10 Things to Avoid If You Have Dry Skin

I've had super dry skin my whole life. The kind of skin that if untreated, splits, cracks, and flakes like a desert. Over the years I've built up a repertoire of tips and tricks to stave off dry, rough and irritated skin. It's only fair I share them hey?! So here's 10 things to avoid when you have dry skin:

1. Skipping Your Skincare Routine
Sounds like a no brainer, almost too obvious to include in this list, but how many times have you not bothered to take your make up off at night or skipped a step in you routine? If you don’t use your products, how are you going to feel their benefits?

2. Talc
So many life hack lists recommend using talc in an emergency as a replacement for loose powder. DON’T DO IT! I tried it, my skin looked fine initially, but by the end of the day it was so dry and tight, it felt like shit. Plus any problematic areas, like around my nostrils, were just emphasised so much, and flaky skin haunted me the next day. Unlike regular powder it sucked every drop of moisture out of my face. Equally, I wouldn’t used talc on my body or feet either for the same reason.

3. Shower Gel
I find shower gel strips my skin while it cleanses. I much prefer a shower crème made for dry skin. My fave is the Dove range of body washes because they leave your skin feeling clean and soft. Don’t get me wrong though, you still need to moisturise afterwards.

Dove Purely Pampering Almond Body Wash

4. Washing Off Body Conditioner
I absolutely love body conditioners because of their richness. It always seems a shame to wash away all the goodness down the drain. I started replacing my usual body butter with a conditioner and never looked back. I started off using the Nivea In-Shower Body MoisturiserSkin Conditioner, which is really great and pretty affordable. I now love the Lush Ro’s Argan Body Conditioner. It’s more pricey but it smells incredible.

Lush Ro's Argan Body Conditioner | Nivea In-Shower Body Moisturiser

5. Waiting To Moisturise
Don’t let your skin get bone dry after a shower or bath. Lock in the moisture by quickly patting dry and applying your moisturiser as soon as possible. It’s much less likely to become cracked or irritated. I find my skin can tighten up if I leave it to get completely dry.

6. Skipping Bath Oil
I love baths but if I lay in hot water for too long, my skin hates me. I find adding any oil to the water prevents overdrying. You don’t have to use expensive bath oils either, coconut oil is brilliant and super affordable.

REN Moroccan Rose Otto Bath Oil | Lucy Bee Coconut Oil

7. Naked Lips
Always have lip balm or lipstick on your lips. Eat, sleep, drink, party in it. A naked lip is a crusty lip when you have dry skin. I love the Lanolips range of balms for both day and night time. Also, watch out when using matte lip products. Always apply a layer of lip balm before your chosen colour. I love the Bert's Bees range because they are a great base that don’t affect how long lasting your lip colour is. They work great under liquid lip formulas.

Lanolips 101 Ointment | Bert's Bees Moisturizing Lip Balms

8. Scalding Hot Baths
Your bath should not be painful to get into! Scalding hot water will dry out your skin much more than warm.

9. Over Exfoliation

If you exfoliate your skin with harsh or sharp scrubs too often, your will end up tearing the top layer of skin making it even more flaky than in the first place. Don’t use a body scrub every single day. Instead, try using exfoliating gloves with your body wash instead as they aren't as scratchy.

Soap & Glory Scrub Gloves

10. Spending Hours In The Shower
As tempting as it is to take a 30 min shower, the longer your skin is in water, the longer moisture is leaving your skin. Unlike a bath where you can add oils etc to stop your skin from drying out, a very long shower will do more harm than good.

I hope you found this list helpful or at least you learned a new tip to pass on!

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