Walk down the Cosmetic isle in any large store and look at their range of Face Moisturiser and I would not blame you for being confused! The selection is enormous and the Pro’s and Con’s for each product equally confusing! Let us try to take the mystery out of moisturisers!
Face Moisturiser – Why You Need One:
One of the most significant contributing factors, and possibly the main reason why you need to apply Face Moisturiser is due to the damage made to your skin by the weather! Hot or Cold, the impact it has on your face are enormous, if its too hot or to dry outside your skin will let you know it is suffering from the effects of the climate. Watch for the warning signs that your facial skin is having trouble coping with what the weather is doing to it. People tend to think their skin remains the same the whole year round; it doesn’t, the complexion of your facial skin will change with the seasons.
With the winter comes cold icy winds that can irritate delicate facial skin, this has a drying effect on the skin surface that removes the natural moisture from the facial skin, this can lead to itchy red patches and excess dead skin cells. We go indoors to escape the cold and turn up the central heating, great for warming the body but not doing that dry red skin any favors! All of this leads to the skin dehydrating from the dry air outside and inside.
So, with the problems our skin has suffered from the winter weather, we start to look forward to the warm, summer days in the hope it will help with the dry, irritated skin, not a chance! With the onset of summer, this brings some very different skin complications.
Summer Breakouts!
For some people acne seems to come alive in the hotter more humid days, this could be due to the increase in sweat and oil (sebum) by the sebaceous glands that clogs the pores so leading to spots and gives your skin a glaring, shiny appearance. We go indoors to escape the heat and cool down, hoping to alleviate the agitated spots brought on by the heat and sweat and turn up the air con, great for cooling down your hot face and body, but this dries out the skin and so irritates it even more!
We are in a constant battle to try to combat what the weather is doing to us when we are outdoors and create comfortable conditions our body likes and wants when we go indoors, and all the time remain kind to our facial skin.
It isn’t always easy to find a solution to help with this problem, but the one thing we have to relieve our tired, irritated facial skin is Moisturiser.
Read – Is Your Skin Sensitive or Sensitised? Do You Know The Difference?
What Day Moisturizer should I use?
Well as we have seen each season brings its unique problems, add to this the different skin types people have, and this goes part of the way to explaining why stores are so full with many kinds of Face Moisturizer.
Winter – 
Dry Skin. Look for an Occlusive moisturizer, an emollient-rich formulation. Your skin will be dehydrated, so you need to retain as much water in it as possible. An Occlusive moisturizer gives your skin a chance to re-hydrate.
Other ingredients you should look out for are:
- Ceramides – Jojoba oil
- Mineral Oil – Paraffinium liquidum
- Silicons – Cyclometicone
- Essential Fatty Acids
- Hyaluronice Acid
Important -Important – Any Moisturiser you buy to apply in the winter should have SPF30 or higher. Just because its winter, do not fall into the trap of thinking those harmful UVA and UVB rays are not causing skin damage. UV rays can cause fine lines, wrinkles and premature aging. SPF Moisturizers will protect delicate facial skin.
Summer – 
Oily Skin/Combination Skin/Acne Prone – Although you have oily skin you may think applying a moisturiser will make this worse, but it is essential to keep your skin hydrated. Look for a lightweight liquid consistency; this will help with the Sebaceous gland secretion and not block those pores, and help to prevent those skin breakouts that you are more prone to get in the summer months. Also consider oil-free, water.based makeup.
- Water Based
- Non-Comedogenic (won’t clog pores)
- Non-Acnegenic (prevent acne)
- Oil-free
- Look for ingredients like Glycerin
Important – Any Day Moisturizer should have SPF30 or higher for the summer. UVA and UVB rays cause skin damage. Moisturisers with Sun Protection Factor will protect delicate facial skin.
Dermalogica Skin Hydrating Booster will hydrate, smooth and minimise fine lines, restoring your skin’s moisture balance.
Dermalogica Daily Skin Health Hydrating Booster 30ml
Night Moisturiser:
It is essential to have a different Night Moisturiser, one that doesn’t contain SPF that your day moisturizer MUST have. Look for a Night Moisturiser that suits your skin type. Your night moisturizer will have skin-repairing ingredients that will work through the night and will create a softer, better-hydrated skin. It repairs the skin barrier that has been damaged by what the weather has thrown at it all day!
It will be working through the night to help make your skin look healthier and radiant the next day. Most night moisturizers are suitable to use around the eye area. Most people end their day with a relaxing bath or shower, so by applying a night moisturizer, it helps to replenish the moisture that has removed throughout the day. Using your night moisturizer should be the last step in your daily skincare routine.
What Suits You?
Finding what is best for you will take a bit of time and research. Knowing what your skin-type is it will indeed narrow things down a bit. Visiting some of the larger stores can help as they will have samples on display for you to try. It will allow you to feel the texture of different brands, find out if you prefer Gels or Liquids, everyone is different and what suits one person someone else simply couldn’t bear to have it on his or her skin!
Another good place to find out about different brands and products is on review pages on the internet. There is a very well known brand that is only available online; it is not possible to go and try any samples in any shop. By going to their website and reading reviews and feedback from customers, this will provide you with a lot of information and assistance to decide if the product would be suitable for you.
Moisturizer Mayhem!
The world of Face Moisturizers is humongous, too many to cover in one article that’s for sure! You can go organic, natural, tinted, tanning, gel, lotion, liquid and so on! All I can say is that it is imperative that you do use one in your daily defense against the elements. To find your perfect match may require a little trial and error. Good luck finding the one that suits you the best!
