When & How Do You Apply Moisturizer? Vitabath® Blog
Moisturizing your skin can be a delightful moment of self-care. It feels nurturing and luxurious to massage silky moisturizing lotion into your arms, shoulders, legs and body while you admire your skin’s color and texture.
But what if we told you there’s a chance you aren’t getting the most out of your beauty routine?
Yes, there’s a right and a wrong way to apply body lotion if you’re hoping to lock in your skin’s moisture and avoid dry, ashy, flaky skin.
The skin care experts at Vitabath® have over 60 years of experience formulating bath and body products that nourish, hydrate and soothe your skin. Naturally, we’ve learned in those years what your skin needs and how to give it the best care you can.
Read on for answers to your questions on when and how to use moisturizing lotion for the best benefit to your skin.
When Should I Use Moisturizer?
Timing is everything with moisturizer. That’s because moisturizers don’t add moisture to your skin so much as they lock in the moisture that’s already there. That means you want your skin to be moist — but not so wet that your lotion becomes a slippery, diluted mess. The best time to apply moisturizing lotions is after you’ve had a warm — not too hot — shower and you’ve patted yourself lightly with a towel.
Is It Better
to Put Lotion on Wet or Dry Skin?
Moisturizers need a warm, damp environment to help them penetrate into your skin and retain moisture there. If you apply moisturizing lotion to cold, dry skin, you’ll miss out on a lot of the moisturizing benefits because it will simply lie on the surface instead of sinking into your skin. Likewise, taking very hot showers or soaking too long in a hot bath can steal moisture away, making you doubly dependent on moisturizing lotions and thicker body creams to replenish your skin’s emollients.
How Do You Apply Moisturizer?
Here’s the step-by-step process for getting the most out of your moisturizer:
- Take a brief, lukewarm shower. Stay in there only as long as you need to get yourself clean.
- Pat yourself mostly dry with a towel — but don’t rub away allthe shower water.
- Dispense enough moisturizing lotion into your palm to cover about one quarter of your body, then very lightly rub your hands together for a second or two to warm it up.
- Apply the moisturizer in long, fluid strokes as quickly as you can. The first five minutes after exiting the shower are the best for sealing moisture into your skin, so don’t dally!
- Repeat until you’ve moisturized everywhere, paying a little extra attention to trouble spots like elbows, knees and heels. For stubborn dry patches, consider a body cream for added richness.
Can You Use Lotion to Moisturize Your Face?
The skin on your face is more delicate than almost anywhere else on your body. As convenient as it would be to use one moisturizing lotion for every part of you, body lotions and body creams are formulated with rich emollients like shea butter, kukui oil and horsetail extract that might clog facial pores. Slather body lotion all over yourself from toes to neck, but opt for a lighter facial moisturizer formulated for your face.