Winterize your skin..beauty tips for glowing, healthy skin

 As if the skin on our face and body doesn’t have enough problems on a daily basis, the dry, cold climate that comes with the winter season can make it worse!  As the warm summer months leave us, your tan starts to wear off revealing dull, dry skin. Blah!

Try these tips and tricks to make your skin healthy, glowing and beautiful!

For girls and guys!

#1. Exfoliate, Exfoliate, Exfoliate!!

  The reason we need to exfoliate is because dead skin cells build up, build up and build up causing the skin to look ashy and dull.  We need to manually remove these dead skin cells to expose our fresh, healthy skin underneath.You can do this by getting a gentle facial scrub (do not use apricot scrubs from st. Ives) and using it once or twice a week in the shower.  You can also use an enzyme mask once a week which will eat away dead skin without the harsh scrubbing of a scrub.  You can get a facial cleanser with glycolic acid or a night cream with alpha hydroxy acids in it. (which will also prevent wrinkles)

(if you go to a spa or med office, or me, to receive chemical peels, now is the time to do a series of about 6 peels until spring)

#2 Mosturize!! 

Once you exfoliate and shed those dead skin cells, be sure to apply a hydrating moisturizer to heal dry, itchy, irritated skin. 

#3 Cleanse and Balance
A gentle cleanser will help to revitalize your skin while preventing impurities from clogging pores and causing breakouts. Use a gentle, alcohol-free facial cleanser in the evening. Unless you have persistent problems with acne, avoid ingredients like salicylic acid that may cause excessive drying or irritate the skin.

#4 Don't take hot showers, it dries out your skin. 


#5 Drink plenty of water! Coffee, tea, soda and alcohol dehydrate your body.  (If you drink more soda than you do water a day, you can bet you will have tired dull skin, your skin will age quicker and your teeth are taking a toll as well.) Just drink water!


#6 Protect your skin
everybody, and I mean everybody should be wearing a light sunscreen everyday! I won't even treat a clients skin unless I know they wear a daily sunscreen. It's not so much about wrinkles and leathery skin.  It's about melanoma, the number one cause of death with skin disease. (Don't get me started...)
If you are a sun bather and can't stand to look pale or can't stay away from the tanning salon, try to go a different route and sign up for spray tans instead.  If you still can't stay away, limit your tanning bed usage to once or twice a month.

#7 Home Care Products
Everyone should have one or two good quality home, skin care products on their bathroom counter (not oil of olay or dove) I recommend a good night treatment cream or a good daily moisturizer. The difference between an over the counter product like oil of olay vs a professional or medical grade product such as glymed plus (putting in a plug for my company) is that by law, the over the counter product can only penetrate the skin to a certain depth.  When you use a higher quality, the product penetrates deeper giving you better cell turnover and visible results quicker.  I love using night creams with alpha hydroxy acids or anything with peptides in it.


So, these are just some recommendations! I would love to hear what you all do to winterize your skin and your personal tips and tricks for healthy skin..and hair.  What products do you use and like? Any home remedies you use? Do you like spray tans or tanning beds? Let's get some feedback!
(And if you have any questions for me as an esthetician, regarding your skin, I will do my best to answer!)