Achieving well-hydrated skin is crucial for a healthy, radiant complexion and proper hydration helps maintain skin elasticity, prevent dryness, and reduce fine lines and wrinkles. So you can see why having super hydrated skin is important for our skin’s appearance overall! In this guide, we will explore the best practices for effectively hydrating your skin. We will delve into understanding skin hydration, identifying causes of dehydrated skin, discovering the best hydrating ingredients, establishing a daily skincare routine, and incorporating dietary and lifestyle tips. Additionally, we'll highlight common hydration mistakes to avoid. Follow these expert tips for beautifully hydrated, glowing skin.
Understanding Skin Hydration
Knowing the difference between dry and dehydrated skin is key to maintaining a healthy complexion. Dry skin lacks natural oils, leading to flaking, tightness, and rough texture, while dehydrated skin lacks water, resulting in a dull, tight, and sometimes itchy appearance.
Recognising the signs of dehydrated skin is crucial for effective hydration. Common indicators include fine lines, lack of elasticity, uneven skin tone, and a feeling of tightness. Dehydrated skin can be caused by environmental factors, excessive sun exposure, harsh skincare products, and hormonal changes.
Hydrating your skin not only achieves a plump and youthful look but also maintains overall skin health. Proper hydration regulates oil production, improves elasticity, and enhances the skin's natural barrier function. Well-hydrated skin is more resilient and less prone to irritation and inflammation.
Causes of Dehydrated Skin
Dehydrated skin occurs when your skin lacks the necessary moisture to remain healthy and supple. Understanding these causes can help you take steps to hydrate your skin effectively.
Environmental Factors: Dry air, harsh weather conditions, and pollution can strip natural oils from your skin, leaving it dry. Protect your skin from these elements by using appropriate skincare products and protective clothing. A great broad-spectrum SPF moisturiser will do wonders for the hydration health of your skin!
Lifestyle Choices: Excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, and a poor diet can dehydrate your skin. Alcohol and smoking dehydrate your body, including your skin. A diet lacking essential vitamins and minerals can deprive your skin of needed nutrients.
Skincare Habits: Your skincare routine is crucial for maintaining hydration. Harsh cleansers, over-exfoliating, and insufficient moisturising can contribute to dehydrated skin. Choose gentle cleansers, moderate your exfoliation, and regularly use hydrating products to restore moisture balance.
Understanding the causes of dehydrated skin allows you to make informed choices to keep your skin hydrated and healthy. We offer a range of products specifically formulated to hydrate and nourish your skin, helping you achieve a radiant complexion. So keep reading for our best recommendations!
Best Ingredients for Hydration
Choosing the right ingredients is essential for hydrating your skin. Let's explore the best ingredients to nourish and moisturise your skin.
Humectants, Emollients, and Occlusives: Humectants like hyaluronic acid and glycerin attract moisture to the skin. Emollients such as shea butter and plant oils soften and smooth the skin's surface, preventing moisture loss. Occlusives like petrolatum and beeswax create a protective barrier, locking in moisture.
Benefits of Natural Ingredients: Natural humectants like aloe vera and honey hydrate and soothe the skin. Natural emollients like coconut oil and avocado oil deeply moisturise and deliver essential nutrients. Natural occlusives like jojoba oil and shea butter protect the skin without clogging pores.
Reading Skincare Labels: Understanding labels helps you make informed choices. Look for hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid, glycerin, shea butter, and plant oils. Avoid harmful chemicals like parabens, sulphates, and synthetic fragrances. Prioritise products with high concentrations of hydrating ingredients for maximum effectiveness.
Daily Skincare Routine for Hydration
Maintaining a hydrated complexion requires a daily skincare routine focused on hydration. Here are essentials for your morning and evening routines, as well as weekly treatments:
Cleanse: Morning or night you need a good cleanser, and in the evening you need to double cleanse to remove makeup, oils and SPF from the day. A great all-round cleanser is our BE GONE Kind-Hearted Cleansing Crème, super lightweight and with a unique elastic texture that doesn’t pull against your skin and leaves it soft and hydrated.
Our first evening cleanse would be with IN THE BEGINNING Deep Cleansing Melt. Our cult-classic cleanser that begins as an exfoliating balm, then once massaged in becomes a nourishing oil. Effectively lifting away makeup, oils and SPF that can become trapped in the pores of your skin.
Tone: This is a quick and essential step to any routine, but toning your skin will help it stay balanced and prepped for the next important step in your routine. We love TONING ESSENCE Balancing Tonic Mist because not only does it refresh and refine the skin, but acts as a hydrating mist for during the day too!
Another great toner is BE QUIET Soothing Milky Toner, super luxe and lightweight that floods the skin with prebiotics to support the skin microbiome and Alpine Rose to calm any redness. We love the added vitamin E which is a known ingredient for replenishing dehydrated skin.
Serum: Your serums are highly concentrated ingredients to boost new skin cells, so over time you’ll see visible improvements with the correctly chosen ingredients! Our favourite serum for dry skin is BE STRONG Skin Strengthening Serum, as it soothes and hydrates while delivering brilliant ingredients for new healthy skin cells. Keep applying this once to twice a day in your routine to see effective results over time.
Moisturise: The key to all dehydrated and dry skin problems! A moisturiser is designed to restore hydration and keep skin plump and smooth. And for dry skin types we have a couple of options here. BE STILL Settling Moisturiser is nourishing and soothing for the skin, so great if your skin leans towards more sensitive as well as dry.
For super dehydrated and dry skin, you won’t go far wrong with DOUBLE CREAM Hydrating Moisturiser. As the name suggests it’s packed with nourishing ingredients, vitamins and Mediterranean botanicals to help rehydrate and firm seriously dehydrated and parched skin.
SPF: Your skin needs SPF protection all year round, fact! The sun’s rays can still reach your skin even on the cloudiest of days, so layering on SPF is essential. A good SPF will have broad-spectrum UVA & UVB protection, like our LIFE DEFENCE SPF. It’s a great one to layer on top of your moisturiser and give your skin an extra layer of protection.
Extras: A couple of additional steps you can layer into your skincare routine, they don’t have to be daily extras but a once or twice a week treat. An eye cream is great to look after the delicate and thin skin under your eyes, which can often become dry and dehydrated itself. Opt for an eye cream like WINDOWS OF THE SOUL which is super lightweight, applies beautifully and leaves your skin smooth and soft.
Optional extras in your skincare routine for topping up hydration are masks and exfoliators. Once a week a mask like QUENCH Deep Hydration Mask which has hyaluronic acid and nourishing Mediterranean ingredients like avocado oil and olive fruit oil, helps to support dry and lacklustre skin with a moisturising boost.
Dry skin does also need exfoliation! A few times a week try an exfoliator like BREAKFAST SMOOTHIE Gentle Exfoliator which is a cream-scrub hybrid to take away dead skin cells and reveal a bright, smooth complexion.
Common Hydration Mistakes to Avoid
Knowing what not to do is crucial for effective skin hydration. Avoiding common mistakes can help you achieve a healthy, radiant complexion:
- Over-Exfoliation: While exfoliating is essential, overdoing it can strip natural oils and moisture. Limit exfoliation to once or twice a week and be gentle.
- Using Harsh Skincare Products: Products with harsh ingredients or high alcohol content can damage your skin's moisture barrier. Opt for gentle, hydrating products that nourish without causing dryness or irritation.
- Neglecting Sun Protection: UV rays can dehydrate and age your skin prematurely. Always apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen with at least SPF 30, even on cloudy days.
By avoiding these common mistakes, you can ensure your skin remains hydrated and healthy!