How do you choose your face moisturizer? Please leave any comments or questions below, and I will be happy to discuss them with you.
jo@yourskincarehelp.com
I always struggle with moisturizers and feel like I waste money on buying and trying new ones that will suit my skin. I wish some companies will sell sampler sizes for cheap to consumers. Anything you recommend for Asian skin? I break out and my skin is like a combo dry and oily skin depending on the temperature. Thanks for the info!
Hi, I don’t believe you can go by Ethnic background to pick skin care products, its more important they match your skin type. Its not always easy to determine your skin type but from what you say about breakouts I would lean towards oily skin with open pores that become clogged so leading to breakouts. Have you considered ‘Exfoliating’ your skin? It would help to remove dead skin cells and unclog pores. You can read about ‘Exfoliating’ here: https://yourskincarehelp.com/best-way-to-exfoliate-your-face
Have you tried ‘Shiseido’ Products, they have a very good reputation, you need to look for these ingredients to suit your skin type: Non-Comedogenic (won’t clog pores) Non-Acnegenic (prevent acne) and Oil-free. Let me know how things go.
Hi, I can see you know so much about skincare from the detail that you give, you must have such passion for your topics. I will show my wife and daughter this site as they might be interested in the products on here.
Hi. skincare became a passion for me due to getting skin problems from sun exposure, so I had to look into it, and educate myself on the benefits. Its good that you are sharing good skincare habits with your family.
You’re right, there are SO many out there to choose from and sometimes it’s difficult to really determine the difference between the $15 moisturizer and the $100 moisturizer. Am I really getting that much more for my money or is it all packaging and marketing costs?! Thank you for the breakdown of the ingredients, that will be very helpful as I select my next product!
Hi, I enjoy looking through your site as it has lots of helpful information. I have tried many creams over the years but as our skin changes with age, I am finding it more difficult to get a moisturiser that I’m happy with. I wonder if you can recommend a moisturiser that would be suitable/helpful for my skin. My skin is quite sensitive, and I do suffer with some dry areas.
Hi, its true we do need to change our moisturiser’s as we age, not only does the skin becomes drier with age, but hair and eyes can also. Creams with Vitamin A cream are good to combat dry skin and wrinkles, and equally important is applying SPF every day, even in the winter. Clinique have a very good selection of moisturisers and hydrants, well worth a look 🙂
Hi Jo! I have a question for you please 🙂 How is the best way to determine what your skin type is, dry dry-oily, oily? I have never worn makeup and usually only wear a perfume free lotion. I am almost 40 and have had near perfect skin my whole life. I am really struggling with breakouts the last couple of years and I am struggling to find a face wash that I can use that doesn’t make it worse. How do I determine what my skin type is? What is your recommendation?
Hi, how lucky you are to have such good skin 🙂 Trying to determine your skin type is never straight forward as skin can change with time and health conditions, and with the seasons. It’s good that you use a perfume free lotion, but also be careful that it is free from other harmful or irritating products also, such as ‘Alcohol denatured or SD alcohol, irritating ingredients such as menthol, peppermint, citrus juices, and witch hazel, and try to avoid heavy occlusive emollients unless you have very dry skin. Something you can do to try and identify your skin type is to wash your face with a gentle cleanser, pat dry and then see after a few minutes how it feels, if it is dry and tight you have dry skin. If it quickly starts to appear oily over your face this indicates oily skin. If your T-zone (area around your nose, chin, and forehead) starts looking oily but your cheeks-jaw area start feeling slightly dry, its more likely you have combination skin. This is the most common skin type, as people do tend to have more oil glands in the center of their face than on their cheeks. The skin ‘breakout’ you mentioned could also be hormonal related. A good cleanser that helps combat breakouts is ‘Paula’s Choice – Resist Anti-Aging Foaming Cleanser’ that is suitable fro combination-oily skin. Hope this helps, let me know how things go 🙂
Thank you so very much Jo! I really appreciate your detailed answer. I will try this out and let you know how it goes 🙂
Thanks for some very beneficial advice, I have to admit to not being conscientious enough about using face moisturizer morning and evenings. This is something that I am going to be sure to use in my daily skincare routine and to make sure that I purchase one that matches and improves my overall skin condition, I know that it is look a little neglected recently!
I have found your posts on a number of topics interesting. Members of my family and I have sensitive skin, which can become irritated easily. You are right about diet playing a large part on skin conditions, and I for one notice how my skin can look much worse especially if I introduce ‘fast food’ into my diet!
You are right, I have tried so many moisturisers which have been either to heavy or irritate my skin. Thank you for outlining the ingredients to look out for which could causing this to my skin. I will be trying the Shiseido Products and hopefully find the moisturiser that is right for me and my skin!
I have learnt a lot from reading this article about face moisturiser as I have found using face masks for over a year as well as the extra stress has made my skin very dry and itchy patches, I will be trying your useful tips on using some serums as well as taking more care with using a moisturiser during the day as well as at night
Hi, I thought I had to let you know I have been using the Shiseido Products for last few months and so pleased with my skin for first time in years, I have even been able to stop waring makeup all the time, which I used to use mainly due to being unhappy with the condition of my skin. Thank you for recommending these products.
I’ve learned the value of taking care of my skin, and it’s never too late to start. By using moisturizer consistently, I’ve noticed a remarkable improvement in my appearance. Nice post 🙂
I learnt a lot about which moisturiser and serum performs best on different skin types which has helped me decide on what my skin needs. Over last few months I seem to have a combination of dry and ageing skin! Hopefully this will help me to find a moisturiser that will help with the irritating dryness I seem to get in some areas!