Skincare

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Not to be all boring and talk about the weather, but winter truly is the time to up your hydrating skincare game. Products like hyaluronic acid serums, lip salves and ultra-nourishing creams are bound to be your staples, which is why it’s smart to begin stocking up now before cracks, redness and irritation hit your skin. Luckily, you’ve come to the right place—we’ve got all the intel on what picks should be entering your regimen, stat. 

Next to Dermelect’s Savior Skin, a balm that has up to 28 different uses, we’d recommend grabbing the brand’s Rapid Repair Moisturizer. The thirst-quenching formula was made for those with fickle skin—think dry patches from the slightest wind gust, redness from too much retinol. Per the brand, the cream was specifically made for use on the “most sensitive skin types,” meaning it contains super calming ingredients that only leave the face softer and less inflamed with every application. It also can be applied before makeup, because it goes on effortlessly without leaving behind a residue or film on the skin.

Dermelect

Dermelect Rapid Repair Moisturizer

Ingredients like azulene, a blue-colored antioxidant-rich and anti-inflammatory additive, soothes and calms troubled areas, while chamomile and avocado surge the skin with hydration. But the cream’s benefits don’t just stop at strengthening the moisture barrier and tackling dry patches—the inclusion of hydrolyzed collagen makes the formula age-defying, too. With continued use, the product will firm and smooth the appearance of fine lines.

RELATED: Peace Out’s Newest Acne Dot Is Invisible During Wear Thanks to Its Makeup-Compatible Features

In fact, reviewers have claimed to see a difference on age-related concerns from use. “My husband absolutely loves this,” one person wrote. “Within a few months of use I actually asked him if he started doing Botox since his wrinkles were disappearing drastically where the crows feet were settled in at.”

A second reviewer also shares the cream with their husband, writing “My husband had extremely dry skin due to winter weather, so bad, his face was flakey. I gave him the sample to try and now he’s hooked. So now I subscribe regularly. His skin looks great.”

I don’t know about you, but this product sounds like one to watch—or at the very least, one to pick up for the tough season ahead. 

Do you have crow’s feet? These types of concerns are fine lines that appear around the eye area. If you’re looking for a way to tighten the skin around your eyes and get rid of those pesky wrinkles, we’ve got you covered. Learn how to identify crow’s feet, why you get them and how to smooth out this eye area once and for all.

What Are Crow’s Feet? | How To Prevent Crow’s Feet Naturally | 3 Eye Products | Eye Massage Demonstration

What Are Crow’s Feet?

Crow’s feet are those little lines that fan out from the corners of your eyes. According to Healthline, crow’s feet develop because of tiny muscle contractions that occur every time you pull a facial expression. As well as from smiling and squinting, we also develop crow’s feet due to reduced collagen and elastic tissue within our skin. A loss of collagen and elastin is a natural part of the aging process. 

How To Prevent Crow’s Feet Naturally

Nicotine and tobacco may speed up the loss of collagen and therefore exaggerate the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Heavy drinking can also cause your skin to become extremely dry and dehydrated, contributing to the development of wrinkles. 

3. Check If You’re Squinting

You may have a habit of squinting, particularly if you have blue eyes. This might sound like junk science, but studies have established that blue-eyed people may be more sensitive to light because there is “less pigmentation in multiple layers of the eye than those with darker eyes.” Regardless of the colour of your eyes, make sure you refrain from squinting to reduce the early development of crow’s feet. Carrying sunglasses at all times will help shade your eyes from irritating sun rays.

3 Eye Products For Crow’s Feet

This lightweight eye serum is designed to hydrate and nourish the delicate skin around your eyes. Neroli oil is a refreshing and replenishing skin softener, while coconut milk moisturizes the skin. This serum also contains a Natural Retinol Alternative Complex, which smooths the appearance of wrinkles and crow’s feet thanks to a combination of tara tree and chicory root oligosaccharides. 

Hibiscus Ultra Lift Eye Cream

The Hibiscus Ultra Lift Eye Cream was created to combat eye puffiness, dark circles and smooth out wrinkles. This eye cream uses the Advanced Instant Lift fX eye treatment and a cooling, stainless steel rollerball applicator to lift the skin. 

Snow Mushroom Moisture Cloud Eye Cream

The Snow Mushroom Moisture Cloud Eye Cream is formulated with the hydrating snow mushroom, an ingredient that helps skin appear plump and elastic by pulling moisture into the skin. Reishi mushroom also improves hydration and is a source of antioxidants, which help reduce puffiness. Botanical peptides (from quinoa seed) help smooth out the skin and also reduce the appearance of undereye bags and puffiness.

