What Are Your Beauty Staples for Winter?

Winter is kind of a weird concept, because it arrives at different times in different parts of the world. Right now it’s snowy and frigid here in Michigan, but somewhere in Florida people are enjoying poolside margaritas, and Australians are hiding from the hottest sun of the year. Still, when I say Winter, I mean that cold, nasty time of the year, when the roads are increasingly hard to drive, when dry air from indoor heating completely obliterates the moisture in my skin, and when my hair turns into a dandelion from all the static electricity in the air.

Yes, that kind of Winter requires some special pampering, even if your skin is normally low maintenance. Today I’m linking up with fellow beauty bloggers from The Beauty Council to bring you my bucket list of Winter Beauty Staples. Let’s call it a “fill in the blanks” list; so you can share your picks in the comments below, too. I really want to know what you guys are loving in each category!

HANDS
I don’t know about you, but the skin on my hands usually gets hit the worst in Winter. I know, I know, I could be more diligent at wearing gloves, but unless it’s in the negatives outside and I risk getting frostbite, I always seem to forget to put them on. The result: extra dry, irritated, red, itchy skin, with dry cuticles and splitting nails. Yuck! A regular hand cream just doesn’t cut it anymore, so I opt in for extra rich ones: The Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector, Nubian Heritage Hemp & Haitian Vetiver Hand Cream, and La Mer The Hand Treatment.

BODY
The skin on my body suffers from that shift of temperatures, too, and requires additional pampering. The products I currently use are all aimed at soothing irritation, flakiness, and itchiness, while retaining proper moisture level. For the daytime I love soothing non-greasy formulas like TATCHA Indigo Soothing Silk Body Butter, and for the night I slather my body all over with either Nubian Heritage Infused Shea Butter or The Body Shop Shea Body Butter.

FACE
Another part of my body that needs some extra nourishment is, of course, my face. I have combination skin that consists of oily t-zone and normal cheeks, but that changes every winter when “normal” turns into “dry and tight”. My regular moisturizer needs some extra help, so I try to get creative and switch things up, while making sure I don’t accidentally clog my pores with heavy formulas. So, what I do now is I swap all my serums with moisturizing oils, and that seems to do the trick. Two of my current favorites are TATCHA Camellia Beauty Oil and Weleda Almond Soothing Facial Oil. I also recently received a small sample of fresh Seaberry Moisturizaing Face Oil that I really like as well.

EXTRAS
Occasionally I add pampering treats to my routine just to help relax and unwind on those lazy days, and of course there’s no better indulgence than LUSH bath bombs, melts and massage bars.