5 Awesome Winter Skin Care Tips from Milk + Honey

The upside to winter’s cold front? Cozier dressing, blanket forts, fireside drinks, and those famous red Starbucks cups. The downside? We’ll let your skin speak for itself.

Truth is, the seasonal transition isn’t always so kind to our outermost layer of epidermis, and the proof is in the redness, dryness, and itchiness.

Before the holiday madness takes over, leaving us all a little worse for wear, let these quick milk + honey tips — straight from the mouths of Laura and Annette, our expert 2nd Street District estheticians — keep your skin happy, healthy, and hydrated.

• Change Up Your Cleansing Routine. ”The drier, cooler climate of a Central Texas winter is an excellent opportunity to introduce some alternative cleansing options into your life,” says Laura. “Some of the oldest cleansers in the world have zero surfactants, meaning they don’t foam, but still have the ability to appropriately remove surface debris without stripping the skin.” If you’re wondering how to jumpstart the process, not to worry — Laura has some pointers. “Begin by purchasing a good quality local honey and/or a light plant oil such as grapeseed or jojoba. Mix a nickel size of honey and/or oil into your cleanser at least every other cleanse. You should notice softer, more hydrated skin rather quickly. After a few weeks, begin cleansing in the morning with just honey and/or oil. Product will be applied to damp skin and will be much like a 1-2 minute massage. If you enjoy the results you are seeing — and I know you will — aim for cleansing with honey and/or oil everyday and incorporating an SLS-free traditional cleanser three to four times per week.”

• Double up on the hydration front. “Most of us need extra moisturizing during the winter,” Laura says. One easy way to fulfill the demand? “Double up on moisturizing, both in frequency —  if need be — and in amount.”

• Time for a change. What may have worked for you during the summer won’t necessarily cover all the bases now… and that’s normal. It’s time to change out your daily moisturizer with something more effective in the colder months. Change is good.

• Enhance what you already have. Just because your current moisturizer isn’t giving you exactly what you need doesn’t mean you have to do away with it altogether. Laura recommends enhancing your existing product with a nourishing plant oil, like jojoba or argon oil.

• Go overtime. Laura recommends sleeping in a deeply moisturizing mask two or three times per week.

As milk + honey's marketing manager, Marisa is entrenched in all things beauty-related, and as a relatively new Austinite, she couldn't think of a better environment to work in. That said, these pieces would not be at all possible — or credible — without the invaluable input of milk + honey's expert estheticians and stylists.