A Six-Step Eye Massage Demonstration

In this In The Mix video, Lead Skin Care Trainer Natalie Pergar demonstrates how to massage your eyes to tighten the skin and help reduce the appearance of crow’s feet.

Step 1: Release Brow Tension

With each hand, place your thumbs under your brows, and your index fingers on the top of the brow. Give them a quick pinch with your fingers across your brows around 5 times or more. This should release tension from your eyebrows.

Step 2: Improve Circulation

To get the circulation moving, very gently pinch under your eyes. With two fingers in each hand (your thumb and index finger), pinch your eye bags from your nose moving to your cheekbones.

Step 3: Release Tension In Your Temples

Release tension in your temple area. Place any finger from each hand on both your temples. Do this until your temples feel less tense.

Step 4: Drag And Glide

Place a small amount of Snow Mushroom Moisture Cloud Eye Cream onto your fingertips. Using your fingertips, repeatedly tap under and above your eye area. Then switch up this tapping motion into a pressing motion by pressing and gliding along your fingers from your undereye to your temples. You can skim across the cheekbones to move from your undereye to your temples.

Step 5: Lift Your Brows

Lift your right brow with your left hand. Using your right hand, gently press up from under your eye to your brows. Repeat the same thing on the other side. 

Step 6: Stretch Apart Your Eyebrow and Undereye 

It’s time to stretch apart your eyebrow and undereye. Take your left hand and lift up your right brow. Take your right hand and pull down the undereye beneath, stretching your brow and undereye apart. Hold for 10 seconds. Take care to ensure that you don’t pull too hard. Repeat on the other side.

These exercises should reduce the look of crow’s feet and wrinkles. Have you developed crow’s feet? What steps are you taking to reduce their appearance? Let us know in the comments below or on social media.

Glow Academy is back with another demystifying jargon-buster. This time, we’re clarifying the difference between nourishing and hydrating. Ready to dive right in?

Hydration

Even the word ‘hydration’ conjures up images of a refreshing, ice-cold glass of water. And that’s exactly what it is! Hydration is the process by which your skin drinks in water, absorbing the H2O molecules it needs to quench thirsty skin cells and make skin plump and bouncy.

It’s a simple equation really. High water content in your skin cells creates glowy, dewy skin. Low water content in your skin cells leads to dull, dehydrated skin.

All cells need water. So, even if you have oily skin, don’t skip the hydration station in your routine! As well as using hydrating serums and natural toners, remember to drink plenty of water (around six to eight glasses a day) and eat lots of juicy fruits and vegetables. Hydration is an ‘inside-out’ project.

Our hydration hero is Rainforest Dew. Like a refreshing waterfall, this serum showers your skin with hydrating botanical extracts and reparative plant peptides from the world’s tropical rainforests. Plus, it contains a world-famous hydrator: hyaluronic acid. This little ingredient is a humectant, drawing moisture into the skin like a magnet and holding up to 1,000 times its weight in water – leaving cushiony, plump skin cells.

Nourishment

Unfortunately, it’s not quite as simple as drenching your face in Rainforest Dew and calling it a day. Without following up with a nourishing oil or natural moisturiser, your hydrating products could evaporate by the time you leave the bathroom!

Luckily, nourishing products (like Skin Feast Nourishing Moisturiser) are designed to lock in the hydrating benefits of your serum and prevent trans-epidermal water loss.

A healthy skin barrier is the secret to sealing in water – keeping in the good stuff and fighting off the bad. To stay strong and supple, the protective layer must be nourished with omega fatty acids. That’s why our favourite nourishing formulas contain natural oils and butters like avocado oil, murumuru butter or jojoba oil. These are packed with healthy fats as well as essential vitamins – so you can rest assured your skin is nourished with a well-balanced diet to keep it on its water-retaining, dehydration-defending A-game.

Do I need to hydrate and nourish if I have oily skin?

Absolutely! All skin types need to be hydrated and nourished. Oily skin types will love lightweight moisturisers, whereas flaky, dry skin types can indulge in richer oils. There’s just one piece of wisdom that everyone can share: hydrate first, nourish second!

Want to find perfectly balanced products for your skin type? Head to our Skincare Routine Finder – we’ll do all the work for you!

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, STYLECASTER may receive an affiliate commission.

By now, you’re likely familiar with Peace Out’s unique products—each drop from the brand takes the skincare market by storm thanks to its distinctive formula and clever design. Therefore, I consider myself to be extremely lucky to be in-the-know about what Peace Out has on the horizon. When I got the opportunity to test the newest brainchild of founder and CEO, Enrico Frezza, a few weeks ago, I was all too eager to share with StyleCaster readers once the time arrived. Well folks, it’s officially here. 

