These products keep you looking as fresh as the mountain air you breathe.
We know you have enough to pack when you’re off to hit the slopes, but we have a few little ski beauty essentials to add to the list (they pack up small, promise!) The bitter cold, damp air and high altitudes can play havoc with our skin, hair, nails and just about anything that’s exposed.
We’ve rounded up our top products to stop you falling victim to the chilling sub zero temperatures. Who says that you can’t look just as picturesque as the backdrop when schussing down the powdery white slopes? We’ve rounded up our top products to stop you falling victim to the chilling sub zero temperatures. Who says that you can’t look just as picturesque as the backdrop when schussing down the powdery white slopes?
Sunburn Saviours
We know it may seem un-natural, but sun cream is as essential to a ski holiday as a pair of ski’s and a hot chocolate. Just because you’re not sun worshipping on a beach in 30-degree heat, doesn’t mean you’re safe from the suns harm. In fact it’s actually much stronger on a skiing holiday due to the altitude and the reflections off the snow. Goggle shaped sunburn lines are NEVER a good look.
Clarins Sun Control Stick for Sun Sensitive Areas £17: Perfect for those easily burnt areas such as the nose and forehead. Gives you double high protection against UVA rays (the damaging ones that give you wrinkles). Pocket sized, you can carry it with you for top-ups.
Garnier Ambre Solaire UV Ski Extreme Conditions Protection Cream SPF20 £7: Great for extreme snow storm days, it’s enriched with jojoba oil and vitamin E to help protect skin from both the sun and cold wind. Think moisturiser and sun cream in one. Clinique SPF 35 Targeted Protection Stick £18: Another super handy SPF stick ideal for skiing. Apply it on the go. It will help improve the look of damaged skin when exposed to UV thanks to the useful extracts in it.
Wind-Swept The only flakes on an Alpine break should be the frosty white, snow shaped ones. Ensure your skin stays flake free with a highly intensive moisturiser to make sure your skin is kept hydrated through the cold weather. Your skin loses moisture due to the lack of humidity in the air, so here’s how to make sure this doesn’t happen.
Crème De La Mer’s Moisturising Soft Cream £105: Perfect for weather beaten, dehydrated skin. The super luxurious formula allows it to deeply penetrate the skin. Your skin will love you.
The Body Shop Vitamin E Intense Moisture Cream £13: If you suffer from flaky, dehydrated skin, this is perfect for you. It’s silky smooth texture will work wonders on your moisture starved, post ski skin.
Clinique Moisture Surge Intense Skin Fortifying Hydrator £34: You will instantly notice skin feel more comfortable after apply this soothing cream gel formula. Locking in moisture for up to 24 hours, apply before bed and that’s one more concern ticked off your list.
Chap-free Lips
Chapped lips are the bane of nearly every serial skiers life. Relying on the default chapstick won’t be hard-hitting enough. It’s not just your skin that needs sun protection, your lips do too. Think of how peely your skin goes when it gets sunburn – it’s the same for your lips.
Elizabeth Arden’s Eight Hour Cream Nourishing Lip Balm £19: An old faithful, but it replenishes lips with essential vitamins, minerals and nutrients whilst also protecting from the UV rays. An essential.
Nivea Lip Care Sun Protect £3.29: Providing immediate protection, this handy stick will make sure to protect lips and moisturise at the same time. Banish crusty lips for good.
Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Original Ultra Moisturizing Lip Balm £1.89: It’s enriched with Vitamin E and the SPF 15 will help to prevent and protect chapped, cracked or wind-burned lips.
Helmet Hair
For when your hair separates into frosted icicles that you feel you could actually snap off (don’t do it!), you need to replenish moisture loss. Intensive masks are great for putting the nutrition back in to hair and repairing dry, lacklustre hair that has been affected by the chilly air.
Kérastase Nutritive Nutridefense Masque £27.50: A force in the face of extreme weather conditions, it immediately penetrates hair from the roots to ends. Sure to leave hair quenched with softness.
L'Oréal Professionnel Mythic Oil Masque £15.99: Another deep hydrator - enriched with cottonseed oil to nourish and lock in moisture. See you later helmet hair.
Morrocanoil Restorative Hair Mask £31.85: Perfect for repairing damage caused by the freezing air and strong winds. It will work the moisture and elasticity back into hair that has been weakened by these elements. Even better, it only has to be left on for five minutes.
Heavenly Hands
Hand cream has long been a savior of sore, cracked skin that has fallen victim to the cold weather. A good hand cream will make sure they are supple and flake free – soothing and protecting them for the whole holiday.
Kiehl’s Ultimate Strength Hand Salve £14: Works a treat on severely dry hands by soothing, moisturizing and conditioning skin – ideal for the frosty weather, and slipping your hands in and out gloves all day. Shedding skin in your ski gloves is certainly not ideal.
L’Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream £19: So you can keep your grip on them flyaway ski poles. It penetrates quickly to protect and nourish hands, whilst the rich texture absorbs rapidly leaving no traces of oil.
Post-Ski Pampering
We know the title of this article says essentials. BUT we are also throwing in a couple of pampering indulgences – just as a little something to spoil yourself after a long day of alpine skiing.
Sisley Black Rose Cream Mask: £95.50
A godsend, which will help replenish dry, dehydrated skin, leaving it positively glowing. Pop this one on whilst your having a bath – an added bonus is it smells divine. Perfect for an evening of pampering.
Aromatherapy Associates De-Stress Muscle Bath & Shower Oil: £40
Even if you get through the entire ski holiday without falling once (we salute you) there are sure to be a few aches and pains. Reviving tired muscles it is basically a massage in a bottle.
