EN:

If only our skin could talk! Then she could tell us exactly what's missing right now. Makeup-free days would definitely be the norm, not the exception. Sometimes it is really difficult to know what exactly our skin type needs and what the skin longs for. We know that everyone's skin is different - oily, congested, mixed, dehydrated, dry - and that our skin is constantly changing depending on the season and daily factors.

Sometimes it seems impossible to meet all of our skin's needs - but with the right products for our type, we can easily improve the appearance of our skin.

Dry / Dehydrated

So you took the quiz, and like me, dry/dehydrated skin. But what does your dermatologist say?

Dry and dehydrated skin should not be confused. Dry skin means your skin is unable to produce enough oil/sebum to stay properly hydrated. Left to its own devices, skin may not look shiny (yay!), but it's likely to appear bumpy and dull, and fine lines are even more likely to show up than your oily-skinned friends (boo!). Our skin is also more sensitive than oily skin types because they have a natural protective barrier - so we can experience redness, inflammation and irritation.

Dehydrated skin, on the other hand, simply lacks moisture, but can still produce oil on its own. With shiny and dry spots, this always leads to confusion for us. We then often (wrongly) over-cleanse and exfoliate skin, stripping moisture away with harsh chemicals.

Dryness and dehydration are particularly common in winter, when it's cold outside and indoor heated air damages our complexion. Your face then feels tight and uncomfortable, a bit like you're sunburned or just coming out of a windstorm. Winter always comes for us dry skin types!

Luckily, while dry and dehydrated skin are not the same thing, the same healing remedies help!

Hillary's recommended routine:

cleaning

Let's start at the beginning - It's important to keep skin clean, but it's even more important not to overdo it with cleansing. You should never feel "squeaky clean" after cleansing, so avoid harsh foams and gels. Rather choose a gentle, nourishing cream or oil cleanser. True to our 1-ingredient philosophy, I love coconut or almond oil (like MERME Nourishing Body Remedy) to remove makeup and the dirt of the day. Then I wipe my face with a damp cloth washcloth (which you can wash and use until it falls apart).

peeling

Next step: I exfoliate regularly (1-2 times a week) but always make sure I don't overdo it. We want to get rid of the dull, dehydrated cells on the surface, but not irritate the skin with harsh products that will end up drying it out even more.

So I recommend a chemical or acidic peel like our Facial Brightening Powder, which is made from pure L-Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C). Vitamin C is known for its lightening and rejuvenating properties. But it's important to use vitamin C that actually works! Most conventional vitamin C skin care products lose their potency when exposed to light or air. It is therefore important to use a powdered product that is stored in a tinted jar - like ours. Simply mix the powder with a few drops of water to gently exfoliate and brighten your skin - without coarse abrasive grains. Vitamin C helps to stimulate cell renewal, thereby strengthening the skin's protective function and reducing free radical damage. It makes your skin more radiant and firm while lightening dark spots and discoloration. Perfect during the summer when my freckles show in the sun.

toning

Now that I'm fresh and clean I follow up with a spritz of our Facial Antioxidant Mist which works to tone and hydrate. It's also super practical for on the go - for a moisture boost on the go! In winter you see me spraying all day long. I'm addicted to the spray!

serum

While the skin is still damp, I apply a hydrator - this helps lock in the valuable water in the skin and allows the serum to penetrate deeper into the skin's layers (it also means you need less of the product). I recommend a light, water-based hydrator, like my beloved Facial Hydration Serum, for instant relief from dehydration. Our Facial Hydration Serum is made with pure hyaluronic acid, which acts as a moisture magnet for cells, leaving your skin looking hydrated, plump and healthy.

Hyaluronic Acid occurs naturally in the body and can carry up to 1000 times its weight in water! Their moisturizing properties help revitalize the skin's surface, leaving your skin feeling softer and more supple. It is suitable for all skin types from oily teenage skin to mature mom skin. Like a glass of water (or 10) for the skin!

eye oil

I don't know about you, but I've always suffered from dark circles and puffy eyes no matter how much sleep I've had. Even if I do manage to get 8 hours of sleep, I look like I've had 8 margaritas and only a whiff of sleep (not to mention the nights I actually do!). Our Advanced Eye Therapy has often been my lifesaver in the mornings after a long deadline or when I've spent too many hours on the dance floor. I like to store the oil in the fridge. The smooth metal ball is then particularly effective at cooling swollen eyes - I can see an immediate reduction in fine lines, puffiness and dark circles. Fortunately!

oil / cream

The Final Step: Apply your heaviest product like an oil and/or cream to lock in moisture and protect skin from external pollutants. As dehydrated girls, we are lucky that all three MERME Elixirs are suitable for us. However, I recommend the Facial Beauty Elixir or the Facial Healing Elixir, which help retain moisture and nourish the skin without suffocating it or increasing oil production. In the morning I love to take my time (as a little ritual) and massage the Facial Beauty Elixir into my skin to stimulate circulation and get rid of any puffiness or wrinkles from the pillow on my face. At night I use the extremely moisturizing Facial Healing Elixir as a nourishing care for my skin after a long day. It penetrates deeply and quickly into the skin to hydrate, revitalize and illuminate. At the same time, it works against fine lines, dark spots, dryness and inflammation that can occur with age.

That's how it looks! My guide to soothing dry and dehydrated skin, especially now with this changing weather. Believe me, getting radiant, glowing skin is so much easier than it seems!

Love Hillary xxx

ENGLISH:

SKIN TYPE SERIES: Goodbye Dry Skin!

