How to Have Fabulous Skin in Winter: Part Three

Since I have discussed winter skin care for your face, hands and feet already, the only aspect left to talk about is your body in general. People often forget to take care of the skin on the rest of their body for some strange reason, but they should make sure this is a part of their daily regimen.

A primary skin issue in the winter visible on the skin of African Americans is their skin becomes “ashy.” When your skin is ashy, it is dry and a white hue reminiscent of chalk appears on your skin. If at anytime your skin becomes ashy, this is a visible sign from your body that your skin is dry and needs some special attention.

Pay attention to this sign because if you have never noticed, your skin is easily irritated by clothes and almost anything when it is dry. Your skin is also more susceptible to cuts and skin tears when it is dry because the cells are more rigid and more likely to easily separate on the cell level, so make sure you use lotion to avoid having this happen to your skin.

For some reason when I meet people they are always amazed at how soft my skin is and usually tell me so without hesitation. When they compliment me, I always think in my head, “Do most of the people you know have rough crocodile skin?” I of course use a scrub to help keep my skin soft, but I also use Dove’s Gentle Exfoliating Soap which helps to remove the top layer of dead skin by revealing softer, fresher skin each time I use it. Dove also has a Winter Care Soap which I heard works wonders, so you may want to consider trying this to help with your seasonal dry skin.

I know it is tempting to take a hot and steamy shower to warm you up in the winter, but this may cause more harm than good. People often use the steam room at the spa to remove impurities, so this is the exact effect the steam shower has on your skin in the winter, but it is removing essentials oils instead. In order to reverse this process, make sure you apply lotion once you finish your shower to reinvigorate your skin with the moisture it needs.

And while we are on the moisture topic, it is often a good idea to purchase a humidifier and use it in the winter. Because the heater in your home pumps out dry heat, it is often necessary to infuse some moisture into your home. The use of a humidifier ensures the moisture you do have in your skin does not simply evaporate into the atmosphere. However, a humidifier is not a magical solution, you will still need to moisturize.

I am not sure what it is, but people usually forget to apply lotion to their elbows for some reason. Since you often put a lot of pressure on your elbows and they rub against surfaces, you have to make sure you focus on this special area. One of my biggest pet peeves is an ashy elbow, so please make sure you take care of this problem and tell a friend when you see their elbows could use a little lotion.

There is a wide selection of lotions to choose from for your skin, but make sure it is a thicker one in the winter months and contains a lot of natural oil ingredients. The natural oils in lotions work best with your skin because your skin absorbs them easier and these oils last longer in your skin. Ever used a lotion which makes your skin feel good for the first five minutes after you apply it and then your skin feels dry again after this five minute period elapses? In this situation, the lotion has a lot of artificial ingredients and water which does not last long, so always try to use lotions which contain natural ingredients for this very reason.

As I have said in the last two parts of this series, dry skin is a serious issue, so if you have tried all the processes I recommended and your skin continues to be dry, please consult a dermatologist so they are able to prescribe you a medicated product to combat this problem.

After reading this three part winter skin care series, you now have everything you need to know in order to make it through the winter with fabulous looking skin. Your skin plays an important part in being fabulous because people often judge how you are based on your skin. When your skin looks tired, they think you are tired. When your skin looks fabulous, they think you are fabulous. Just because it is winter outside is not a reason to not have radiantly fabulous skin, so make sure you put the same effort towards keeping your skin fabulous as you put towards everything else fabulous in your life.

Because to be fabulous, you have to know what makes you fabulous!

How to Have Fabulous Skin in Winter: Part Two

In continuing my winter skin care series for the week, I would like to focus on your hands and feet today. Winter skin care is all about taking care of your skin by ensuring it is hydrated throughout the winter. In this series I am focusing more on the process of taking care of your skin and not so much on the products. I will mention a product here and there, but what good is the product if you do not have a good process in place to make sure your skin is getting what it needs when it is cold outside.

When it comes to your hands and your feet, you should always pay special attention to them. In many ways, the skin on your hands and feet is somewhat like the skin on your face. Your hands are a little different because they are exposed to the elements and in use often, so they take quite a beating on a daily basis in comparison to your feet.

Have you ever seen someone’s hands and they just look old and tired? (Be honest, we have all seen this before.) Their hands look this way because they have not taken care of them throughout the years.

Another reason why it is important to moisturize your hands is because you wash them a lot. Whenever you wash your hands, you wash away the natural oils your body produces to keep them moisturized. So if you wash your hands frequently, make sure you use lotion right after to help lock in the moisture.

I said I would not talk much about products, but when washing dishes, I recommend using Dawn Hand Renewal with Olay Beauty. This product helps to ensure your hands do not dry out after the skin dehydrating process of washing your dishes. Some people like to use a specific dishwashing detergent, so use gloves to protect your hands if you are not willing to give this product a try.

However, if you are like me, just throw those dishes in the dishwasher (I mean, that is what it is there to do). I am not sure who invented the dishwasher, and sure I could Google it to find out, but I would rather just believe it was a woman who did not want to dry out her hands or ruin her manicure.

When working with paper, if your hands are dry, this may be a reason why you are so prone to getting paper cuts. Whenever I am dealing with a lot of paperwork or stuffing envelopes, the first thing I do is make sure I put on some lotion because it helps to prevent getting paper cuts.

If dry skin lotions are not working for you, but your skin is not bad enough to go see a doctor, use Crisco Shortening. I know this sounds crazy, but it actually works and Victoria Beckham is rumored to do this herself. Put your hands and feet in an old pair of gloves or socks after applying Crisco. Do this for about an hour a couple days a week and you will see a difference in your skin. Octavia Spencer’s character in “The Help” referenced this process when in the kitchen talking about fried chicken because it actually works.

When it comes to oil, there are few things on this earth as oily as Crisco, so this is why it works so well as a means to repair dry skin. The heat your body naturally generates helps to break down the Crisco and get it in your pours. Once you remove the gloves or the socks, do not wash off the remaining Crisco, just wipe it away with a towel.

Another good way to combat dry skin in the winter on your hands is using a good scrub. I recommend a sugar scrub instead of a salt scrub because it is less abrasive and less likely to dry out your skin. I talked about sugar scrubs in my “Fabulous State of Relaxation” blog article and recommend the Carol’s Daughter Brown Sugar Scrub. If you use a scrub other than this one, make sure it has a good amount of oils in it so the scrub not only removes the dead and dry skin, but it also moisturizes your skin once you finish using it.

When shopping, there are after a lot of lotions to choose from like Jergen’s Ultra Healing Dry Skin Moisturizer and Aveeno’s Daily MoisturizingLotion which both work well and do not leave your skin feeling greasy afterwards. These are just a few that come to mind, but when walking down the lotion aisle of any store, you will see a lot of products made specifically to address your dry skin needs.

As I said with your face, you may need to switch out your lotion in the winter as well if you notice it is not keeping your hands and feet soft and moisturized. The needs of your skin change during this season, so make sure your lotion is providing your skin the moisture it needs.

Once again, keep in mind that dry skin is a serious issue, so if you have severe dry skin, please consult a dermatologist so they are able to prescribe you a medicated product to combat this problem. All the solutions I have discussed here are to help you if you have dry skin temporarily due to it being winter.

Taking good care of your skin has many rewards which include keeping your skin looking youthful. Just like people look at your face, they look at your hands as well. No one wants to see dry, cracking hands or to touch them either. This is the truth, so make sure your hands and feet are always fabulous, even in the winter, by implementing the processes I discussed into your skin care routine.

Because to be fabulous, you have to know what makes you fabulous!