Who needs a hot girl or a tomato girl when you can be a lizard girl? I don’t know about you but my skin has been SO dry. Painfully! I have always had dry skin but the past few weeks have been especially bad. It did not help that I had a bad cold for over two weeks. The constant nose blowing and rubbing at my face definitely took a toll. Still, it felt like no matter what I did, my skin has been angry, red, chapped, itchy, etc. This week I felt like I was over the hump with both the cold and the skin stuff, so I thought I’d share what has been working for me.
Lizard Girl Winter
Face:
First of all, when my nose gets really red and chafed from nose blowing (even with lotion-infused tissues!), the only thing that works is the original Creme de La Mer. Not Bader, not Skin food, La Mer. I don’t use a lot (I use it more like a spot treatment for any red, chapped patches), as a little goes a long way. Other things that have helped: alternating between the Plenaire and/or Follain hydrating masks (I like to put a hydrating mask on in the morning for about an hour while I’m getting ready for the day and then tissue or rinse it off in the shower). The Rich Cream is great for everyday and is still my OG fav but I have using the Ilia hydrating milk underneath for an extra layer. The other thing that I have found really works (and isn’t too expensive) is Rhode’s entire system (the milk, the serum, the cream).
On the note of The Rich Cream, INNbeauty sent over their Extreme Cream and while it is not The Rich Cream, it is a really great ($48!) alternative. It gives you that same level of extra dewy hydration but I like that (like Bader!), it’s not *just* a hydrating moisturizer. It has peptides, plant-based retinol, and ceramides. I can say with great confidence that this is the best under $50 moisturizer I have tried.
Other notable face creams: the Biossance repair cream (especially when skin is feeling sensitive), Weleda Skin Food, Sobel Skin!
Body:
The skin on my body was really suffering. Dry, patchy, itchy. To be totally honest I think what helped most has been drinking water and adding humidifiers throughout my house as I was really dehydrated. I just polished off my U Beauty Resurfacing Body Compound and Super Body Hydrator and I love them. They are the definition of a luxury body product but with a luxury price point. Right now I am using my Kate McLeod body stone, which I also love. It is made from over 80% cocoa butter and super rich + hydrating. For the patchy and itchy parts I bought this Aveeno nighttime itch relief balm (oh, the glamour!) and I really like it. Lastly: this brand new body butter smells incredible (like pastries?) and literally feels like butter.
Hands and Feet:
This Sidia hand serum is really wonderful (and luxe!) but also lightweight and non-greasy (can’t do a greasy hand cream during the day!). And you know I swear by AmLactin (every night) and a foot grater (once or twice a week) for feet.
Home:
The air in my house is very dry right now. had the realization that I needed to get a humidifier when (besides the dry skin) my cough was not going away, I always had a tickle in my throat, and my plants suddenly wanted to be watered daily! I bought three humidifiers. Dramatic, maybe, but I didn’t go expensive here. I needed one for my bedroom and one for my living room and then I liked the one I got for the downstairs so much that I thought it would be good to get a second for my dining room as I work in there and my plants needed some love as well. I really like this one. It isn’t anything fancy but it’s quiet, easy to use and clean, and seemingly gets the job done quite well for under $50.
When I asked for recs on Substack, the Canopy humidifier came most recommended. I bought this one for my bedroom. I actually don’t like it as much as my other humidifiers simply because I find it to be a little bit noisy. If you like to use a white noise machine you will love this as that is what it sounds like. But for me, I found that I couldn’t sleep! I find that keeping it on a higher setting during the day and changing it to low at night helps. It is different than other humidifiers in that there is no cool mist. Instead, it releases filtered (an added benefit), hydrated air. It also runs for 36 hours!
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Ok one, this title killed me. Too relatable.
Two, there is nothing dramatic about three humidifiers in a house! I have tried basically moisturizer Sephora sells at this point. Putting three humidifiers in my five room apartment, one in my bedroom, one in my living room, one in my home office, has done more for my skin than any of them. I also am getting fewer colds than usual.
Hahaha I am glad I am not alone. I think it feels dramatic as I’ve always lived in apartments and one or two was more than enough!!! They really do make a difference.
Now this is the post that I needed to find!
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