels while softening fine lines and fading pigmentation marks. From £300.
PROBLEM: DRY LEGS
As with hands, skin on the legs doesn’t have many oil glands so it can easily become dry and irritated.
Try Kind Natured Ultra Gentle Oatmeal & Aloe Body Wash, £4.99 (boots.com), which contains soothing oatmeal to nourish dry skin and reduce inflammation.
Holly Willoughby’s favourite trick for baby soft skin is to add a scoop of powdered milk to the bath. It’s a natural exfoliator and helps boost collagen. Vaseline Intensive Care Essential Healing, £3.65 (boots.com) is clinically proven to moisturise skin so use daily after showering.
PROBLEM: CHAPPED LIPS
The skin on the lips is thinner and more delicate than on the rest of the face so cold temperatures can quickly lead to chapping.
Apply a thick layer of petroleum jelly to your lips before you go to bed and gently exfoliate lips once or twice a week so that creams and serums can be easily absorbed.
For extremely dry lips try a barrier cream such as La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume, £6 (laroche-posay.com) which helps rebuild the epidermis.
For advice on cosmetic surgery consult your GP. For more of Lesley’s tips see lesleyreynolds.com