Autumn and Winter Skincare: What to Change, What to Leave

Short answer: A winter skincare routine usually needs two changes, not ten. Add a richer final layer, such as a ceramide night cream, over the routine you already have, and give your body the same attention as your face. Keep your serums, keep their timelines and keep wearing sunscreen. Change one thing at a time.

• Change: add or enrich the last layer, especially at night.
• Change: moisturise your body daily, on damp skin after the shower.
• Keep: your hydrating serum, your vitamin C and your peptides.
• Keep: sunscreen. Daylight still reaches you in winter, including through windows.
• Avoid: five new products in October. One change, two weeks, then the next.

Why does skin feel drier in autumn and winter?

Because the air around it holds less water, and heated indoor air holds even less.

Cold air carries little moisture. Indoors, heating warms that same air without adding water, so the room becomes very dry and skin loses water from its surface faster than in summer. Add longer hot showers, wind outdoors and wool rubbing against the skin, and four things are working against comfort at once.

Most of this is a water problem rather than an oil problem. Skin that feels tight, looks dull and shows fine dryness lines more clearly in January is usually dehydrated. Many people are also drier in winter in the oil sense, with rough, flaky patches. That combination is why the winter answer has two parts: something that attracts water, and something richer on top that slows its escape.

What should you change in a winter skincare routine?

Two things: a richer final layer, and proper body care.

1. Enrich the final layer. Whatever you use now, put something more cushioning on top at night. This layer goes last, after every water-based product. The Ceramide Barrier Night Cream is built for this job: plant-derived ceramides help support the skin's natural barrier, while shea butter, cocoa butter and jojoba oil leave skin feeling soft, and sodium PCA and hyaluronic acid help hold moisture overnight. It contains fragrance, a white-flower scent with lavender, so patch test it first if your skin is easily irritated. Avoid the eye area.

2. Take your body seriously. Shins, forearms and hands take more of the seasonal hit than the face and get a fraction of the attention. The Omega 6-9 Glowing Skin Body Oil is a blend of argan, rosehip, jojoba, sweet almond, sunflower and raspberry seed oils that absorbs quickly. Press two or three pumps into skin that is still slightly damp from the shower, with a second thin layer on very dry areas. Sweet almond oil is a nut oil, so skip it if you have a nut allergy.

Step	Spring and summer	Autumn and winter
Cleanser	As usual	As usual; rinse with lukewarm, not hot, water
Hydrating serum	Yes	Yes, and arguably more important
Vitamin C or peptide serum	Yes	Yes, unchanged
Moisturiser	Light	Richer, especially at night
Body	Occasional	Daily, on damp skin
Sunscreen	Every morning	Every morning

What should you leave alone?

Your serums and your expectations. Neither changes with the season.

A hydrating serum matters more in dry air, not less. The Bioactive Prebiotics Jelly Serum uses hyaluronic acid, sodium PCA and glycerin to attract water, and prebiotics to support the skin's natural microbiome balance. In winter it needs a cream over it to keep that water in place, which is an argument for adding a layer, not for dropping the serum. Its formula also contains fragrance, alcohol and patchouli oil, so if your skin is easily irritated, patch test it behind the jaw first.

Vitamin C helps skin look brighter in December as it does in June. Peptides work on the same eight-to-twelve-week clock all year. Hydration is immediate, vitamin C brightening takes four to six weeks, and anything promising faster is overselling. A seasonal switch does not reset the clock: if you started a peptide serum in November, judge it in February. Our guide to the skin barrier explains why steady routines suit dry months.

Sunscreen stays. We do not sell one and no product of ours contains SPF, so finish every morning routine with your own.

Does hair need a winter routine too?

Often, yes, for the same reasons: dry indoor air plus friction from collars, scarves and hats.

The usual winter complaint is rough, dry-feeling lengths and ends rather than anything at the roots. A weekly conditioning mask is the most useful single change. If you use one with protein, such as our Keratin Intensive Rescue Hair Mask, keep it to once or twice a week on mid-lengths and ends, and in place of your regular conditioner on those days. Lukewarm rinses and a lower heat setting on the dryer help as much as any product.

What a winter switch won't do

It will not make an existing problem disappear, and it will not work overnight.

• If a product was irritating your skin in September, winter will make it more obvious. Find it and remove it.
• A richer cream changes how skin feels the same evening. How skin looks takes longer, and no timeline shortens because it got cold.
• No product fully compensates for long, very hot showers. Shorter and cooler does more than any purchase.
• These are cosmetics. Skin that is cracked, bleeding, painful or not settling needs a pharmacist or doctor.

Common mistakes

• Changing everything in one week. When something goes wrong, you cannot tell which product it was.
• Swapping the hydrating serum for a heavy cream. The cream slows water loss. Remove the water-attracting step and there is less to hold.
• Scrubbing away dry flakes. Flaking in dry air is usually water loss. More exfoliation tends to prolong it.
• Turning the shower hotter. It feels good and reliably leaves skin tighter afterwards.
• Dropping sunscreen because the sky is grey or you work by a window.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a completely different skincare routine in winter?

No. Most people need one added or richer final layer and daily body care. Keep your existing serums, cleanse with lukewarm water and add any new product on its own for two weeks before the next.

Should I stop using vitamin C in winter?

There is no reason to. Vitamin C helps skin look brighter whatever the season, and stopping simply resets the four-to-six-week timeline you have already invested in.

Is my skin dry or dehydrated in winter?

Dry skin lacks oil and tends to feel rough and flaky. Dehydrated skin lacks water, feels tight and looks dull, and oily skin can be dehydrated too. Winter often brings both, which is why a hydrating serum under a richer cream works well.

Can I use a body oil on my face in winter?

It is not what a body oil is made for. Ours is formulated and directed for the body, not the face. If you want an oil in your face routine, choose one made for the face, patch test it on the jaw first and use it as the very last layer.

When should I switch back to my lighter routine?

When the heating goes off and skin starts to feel heavy rather than comfortable, usually in spring. Remove the richest layer first and keep everything underneath it.

For the colder months, browse the body care collection alongside your usual face routine, and add one change at a time.

Last reviewed: October 2026.