Christmas Beauty Tips

With the countdown to Christmas underway, you’ll no doubt be planning your beauty looks for the upcoming party season. But with the cold weather already wreaking havoc on our skin, getting ready to glow for the festivities can seem like a never-ending battle with the elements (even when following our winter skin care tips!). And the month’s celebrations can do their fair share of damage too. Enjoy healthy-looking skin this year with our Christmas beauty tips – no matter how much fun you’ve been having!

How Does Christmas Affect the Skin?

Hey, Christmas is a time for celebration; over-indulgence is to be expected. But those alcoholic drinks, late nights and chocolates have an impact. Sugary snacks may be part and parcel of the festive season, but they’re sure not sweet for our skin! These foods lead to a sudden rise in blood sugar and the production of excess insulin. This causes inflammation in the body, which breaks down collagen and elastin to cause sagging and wrinkles. It also stimulates sebum production and exacerbates hormone imbalances, which can cause spots and redness.

Meanwhile, salty party food leads to dehydration, which can make the skin look dull. High levels of salt will cause water retention too, which makes faces look puffy and swollen.

And excess alcohol consumption is to blame as well (sorry!). It’s incredibly dehydrating (and full of salt and sugar), and causes blood vessels to dilate (which is why you may appear flushed after a few glasses of Prosecco!). Over time, this redness can persist, and thread veins can become visible in the face.

Make Your Skin Healthier This Christmas

Now, we’re not saying that you should stop having fun over Christmas (we’ll be enjoying ourselves just the same!), but there are a few things you should be doing to safeguard your skin at this time of the year.

Make Time for Yourself (and Get Enough Sleep)

It’s a well-known fact that with Christmas comes chaos. The build-up tends to be a blur of gift buying, party prepping and worryingly high workloads; it’s understandably difficult to find, let alone make, the time for yourself – but it’s important that you do. By giving yourself a proper break over the holidays (and a lot of TLC!), you’ll be setting yourself up for a more successful start to the new year. Make sure you have a few early nights to counteract the late ones, and don’t scrimp on your skincare routine – regardless of how much Buck’s Fizz you’ve had!

Stay Hydrated

The cheapest and most convenient beauty trick? Turn on your tap! Drinking plenty of water is always important, but it should be your go-to come Christmas. Since alcohol is a diuretic, it’s crucial that you’re properly hydrating your body (and skin) if you’re drinking more than usual. Dehydrated skin can look dry and flaky, with more visible fine lines and wrinkles. Water also rids the body of toxins, which is especially useful if you’ve been drinking lots of alcohol and eating more processed foods than usual.

Treat Yourself to a Facial

Whatever the time of year, facials have plenty of benefits. They deep-cleanse the skin to combat blemishes and help to restore elasticity. Experts recommend that you get a facial every 5-6 weeks, in conjunction with your natural skin cycle. But in winter, when your skin is especially vulnerable to dryness, dullness and chapping, moisturising facials are especially effective. And gentle exfoliation will remove any dead skin cells (which clog pores) and stimulate your skin’s natural renewal process.

Find out which facial is right for you before booking with our pre and post treatment guide.

Choose Nutrient-Rich Foods

We all tend to make poorer food choices when our calendars are jam-packed and, when our houses are choc-full of chocolate, it can be difficult to resist temptation. Snack sensibly and, rather than ordering fast food or sticking a ready meal in the oven, opt for something that’s rich in nutrients and vitamins instead.

Foods that contain vitamin C (like berries, pomegranates and citrus fruits), help to protect the skin and support the production of collagen. Vitamin C is an antioxidant too, so it supports immune system (which is particularly helpful if you’ve been feeling under the weather!) and helps blemishes to heal properly. Leafy greens – including Brussels sprouts – are also rich in vitamin C.

If your skin is feeling dry, up your intake of omega-3 fatty acids. These help to keep skin moisturised; they also reduce inflammation, which can lead to redness and acne.

Vitamin E is another essential when it comes to healthy skin, protecting it from cell damage whilst promoting the growth of new and healthy skin cells. Seeds and nuts, including almonds and pine nuts, are high in vitamin E.

And whilst it’s typical for us all to embark on strict diets as soon as Christmas is over, yo-yo dieting is actually much more harmful for our overall (and skin) health. Providing that you’re eating a nutrient-rich diet for the most-part, it’s unlikely that you’ll need to start restricting yourself come January. A balanced diet, rich in antioxidants and foods that support a healthy skin barrier – such as oily fish, avocado and nuts – will nourish and protect the skin throughout the year.

Have Some Alcohol-Free Days

Having some alcohol free days will allow your body to recover from, shall we say, “seasonal excess.” When you are out drinking, stay hydrated by drinking water in-between alcoholic drinks, and make sure you drink a final glass of water before getting into bed.