The Acne Day Dot is similar to the OG acne dot you know and love, but with some upgraded features that make it suitable for daytime wear (not that I’m above wearing any type of pimple patch out in public.) First off, it’s thinner than its predecessor by 61 percent, making it less detectable to the average eye. But beyond its slimmer design, the most exciting element is that it can be hidden even further by applying makeup overtop. Anything from foundation to concealer to cream bronzer will camouflage its very existence.

Basically, the ultra-sheer acne dot gets to work on healing breakouts while you go about your day—if that’s not convenient, I don’t know what is. Acne-fighting + skin soothing ingredients like salicylic acid, retinol and aloe vera leaf extract help minimize the feel and appearance of blemishes, while the hydrocolloid polymer technology extracts impurities and protects the area from outside aggressors, such as pollution or even skin-picking. 

Peace Out

Peace Out Acne Day Dot

Plus, it’s incredibly easy to maneuver. Simply apply the dot onto clean, dry skin, making sure to avoid any creases or peeling around the edges of the patch (using tweezers to remove it from the sheet is a safe method). Proceed with your go-to makeup base overtop, and finish off with powder to lock it all in place. The dot can be worn for up to 6 hours at a time, meaning you can peel it off after a long day’s work to see your results. 

RELATED: This Hydrating Body Moisturizer Tackles ‘Cracked Feet & Bumpy Skin’—& We Have an Exclusive Discount Code

While I’ll definitely stick with the original acne dots during nighttime, the addition of these day dots into my routine has definitely made getting rid of pesky breakouts all the more easier. Whether I’m  sporting them to the gym, the office or out on the town, I feel more confident that my acne-prone skin is getting the TLC it needs while I live my daily life. 

The Acne Day Dot is available on the brand’s website and Sephora, starting at $19 per box. 

Fix your dry and chapped lips with lip basting!

It’s the latest beauty trend, also called “lip slugging” because it’s similar to face slugging (which we talked about in a previous post).

But what is lip basting and should you be doing it to get soft, beautiful lips?

What is Lip Basting?

Some call it the “ultimate hydration for your lips,” while others claim it’s the “ultimate hack for dry lips.”

With the weather getting colder, dryer, and harsher in many areas of the country, a lot of us are looking for help with dry, chapped lips. Cold air saps moisture from the lips, causing dryness, flakiness, cracks, and sometimes, bleeding. The natural tendency to lick the lips can also exacerbate dryness and flaking.

The skin on the lips is very thin and delicate. It dries out much faster than the skin on the rest of the face and requires extra TLC to say soft and smooth in the winter.

Even if you’re regularly applying lip balm, though, you may still struggle with chapped lips at this time of year. So it’s no surprise that lip-basting became popular almost overnight.

At its simplest, lip basting is a process where you apply a thick layer of moisturizer (types vary) to the lips and then let it sit for an extended amount of time before wiping it off, often about 10 minutes.

The idea is that allowing the hydrating agent to sit on the lips for a longer period helps improve hydration and repair. But if we go back to how lip basting started, we can see that the original process involved more than this.

How Lip Basting Got Started

Lip basting got its start with Dr. Shereene Idriss, a board-certified dermatologist in New York City. She shared a process she uses on her own lips on Instagram, and lip basting was born.

Idriss recommended two steps for the process:

1. Exfoliate: Start with a chemical exfoliant like glycolic acid. Spread a thin layer across the lips.
2. Moisturize: After it dries, apply a thick layer of moisturizer. Continue with your makeup or morning routine.

When Idriss was done getting ready for her day, she wiped off the moisturizer, and voila, enjoyed softer, smoother lips.

You may have done something similar in the past with a lip scrub followed by a lip ointment or a lip mask. What’s interesting is that, unlike face slugging, lip basting involves an exfoliating step.

It makes sense because chapped lips naturally have dead skin on the surface. We need to get rid of that dead skin before we can expect that our lips will look better. Simply putting moisturizer on top of dry, flaky patches will help some, but won’t produce the results we want.

As to how Idriss came up with this idea, she told PopSugar that she was in Jackson, Wyoming where the air was dry, and her lips felt like “shriveled up prunes…” Vaseline alone wasn’t helping, so she decided that she should exfoliate her lips like she exfoliates her face.

4 Steps to the Perfect Lip Basting Routine

If you’re curious about how lip basting may benefit your lips this winter, try the following steps for the best results.

1. Start with Clean Lips

Use a soft cloth or makeup-removing cloth to remove all lipstick, lip gloss, lip balm, and other products from the lips. You’ll want to start with clean lips.

2. Use a Scrub if You Like

If your lips are flaky and dry, it may help to begin with a gentle lip scrub. There are many available on the market or you can make your own with a little sugar and olive or jojoba oil. Apply some to your lips and gently scrub with a washcloth or soft toothbrush to help loosen up some of that dead skin. Rinse.

