We tapped Beaty Facial Plastic Surgery’s (@beatyfacialplasticsurgery) newest provider, Dr. Celeste Nagy (@drcelestenagy), to share her tips for flawless, hydrated skin all winter long.
Photo by Dom Aguiar/Unsplash
1. BUFF SKIN WITH A GENTLE EXFOLIANT
Exfoliating should be a staple part of your winter skincare routine for dry, flaky skin. I prefer chemical exfoliants to physical exfoliators (like apricot or walnut scrubs and microbeads) because of the irritation and damage they can cause to your skin. Instead, I love a gentle chemical exfoliant such as Epionce Lytic Tx or Jan Marini’s Bioglycolic face cleanser.
2. APPLY A VITAMIN C SERUM
A good vitamin C serum, which provides antioxidants, should always be part of your skincare routine. I like Obagi vitamin C with hydroquinone. Vitamin C fights aging while hydroquinone helps with hyperpigmentation, making this the perfect product.
3. NOURISH SKIN WITH A DAILY MOISTURIZER
Immediately after cleansing and applying a vitamin C serum, I massage [Neocutis] Bio Cream Firm onto the skin. It will keep your skin hydrated during these harsher winter months.
Photo courtesy of Honest Beauty
4. FINISH WITH A HYDRATING OIL
As the last step in my winter skincare routine, I add an extra dose of hydration. I have been using Honest Organic Beauty facial oil. It’s silky and keeps your skin hydrated and glowing.
5. USE A RICH CREAM AT NIGHT
Find a rich moisturizer without fragrance or other irritating ingredients to moisturize while you sleep. I love Jan Marini’s Transformation face cream because it not only moisturizes, but also helps boost collagen and elastin for significant skin rejuvenation.
6. USE OCCASIONAL HYDRATING FACE MASKS
About once every week or two weeks I apply a sheet or face mask after my shower. It helps reset skin and maintain hydration.
Photo by Natalie Thomas
7. WASH WITH A GENTLE CLEANSER
While I’d always recommend a mild cleanser, it’s even more important in the winter when your skin is already dehydrated. You do not need a dry ‘squeaky clean’ feeling from a cleanser for it to be working! You don’t want to strip away the natural oils. Lately, I’ve been loving EltaMD’s foaming cleanser. It is very gentle and leaves your skin feeling soft and refreshed.
8. HYDRATE
It’s easy to forget about drinking loads of water when you’re not in the heat of summer, but all of these skincare steps and products will have a limited impact if you don’t also hydrate from the inside.
9. CONTINUE USING SPF
Just because it’s not as hot out doesn’t mean you can’t still get sun damage, especially if you are doing winter sports like skiing. Make sure you are still applying daily SPF with your skincare regimen.
10. CONSIDER RESURFACING TREATMENTS DURING THE WINTER
I personally suffer from melasma and hyperpigmentation after being in the summer sun. Therefore, I use the fall and winter to reset my skin. At Beaty Facial Plastic Surgery, we perform intense pulsed light therapy, which targets dark spots, broken capillaries and redness with no downtime. I also recommend erbium laser resurfacing, which helps with skin tightening, fine lines and wrinkles, texture and overall refreshing of the skin. For those patients with more serious sun damage pigment and wrinkles, then CO2 laser resurfacing is fantastic. There is more downtime and healing to this procedure, which should only be performed by a board-certified facial plastic surgeon or dermatologist, however, it yields unparalleled results and should be done when you are getting less sun exposure in the winter.
Photo by Jess Harper Sunday/Unsplash
11. USE RETINOL FOR SKIN TEXTURE IMPROVEMENT
Retinol is a derivative of vitamin A and comes in a variety of strengths. I recommend starting on a 0.25 to 0.5 strength and use it two to three times a week. It’s great to start using this product in the fall or winter when you are getting less sun exposure. If your skin is not irritated then you can move up to using it five to seven nights a week. Be sure to use a retinol product, not a Retin-A product, which is much stronger.
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