Favorite Dry Skin Winter Products
I love just about everything winter has to offer. From wearing cozy sweaters and worn in leggings to making my slow cooker a permanant fixture on the kitchen counter. I love spending mornings on my snowboard, strentghing my legs and freeing my mind. I love not having to shave my legs even though the lady next to me at the gym feels otherwise. If I had any real criticism about wintertime in a ski town, it’s how dry my skin gets. The conditions are all over the place and sometimes pretty extreme. We battle dry air, high winds, a beating sun, and of course, the snow. When you spend any length of time outside, you’re bound to end up with a sunburn, chapped lips, wind chapped cheeks and dry skin. Over the years, I’ve come to rely on some products that battle the conditions and help this (very low) maintenance girl save her skin.
1. Aquaphor– I swear this stuff is a miracle product. It’s what I slather on my kids when they get the inevitable dry, flakey redness around their lips from licking so much. (This is so a kid + winter thing.) I’ve put it on elbows, at night when I have extra dry lips and it’s my new my go to when I have pesky cuts on my fingers that leave dry skin around just begging to be picked. (Sorry for the visual.)
2. Aveeno Radiance SPF 30– I’ve spent countless amounts of dollars on nicer facial creams with SPF and after the recommendation of a friend, I ended up trying this not that long ago. It’s hard to find a daily moisturizer with SPF 30 that isn’t too heavy. This is light, smells wonderful and at $20 a pop, it’s hard to beat the price. Plus Jennifer Aniston is the spokesperson and who doesn’t want to have that skin? I feel the need to tell you that I really love Eminence Vanilla Day Cream SPF3 32 and have been using it for years but at $60 a tube, it’s definitely more of a splurge.
3. Weleda Skin Food– I have a tube on my night stand and one by my kitchen sink. This is a lifesaver in the winter when my hands are so dry from washing a trillion times. I even have some creepy cotton gloves that every once in a while, I’ll slather Skin Food on my hands and then sleep in the gloves. It freaks my husband out but I have lovely hands come morning time. I smells citrusy, is pleasantly thick and if I had to pick only one of these as my favorite, the Skin Food would win every time.
4. Aveda Lip Saver SPF 15– I have multiple tubes scattered amongst my life. The two most important live in the console of my car and in the pocket of my snowboard pants. The SPF keeps my lips protected from the sun and it’s soft, goes on easily and is good for even the worst of chapped lips. Have you ever had sunburned or wind chapped lips? IT IS THE WORST.
5. Burt’s Bees Radiance Night Creme– When I actually do wash my face at night, which isn’t often I’m afraid, I like to slather a good night creme on. This is pretty heavy- a little goes a long way. It leaves my skin looking a little greasy but since I’m going right to bed, I don’t care. I dig the smell and by morning the shine is gone and I feel like the cream has done it’s work.
6. WATER, AGUA, H2o….lastly, I can’t preach enough about the importance of water. It’s the wonder product of all wonder products. I try to drink in the neighborhood of 70-80 oz of water a day. It not only makes my skin look better, but I sleep better, am less achy and it has the awesome, added bonus of making me pee a lot. #NOT but whatever- it’s worth it. Drink up!
No sponsors here just sharing what I love and use on a regular basis. Do you have a favorite product to use when it’s cold and dry out? I’d love to hear as it’s always great to discover something new!
17 Comments
Ditto on the Aveeno!
Mix vegetable glycerin with your regular moisturizer for a great nighttime moisturizer in winter. You can buy the veggie glycerin at most co-op’s or natural food stores.
I’ll have to try that!
Do you know anything about using glycerin in Dry Climates?
I bought some to make a leave-in hair conditioner but then when I started reading about it online I found people who said glycerin can be drying if you’re in a desert climate. Apparently it moisturizes by pulling water from the atmosphere, but if the air is dry it pulls it from your hair (skin)? Do you know anything about this?
I don’t. Someone else left a comment about putting glycerin in lotion for dry skin. I’m curious though so definitely need to look into it!
I live in the Southwest, and I use Solarcaine. It’s easy to use and I can spray it on all the hard to reach areas of my back, ets.
Thank you for the good info.
Great list – I love Aveeno. I would also add Body Shop hand lotion in almond. My favorite and it does a great job at moisturizing my hands while smelling great and being eco-friendly 🙂
I haven’t been to the body shop in years, I don’t even know where one is. I’ll have to look it up online.
I’m loving a Burt’s Bees Ultimate Care Hand Cream, but I may need to try the Weleda based on your recommendation. Between all of the hand washing and the extreme dryness and cold, my hands are a disaster! Thanks for sharing.
It’s the best- puts all others to shame- I promise!
I moved out here from CA right before winter and I was shocked at how dry my skin was once it cold and dry here. I tried so many lotions and balms before stumbling upon a lotion from Melaleuca, you have to be a member to order it but I was lucky enough to have a friend who is order some for me. It’s the only lotion I use now!
I use Blistex for my lips but I think I might look into Aveda. Thanks!
What is Melaleuca? I’ll have to check it out!
I love coconut oil. I use it everyday, a product called CapriClear. Which is a great moisturizer, especially for dry skin, love the stuff!
You were right! I loved the Waleda! It does put others to shame and now I’m telling everyone about it.
This winter I declared a War on Dry Skin. My strategies:
1. Aquaphor is a staple on my lips before bed.
2. Cetaphil facewash, people! This was a step-change for my face, and I was using Aveeno’s Ultra Gentle Foaming Wash previous. Cetaphil is the only facewash I’ve found that does not dry my skin out.
3. A couple times a week I’ve been doing a face mask. Lush’s Oatfix is great.
4. I also like Cetaphil’s moisturizing cream or coconut oil before bed on my face.
5. O’Keefe’s Working Hands cream is a wonder. Great for chronically dry hands.
I’m sad I didn’t try Aquaphor on my self sooner! I used it for years on my babies for diaper rash but never thought to use it myself, but one day a few winters ago I randomly decided to try it to see if it would help my dry skin and it worked like a miracle.