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Chapped lips are painful especially when you have a stuffy nose and breathing through the mouth. They are not only uncomfortable; they can also let infection in. When it is severely chapped, they cause cracks and fissures which can get infected with herpes simplex virus, triggering cold sores. By using a heavy conditioning lip balm like Kinerase Lip Treatment, it will only relieve chapped lips, prevent fine lines, and wrinkles and can avoid cold sores. Make a habit of reapplying lipstick so your lip area are always covered and you will never have chapped lips. Keep your lips protected from dry, cold air by wearing lipstick or lip balm regularly.

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We often hear the importance of protecting your skin from the summer sun. But what we might not know that it is equally important to take care of your skin in the winter. The harsh wind and dry air of winter can cause skin to crack, chap and become irritated – making it even more susceptible to the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays.

There are a few tips for minimizing winter skin problems like using a humidifier because the air inside your home tends to become very dry in the winter. It is important to use a humidifier to help keep your skin from becoming dry, cracked and itchy and nasal passages from drying out. Moisturizing our skin frequently prevents skin breakouts. The more oil a moisturizer contains, the more moisture will be retained. Look for products with oil-based moisturizer or the word “ointment” on the label – they contain the most oil (approximately 80 percent oil and 20 percent water).

The holiday season is almost near this also means cold winter weather. Like the seasons change so is our skincare regime. Low temperatures, low humidity and strong, harsh winds deplete skin of its natural lipid layer which keeps the skin from drying out. Even worse than dry skin, it can also cause chapping. Chapped skin is when the skin begins to be rough, red, and/or crack. The skin can also begin to split and become sore. So before we head out, here’s what we can do to prevent the cause of dry skin to the face, lips and body.

Moisturize is the key to soft, supple skin in winter. Apply product when skin is slightly damp. For best effect, pat skin dry instead of rubbing with your towel before application. For the face, stick with a creamy moisturizing cleanser like Pond’s Cold Cream that does not require rinsing. Hands and feet can suffer terribly too so put on moisturizer every so often and use gloves and consider lathering up your feet in thick cotton socks even at night. For your lips a simple lip balm helps. What I use is Blistex Lip Tone complements the natural complexion of your lips by combining the effective moisturizer and protection you’d expect with SPF15.

As our pockets dry out this coming season at least one thing is for sure we keep our skin supple and soft.

a peek at these 7 essential skin care products that are like medicine to our skin.

1.Clinique Exfoliating Scrub
Just as the name says, it exfoliates your skin. It’s formulated more for oily skin types, but most skin types can use it to

slough off dead skin cells. Scrub up, ladies- it’ll leave your face feeling rejuvenated and soft.

2.Lancome Renergie Morpholift Eye Cream
The part of our face we tend to neglect is our eye area. It’s very delicate and it requires some extra TLC. This eye cream

from Lancome regenerates the eye area by diminishing puffiness, dark circles, and dreaded signs of aging.

3.Philosophy hope in a jar daily moisturizer
There’s hope for great skin, gals. This facial cream is suitable for all skin types. It moisturizes dry, parched skin and

it’s non-greasy, so it won’t clog your pores. It also contains exfoliating properties for a healthier, fresh looking face.

Skin-care expert Tisha Lugliani provides recipes that can aide in caring for skin during those cold winter months.

Skin Wrap

Apply skin lotion immediately after you bathe or shower, while the skin is still damp. Then wrap the skin with plastic wrap. This will trap heat and allow the lotion to better penetrate the skin.

Hydrating Mask

Ingredients:

4 Tbs. chickpea flour
1 mashed, ripe banana
1 egg, beaten

Preparation and Use:

Mix all ingredients well and apply to your face with your fingers. Leave it on for 15 minutes, then rinse with warm water, pat dry and moisturize.

Dry Skin Mask

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. honey
1 tsp. almond oil
5 drops rose essential oil

Preparation and Use:

Mix ingredients well. Apply to mature or very dry skin. Leave on for 15 minutes, then rinse with warm water, pat dry and moisturize.

Pineapple-Olive Oil Mask

Ingredients:

1/2 cup canned pineapple
3 Tbs. olive oil
lavender oil

Preparation and Use:

Mix ingredients well. Make sure the pineapple is the consistency of applesauce. Apply to the face, hands, knees or other areas that need treatment. Leave on for 15 minutes, then rinse with warm water, pat dry and moisturize.

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Rosemary + Lemon softening sock salve foot smoothing balm with eucalyptus oil and Foot Patrol AHA exfoliating & softening cream with aloe leaf and peppermint uses familiar ingredients to restore that silky feel to heels instantly. Used alternately, you’ll have different scents and natural extracts working to fight cracked heels regardless of the season.

Images from drugstore.com

There are few problems that are as bad in winter as in summer. Cracked heels is one of those select few. During winter, the heels dry out. During summer, they dry out again because of sandals and flipflops. There’s really no other way than to apply a thick oil-based moisturizer on the heels and wear socks overnight. But you can put your own twist to it.

Crabtree & Evelyn’s La Source 60 Second Fix for Feet has Revitalising Foot Smoother that cleans and exfoliates using mineral salts, macadamia oil, shea butter and algae extracts, and Extreme Foot Therapy to smooth the rough areas.

Image from drugstore.com

Kiss My Face and Eco Lips are two brands offering organic alternatives to your regular ChapStick and Blistex. These alternatives aren’t too pricey at less under $4. Looking at their product descriptions closely, it is worth mentioning that the lip balms with sun protection are not fully organic. Kiss My Face lip balms are 72 percent organic and have SPF 15 except for the Sport variant at SPF 30, which is 52 percent organic. Eco Lips’ variants without SPF are 90 to 99 percent organic; but Eco Berry and Eco Mint which have SPF 15 are 87 percent organic; SPF 30 Sport is 81% organic.

Just as skin needs exfoliating, so do lips. Banish dryness and cracked lips with these unanimous favorites.

Sara Happ Lip Scrubs are said to be the original lip scrubs. They come in six irresistable variants: cocoa, cinnamon sugar, brown sugar, vanilla bean, almond creme, and peppermint. You can’t go wrong with them.

Sugar-based Smashbox Emulsion Lip Exfoliant has a peppermint taste. It has shea butter, jojoba, and antioxidants to add the oomph to your smashing lips.

It takes two, according to Benefit. Lipscription paired up its exfoliator with a lip balm. A smart combination that won’t make you pout.

Finally, kiss me exfoliating lip scrub from philosophy kisses the flakiness and vertical lip lines away with this popular remedy.