It is that time of year when the nights feel like they will never be light again, the weather feels as though it’ll never be warm again and my skin feels like it will never be nourished again! I find it so hard to keep on top of a good skincare routine for my body during these winter months as it is just too darn cold to expose my skin for any length of time! My hands, face and neck seem to be the only areas of my body that are allowed to see day light and so buffering, moisturising and fake tanning all take a back seat until I can bare to be bare! I have also really been struggling to hold on to a good sleeping pattern since Christmas. With the hype of Christmas and New Year, visiting friends and family, drinking and eating more, it is enough to throw anyone a little off balance. However, as you might already know, I have been off work since Christmas, due to me working in a National Trust property and for conservation reasons they have too close the premises for eight weeks of the year. So, when everyone else was gearing themselves up to go back to work after the festive period, I’ve been staying up late, sleeping in and generally messing up my inner sleeping routine.
I have been attempting to overcome this set back however as cold weather and a break from work is no excuse not to look after my body and sleeping pattern. I thought I would include in a post little ideas that I have had and little tweaks I have been making to my routine, in order to look after my skin a little better and help relax my mind on an evening in an attempt to get to sleep a little earlier.
I have been having baths two or three times a week of late which I have found not only helps me to relax but the soak is really improving my skin. I have got into a lovely little routine when it comes to bath time, I actually get really excited when I know I am going to have a bath in the evening! It is a great chance for me to have a little ‘me-time’, get away from the world and escape into a good book. I start by turning on the taps and pouring some of Soap and Glory’s Calm One Calm All bath soak in while it is filling up, which is a great little number that will moisturise your skin whilst you sit and soak (full review here). While the taps are running I will get changed into my big pink fluffy dressing gown, light three or four candles and take off my makeup. I tend to then brush my hair, run some oils through it and tie it up in a top knot. I will then usually add a lush product of some sort, whether it is a bath bomb, a small squirt of Snow Fairy or my new favourite, a break off of Unicorn Horn crumbled under the running tap.
Once my bath is filled I will slip in with a face masque on, usually an Avon mud masque and dive into my latest read. I usually stay in my baths for about an hour, I like getting into them when they are piping hot and after an hour it tends to have list most of its warmth. I find it so relaxing walking from a hot bathroom into a cool bedroom. The change in temperature I feel clears my head, and a deep intake of breath feels like a huge surge of oxygen going to my brain. I will usually then pop on an episode of whatever series I am currently watching on Netflix, at the moment it is House (which is incredible!) and moisturise my whole body. Due to the heat of my bath, my core body temperature is still relatively high and so even though it is cold outside, I have a quick window of opportunity to give my skin some TLC. I then will get into bed with a hot cup of peppermint tea, set my alarm and continue to read my book until I nod off to sleep.
I have also tried to put down electrical devises before getting into bed, and stay off social media/the news at least half an hour before going to sleep. I have read a lot of articles saying that this is a major factor for interrupting people’s sleeping patterns. The fact that people are spending so much time on their phones before going to sleep means that the back-lit devices increase brain activity and so it takes longer to wind down and switch off to let you drift into a deep sleep.
So whether it is the dark nights throwing you off kilter or the cold weather getting in the way of baby soft skin, I hope this post helped to provide some ideas or inspiration to help you out! Please tell me of any tips you have or if you have any ideas to help me get to sleep easier or on a night or if you know of any remedies to help out your skin during the winter.
 

How do you relax or keep your skin summer ready in these colder and darker months?


Maddy
xxx