A Guide To Winter Skincare

With winter in full swing for most of the U.S., I wanted to put together a list of my favorite cold weather skincare products. I use the word winter loosely because in Florida our cold weather is sporadic. Most of the time we stay in the 70's, however, when we do get a spurt of cooler air, think 40's and 30's, I have to adjust my skincare routine. I have normal to dry, sensitive skin and the cooler dry air is definitely not my friend. In the past I've suffered from eczema and occasionally I'll get a spurt of it but touch wood touches wooden nightstand I haven't had that happen in a very long time. Because of my sensitive skin I pay attention to the ingredients in the products I use. I try to stick to brands that are natural or use limited ingredients. When the cooler weather rolls in I up my exfoliating to remove any flaked skin the dry air leaves me with and moisturize whenever I feel my skin is thirsty. Although I already have dry skin you won't find any heavy moisturizers on this list. Unfortunately, thick moisturizers break my skin out and leave it feeling greasy. Luckily I've found lighter ones that moisturize perfectly and leave my skin feeling healthy and happy.

My winter skincare routine goes a little something like this. I wake up and cleanse my face with the Youth To The People cleanser. I then put some Belif moisturizer around my eye area and follow that with my Youth To The People moisturizer. I finish my routine with a few sprits of the May Lindstrom facial mist and carry on with my morning. If you cant tell, I like to keep my morning ritual quick and straightforward. Honestly, the part that takes the longest is waiting for the water to warm up. My nightly routine is slightly longer; I start by cleansing and removing my makeup with the Youth To The People cleanser just as I do in the morning. Then I use my Tatcha exfoliator to remove dead skin cells and any flakiness. Onto the creams. I first apply my Belif eye cream to the eye area and then my Verso serum to the rest of my face. I then follow that by using my Verso night cream and finally every other night I apply my Vintner's Daughter Botanical Serum. I apply that on nights when I know the next morning I'm going to wash my hair. Because I have bangs this oil-based serum can make them look a bit greasy. When you scroll down and start reading through my product list you'll see that quite a few of them are for antiaging. Although I'm only 21, and know I don't need to worry about antiaging products yet, it's never too early to start taking good care of your skin. It will be much easier to moisturize and exfoliate now to keep wrinkles away than try and treat them once they begin to appear down the road.

Youth To The People | Age Prevention Cleanser

I have used this cleanser for two years and gone through countless bottles. It's a tried and true product that I can't say enough good things about it. No matter what makeup I'm wearing it takes it all off like a dream. Because this cleanser is ph balanced it never leaves my skin feeling stripped of its natural oils. Although all the ingredients in this cleanser are why I love it the reason I bought it is because of everything that's not in it. This cleanser is free of soap, sulfates, phthalates, synthetic fragrance, and added color. The cherry on top though is that it still lathers and smells incredible thanks to the kale, green tea, and spinach.

Youth To The People | Age Prevention Moisture Cream

This moisturizer is another excellent product by Youth To The People. They're a younger brand with a small product range but everything I've tried from them I can't rave about enough. Just like the cleanser this moisturizer has a fantastic scent and is free of all those nasty additives. I use this cream every morning after washing my face, and throughout the dry if I need a pick me up, and my skin just drinks it up. My complexion is left looking brighter and feeling restored. Thanks to the light as air texture of this cream I'm never left feeling weighed down or like there's product sitting on my face.

May Lindstrom Skin | The Jasmine Garden

Many times I've read about the benefits of facial mists, they can calm irritated skin, brighten a complexion, and lift your mood. For the longest time I never felt like I needed one in my regimen until I came across this gem. I was sold me on this mist over others because May Lindstrom adds colloidal silver to hers. If you don't know what colloidal silver is I'll break it down for you, it's water that's been infused with silver and is antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-fungal. That's good for your skin because bacteria on the face can cause breakouts. I use this mist morning and night to combat breakouts and give my skin a little extra love.

Tatcha | Classic Rice Enzyme Powder

For the longest time I steered clear from exfoliating products because I always worried they'd be too rough for my sensitive skin. After using this exfoliator for over six months I now know I couldn't have been more wrong. Having it in my routine has helped brighten my complexion and refine my skin's surface, it's never felt softer. I love Tatcha's exfoliator because it's a water-activated powder that uses rice bran to exfoliate rather than harsh abrasives. I use it every evening to remove dead skin cells but it's so gentle I sometimes use it in the morning if my skin is feeling a little flaky from the frightful weather outside.

Belif | Moisturizing Eye Balm

My eye area is where I have to be most cautious when trying new products. When I was younger and suffered from eczema, my eye area is where I experience the cracking and flakiness the worst. I was apprehensive to try this balm but after reading how nourishing it is, all the harmful ingredients it doesn't contain, and the 26-hour burst of moisture it can give I crossed my fingers and got a sample. After trying it for a week and seeing my eye area drink it up and be left more moisturized than ever I ran back to Sephora bought the full size and have been using it every night and winter morning since.

VERSO | Night Cream

At 21 I was unsure about using a product that contained retinol, I was under the assumption you had to be older, but after reading an article that shared it can help heal the skin I gave it a try. I started out by using this cream every few nights, then every other night, and now it's a staple of my nightly routine. I went with Verso over other brands that have retinol products because the retinol 8 exclusive to them is eight times more effective than standard retinol and half as irritative. Their products are also free from dangerous ingredients just like all of the others I've shared on this list.

VERSO | Super Facial Serum

After using the Verso night cream for awhile and loving it I wanted to try another product from their line. I decided on this serum because it's designed to heal and strengthen the skin, I was in desperate need of that. Whats nice is that it contains a higher dose of retinol 8 which promotes long-term skin health. Since I started using this in conjunction with the night cream my skins texture is smoother than ever. Makeup hides our skin issues pretty well, but my goal is to be confident in my skin and not feel the need to cover it up, makeup leads to more skin problems anyway, this serum has helped me get to a place where I don't feel the need to wear foundation.

Vintner's Daughter | Active Botanical Serum

After reading review after review raving about all the benefits this serum offers I decided to give it a try for myself. Vintner's Daughter is a 100% organic or wildcrafted facial oil that's formulated without added sulphates, parabens, phthalates, synthetic fragrances, PEGs, and SLSs. Now that it's been apart of my routine for a few months I couldn't go back to a time when I didn't have it. Because of the 22 oils and the nutrients and vitamins they contain and provide my skin I'm left with skin that feels healed and nourished. I use this oil every other evening and in the morning my complexion always looks radiant and happier.