What To Do When Your Dry Skin Becomes Drier In Winter

Those with dry skin know that winter’s unwelcome mix of cold, dehydrating air and the freezing dip in temperatures magnify everything that makes dryness so uncomfortable and tight-feeling.

You’ve already tried switching to a creamier cleanser and a richer moisturizer to combat the cold—but what if those changes aren’t enough? What can you do that will really (and finally) work?

We’ve got your dry skin safeguarded from the cold with our research-supported solutions! Best of all, these modifications are easy and they’ll produce immediate results for your dry, flaky, weather-beaten skin.

How Cold Winter Weather Makes Dry Skin

When the temperature drops and the wind blows cold and dry, the low humidity both indoors and outside can be hard on your skin!

In addition to the low humidity, your skin is also under assault from the dry, heated air indoors. The combination of cold and dry air outside and hot and dry air inside sends already-dry skin into a tailspin. You want supple, smooth skin, but are dealing with dehydration, redness, tightness, flaking, and a continually uncomfortable sensation.

Now you can keep your skin comforted, smooth, and super-hydrated by adding winter skincare essentials that lock in moisture, nourish skin, and keep the cold environment from sapping your natural radiance.

How to Adapt Your Skincare Routine for Winter

At Paula’s Choice Skincare, selecting one or two of our nourishing, skin-renewing serums and boosters will give you the best results—you don’t have to change your entire routine. These innovative formulas work perfectly with your current skincare routine, and are packed with the types of ingredients your skin needs to look and feel silken, softer, calmed, and more radiant, despite the climate conspiring against you.

Of course, you need to be sure your skincare routine is already perfect for your dry skin. That means using a soothing water-soluble cleanser, a non-drying toner loaded with skin-replenishing ingredients, an AHA or BHA exfoliant (AHA is preferred for dry, dull skin to help naturally shed that unwanted buildup of dead surface skin), a richly restorative daytime moisturizer with sunscreen, and a creamy, rejuvenating nighttime moisturizer.

Those are the basics—all you need to do is add a couple of key products, as follows, to keep the winter weather from interrupting your skin’s healthy appearance:

1. Morning and evening, cleanse with a gentle, creamy water-soluble cleanser. If necessary, use a soft washcloth with your cleanser to be sure you’ve removed all your makeup. You can add a makeup remover for dry winter skin as well.
2. Morning and evening, apply a milky, skin-replenishing toner to the face and neck (no need to rinse).
3. Once or twice a day, apply a leave-on, hydrating AHA lotion exfoliant to your face and neck.
4. Morning and evening, apply a serum for dry winter skin on your face, including around the eyes, and neck.
5. Morning and evening, apply a non-fragrant, oil-based moisture booster for dry winter skin to your face, including around the eyes, and neck.
6. For the daytime, apply your moisturizer with sunscreen; at night, apply a super-rich moisturizer, including on your neck and around the eyes (follow with an eye cream for dry winter skin if desired).

If you want to enhance your beauty sleep and give your skin a super hydration boost overnight, apply a mask for dry winter skin to your face, neck, and eye area as the last step in your nighttime routine. You will wake up to unbelievably smooth, glowing skin!

What To Avoid

Following the routine outlined above will absolutely get you through the storm with skin that feels restored, revived and looks healthy. Even better, you won’t waste your time or money trying several different moisturizers, hoping one of them will bring the relief you seek.

Equally important as what to do is what to avoid, so as frost appears and the snowfall continues, keep these pointers in mind:

• If your skin is flaky, don’t reach for your facial cleansing brush or scrub. Unless the bristles are cashmere-soft or the “scrub” is equally gentle, you could end up making matters worse. A soft washcloth with your water-soluble cleanser followed by your replenishing toner will give you skin-perfecting results.
• Don’t forget your AHA exfoliant. It naturally helps your skin shed unwanted flaky surface skin. Routine use also means that your replenishing moisturizer, serum, and booster will work MUCH better!
• Avoid products that contain drying, sensitising ingredients like denatured alcohol, essential oils, mint, menthol, eucalyptus, clays, and starches. Surprisingly, these ingredients show up in a large number of products for dry to very dry skin.
• Our replenishing body cream and moisturizer for dry winter skin can be lifesavers for very dry facial and body skin. These products are proven to prevent moisture loss for 12 hours! They are formulated to be gentle and nourishing to very sensitive skin, and are even suitable for skin prone to eczema.
• Avoid taking long, hot showers, baths, or spending a lot of time in a sauna or hot tub. Although it certainly can feel relaxing, prolonged exposure to hot water and steam can deplete the key substances skin needs to resist stubborn signs of dryness.

Learn more about dehydrated skin.

Find products that suit your dry skin best at Paula’s Choice Singapore.

References for this information

Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, August 2016, pages 1285–1294

Harvard Health. (2022, September 22). Skin and hair. https://www.health.harvard.edu/topics/skin-and-hair

Yong, T. L., Zaman, R., Rehman, N., & Tan, C. K. (2025). Ceramides and skin health: new insights. Experimental Dermatology, 34(2). https://doi.org/10.1111/exd.70042

Karwal, K., & Mukovozov, I. (2023). Topical AHA in Dermatology: Formulations, Mechanisms of Action, Efficacy, and Future Perspectives. Cosmetics, 10(5), 131. https://doi.org/10.3390/cosmetics10050131

Almeman, A. (2024). Evaluating the efficacy and safety of Alpha-Hydroxy acids in dermatological practice: A Comprehensive clinical and legal review. Clinical Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, Volume 17, 1661–1685. https://doi.org/10.2147/ccid.s453243