Category: crystal

Maybe it’s the lack of Vitamin D, but isn’t winter skin the worst? The dryness really kills any glow factor, even if you are managing to eat healthy and get plenty of rest. We all know that exfoliation (AKA skin cell turnover) is the answer to brightening skin, but the real secret is targeted exfoliation.

Just like we treat different areas of our skin with specialized products (i.e. eye cream), think about the differences in elasticity and thickness for each part of your face to determine whether you should take a gentle or tough approach to exfoliating.

Of course none of this is a hard rule. Adjust to how your skin is feeling on a day-by-day basis, and your skin will never look brighter.

Previously, I wrote about some of my favorite serums for specific skincare concerns that come from everyday life scenarios (see article here). However, addressing skincare concerns seasonally is also a good way to approach the serum game. For Winter, you’ll want a hydrating serum. But you can also supplement that baseline hydration. Today, I’ll be sharing a few mix-in boosters and how to use them to really make a hydrating serum work doubly hard for you this Winter.

“Serum” is one of those skincare terms that is so ubiquitous in product labeling that it almost doesn’t mean anything. We all know that we’re supposed to be using one, but it can be confusing to pick one to address our immediate skin concerns. I like to think of serums as the most specific kind of skin treatment I can apply. I’m looking to correct specific problems like hyperpigmentation.

Serums are definitely where I recommend paying for the best since they’re lightweight, which allows them to really sink in and penetrate the skin for maximum potency. Read on to see what kinds of situations would call for a specific serum.

For City Dwellers: Ursa Major Brighten Up Vitamin C Serum is perfect for counteracting free-radical damage caused by environmental pollutants. Personally, I notice that this kind of accrued damage manifests on my skin in the form of dullness in appearance and uneven, rough texture (different from breakouts). The vitamin C in this quick-absorbing serum is good for brightening skin tone, especially in conjunction with the other ingredients: rosehip (pigmentation and uneven texture) and aspen bark (exfoliation for fresh, new skin). I like that this serum has a very thin texture, which allows it to be layered under other skin treatments, like my overnight masks, without getting greasy or clogging my pores.