Winter Skin Survival Check List

I have so many things I need/want to post about but this one probably shouldn't wait until, say, spring since it's a seasonal post.

In past years my skin never reacted badly to winter, and I could never relate to people who said that winter was hard on their skin. This year is totally different and I don't know exactly why but my skin has been super sensitive and dry. It has taken a while but I've tried a few products and have discovered some great gems that really have been saving my skin this winter.

first off, let's talk scalp. My scalp is very sensitive and gets itchy and dry in the winter and my hot showers do not help one bit. I can't give them up though, and don't plan to. My solution for my dry itchy winter scalp: Lisa's Hair Elixir by Carol's Daughter. It's a gentle scalp and hair oil treatment that I use about once or twice a week and it really saves me. There are several ways of using it, you can rub on your scalp and ends before showering or as I like to, as a hot oil treatment before your shower. One main reason why I like this product is that it's effective and cheap! An 8 oz. bottle is only $20. That might seem like a lot but I did my research here and a lot of other scalp treatments are much more expensive and come in 2, 3 or 4 oz bottles. You can pick it up at your local Sephora or online here.

Next up Hands and Cuticles! L'Occitane is probably my most favorite skin care company (well, it probably ties with Kiehl's). Anyway, the best hand lotion that I've come across is L'Occitane's Shea Butter Hand Cream. It's amazing. It has 20% pure Shea Butter in it and it's basically amazing. I have probably three or four tubes of it floating around. I carry it everywhere. They sell it at J.crew as well as Nordstrom, Sephora or if you're lucky you might have a L'Occitane store near you. If not, you can find it from Sephora here. My next weapon also comes from L'Occitane and it's their 100% Pure Shea Butter. I only recently discovered this product and it is saving my cuticles. I rub a tad on at night and then usually once during the day if I think of it. You can find it as well at Sephora, Nordstroms and again at your local L'Occitane. It comes in a little container but it's one of those products where a little goes a long way.

Now on to lips. There are a lot of lip products that I really like. These are a few of my favs right now: L'Occitane (like I said, one of my fav brands) has done it again! Their lip balm has 10% Shea Butter and is prefectly moisturizing and I also love the smell/taste (always a bonus, right?). Kiehl's Lip Balm #1 is a classic and is a great choice. It also comes in great flavors, I currently own the pear and it's delightful! The one thing that I sometimes don't love about this lip balm is that it's much more like a gloss than a balm. It's not thick or sticky but it doesn't go on as a stick. Another that I've been enjoying lately is the classic Rosebud Salve. It's great for lips and cuticles as well, but I'm gonna be honest and say that I don't love the rose scent (as a general rule I'm not a huge fan of fake floral scents. Don't get me wrong there is nothing better than real flowers but fake...meh). Also, it's a tad sticky or greasy or something so I usually only put it on my fingers at night. You can find all of these at Sephora except for Kiehl's which you can find at Nordstroms or if they have a store near you.

I hope winter isn't wreaking havoc on your skin like it is mine!