Save your skin from chilly weather

It's no secret that harsh winter weather can wreak havoc on your skin, caused by bitter cold temperatures and dry air that deplete its natural moisture. But the right routine and a few key changes to your go-to habits and products can help keep both face and body skin soft, hydrated, and supple, rather than cracked, parched, and chapped. Here are a few tips that you need to keep in mind in order to moisturise your skin this winter.

Don't take super-hot (or long) showers

Nothing sounds better than a steaming hot shower or bath on a cold day, but hot water is actually the enemy of dry winter skin. Too much hot water causes increased evaporation of your skin's natural hydration. All you need is about 10 minutes. To make your shower more moisturising, swap parching soaps and gels for a body cleansing oil or bath oil with fatty acid-rich soybean oil or other plant oils to fortify and protect skin's moisture barrier.

Use a thicker moisturiser in the winter

After your shower, use a soft towel to pat skin dry and apply a hydrating moisturiser. Opt for a cream or balm that's thicker than the lotion you use during the summer. The thicker texture seals moisturising ingredients into dry, cracked, flaking skin. You can use balms and salves with silicone, petrolatum, lanolin, and natural oils.

For dry skin on the face, layering moisturiser with a hydrating serum packed with hyaluronic acid and glycerin can help increase moisturisation.

Moisturise multiple times a day

It's important to slather yourself in moisturiser in the morning and before you snooze, starting with your face. Before you put on pajamas, rub a hydrating body cream all over from your neck down to your feet. It'll function the same way a night cream for your face does, softening skin and keeping moisture in as you sleep.

Wash your face once per day

In the winter, switch to one wash at night so you don't dry out your skin. And what type of cleanser you use matters, too: Foaming and gel face washes can leave skin squeaky-clean, but also parched due to their stronger cleansing ingredients.

Instead, opt for a gentler cleansing oil or micellar water cleanser, which are less likely to contain the harsh surfactants that can dehydrate skin. For extremely dry skin, try a cleansing balm, which are rich, waterless formulas based on butters (like shea) and oils that soften skin as they purify and double as makeup remover.