Skin-Saving Beauty Hacks To Take You Through The Party Season

‘Tis the season for parties, rich food, late nights and eggnog. Great! But, get this, the holidays can be hella hard on your skin.

It's true, living the good life can really mess with your skin. So, let’s nip that in the bud toute de suite by learning about the biggest holiday skin sinners, shall we?

1. Alcohol

A glass of wine every now and again and a few G&Ts on a Friday night are not going to cause your skin to totally freak out (there are far stronger forces to blame there) but frequent and excessive drinking, which is often par for the cause over the holidays, can definitely take its toll on your poor complexion.

So, exactly how does alcohol affect the skin – specifically in the short term? Well, for starters alcohol is a diuretic. This means it makes you pee more, causing you to lose more water than you would on a regular day without the booze. Losing an excessive amount of water can make you quickly feel dehydrated which is a bummer on the skin, sapping it of essential moisture, increasing dryness and dullness and intensifying the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles quicker than a flash.

Alcohol also screws up your sleep patterns (more on that in a minute), inflames the tissue and causes your blood vessels to dilate, exacerbating facial redness and making your skin feel hot and angry. Sure, this is not a massive deal in the moment (although it can ruin your makeup!) but continue to drink and over the years that temporary flush can become much more of a permanent fixture. No fun.

Your Holiday Action Points

Drink more water. Try to down a glass of water for every alcoholic beverage you drink. This’ll help minimize dehydration.

Give yourself alternate days off. This allows enough time for alcohol to leave your body. Damage limitations and all that.

Choose clear alcohol. Clear drinks like vodka and tequila leave your body far quicker than darker ones.

Hydrate your skin from the outside in. Use a moisture-binding serum like Hyaluronic Acid Facial Serum daily.

2. Rich Food

Everyone knows the benefits of a well-rounded diet that’s heavy on the fresh fruit and veggies and high in fiber and protein. And for the best part of the year it’s not that difficult to ensure you’re balancing lots of the good, healthy stuff with a few of the naughties.

But the holiday season is a whole different matter. Candy is constantly on offer while rich, heavy dinners are a given – not to mention the desserts. Oh the desserts!

Being informed of some of the effects of rich, festive food, however, goes a long way to helping you to resist over-indulging. Regular indulging, of course, is fine – it IS the holidays, after all. But completely overdoing it? Maybe not.

The main food fiends when it comes to the wellness of your skin are sugar, salt, fried foods and refined carbs. No surprises there, right? Sugar and processed carbs like white bread and pasta, for example, have been proven to lead to the accumulation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs are harmful compounds that form in the skin when you bombard your body with too much sugar. This excess of the sweet stuff attacks your skin cells, latching onto collagen and elastin, and causing them to stiffen and weaken. You might as well just invite lines, wrinkles, sagginess and dullness to your holiday parties.

Your Holiday Action Points

Be mindful when you cook. Substitute white sugar with honey, don’t brine your turkey, reduce the amount of salt you add to your cooking, bake instead of fry your foods and choose wholemeal breads and brown rice.

Snack wiser. Instead of filling up your snack bowls with salted pretzels and heavily seasoned chips, choose unsalted nuts instead. Also lay out lots of berries to pick at. Then you won’t feel so bad for indulging on chocolate! 

Combat free radicals. Give free radicals a run for their money by applying topical antioxidants on the reg. Our hot holiday fave is Vitamin C Super Serum+.

3. Hot & Cold Temperatures

Winter equals cold weather and a real lack of humidity in the air. And this can mean only one thing for your skin – dryness.

In complete contrast, you are then faced with warmer temperatures inside, thanks to roaring fires and cranked up heating. This also sucks moisture from your skin and, not only that, but extreme temperature changes cause tiny capillaries in your skin to contract and dilate, resulting in redness and inflammation. Good grief!

Your Holiday Action Points

Turn the heat down in your home. It might feel cozy to crank up your heating, but try not to go too crazy. The ideal home temperature should be somewhere around 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

Limit hot baths and showers. Scorching hot water strips away the protective lipid layer from your skin’s barrier, sucking away moisture and leaving you with surface dehydration. Turn down the temperature and limit bath time to 15 mins.

Stick with super gentle cleansing. Harsh cleaning products will do your skin no favors, so go for mild formulations that care for your complexion. We love Soothing Cleansing Milk for nurturing holiday skin.

4. Stress

Are your holiday menus going to suit everybody's tastes and dietary requirements? Will your bestie love her gift as much as you want her to? And, shoot, you forgot to get those last-minute stocking stuffers for the kids! There are so many things to get stressed about during the festive season that, frankly, it’s a miracle any of us survive it.

