5 Winter Skin Savers

This week, I’m excited to once again have TOPS Member Content Associate Taylor Patton as my special guest blogger.

The first day of spring is officially less than a week away, and if you’re anything like me, you’ve probably gone through at least two bottles of face moisturizer, a jar of body butter and we’ll say three tubes of ChapStick this past winter. One of which was destroyed when I pulled my jeans out of the dryer and saw I had left it in the back pocket. RIP, Burt’s Bees.

This last onslaught of dry, Midwest skin has been especially brutal, what with colder temperatures, low humidity and the frequent use of central heat. And while those in the South may have escaped the winter chill, they are no strangers to extra dry conditions. But there’s still time to get through these last few weeks without turning full lizard. Here are five simple ways to help keep your skin hydrated so you can look and feel your best.

Turn Up-One way to decrease the amount of dry skin is to increase the moisture in the air. Keep a humidifier in the rooms you spend the most time like the living room, office or bedroom. Of the nine upstairs offices at TOPS Headquarters, five of them have humidifiers on at full blast.

Buff Up-No matter how many times you apply moisturizer, it won’t do its job without a little exfoliation. For sensitive skin, use a gentle scrub. Check out this easy, DIY brown sugar scrub from a past spring issue of TOPS News.

Lather Up– Even though your bare legs haven’t seen daylight since August, it’s important to keep them hydrated. This helps prevent dry, itchy skin … which can turn into a rash or scab. The best time to apply moisturizer is right after a shower while your skin is still slightly damp and don’t forget your face! A good facial moisturizer will do the trick.

Pucker Up-I truly believe you can never have enough lip balm. Apply a few times daily. It doesn’t hurt to use the kind that has SPF in it. You can still get sunburned in winter!

Size Down-You never know when you might need a quick dose of moisture—especially from all the hand washing that coincides with flu season. Keep a travel size moisturizer in your purse, gym bag or office drawer.

By following these easy tips, you may be able to escape skin’s winter itch!