Bring on the sweaters - and a Fall-worthy skin care routine

As outdoor temperatures drop so does the humidity - so the lighter products you used throughout the summer may not cut it anymore. Plus, indoor heaters pull water out of your skin and those wonderful hot showers reduce the lipids in your skin. This double-whammy leads to damage dry, uncomfortable skin.

Avoid this with simple skin care swaps. Remember, too, that the softer fall light is deceiving, tempting you to slack off on the sun screen. Don't!  Fall sun has the same amount of wrinkle-inducing UVA that also darkens skin pigment. Learn how to pick the best fall and winter skin care products to keep your skin healthy, comfortable and attractive as you transition with the season.

Fall Skin Care Swap 1: Go Gentle with Cleansing

Swap out your summer cleansers for more gentle cleansers as fall begins. Summer sweat, oil and activities often have us wanting stronger skin cleansers during hot weather. These cleansers are too much for drier conditions in the fall.

Select pH balanced cleansers or well-made natural soaps.

Great drug store options are Cetaphil and CeraVe - both are gentle and dermatologist recommended. The Essentially Haitos Clean B Nectar and Cleanser are also excellent gentle, natural cleansers. 

Natural fragrance-free soaps are great alternatives. Our Simply Honey, Honey Oat and Honey Turmeric are organic, fragrance free, good for the entire family, and kind to the planet. Keep them at every sink to ensure that your hands never get washed with dish soap or harsh hand soaps – harsh hand soaps are all too common!

In fall, it’s also important to resist using hot water when cleansing your skin. Yes, a hot shower feels great but remember how much better hot water works when cleaning the dishes compared to cooler water. You don’t want that when it comes to your skin. Know that your skin’s precious lipids will thank you if you cleanse your skin with warm – not steamy hot – water.

Fall Skin Care Swap 2: Use richer moisturizers and body lotion

Light moisturizers feel good in summer but aren’t enough once the weather cools and humidity drops. Look for skin quenchers like glycerin in your moisturizers and replenish lost lipids with botanical oils. Boost hydration at the earliest sign of dryness by adding a few drops of a facial oil to your favorite moisturizer – or use the oil straight for a real healing treatment against dry skin.

Our Clean B Soft Honey Moisturizer contains Sugar Beet and Royal Jelly extracts, both in a glycerin base. And, its full of fast absorbing and nutritious botanical oils.

If you want to boost your favorite moisturizer with organic oils to get it fall-ready, try Ten+ Nourishing Oil (many of our female customers love it!) to soothe dryness and irritation with organic plant-based oils including Calendula oil to help sustain soothed, hydrated skin and argan and baobab oils, which are both known to treat dry skin without that heavy skin feel.

Fall Skin Care Swap 3: Add a deeply hydrating serum

Serums target specific skin care goals. In the fall, that needs to include deep hydration to support your skin before it starts to get dry. Hyaluronic acid, sodium PCA and just the right amount of glycerin are dehydration prevention super heroes. Hyaluronic acid binds 1000 times its weight in water to help prevent dehydrated skin.

Look for an HA serum that contains sodium PCA, which is part of your skin’s Natural Moisturizing Factor, and glycerin. Top your serum with your rich facial moisturizer and know that your skin is well prepped for fall’s dry air.

Fall Skin Care Swap 4: Use a great lip balm - regularly

A simple lip gloss won’t cut it for your lips in fall. Stock up on handy lip balms and treatments made from protective ingredients that lock in lip moisture. Botanical oils combined with natural beeswax will protect lips well. Did you know that lips chap because they are structurally more vulnerable than skin? They have a much thinner and weaker barrier layer than the rest of your skin, resulting in rapid dehydration, damage and chapping.

Start protecting your lips now by applying a lip balm or treatment before bed and throughout the day to prevent chapped, cracked and painful lips. Keep a lip balm or treatment everywhere – purse, backpack, car, bathroom, bedside table, desk – wherever - so that it’s easy to reapply throughout your day. Try our Peppermint Lip Balm, Peppermint Lip Treatment - or for an extra softening boost, our Whipped Sugar Plum Lip Scrub.

Fall Skin Care Swap 5: Don't forget about your hands

The right hand lotion is so important for preventing painful chapped hands - pick one you love and use it often (I keeps tubes of lotion in my car, my purse, near all sinks, and next to my bed). 

Always moisturize your hands after washing them. While your hands are still damp, apply the lotion for even more protection.

The best thing you can do for your skin in the fall is to keep it hydrated.

Don’t wait until dryness begins, start now. Take steps to keep skin hydrated - prevent barrier damage from overly harsh cleansing, use seasonally rich moisturizers that replenish skin lipids, and protect skin from damaging UVA rays. It’s simple, it’s seasonal and it’s easy with these 5 Swaps for your skin care.