Thankfully, we do live to tell the tale. However, your skin can really suffer during the holidays thanks to emotional stress. You see, stress throws your hormones totally out of whack. When you feel stressed, your nervous system releases a whole bunch of hormones into the bloodstream (think cortisol and adrenaline) which causes your heart to pump faster, your breath to quicken and your muscles to tense and get ready for action. This is great when you want to nail a scary job interview or shine on a first date, but when it becomes a regular thing, these stress hormones go into constant overdrive and your body has no chance to relax and go back to normal. This plays havoc with your emotions, your sleep and can result in any number of physical issues like headaches and nausea and often more serious concerns like heart or digestive problems. Then, of course, there’s your skin.

An overload of cortisol, the ‘stress hormone’ makes your sebaceous glands produce more oil (cue greasy skin and pimples). It also impairs your barrier function, accelerates inflammation, depletes collagen and interferes with your skin’s healing process. Not ideal for those pimples we just mentioned.

Your Holiday Action Points

Make lists. Lists are great, not only for helping you to remember everything you need to do/buy/make, but also for clearing your mind. Especially before bed. And especially at this time of year.

Take time out. If you’re feeling frazzled, go for a ten-minute walk or take yourself off to a private space to breathe and relax. It’s amazing what a little me-time can do for the soul.

Calm inflammation with soothing skincare. Aloe vera, green tea, rose water and niacinamide are awesome for stressed skin. Try a spritz of Rose Water Refreshing Facial Toner for instant zen.

5. Zero ZZZs

It’s party time. Yay! Good on you, enjoy yourselves. But… and it’s a big but… try not to overdo it at the expense of your sleepy time. Skin hates that.

The reason sleep is so important for the health of your skin is that while the brain goes into rest mode your skin gets kinda busy. Blood flow increases to nourish your skin with valuable nutrients; antioxidants kick in to help your skin recover from the perils of the daily grind; cell turnover accelerates to bring fresh, healthy skin cells to the surface, and collagen production revs up big time. And as you know, collagen is extremely important for your skin, maintaining strength, structure, firmness and volume.

Without the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep each night, your skin is going to miss out on all that good recovery and rejuvenation time. And it will suffer because of it, furnishing your complexion with anything from dull, sallow skin to full-on acne breakouts. You have been warned.

Your Holiday Action Points

Get an early night whenever you can. Ideally you should go to sleep and wake up at roughly around the same time each night. But heck, it’s the holidays. So don’t pass up the opportunity for partying, just get more sleep on those rare nights in.

Make your bedroom a sleeping paradise. Invest in some blackout curtains, get a humidifier, wear earplugs if noise is an issue and ensure your room is the perfect temperature for sleeping (65 degrees Fahrenheit according to The Sleep Foundation).

Treat your skin overnight. Ensure you never wake up with dry, sad skin by gently cleansing your face and neck then slathering Vitamin C Deep Hydration Night Cream all over.

What is glass skin and how can you get it? Read on for the lowdown on this shiny, dewy skin trend that shows no signs of going away.

Skin trends are an odd phenomenon. Unlike your hair and makeup which you can temporarily change with different colors, tricks, techniques and updos, your skin is what it is. Sure, you can improve its condition with better lifestyle choices and an awesome skincare routine, but you can’t fundamentally change the structure of the skin you were born with. It’s called genetics.

It’s still kind of cool to keep up with beauty trends that concern your skin, however. But, really, it’s all about trends in skincare, not actual skin. Think skin cycling, product personalization, skinimalism (which is still all over TikTok, btw), that kind of thing.

And the latest trend we (and the rest of the world) are into? Glass skin.

What Is Glass Skin?

Originating from Korean beauty practices where dewy, hydrated, uber healthy skin reigns above all else, glass skin is all about looking after your skin so that it looks and feels its absolute best. Pop words like ‘smooth,’ ‘glowing,’ ‘crystal-clear,’ ‘plump,’ ‘radiant’ and ‘fresh’ to the top of your skincare goals and you’ll be on the right track.

Glass skin is basically the skin ideal. We don’t like to think of it as skin perfection because that’s way beyond most of our reaches, but it’s about cleansing like a pro, layering on hydration and using skincare products and techniques (rather than piles of highlighting makeup) to help your skin look radiant and luminous. Just like glass.

Of course, getting your skin to behave in a glass-like fashion is not easy. If you have oily skin, for example, it can be a slippery slope from glowy skin to greasy-looking skin. Similarly, if your skin is dry, you’re going to need some darn good layers of moisturization in order to get glass-like skin.

It’s important, therefore to listen to your skin and adapt your glass skin routine to suit you.

That being said, there are a few key steps that can help you along the road. To follow, five of our favorites.

1. Try A (Gentle) Double Cleanse

Double cleansing splits the beauty world. Some swear by it, others believe it to be completely unnecessary. And us? Well, we sit somewhere in the middle. It’s very effective for those who sweat a lot, wear a good amount of makeup or have particularly oily skin. But it can be too much for sensitive skin types and is kind of pointless if you live your life wearing zero makeup. That’s our take, anyway.

