In summer, I am always diligent with my moisturiser, luxuriously lathering it on in front of the TV or when sitting up in bed reading magazines in my short pyjama shorts. In winter, I can’t bear to spend ANY time other than the required showering time showing more than the bare minimum skin (hands and face – and I only take my socks off when I am in the shower). This means that there is no lathering on of moisturiser. So, coupled with supremely hot showers and time spent in front of the heater, my skin gets kind of unattractively scaly (fiance’s words, not mine).
The problem is, it’s not just an issue of aesthetics. Dry skin is actually calling out for attention, and simply speaking, there are very basic steps to keep it in check and well-hydrated. They needn’t be complicated, and with the variety of options on the market, they needn’t break the bank or harm the earth (or our skin) either.
So now that I’m smack bang in the middle of winter (with no prospect of being whisked away to the Edde Sands resort in Lebanon or the white-washed villas of Santorini), I’ve set myself a challenge to keep my skin soft and smooth, without resorting to complicated measures. Relying on a few key brands for the things I expect in good skin care (Nivea for reliability and purpose; Trilogy for a little luxury and that amazing rose scent, and Kit because it makes me feel trendy and modern and cool), plus a little extras, I am following my own basic guidelines for simple winter care:
1. Start at the foundations: No point of pouring extra energy and money into moisturisers and body butters if you’re going to lather them onto skin that’s already mistreated. So skip the harsh soaps and body cleansers and invest in something that’s good for you. Not long ago, we mentioned that Trilogy Body Care’s Botanical Body Wash ($27) had won the ‘Green Beauty Bible Awards’ in its category, and for good reason at that. Not only does it clean and refresh your skin, but it’s also enriched with plant and fruit extracts, like Kawa Kawa, Lavender and Indian Alma to keep it soft, revived and natural. Another plus is that, like most Trilogy products, it also has a therapeutic element (frankincense) and that delicious rose scent to make you feel relaxed and pampered.
If you’re a bit more of a funky girl, you’ll no doubt beauty-worship at the uber cool altar of Kit Cosmetics. I loooove walking into their Sydney-City Myer stall and getting lost amidst their imported face and body products and most importantly their amazing range of nail polishes. To me, Kit products come with a sort of street-cred that I can only get away with for so long, which is evident in their funky packaging. But that’s besides the point. More central to the topic however, is that Kit’s Hand & Body Wash ($34.95) is enriched with six beneficial essential oils, including the Australian Kakadu Plum, Quandong & Lilly Pilly. And although we can get essential oils in many a product nowadays, where Kit takes the cake is that it’s also free from parabens, phthalates, synthetic colours and sulphates (which I happen to be allergic to in large doses). Such things seem pretty pricey when comparing them to a bar of soap, but in the end, they’re a lot safer for your skin. Plus, you can use this as a hand wash too, so it has double the benefit!
2. Build on your good base: While it’s all well and good to spend a significant amount on body washes that are good for your skin and good for the earth (they do, after all, get flushed down the drain), the same can’t always be said for body moisturisers and lotions that are smoothed on your skin and stay there. I can only sing the praises of Planet Earth’s Body Butters and Moisturisers for so long (good for the earth, amazing scents, sweet price point), but truth be told, Nivea has long been an Australian staple, and makes a variety of firming and moisturising products that are beauty cabinet musts. For the purpose of my dry and scaly winter legs, however, I can’t go past Nivea’s Rich Nourishing Body Moisturiser ($5.40 for 250 mL), $7.99 for 400 mL), which is a tried and tested fave and contains Vitamin E and Almond Oil in a special formula for Dry skin.
If you’d rather a bit more luxury, you can’t go past Trilogy’s Nourishing Body Lotion ($26 for 200mL). It’s still the amazing rose smell, but it’s now enriched with Xanthun Gum that allows the formula to penetrate the skin a lot faster, which means less exposed skin and an ability to jet out the door in a flash. Plus, the scent now lasts even longer because of the new plastic pump bottle, which prevents oxidisation. And as with all Trilogy products, it’s not stingy on the essential botanicals either, featuring Lavender and Frankincense in addition to the standard Rose Geranium.
3. Hands must not be neglected: They’re the first parts of the body to show ageing, and they’re also damn good at keeping dry in the colder climates. Dry hands are my pet hate, so I have recently taken to keeping tubes of handcream in the purses and handbags I carry on a regular basis: Planet Earth Cocoa Butter formula in my Longchamp tote, Trilogy Rose Hand Cream in my Chanel tote, and Planet Earth Frangipani & Lime in my Louis Vuitton. I also keep a tube of Nivea Hand SOS Intensive Balm by my bed each night, to add to my eye cream and face cream routine. At $5.50 a tube, it’s a steal for a concentrated formula that contains Calendula Oil for intensive therpay for cracked and dry hands. Using it at night means I lock the moisture in under the covers too.