Keep in mind that a physical scrub isn’t the right solution for everyone. If you have super sensitive skin or if your lips are already bleeding, wait until they’re in better repair.

3. Chemically Exfoliate

Next, use a chemical exfoliating agent to further slough off the dead skin on the surface of your lips. Idriss uses a toner that contains glycolic acid. You could also use one that contains lactic acid. A serum with one of these acids will also work.

Let the exfoliant sit on your lips. If you’re using a toner, let it sit until it dries. If you’re using a serum, let it sit until it sinks into the lips. Then go on to the next step.

4. Baste the Lips!

Finally, spread a generous layer of your chosen moisturizer on your lips. Apply enough that your lips look buttery and wet, then let it sit. Don’t lick your lips!

We recommend our Restorative Skin Balm. This 100 percent natural, non-petroleum healing balm softens severely dry and chapped skin. It’s won several awards, including the “Best All-Around Healing Balm” from Healing Lifestyles & Spas. In addition to moisturizing your skin, it also protects it with powerful antioxidants and vitamin E.

Whatever you decide to use, stay away from petroleum-based products. They can coat the skin and prevent water loss, but they don’t add any moisture back into your skin, so your lips will feel dry again a short time later.

Our balm contains natural moisturizers like calendula and bee’s wax along with natural oils and other moisturizers that will benefit the tender skin on your lips.

Once you’ve slathered the moisturizer on, go about your morning (or evening). The key is to allow the moisturizer to sit on your lips for at least 10 minutes.

When you’re ready, gently dab or wipe off any remaining moisturizer and apply your regular lip balm (you can use our Restorative Skin Balm as a lip balm too!). Then go about your day with newly restored, soft and supple lips.

Feel free to repeat the lip-basting process once a day or until your lips start looking and feeling better.

What Are the Benefits of Lip Basting?

When you follow the steps outlined above, you will enjoy the following benefits:

• Intensely hydrated lips
• Diminished dryness, chapping, and flaking
• More resilient lips that resist future chapping
• Smoother lipstick and lip gloss application

Have you tried lip-basting?

Renowned for warding off colds and boosting immunity, vitamin C is also legendary when it comes to rescuing tired, dull skin and restoring a healthy glow. Want to get in on the action? Keep reading to take a step in the bright direction.

What is vitamin C?

Vitamin C is an essential nutrient, required for the growth and repair of all tissues in the body. It’s vital for cellular health, but we cannot produce it on our own! Fortunately, we can find it naturally in fruits and vegetables – which is why we’ve been encouraged to eat oranges and broccoli since we were tots!

What does it do for the skin?

Vitamin C is a high-achieving, glow-getting skin saviour because it’s an antioxidant, which means it defends against free radicals. When used in topical natural serums and creams, vitamin C gets to work undoing sun damage, repairing patchy pigmentation, smoothing skin texture, stimulating collagen production, and lifting away dark spots to reveal a bright and gleaming complexion. Really, there is no end to this vitamin’s beauty benefits!

Ok, but what are free radicals?

To fully understand how vitamin C works, we need to get to grips with free radicals. Stemming from UV sunlight, polluted air and even stress, free radicals can wreak havoc on our skin. They can accelerate signs of ageing, damage the protective barrier, dull the skin tone, cause dark spots, and lead to an all-round lack-lustre complexion. We think you’ll agree, free radicals are not as ‘free’ or as ‘rad’ as they sound!

Thankfully, that’s where vitamin C steps in. As a powerful antioxidant, with free-radical fighting properties, vitamin C effectively helps the skin to regenerate and repair the damage done by environmental stressors. Plus, putting vitamin C in your skincare is a long term investment, as it shields from further deterioration and boosts your skin’s overall strength and resilience against pollution. 

Couldn’t I just put some orange juice on my face?

No! Vitamin C is what we call an unstable ingredient, which can easily lose its magic anti-oxidative benefits if exposed to the elements and not concentrated properly. Plus, in its purest form, it can be a little acidic and irritating. That’s why our skincare scientists spent months carrying out extensive testing on our vitamin C concentrates, finally settling on glyceryl ascorbate to stabilise our formulas. This involved mixing pure vitamin C with naturally-derived sugars to wrap all of vitamin C’s benefits in a stable, long-lasting concentrate. Smart, huh?

Glyceryl ascorbate is a gentler derivative of pure vitamin C, which only converts into the real deal when absorbed. Our tests showed it’s a safe option for all skin types and is unlikely to cause any irritation, just a ‘lit from within’ glow you can rely on.

A top tip from our biochemists is to store your vitamin C products in a cool, dark place (or in the fridge) to ensure they stay fresh, stable, and effective for as long as possible!