In order to keep cracks, flakes, and redness at bay, we've rounded up the best moisturisers for dry skin to slather on your face right away.
Regardless of what skin type you identify with, dry, flakey, and rough patches on the skin (and especially on the face) become a real issue coming into the colder months.
Thankfully, it’s nothing that can’t be remedied by making a few considered adjustments to your skincare regimen. The place to start is the cornerstone of every good routine: your moisturiser.
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The best moisturisers for colder weather will coddle skin in a blanket of hydration akin to wrapping up in a cashmere jumper, and they’ll simultaneously reverse and protect against the damaging effects of a chilly spell.
Switching to a richer, thicker, more buttery formula packed with nourishing ingredients will not only fill in those cracks to stop existing moisture from escaping, but it will also lay down a moisture-locking barrier over the complexion to ward off the drying effects of the cold air. And while thicker moisturisers can sound scary, they certainly are the go-to for the season but that doesn't mean they have to feel thick or heavy on the skin.
Shop smart, and you will sail through autumn without even a hint of dry skin.
THE CLASSIC
This moisturiser is rich without being heavy. Perfect for hydrating dry skin while keeping oily skin at bay. The gentle formula actually pulls moisture from the air for 24-hour comfortability leaving skin feeling smooth, soft and hydrated. With a lightweight texture and easily absorbed formula, this facial cream is perfect for daily use.
Ultra Facial Cream, €29, Kiehl's
THE MULTI-TASKER
Tilbury's Magic Cream is incredible for so many different things. First of all, hydration and anti-ageing. The formula houses hyaluronic acid, rose-hip and camellia oils, vitamin E and peptides to support your skin's own natural collagen production, add suppleness, and reduce the appearance of wrinkles.
On top of that, it's an incredible primer for makeup, serving up dewy, plump, properly moisturized skin before you even begin applying the product.
Magic Cream, €90, Charlotte Tilbury
the budget-friendly
The Ordinary is known for making powerful and effective products for truly affordable prices, and this non-greasy moisturizing topical formula is no exception. It's filled with 11 amino acids, dermal lipids, hyaluronic acid, and more for instant (and lasting) hydration.
Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA, €5.80, The Ordinary
the boujee
The fact that it’s a favourite of Kim Kardashian West's is enough for us, but if you’re looking for more facts to sway your opinion—here they are: It blurs and softens any flaws while also actually improving your skin—so it’s literally skincare as makeup. Plus, it reduces redness and gives you the soft glow you’ve always wanted.
The Perfecting Treatment, €180, La Mer
the all-rounder
This no-frills formula is a universal well of moisture for the skin, whether it's for the face, elbows, feet, or hands. Plus, it leaves such a good glow — thanks to extracts of gentle viola tricolour, calendula, and chamomile set in a base of oils and beeswax — that makeup artist Jo Baker used it to give Lucy Boynton's cheekbones a healthy highlight for the 2020 Golden Globes.
Skin Food, €11.99, Welda
The sensitive one
There’s absolutely nothing in this cream that will aggravate sensitive skin, nor will it exacerbate a congestion problem, as so many rich moisturizers can. Instead, the Revitalising Nourishing Cream is a rich, nourishing formula to help comfort and protect dry, sensitive skin.
The key active ingredients – Pre-tocopheryl, Red Fruit Extract and Avène Thermal Spring Water are combined with a nourishing and hydrating complex to ensure skin is soothed, protected and left feeling smooth and revitalised.
Revitalising Nourishing Cream, €30, Avene
The one for millennials
Thick and luscious with a spa-like lavender scent, this easily rivals its (much) pricier counterparts. Designed to deliver intense moisture with a mix of ceramides, fatty acids, a red algae complex, and murumuru butter, the heavier texture still somehow works as well during the day and under makeup as it does alone at night.
Priming Moisturiser Rich, €30, Glossier
THE GLASS OF WATER FOR YOUR FACE
Hyaluronic acid, an ingredient popular for being able to absorb up to 1,000 times its weight in water, is the star of this hydrating gel. The unique, watery formula absorbs quickly like a gel but settles into the skin with the long-lasting, moisturising power of a cream — perfect for those who prefer a lightweight product that can still get the job done.
Hydro Boost Gel Cream, €10.33, Neutrogena
THE best for night time
You know the drill: You're supposed to wear a moisturiser during the day (either paired with an SPF or one that offers sun protection), but did you know it’s important to use a night cream, too? Your skin actually goes into repair mode as you sleep and night creams are meant to link up with your circadian rhythm to treat and heal damage from the day.
When looking for a night cream, look no further than the Night Cream from Skin Formulas. Packed with reparative and nourishing ingredients like ceramides and collagen boosters, the formula visibly reduces dryness and brighten the skin within two weeks.
Night Cream, €50, Skin Formulas
THE ANTI-AGER
This moisturiser essentially works as a defence system for your skin by fighting free radicals and preventing their formation, and this lightweight cream has no shortage of it.
Sourced from grapevine stalks and famed for its ability to restore visible firmness, the cream also contains grapeseed oil to nourish, peptides to boost collagen, elastin to lift facial contours, and hyaluronic acid to moisturize. Its innovative delivery system features time-release technology so that the active ingredients can work their way into the skin all day.
Resveratrol Lift Night Infusion Cream, €45, Caudalie
Main image by @wanalimar on Instagram
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