How to Keep Your Skin Soft in the Winter

Alternate title: Things I Learned VERY Quickly After Moving from LA to Boston!

So, being a Southern Louisiana girl who has lived in Los Angeles for the past 9 years, I really had no idea what Winter really was. Now, I’m living in Boston, and although it’s not snowing yet, New England has already shown me that it’s not going to go easy on my skin. Cold temperatures outside plus hot, dry heaters inside equals dry, rough skin and peeling lips. I learn quickly when it comes to beauty products, and here are the solutions I’ve come up with so far.

Exfoliate

You have to keep exfoliating to avoid those rough, scaly patches and peeling lips. I’m in love with Best Bath Store’s body scrubs. They are all-natural, cruelty-free, and made right here in Boston (okay, right outside of Boston)! The scrubs are what I would describe as medium to high in sloughing power. They rinse clean (no oily residue), but they still moisturize skin. The scrubs come in lavender, citrus and coffee scents. I tried a sample of the lavender scrub and I really liked it. It contains natural ingredients like coconut oil, jojoba oil, apricot shells (fine for your body – just don’t use it on your face), olive leaf, chamomile, rosemary, lemon and of course, lavender essential oil. You can buy Best Bath Store products online or at their retail store in Woburn, MA. They also offer free product samples. Tell ’em My Beauty Bunny sent you!

To exfoliate your lips, try a bit of sea salt and honey (or olive oil). Some people use a toothbrush, but that’s usually a little too harsh for me.

Moisturize

I’m in LOVE with Alba Cocoa Butter Hand & Body Lotion. I picked some up on the trip from LA to Boston, and I’m so glad I did. It’s a great moisturizer that doesn’t feel too greasy or waxy. It absorbs right away and it has a light, sweet scent. It’s paraben-free, cruelty-free and vegetarian. It’s made with sunflower oil, organic aloe, cocoa butter, jojoba oil, macadamia nut oil, kukui nut oil, kelp extract, shea butter, awaphui, pineapple, papaya, sodium PCA and flax seed oil. It’s amazing all those ingredients don’t make a really greasy cream, but they don’t! It’s relatively inexpensive and available at your local drugstore.

April 2012 Update – Caudalie is no longer on the Leaping Bunny list because they are no longer cruelty free. 🙁 For your lips, try Caudalie’s Lip Conditioner for daytime use. It has grape seed polyphenols (antioxidants), sunflower oil, apricot oil, beeswax and shea butter. Although I love peppermint/menthol lip balms, I am quickly finding out you DON’T want that when it’s 20 degrees outside – it just makes you feel colder. Caudalie’s lip balm has a slight vanilla scent – no menthol-y feel.

For nighttime though, I love NZP Naturals lip balm – it’s made with lanolin (from sheep’s wool) and it does have a peppermint oil cooling effect (fine for night time in your warm house!). I actually bought some of these as Christmas gifts for my friends and family on the East Coast because they keep asking me what type of lip balm to get to prevent peeling. NZP Naturals also has a nice hand and foot balm.