Going crazy from all the misinformation and bogus advice about winter-proofing your face and body? Here, top skin experts from Marie Claire Magazine help us crack the cold-weather skin-care code.
1. MYTH: The thicker the cream, the better it hydrates.
TRUTH: “Concentrated doesn’t necessarily equal optimum hydration,” says Annet King, director of training and development for the International Dermal Institute. “An overdose of lipids can actually trap dead cells and leave skin looking duller.” King suggests layering serums under creams in order to boost moisture. Facialist Sonia Dakar agrees: “Serums are light, yet have super-concentrated ingredients — ideal for absorption.” Try iS Clinical Pro-Heal Serum Advance Plus.2. MYTH: Overcast skies mean you can cut back on sunscreen.
TRUTH: Hardly. As a depleting ozone has led to stronger UVB burning rays, SPF is now a year-round endeavor. And clouds do little to filter out wrinkle-accelerating UVA rays. Come cooler, drier weather, find a daily moisturizer with a broad-spectrum SPF 15 (or higher), like Murad Face Defense SPF 15 to hydrate and protect. “You can enhance your sun protection exponentially by using an antioxidant-rich serum underneath your moisturizer,” says Washington, D.C., dermatologist Dr. Cheryl Burgess.
3. MYTH: Oily skin can forgo moisturizer.
TRUTH: Dry, cold climates wear on all skin types — even oily. And without some added protection, barrier function (which keeps pollution and other damaging elements out and moisture in) gets compromised. If your skin is super-oily, you can get by with a gel-cream or lotion formula, like NeoStrata Lotion Plus. For true combination skin, use different moisturizers for different areas — a light formula for your T-zone and a richer one for cheeks that get dry, patchy spots.
4. MYTH: Exfoliating in winter exacerbates dry patches.
TRUTH: “The sloughing in fact causes a burst of cell renewal, so you’re helping new moisture-rich cells move to the surface,” says King. The key in winter is to moisturize thoroughly — occasionally with a hydrating mask, like SkinCeuticals Hydrating B5 Masque — as your skin barrier is weakened after exfoliating. Adds Dakar: “Enzyme-based exfoliants will deliver results in a more gentle way.”
5. MYTH: Loading up on lip balms prevents chapping.
TRUTH: Only if it’s the right balm. Some common ingredients can actually have an adverse effect. Mineral oil (petroleum jelly) creates an artificial film on your lips, signaling your skin to stop producing lipids, while funky flavors, perfumes, and colors can also dry out skin. King suggests seeking natural-oil-infused balms or those with shea and cocoa butter, like PCA Skin Peptide Lip Therapy. “To get rid of flaky patches, apply a little facial exfoliant to damp lips (a soft toothbrush also does the trick), scrub gently, then follow with balm,” she says. Wait till spring to resume use of lip plumpers and super-long-lasting formulas that dry out your pout.
6. MYTH: Your skin will benefit if you stay indoors as much as possible.
TRUTH: True, extreme cold temperatures do suck the moisture from your skin. But retreating indoors, where central heating is pumped to the max, can leave your derm equally parched. So enjoy the fresh air and winter sports, and then do what you can to add moisture to the air at home. A humidifier can help — especially at night, when, combined with a night cream, like Revaleskin Night Cream with CoffeeBerry, skin is more apt to drink in moisture. A humidifier can also defrizz staticky winter “hat hair.” Dakar recommends adding a teaspoon of tea-tree oil to the water tank to clean it every few days and prevent mold.
7. MYTH: Windburn gives your skin a natural, healthy, desirable glow.
TRUTH: Depends whether you consider broken capillaries in the cheeks “desirable” — which is what regular exposure to harsh wind can do. The worst-case scenario is that it leads to permanent redness (aka rosacea). “Sensitive skin is especially susceptible to windburn,” says King. “So before heading outdoors, load up on a protective-barrier moisturizer and cover up with a scarf. If you do get burned, calm and soothe with gentle cream cleansers and balm-like moisturizers until your skin calms down.” Needless to say, it’s better to get the fresh-off-the-slopes flush from a good blush, like Jane Iredale PurePressed Blush or In Touch Cream Blush —available in 12 shades!
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Sure, celebrities make their living with their faces, but pimples, blotches and flakes couldn’t care less about that! Skin is skin, and when it acts up, high-profile people need to fix it fast. “As one celeb explained to me, her face is like a corporation within itself,” says Susan Evans, M.D., a Beverly Hills-based dermatologist. “That’s why she’s really serious about her skin.” But that doesn’t mean Hollywood types always rely on help from a syringe to prep for photo ops. “My celebrities are moving away from fillers and cosmetic procedures that are too obvious,” says Dr. Evans. “The newer trend is actually to take care of your skin. They’re avoiding tanning booths, making sunscreen a part of their routine and using products with vitamins A, C and E.” And while those are good habits we should all stick with, don’t you also want to know what they do when disaster strikes? Their best tricks are here!
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Investing in a good night cream is the best way to truly get your beauty sleep, and I’m hooked on this paraben- and dye-free option from Alchimie Forever! 
When I use a moisturizer or more specifically a night cream I like to use something that absorbs into the skin almost instantly so I don’t have to worry about product transferring onto pillows, clothing, etc and that’s one thing that I truly love about this product. It provides moisture almost instantly and absorbs into the skin as quick as you can say night cream. It doesn’t leave any residue, and unlike other moisturizers I’ve tried, it doesn’t spread unevenly.
One of the questions I get most often about caring for one’s face is if it is ok to use an eye contour cream on the lip contour. Indeed, both contours give away our age: the former (eye) through the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, droopy eyelids, and dark circles; the latter (lip) through the appearance of those “smoker’s lines,” bleeding lipstick, loss of volume and sometimes even loss of color. We focus a lot on the eye contour, so I thought it might be interesting to focus on the lips and lip contour for once.