If you want to have the cleanest, clearest skin of your life, however, and take care as you do it, double cleansing can be a great place to start. It’s also another K-beauty concept, so go figure!

Double cleansing is basically the act of cleansing your skin twice – first with an oil-based cleanser or makeup remover to dissolve things like makeup, sebum and sunscreen, then a water-based cleanser to rid your skin of other impurities like sweat and pollutants. By cleansing your skin twice you ensure you completely remove all kinds of debris that may have built up throughout the day. And by doing this you keep your pores clear and your breakouts under control. Because, while pimples and in-your-face pores aren’t the end of the world, they’re no friends of glass skin.

If you fancy giving double cleansing a go, do it at night only – when your skin has the most build-up on its surface – and use the gentlest formulations possible to avoid drying out your skin. We have plenty of incredible cleansers to choose from but our Vitamin C Brightening Cleanser is a smart option for step two as it also helps amp up your radiance at the same time.

2. Exfoliate Regularly

Exfoliation is another awesome step to do at night because it’s a fantastic way to slough away dead skin cells and accelerate cell turnover while you sleep, helping you to wake up with smoother, brighter-looking skin.

Whether you choose a chemical exfoliant like 6% AHA, BHA + PHA Liquid Exfoliant or a physical scrub like Vitamin C Gentle Face Scrub our most important advice is not to go too crazy. Be extra gentle with your skin, exfoliating just once or twice a week, and if you feel like your skin can’t handle that, cut it back to find your sweet spot.

Exfoliation is awesome for glass skin, irritated skin is not.

3. Invest In A Hydrating Toner

Toner might feel like one of those skincare steps you can really do without, but it can be a fabulous way to start boosting your hydration levels as early as possible. And glass skin is nothing without hydration.

Unlike the toners of the ‘80s which stripped all the life from your skin, modern day formulations are crafted to balance your skin’s pH levels, up its moisture content and prepare your skin to soak up all the goodness from the rest of your skincare routine. They really are the first step to ultimate skin hydration – which is basically the opposite of their predecessors!

Our Rose Water Refreshing Facial Toner, for example, contains just one ingredient – pure Moroccan Rose Water – to gently refresh, hydrate, soothe and refine your skin, while Ocean Minerals Super Toner is charged with powerful minerals, vitamin C and glycolic acid to revitalize and hydrate a dull, flagging complexion.

Apply your chosen formulation immediately after cleansing and then get ready to start building on this great hydration foundation with the rest of your routine.

4. Layer Up With Serum

Facial serums are your next port of call for the dewy skin of your dreams so don’t miss this important step – night and day. Serums are able to penetrate your skin much better than moisturizers which is why they’re often packed with concentrated active ingredients to treat your skin at a deeper level.

In terms of glass skin goals, the best ingredients to look out for are water-loving humectants like glycerin and hyaluronic acid, alongside vitamin C for brightening, vitamin E for soothing and niacinamide for smoothing texture and improving tone. Fruit acids are also a good shout for encouraging cell turnover while peptides help improve firmness and keep collagen synthesis in good working order.

Of course, you don’t want to overload your skin with too many actives (cue irritation!) so choose your serums wisely and if you want to work on a few different concerns, try using one serum in the morning and a different one at night. You could also try our incredible Multi-Vitamin Facial Serum which is fantastic way to target a whole number of skin concerns.

Just remember to apply your serum immediately after toning to help seal in moisture, and use just a small amount. More than a few drops is a total waste.

5. Finish With Moisturizer (& Sunscreen EVERY Morning!)

Last but not least, in fact last but most of all, is moisturizer – the final step in the glassification (hmm, made-up word?) of your fabulous complexion.

Now is not the time to look for mattifying formulations but instead go for the richest moisturizer your skin will take. That’s what’s going to help seal in all that hard hydrating work you’ve already accomplished. If your skin is oily, you’ll want to steer clear of super heavy creams and butters in favor of lighter lotions, but if your skin is dry, they’ll lap up all that richness.

Ingredients like fatty acids, ceramides, shea butter and sunflower seed oil are ideal for imparting a gorgeous glow and truly moisturized complexion – even better when combined by brightening antioxidants like vitamin C or the hydrating powers of aloe vera.

We’re currently loving our Firming Collagen Day Lotion in the morning and Vitamin C Deep Hydration Night Cream before bed, but we have plenty where those came from, right here.

To finish, don’t forget to generously apply SPF 30 Mineral Sunscreen with Vitamin C every morning without fail. Sun protection might not seem the obvious choice for nailing a glass-like complexion but if you allow the sun to destroy your collagen it’ll age you up at lightning speeds and your skin will never have the plump luminosity that glass skin requires.