Happy Wednesday, ladies! So, I’m dealing with dry skin for the first time in my life and it all started on my Peru trip. My skincare routine became very basic on that trip. We didn’t have consistent hot water, so I warmed up water in the tea maker, cleaned my face with a cleansing cloth, and used my normal breakout-managing products. But I didn’t have a lot of the extras like moisturizers, treatments, oils, masks, etc. and between the altitude and massive climate fluctuation and new environment my skin suffered. And now that I’m living in Colorado, I’ve found that it’s generally staying very dry. It’s a totally new experience for me, but I’ve finally found a system that’s working for me. My skin may adapt and go back to oily, but for now, I’m kind of enjoying using new kinds of products.

CHANGE UP THE CLARISONIC ROUTINE

Before I left for Peru, I was using my Clarisonic every night. When I returned, I had a ton of texture from built up dryness without moisturizers or anything to exfoliate. To be honest, I used to think that texture was related to acne and oil. It wasn’t until how I felt how dry my hands felt that I realized the texture was due to dryness. So my first step was to use the Clarisonic every other night to tackle the texture. After a few “treatments” (about 5), the bulk of the texture issue had been eliminated, so I’ve cut back to using it about once a week. If you have dry skin, you don’t want to use something as abrasive as the Clarisonic too often. But it is definitely helpful to attack the dry skin build up.

MOISTURIZE, MOISTURIZE, MOISTURIZE

So the last thing I wanted was my skin to revolt and start overproducing a crazy amount of oil. Since I’m still tending toward being breakout-prone, I knew letting it adjust too much without help would end bad. P.S. People with oily skin should always use a moisturizer (I love oil-free options, like this Mary Kay one, for light moisture) because all the astringents and treatments we use strip our skin of its natural moisture in the pursuit of drying out pimples. So I’ve upped my moisture use, focusing on the most dry areas. For me, that’s around my eyes, nose, mouth, and cheekbones. I’ve also added an oil into my routine. I found a sample of the Fresh Seaberry Face Oil while moving and I’m loving it.

SKIP THE WASH

So, speaking of natural oils, I’ve started to skip washing my face as much as possible. I try to let the natural oil production equalize instead of stripping it more and more in such a dry environment. So, if I know I can stay home all day, I won’t wash my face until the evening. That’s not always possible though, so when I have to run a quick errand and my appearance doesn’t matter, I opt for a facial wipe + my oil free moisturizer. I’m still experiencing breakouts on my jawline and cheeks, so I don’t mind using a mild acne cleanser to target that area.

PRIMERS, MASKS, AND TREATMENTS

I haven’t had a ton of time to play with extra products like masks, and most of mine are packed away still. I do have the sample version of my Fresh Rose mask which is amazing for dry skin. But I’m also opting for creme products, like the Soleil Tan de Chanel that I don’t need to set with powder that emphasizes my dryness. I also have rediscovered a sample of the Laura Geller Spackle Treatment primer that I hated when my skin was pulling toward oily. Now, though, I’m totally loving it. It’s adding just enough moisture to help my foundation and other products blend well into my skin.

And that’s where I’m at right now! I’m seeing progress and I honestly think dry skin is much easier to manage than oily skin, especially for a skincare lover. So I’m tooootally fine if it wants to stay dry.

If you have dry skin, how do you help treat it? What are your favorite specialty products?

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