Winter weather blasts are just around the windswept corner. You’ll need special protection to keep your skin radiant and glowing. ‘Tis the season when falling humidity teams up with dropping temperatures to dry out even the healthiest skin. Guarding against cold weather damage isn’t a one-formula-fits-all proposition. Normal skin cries out for a shift from light lotions to heavier cream moisturizers. Oily skin still needs hydration but in the form of water-based emollients. Combination skins demand a fine balance between needed hydration and fast absorption. Keep reading to find the perfect moisturizer for your skin type.
Sensitive Skin
Delicate skin can easily become itchy and irritated during the winter months. Look for a viscous, emollient moisturizer to protect inflamed skin. Using a moisturizer loaded with antioxidants will help calm irritated, sensitive skin.
Avène Tolérance Extrême Cream, $38, Dermstore
Avène is works wonders for sensitive skin all year round, but this rich, soothing moisturizer is especially perfect for tackling the compromising weather of winter. Ingredients that envelop skin in a thin veil include anti-irritating thermal spring water.
Combination Skin
Finding a moisturizer that performs for both oily and dry areas is a balancing act. Your best bet is an oil-free formula delivering the perfect balance between needed hydration to keep cells healthy and providing easy absorption with no greasy residue.
La Roche Posay Toleriane Double Repair Moisturizer UV, $20, dermstore.com
This product effectively moisturizes with glycerin and ceramide-3 and soothes with anti-inflammatory niacinamide and thermal water. Prebiotic ingredients restore the skin’s microbiome for best results protecting against the winter environment and pollution. Broad-spectrum UV provides effective sunscreen.
Normal Skin
Ointments may be too heavy and gels may be too drying, but cream-based moisturizers are just right for normal skin in winter’s colder weather. Creams will moisturize better than lotion in these drying times, and they won’t make normal skin oily when temps drop and winds howl. Look for a daytime cream with Vitamin C to counter antioxidant damage and an SPF of at least 30.
TruSkin Daily Facial Moisturizer, $16, Amazon
The No. 1 bestseller on Amazon for Vitamin C moisturizing cream for face, neck and décolleté helps hydrate and smooth skin by shrinking pores. The formula clears up acne and prevents further breakouts while minimizing the appearance of acne scars. The result is glowing skin that’s healthy, firm and radiant.
Dry Skin
Daily use of a rich oil-based cream helps heal dull and lackluster skin for a youthful glow. Higher oil content speeds absorption to hydrate parched tissue and repair the skin’s moisture barrier. Long-term hydration is needed to repair skin so that it is truly moist.
SW Basics Cream, $10, SWBasicsofBK
Put just three ingredients— organic shea butter, olive oil and coconut oil—up against winter and you’ve got the protection of a super-rich moisturizer. That’s the formula of this extremely rich cream that sinks deep into thirsty skin for staying power to outlast water-based moisturizers that evaporate within minutes.
Oily Skin
Stop the flow of oil during dry winter months by making sure skin gets plenty of water-based hydration. Loss of water only prompts oily skin to pump out more oil. Look for a gel with aloe, an oil-free ingredient that delivers hydration to keep cells moist with water.
M-61 Hydraboost HA Gel Moisturizer, $72, Macys
This peptide-packed vitamin B5 hydrating and firming moisturizer with anti-inflammatory ingredients tamarind and aloe is extremely lightweight with the consistency of a creamy serum. Natural tamarind helps improve elasticity, while aloe soothes the skin. Use it for firming in the morning or as a light anti-aging moisturizer at night.
