Arctic winter survival kit: How to keep your skin safe and soft
After living much of the past four years in sub-zero temperatures in Iqaluit, I've learned a thing or two about extreme cold weather living. The Arctic is technically a desert, and humidity levels, especially in the winter, are very low. The lack of moisture in the air, combined with high winds and frigid temperatures, can do a number on your skin.
Your skin can become cracked or scaly, which can be unsightly at best, and painful at worst. Even if you don't spend nine months in winter, the season's harsh conditions warrant a specific skin care routine. Here's my regime — feel free to leave your tips in the comments, especially if you can recommend really great, natural, Canadian-made products in any of these categories!
1) Hydrate! Drink water. Drink lots and lots of water. Plug in your humidifier, take longer showers, and do whatever you can to get water on and in you.
2) Try to skip the soap. Soap is drying, especially on the sensitive skin on your face. Instead of face wash, I opt for reusable makeup remover towels that need only water, and gently wipe away makeup and dirt.
3) Use an alcohol-free toner. Toner helps balance out your pH and help control extra oil or shine. Look for one without alcohol, because alcohol is drying.
4) Always use a moisturizer with SPF. Always, always. Even if the dark days of winter, I use a face cream with at least SPF 15. Why? Because sun damage can happen quickly, especially when you're under a strong Arctic sun that is also reflecting off the snow back on your face — even if it's only for a few short hours a day.
5) Apply a really good night cream before bed. Find the most nourishing cream you can and slather it on as needed, and especially overnight. My favourite? The Lemon Butter from Uasau Soap, a small, Iqaluit-based company that hand-makes all their products. This one combines a light lemon scent with bowhead whale oil (whale is a common part of the local diet) and a mix of healthy, natural butters.
6) Scrub your lips. Lips are often the first place to show signs of dehydration, so they need some special care. Exfoliating will remove dead skin and promote regeneration. I do two types of exfoliation, starting with a daily (or twice-daily) gentle scrub with my toothbrush. And I mean gentle! You don't want to tug at your lips; just lightly move your clean toothbrush in a circular motion over your lips after you brush your teeth. For a more intense exfoliation, I use a lip scrub about once a week. (Try this all natural, super yummy lip scrub from I Dream in Evergreen).
7) Choose natural lip balm. Look at the ingredients: it should just be a blend of oils, maybe with beeswax, and that's it. Try to find lip balms that are all natural and don't contain ingredients like petrolatum or palmitates, as these don't allow your lips to breathe. And make sure to have one with SPF. I love, love, love Jack Black's Moisture Therapy Lip Balm with SPF 25. It's absorbs quickly with very little shine, and comes in a variety of flavours (though why they bother selling anything except the Black Tea option is beyond me).
8) Give your lips some therapy. This is not a necessity, but if your lips are flaky, or if like me, you wear hard-to-remove, drying matte lipsticks, you may want to inject your pout with a little extra love. I love First Aid Beauty's Ultra Repair Lip Therapy. Like the lip scrub, you only need to apply a mask or deep conditioner to your lips once a week.
Want to catch more secrets of life in Canada's North? Watch True North Calling Fridays 8:30 on CBC!
Anubha Momin is a blogger, freelance writer, and producer who splits her time between Iqaluit, Nunavut and Toronto, Ontario. Her blog, Finding True North, covers everything from how-to guides to interviews with the Prime Minister to Northern music reviews, taking a hyper-local approach that appeals to her Nunavut base as well as national readers.