Hello, old man winter.

This isn't a "winter is here!" post because, quite frankly, winter has been here. This is more of a how-to on caring for your skin under winter's harsh conditions. With this being my second winter in Alaska, I feel like I have enough experience to speak on such things.

Here we go, head to toe...


I've been getting cold sores since I was in first grade. True story. I've tried a lot of things (Carmex, good old Chapstick, Campho Phenique, Abreva, ...) and I find that Herpecin L is the best at preventing cold sores. It's also great for treating them, as is Abreva, but if you don't want them at all, put some Herpecin on. And look, it's SPF 30! You can find this almost anywhere: drug stores, grocery stores, Target, Wal-Mart, anywhere lip care is sold.


When we moved up here, I was still using the Clinique face bar that I had been using for years. I quickly learned that I'd no longer be able to use that. It dried my face out to the point of pain. It flat out hurt. I found, through and Alchemy request, that rosewater cleanser is amazing at not only cleaning your face but leaving the moisture in there. I typically get it at Unicos Cauldron but she seems to be gone. I'm sure a search on Etsy would yield more rosewater cleanser-makers, though.

When I'm out of rosewater cleanser, I use the Burt's Bees cleanser above. It still dries my skin out a little but not nearly as bad as a bar cleanser does. I found it at Target but I'm sure you can get it anywhere that has a good Burt's Bees selection. I believe this was around $12.



I found this lotion in Target a few years ago (when I still lived in Florida) and found it was fantastic for your face. It's thick and smells clean (a little citrusy) and doesn't leave any icky feeling on your skin. Again, you can find it at Target. The small tube of it (which lasts me around six months) costs just a few bucks. They do have a bigger container (which would last me a lifetime) that costs around $13.


Probably the biggest problem I have with winter is the fact that my hands are constantly dry. I picked up a tube of this stuff in Canada on our drive up. I'd never had to worry about dry hands before so this was purely on a whim. It turned out to be the best hand lotion I've found. And don't you know I haven't been able to find it since? I got it at a Wal-Mart in Weyburn, SK, CA. I don't remember how much it cost me.

Another great hand lotion I've recently discovered is Victoria's Secret Body by Victoria "The Hand Cream." It's in a pink tube and simply says "The Hand Cream" on it. When I picked up a tube in Florida last month, it was $8. Kind of pricey but it smells great and has no greasy feel to it.


Body lotion isn't too big a deal, I just use whatever people send me. No lie. People give me lotion all the time. My aunt sent me some of Dove's Beauty Body Lotion last year and it is by far my favorite. Bath and Body Works and similar lotions smell nice but I find myself scratching my legs until they're raw because they're still so dry. Not so with this lotion. And it smells great, to boot! I'm unsure of how much it costs but I can tell you that there is a Publix sticker on the bottles she sent me that say "2 for $4.19." Cheap, eh?


I've been putting Palmer's on my feet for years. I can't stand dry feet and cocoa butter keeps them soft. (This stuff is also fantastic for scars!) You can find this anywhere. I'm unsure of the price but it's not the cheapest stuff out there.


Another great thing for your tootsies is Avon's Foot Works. My mom put the soak, scrub, and lotion in my stocking this year and I must say, it works quite well! According to the Avon website, the trio costs $9.99. Not a bad investment, if you ask me.

So there are my must-have products for winter, what are yours?