Stay hydrated and don’t forget to slather on sunscreen.
If your first thought is that this sounds like warm-weather skincare advice, you’re not alone. But when it comes to having winter-ready skin, experts agree that the basics go a long way. In fact, they may even be more important in the winter, since dryness is everyone’s cold-weather nemesis.
With so much confusion about how to properly care for our skin during the cold winter months, we checked in with five experts from the North Shore’s top spas and salons to give us their best tips and tricks for maintaining your glow—even when the weather outside is frightful.
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Hydrate From the Inside Out
“Our focus is teaching people about staying hydrated. In winter, the heat in the house literally robs the moisture out of our body. If we are not drinking water, telltale signs appear on our face. As prunes loose moisture they begin to shrivel; that is a good analogy for how our skin reflects our level of hydration. You should always be flushing water through your system. We want to be a running river, we don’t want to be a still pond.” Dawn Tardif, D. Ay., founder of BodiScience Wellness Center & Spa in Beverly
“Of course the winter is very cold so clients come in complaining about dryness. I find that a lot of people don’t drink enough water. You need to drink even more water in the winter. Using a serum is excellent for dryness too, like ones from SkinMedica and Jan Marini Skin Research.” Dayle Ciampa, owner and co-founder, Dayle’s European Skin Care & Med Spa in Marblehead
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Wear Sunscreen!
“The number one anti-aging treatment is sunscreen all year long, including the colder months. Our favorites are the Colorescience Sunforgettable SPF brush, which can be reapplied over makeup every few hours, and ZO Sunscreen and Primer.” Michelle Doran, Nurse Practitioner, co-founder RN Esthetics
“The big thing that all my aestheticians say is using SPF year-round. If you’re using a high-end beauty product on your face that has anything in it that can react with the sun, it doesn’t take too long for it to do damage. For instance, you shouldn’t be using vitamin C without a good oil-free SPF.” Steven Florio, general manager Pyara Spa and Salon in Burlington
“Use SPF after moisturizing—I like one that’s tinted to cover up any redness.” Gabriela Varoudakis, owner and creative director, Suite Six Medical Aesthetics in Newburyport and Boston
“People think, ‘Oh it’s the winter, I don’t need sunscreen! And I say, ‘Oh yes you do!’ The sun is just as strong in the winter as in the summer. That’s also true when you’re in the car. The glass window intensifies the sun 10 times stronger. I suggest to my clients that right when they get up in the morning, cleanse your skin, apply all your products and serums, and your last step should be sunscreen. Use anything SPF 30 or higher. To me the final touch is your sunscreen. A good mineral makeup is good to fluff on after for extra protection because that has sunscreen, too.” Dayle Ciampa
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Don’t Skip Facial Treatments
“Coming in for regular facial treatments is important for this time of year. The HydraFacial is one of our top treatments. Also, getting a peel is a must in the wintertime. You want to shed all the dead cells from the summertime abuse.” Dayle Ciampa
“Peels help with pigmentation that you may have picked up over the summer. And HydraFacials are the biggest thing with celebrities right now. It’s so easy and it gives instant results. You literally look like you have brand new skin.” Steven Florio
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Cleanse, Exfoliate, and Moisturize, Smartly
“Dehydration, dryness, and redness come from going in and out from hot to cold here in New England. If they’re not protecting your face or putting something on, you might end up getting redness. I recommend a really great moisturizer and using hydrating serums, which you can mix with the moisturizer. We use SkinCeuticals.” Gabriela Varoudakis
“Use an oil or balm cleanser. Those are good for hydrating and removing makeup, and it balances the skin. It gives a natural glow and leaves a thin protective coating on your skin.” Steven Florio
“Protect your skin from the cold, increase your hydration, and don’t forget to exfoliate. Our favorite winter clinical treatment is a HydraFacial with lymphatic drainage and growth factor.” Michelle Doran
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Say Yes to a Healthy Lifestyle
“Sweating helps; it detoxifies. Exercise always helps brighten the skin. Or going into a sauna. Imagine accompanying that with a good skin care regimen.” Gabriela Varoudakis
“Internal and external use of minerals is important. We don’t realize we’re dehydrated and the connection to mineral deficiency. We need to have topical minerals to carry in humectants (water binding molecules). We recommend using Ayurveda oils. I prefer sesame oil because the molecule is so small it nurtures and nourishes our body. For home use, we have liquid minerals to spray on skin that contain copper, cobalt, manganese, and others, which when followed with moisturizer absorb into the skin tissue and have remarkable results. By taking minerals internally we hydrate our skin from the inside. We carry Trace Mineral Drops for water that contain 72 minerals. We cannot just take one mineral; they all work together.” Dawn Tardif