[BEAUTY]Avoiding autumn’s dry skin syndrome

A perfect season to enjoy the clear blue sky, a mild breeze and most of all the beautiful autumn foliage has begun. However, while enjoying the beauty of fall, it is easy to forget that human skin can also dry out like the leaves. Especially after getting tanned by the sun during summer, the cold dry breeze of autumn can have a debilitating effect. Then what should be done? Here are some good tips to prevent you from looking 10 years older than your age during the fall and coming winter.
First of all, if you feel that your face needs an immediate moisturizing treatment, the quickest way to give it some moisture is the “steam towel” method. Clean your face thoroughly and prepare several hot towels. Put the towels on your face and then massage it ― this opens all the pores. After using one or two more hot towels, put on moisturizing cream or even a collagen mask.
In order to make your skin feel as soft as a baby’s, putting on a lot of toner after cleaning your face is a good approach. But a better way is to put toner on pads of cotton and place them on your face, especially on dry areas such as the cheeks and around the mouth and let them sit there for about 10 minutes. However, make sure the toner is alcohol-free, since alcohol tends to dry the skin.
Those with oily skin tend to neglect the importance of moisturizing, which is a mistake. Oily skin often needs more moisture than normal skin does, since sebum tends to block pores. Make sure to always use “water-based” lotion or gel-type cream after cleansing, and before applying the lotion wipe the skin with toner to maximize the moisturizing effect.
Getting rid of dead skin cells with scrubbing products once or twice a week helps the skin to absorb nutrition from the lotion and cream applied. Remember not to do it too often, as it can damage the skin’s surface.
Those who naturally have dry skin should use both water-based products as well as ones that contain oil. After cleaning your face, apply water-based ones first and then oil-mixed products to finish.
Tricky parts, however, are the forehead, nose, and chin, which tend to get more oily and pimply, even when the cheeks and lips are dry and scaly. Using oil-free cleansing products on them to cleanse the pores and get rid of blackheads should be done before applying moisturizing products.
For everyone regardless of their skin type, drinking about eight cups of water and massaging the face with ground potatoes, cucumbers or sliced tomatoes two or three times a week is strongly recommended. Having a humidifier on at home or work in the dry seasons is also important.
A lot of people believe that leaving their face wet after cleaning it is good for moisturizing the skin, but, in fact, it is the opposite. It is much better to wipe your face off right away after cleaning.
Also, you should know that spending too much time in the sauna or hot tub dries out your skin. Remember the value of moderation!

Tips on how to maintain healthy skin

1. When applying water-based products, make sure to use your fingers only, not the whole palms as these absorb lotion or cream more quickly than the face does ― a good way to waste a bottle. When using cream, it is better to use a mini-spatula or stick, in order to maximize its usage.
2. It is also a good idea to just water-pat the face in the morning rather than cleaning it with soap or foam cleanser. Thorough cleaning is necessary only at the end of the day. However, if you insist on cleaning your face in the morning, then use relatively milder soaps or foam cleansers.
3. When putting on make-up, mixing the make-up base or foundation with moisturizing cream or essence is good for dry skin.

by Choi Sun-young