If only our skin could talk! It's such a pity because if it could, we would know EXACTLY how to look after our skin. Make-up free days would be the norm, not the rarity! We can be so clueless about our specific skin type and what our own skin truly needs to thrive. We do know that no two skins are the same - we're either oily, congested, combination, dehydrated, dry - and our skin is constantly changing according to the season, our environment and daily stressors.

Although navigating our skin's needs can seem like a mind field, what very few of us realize is that our skin's appearance can be easily fixed with the RIGHT products for our skin type.

DRY / DEHYDRATED

So you've done the quiz, and similar to me, your skin is dry / dehydrated, but what's your dermalogical diagnosis?

Dry and dehydrated skin shouldn't be confused as the same. Dry skin is where your skin is unable to produce enough oil and sebum to retain much needed moisture. If left to its own devices, it won't look shiny (yay!) but will probably appear patchy or dulled, and possibly more fine-lined than that of your oily-skinned friends (boo!). Our skin is also more susceptible to sensitivity as oil creates a natural protective barrier - so redness, inflammation and irritation can occur.

On the other hand, dehydrated skin simply lacks moisture but can still make oil, which can often leave us confused with some shiny bits and flaky bits. We often (but wrongfully) over exfoliate and strip all the moisture using harsh chemicals.

Both dryness and dehydration are a common complaint during winter when the cold environment and central heating wreaks havoc on our complexion. It's common for your face to feel tight and uncomfortable, as though you have been sun or wind burnt. Winter is always coming for us dryer skin types!

While dry and dehydrated skins are different – ​​lucky enough, they have the same remedies to help cure!

Hillary's suggested routine:

cleanse

Ok first things first - It's important to keep the skin clean, but it's even more important to not over cleanse. You should never feel “squeaky clean” after cleansing, so avoid foams or harsh ointments. Choose a gentle, nourishing cream or oil cleanser. Sticking to our 1-ingredient philosophy, I love to use coconut oil or almond oil (like MERME's Nourishing Body Remedy) to remove make-up and wipe away the day's grime with a wet cloth (which you can wash and re-use until it if apart (literally)).

exfoliation

Next - I exfoliate regularly (1-2 times a week), but make sure not to overdo it! We want to eliminate the dulling, dehydrated surface cells, but not over-exfoliate with harsh products as that will end up drying our skin even more!

I recommend using a chemical or acidic formula like our Facial Brightening Powder which is pure L-Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin-C). Vitamin-C is notorious for its brightening and rejuvenating properties, but it's important to use a Vitamin-C that actually works! Most mainstream vitamin-C skincare products lose effectiveness when exposed to light and air, it's important to use one that comes in a tinted bottle, and in powdered form, like ours! Just mix this powder with water to brighten and gently exfoliate your skin without the coarseness of beaded exfoliants. Vitamin-C helps to encourage cell renewal and in turn, enhance skin's barrier function and reduce damage from free radicals. It will brighten, you're tighten your skin, while lightening any skin spots and discolouration. Perfect during summer when my freckles come out to play in the sunshine.

clays

Once all fresh and clean, I follow with a spritz like our Facial Antioxidant Mist which will tone and hydrate the face. Keep a facial spritz in your handbag, to top-up moisture levels on the go! During winter months, you will see me spritzing all day every day. I'm a mist addict!

serum

Next, I apply a hydrator while skin is still damp - this will help to seal the precious water into your skin and help the serum to penetrate the skin's dermal layer (plus will also mean you use less product). I recommend using a lightweight, water-based hydrator like my holy-grail Facial Hydration Serum to bring immediate relief from dehydration. Our Facial Hydration Serum is made of pure Hyaluronic Acid, which acts as a magnet for moisture to the cells so that your skin looks hydrated, plump and healthy.

As for the science-y bit - Hyaluronic Acid occurs naturally in the body and can attract up to 1,000 times its weight in water! Its hydrating properties will help to revitalize your skin's outer surface layers, so your skin feels softer and smoother. Suitable for all skin types from our oily sisters to maturing mamas – it's the glass of water (or 10) that your skin needs.

Eye Oil

I don't know about you guys, but I've always been a sufferer of dark circles and eye puffiness, regardless of the amount of sleep I've had. Even if I somehow managed to get a full 8 hours, I can still look like I've had 8 margaritas and a wink of sleep the night before (let alone, when I actually do that!). So our Advanced Eye Therapy has been my absolute SAVIOR on mornings after long deadlines or when I've spent one too many hours on the dance floor. I like to refrigerate the oil as the smooth steel ball acts as a cooler to target puffiness - I can instantly see a reduction in fine lines, puffiness and dark circles. Thank god!

Oil / Cream

Last step is to apply your thickest product like an oil and/or cream to LOCK in moisture and protect the skin from external pollutants. As a dehydrated girl myself, we are in luck that all three MERME Elixirs are suitable for us – but I recommend the Facial Beauty Elixir or Facial Healing Elixir to help retain moisture and nourish the skin, without suffocating or exacerbating oiliness. In the morning, I like to take my time (bit of a self-care ritual) massaging the Facial Beauty Elixir into my skin to increase circulation and get rid of any face puffiness from the night's sleep (good bye face pillow wrinkles!). Then, at night, I use the extremely hydrating Facial Healing Elixir as a nourishing treatment to my skin after a long day. It penetrates deeply and quickly to hydrate, revive, brighten and insure my face against fine lines, dark spots, dryness and aging inflammation (fingers crossed!)

And there you have it! My guide to conquering dry and dehydrated skin, especially during this bi-polar weather. Trust me, it's so much easier to maintain glowing, radiant skin than it seems!

Hillary xxx