As a little side note, I must admit that the biggest pick-me-up (for me personally anyway) for my hands is pretty colours on my nails. I don’t let seasons dictate my colour choices either: I wear fruity, fluro colours in winter as they’re my only escape from my dark choice of colours clothing-wise. Not that I don;t enslave myself to fashion – this season I am intrigued by Orly’s Matt Couture range ($18.95) with colours like Matte Vinyl and Blue Suede fascinating me because they’re not your typical high-shine polish. As far as Aussie brands go, Bloom has a fantastic colour palette that caters to a variety of tastes ($19.95), with colours like the red wine-like Chloe and the chocolate brown Angelina fitting the winter colour bill. And I always stop by to see what colours the Nail It! range at Sportsgirl is, ahem, sporting, because it’s cheap-as-chips ($6.95), dries fast, lasts the distance and comes in amazing colours like my hot pink Strike a Posie. I love.
4. End a big beauty crime: You know the one, it’s synonymous with winter and renders all lips unattractive and unkissable. And I have fallen victim to it myself. The worst thing about it is the manner in which we fail to address it: by not working on it from the inside (so drink more water); by using the wrong products (high gloss with no quality botanicals) and by neglecting our sun care when we don’t neglect it elsewhere. I’ve since rectified my mistakes thanks to Apivita’s Lip Care ($8.90) range. Ranging from 87% to 100% natural, the range features a number of lip sticks that cater to a variety of tastes and requirements, and all featuring beeswax and olive oil. I’ve taken to having the Cocoa Butter stick on my person at all times, and it really has worked wonders. A few of them have SPF too, and for those of us that like a little bit of shine and colour, the flavoured sticks are a treat: blackcurrant is for red lovers, rose is for pink lovers and poemgranate is for the high gloss girl.
For girls who love a bit (or a lot) of lip shine, there’s also Nivea’s Natural Volume lip gloss, which features collagen enhancer, a peachy tone and light reflecting pigments for pomp and plump you’ve never seen for a $5.50 price tag. It also has SPF 30+. Sweet.
5. Remember that other skin basic: Cleanse, Tone, Moisturise. Everyday. We know the drill. Exfoliate once or twice a week. We have that down pat as well. But in winter, there’s another major necessity that we tend to forget, but that we’re reminded of with wind and rain a common fixture every time we’re outdoors. To combat the dryness, invest in a good quality hydration cream or intense moisture mask. The likes of these are everywhere, but Dermalogica has a good history where skin care is concerned. Especially formulated for dry skin, the Intensive Moisture Masque ($68.50 at adore beauty) is a creamy formula of honey to restore moisture, with Gingko Biloba to stimulate circulation in tired skin, revitalising it in the process.
6. And don’t forget to go that extra mile at all times: With every model and showbiz beauty singing the praises of Lucas PawPaw Ointment, and Vaseline still making the multi-purpose-beauty rounds after decades of popularity, it’s no wonder we are learning to go that extra mile when we can with to-the-rescue products no matter where we are. And why can’t we with a range of easy-cart products on the market. If you want a pawpaw like balm with a delicious scent, Trilogy Everything Balm ($18.00 for 45mL) is your best and fairest bet. I almost want to eat it, but I’m going to save it for everything from soothing dry skin to cuticle conditioning to lip treatment when I am away. It’s a beauty cabinet in a jar, really.
If scent is not your thing but you want cool packaging to up your street cred as you pull your to-the-rescue balm out of your handbag, you can’t go past Kit’s Wonderbalm with PawPaw & Coconut ($22.95). In addition to the regular moisturising, softening, treating bits and bobs that other balms and ointments can do, this one can also be used to tame flyaway hairs and as a substitute shaving cream. Yep – amazing. They don’t call it multi-purpose for nothing. Oh and it’s certified organic too.
And for targeted on the go extras, especially for travelling or overnight trips that won’t see you carting loads of bottles and tubs and tubes, invest in one of Bloom’s various pamper packs. Available for hair, body, face and hand, they’re little sachets of various products at only $14.95. Steal.
There you have it. And really, it’s just not that complicated.
An open letter to Megan Burke of Literary Life
8 Jul
Hello there Megan. My name is Sarah Ayoub, and you might remember me from writerly pursuits like rants and ramblings at WordsmithLane, fine and dandy feature articles in the likes of Madison, Yen & CLEO (and more), bridal diaries on Bride To Be and, look, even a little interview on your very own writerly blog, Literary Life.
Despite all the above pursuits, you probably now associate me with all sorts of negative things, like annoying car hoons, gelato places that run out of (or worse, don’t stock) flavours like Pannacotta and Green Apple, mothers who do not discipline their children and a world without France. Or more simply, people who make a half-arsed attempt at committing to things and then bail out of them at the first sign of trouble.
Although you might not want to hear (or read) it, this is my plea for clemency, or leniency, or whatever drug dealers ask for when they’re going to be executed. Not that I think you’re going to execute me, but then again, I do inhabit a world of negative things (see above) when I am wedged in the reality of life and not daydreaming thanks to the after-effects of many a packet of Pascal Marshmallows (mostly the fault of my sugar-banishing boyfriend who lives in fear of me getting diabetes or repeating my tribal-like dance/march around the living room wearing his police boots, a plastic bag on my head and a stainless steel pot and wooden spoon in my hand after getting high on lollies). But yeah, negative things happen (serious aside note: my editors are constantly telling me my sentences are too long and I have too many side brackets. Maybe you aspiring wordsmiths can learn from my mistakes, after all, I have probably exhausted your brain with afore-mentioned sentences and bracketed side bits).
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Tags: literary life, megan burke, comment july challenge, busy, life