TAGGED!! ; 6 Winter Skin Care Tips...

Hi everyone,

Got tagged by Gabriela from her Angels with Dirty Faces blog... My skincare regime is pretty basic - but I'll do my best! I have combination/dry skin. I like clinique products as this seems to be one of the few ranges that actually cater for this skin type...

1. Drink plenty of water! This is a very basic one I know, but it really works - Hot water with a slice of lemon instead of tea or coffee is so much better for your skin - I find that too much caffeine makes my skin look really dull and also gives me headaches. I try to do this all through the year, but I suppose in winter I try really hard as my skin does get drier...

2. Try to some exercise 3-4 times per week. This gets blood pumping to the skin's surface and in turn gets rid of all the crap in your skin. I find that exercise just makes my skin glow! Cardiovascular work such as running/cycling seems to work best for me.

3. Eat plenty of fruit and veg - I have to admit I'm not really doing this and my skin is suffering asa result. You can't beat the injection of vitamins, antioxidants and hydration that these foods give your skin. Its good to try to eat a lot of bright coloured fruits such as berries, pomegranites, oranges etc as they are the most rich in antioidants which are more protective against ageing... Obviously important for their other health benefits in the rest of your body of course!

4. Find a skincare regime that hydrates your skin and is convenient with you, and stick with it. I personally use the clinique three step programme. I use the extra mild face wash, which is really creamy, has a lovely fresh herbal smell and leaves my skin feeling fresh. Then I use the clarifying lotion number 1, which is just enough to get rid of any extra oil in my T Zone without drying out my dry areas. I then use an eye cream with SPF15 (L'oreal dermagenesis, but I'm looking for one with a higher SPF), and finally use their superdefense SPF25 moisturiser. At night-time I use a more simple moisturiser, usually clinique dramatically different (I really like it but won't use it in the daytime as I refuse to use moisturiser without an SPF in the daytime - the higher the better for me!). I am still searching for a HG moisturiser with a higher spf that is sold in this country... superdefense is good for now! Also make sure lips are well moisturised - I love carmex, vaseline lip formula and MAC's lip conditioner. I am prone to cold sores in the winter so I also always carry around a tube of zovirax with me.

5. Supplement your regular skincare routine with exfoliation and masks appropriately. In winter I exfoliate 1-2 times per week using clinique exfoliating scrub.This has menthol in it, and feels like it's opening up pores and getting all the gunk out. It's also really cooling on the skin. I also use masks about once per week. I very these depending on how my skin feels at any one time. If I feel very dry I slather on a thick layer of clarins beauty flash balm before bed. If my skin feels a bit more congested I use a more cleansing mask, such as netrogena's three in one (if I use this one I make sure to moisturise skin really well afterwards or it's flakey the next day...)

6. As much as I love makeup, I try to give my skin a total break from it a couple of days a week, as I find if I wear makeup everyday my skin gets more sensitive and prone to either dry patches or spots. I then find I can't use up the products I've spent a lot of money on!

Hope you liked.
I tag Happy 1234, the makeup diaries and pinksealight...
xxx