Seasonal Rest and Repair: How to Revive and Protect your Skin this Fall
It can be hard to accept the change of seasons, especially when the new season brings colder, drier weather and earlier sunsets each day. Minneapolis sidewalks start to become icy, making it a safety hazard just to leave your house! The dry air causes our skin scream for moisture, and often affects self esteem.
The good news: nature is cyclical, and everything in an ecosystem has a purpose. When cold weather comes, it’s a natural signal for animals (including us humans!) to hibernate, rest, reflect, and take care of ourselves. In contrast with the social season of summer, we spend more time at home, filling our cups in whatever way we can while we anxiously await spring.
Whether you live in the Twin Cities or somewhere else in Minnesota: I, Sunni Reynolds, am your friendly neighborhood esthetician! As a neurodivergent and queer small business owner, I know alllll about being anxious about the future, especially in this economy! But today I want to focus on some self-care tips that will help you connect with yourself during Minnesota fall and winter seasons; tips that help you “fill your cup.”
*Read (or skip) to the end of the blog to access discounts on suggested products that you can order through me!
4 Skincare Tips to Revive and Protect your Skin for Winter
Reverse sun damage
Unless you were diligent with applying and reapplying sunscreen regularly this summer, your skin probably needs help fixing inevitable sun damage, whether you can see the damage or not! (Check out my incidental sun exposure blog to learn more about secret sun damage and how it’s causing harm to your skin!)
This fall and winter, focus on reversing your sun damage by using innovative formulas like Bioelements’ Vc10 collection! This collection will target your dark spots, dullness, signs of aging, loss of firmness, and uneven tone. Imagine how renewed you’ll feel with brighter, firmer, and more even-toned skin! Your skin will thank you ;)
Lock in moisture
As the temps in Minnesota quickly drop, the natural humidity of summer disappears from the air; the cold, dry air we’re left with quickly zaps the moisture from your skin!
In November, start incorporating an ultra-hydrating collagen treatment like Bioelements’ Collagen Rehab with a lightweight face oil like Bioelements’ Dewluxe to lock in your skin’s moisture, promote your skin’s natural dewiness, and reduce the appearance of fine lines.
Exfoliate with care
Even though we’re recovering from summer damage, regular exfoliation is still non-negotiable. However, it’s important to approach exfoliation with extra care and balance this time of year. Too frequent or aggressive of an exfoliator can unnecessarily damage and sensitize your skin; but not exfoliating enough can cause your skin to become congested and trigger other skin issues.
For fall and winter, switch to a gentle leave-on peel cream like Biolements’ Skin Editor to target congestion, unwanted texture, dullness, discoloration, and lines.
Protect your skin barrier
Everyone’s skin will react differently to environmental changes, so it’s important to keep that in mind when adopting a new skincare routine! Whether you notice sudden dryness, flakiness, irritation or redness, now is the time to be proactive against sudden signs of sensitivities. Colder, drier weather is only going to make the damage to your skin barrier more extreme!
This November, start using skincare products from Bioelements’ Sensitivity Skin Line to help repair and strengthen your skin barrier before winter officially hits!
Skincare education is important, but as your favorite queer and neurodivergent Minneapolis esthetician, I also want to provide you with some seasonal self care tips to help you survive this Minnesota winter!
Cold Weather Self Care Ritual Ideas
1) Do a 30 day yoga challenge on Youtube! It’s easy to stay on your couch for your entire evening after a day at work, but making the choice to put out the yoga mat and do your best once a day will be sooooo much better for your mental and physical health in the long run. It’s easy to be slightly more sedentary when it’s cold out, but doing yoga in the comfort of your cozy, warm home is a great way to move your body during a Minnesota fall/winter!
On top of that, sticking with something like an at home yoga challenge for 30 days doesn’t just give you the physical benefits of yoga, but also builds your ability to commit to yourself! If you can consistently give yourself the time and space to do a little yoga each day, imagine what else you can accomplish!
* Bonus tip → Embrace the change of seasons by finding a seasonal yoga challenge! I’ve found a 30 day “Wake the Witch” yoga challenge that energizes me and relaxes my body each time I do it. Plus, I love feeling a little witchy!!
2) Go on Pinterest and search “fall activities” or “winter activities” to manifest fun fall plans (either solo plans or with friends/loved ones!) I’m sure you haven’t done every fall activity that Minnesota has to offer! Remember those summer bucket lists we used to make as kids/teens? Who said we had to give that up?! Enjoy bonding with your inner teen and make a seasonal bucket list 💛
3) Next time you’re waiting for your laundry to wash/dry: go through your closet, actually try stuff on, and if it doesn’t bring you joy or you can’t remember the last time you wore it, put it in a donate/clothing swap pile! Clearing out clothes you don’t wear will obviously declutter your space, but this ritual will also cleanse old energy you didn’t know you were holding onto!
* If going through the entire closet is daunting, break it up into sections! Today you can do half of your closet, and next laundry day you can do the other half. Break it up into thirds, quarters! Whatever works for you. No judgement here:)
And if you’ve made it this far, congrats! Here’s the link to my product order form, where you can access all the products I mentioned earlier at 10% off the original price! (Skin by Sunni is a Bioelements Partnership Spa💛)
I hope this blog helps take some of the stress from the change of seasons off of your plate. I’m here to make your life easier, not more complex!
Share this blog with a friend or family member that has been complaining about the change of seasons! And if you and your friend want more free, practical skincare advice that doesn’t require you to buy expensive new products, be sure to follow me on Instagram and/or sign up for my emails! (I promise I won’t spam you!)
And as always, if you want to support a small, queer, woman-owned business in Minneapolis: book a service with me today!
💛 Xo, Sunni
