dry vs dehydrated skin

First off, let's just begin by saying that you might think dry and dehydrated skin are the same thing. We hate to break it to you, but it's not. Not even close. 

While you might of thought (while staring in the mirror every morning) that your skin was lookin' extra flakey and dull because it was dry, you might not have realised that it could actually be dehydrated, and vice versa. It's confusing we know but hang in there, we're gonna explain everything. 

Now it might sound like these two skin conditions are seperate sides of the same coin but understanding how they're different goes a long way to curing your troublesome and pesky skin problems. 

Forget having a good skin day, knowing how to treat these two conditions might give you a good skin life, and anything that offers even the slightest promise of something that monumentous deserves all the R.E.S.P.E.C.T. 

Thankfully for you, we've done all the research (so you don't have to) and compiled into this blog so you can take your skin from drab to fab, and from dry to fly. Honestly, what would you do without us. 

so what is dry skin? 

Basically, dry skin lacks oil (also called sebum), and instead of being a temporary condition that can be cured with a fancy facial oil or moisturiser, it's widely considered to be a skin condition that needs a little more TLC if you wanna get rid of it. 

Now skin types are usually something you're born with but they have been known to change with the season, and as you age. But they can be easily classified into categories; normal (who did you bribe?!?), dry, combination or oily. 

When you have dry skin it usually means your sebaceous glands aren't producing enough natural oils on their own, and this is bad because it's the oils' job to hold in moisture. Without it, you might be left with tight, rough, and flakey skin.

Signs that you've been blessed with hella dry skin: 

- your skin is scaly.

- it tends to be as flakey as your first high school boyfriend 

- is as red as you get when you thought you could smash out a 30 minute HIIT workout but actually it turns out you can only get through the warmup. 

- it gets majorly irritated easily 

how can I fix this? 

Unfortunately, you can't just call up old mate Bob The Builder to come and fix your skin's dryness (although we wish it were that easy), but you can reduce its appearance on your face. 

The first thing you should focus on is to replace the natural oils that your skin doesn't make by itself. This means getting your very own super nourishing facial oil, and well, you've come to the right place. 

Good for rejuvenating and moisturising skin, our prickly pear hydrating face + hair oil will help to fade dark spots, under-eye circles and irritated skin while stimulating collagen production to keep your skin fresh and bouncy.

Pretty much any oil that has natural botanical oils, coconut oils or ingredients that are high in omega-3 fatty acids will help to peel away rough, flakey skin and replace it with skin that's baby butt smooth. 

and what is dehydrated skin? 

Where dry skin lacks oil, dehydrated skin lacks water and is considered to be a skin condition, rather than a skin type. I'm sure everyone already knows what dehydration means because we often refer to it in terms of our bodies. We know that we must drink 'X' amount of water every day to ensure we're properly looking after our bodies. 

By definition, dehydration means that your body is losing more water than what it's taking in, and this could be because a). you're not drinking enough water, b). you're sweating regularly, c). you're peeing often because you're already on your 4th cup of coffee for the day, or d). all of the above. 

Not only is being dehydrated bad for your health, but it's also extremely bad for your skin. 

Signs that you're skin is dehydrated:

- it's incredibly itchy 

- it's super dull 

- you have dark under-eye circles that suggest you haven't slept properly in a week 

- your fine lines and wrinkles are poppin' out

- it's covered in 'shadows' that appear around your nose or eye area (darker patches of skin) 

can I fix it? 

YES. YOU. CAN!

Firstly, go easy on the face scrubs. Your skin's natural barrier has been compromised usually because of external factors, so the change in seasons or the increase in the amount of alcohol you've been drinking (hey no judgement, iso's hit us all hard). This means you don't want to use a product that's too abrasive as it might make the dehydration worse and no one needs that.

The easy step is to make sure you're drinking at least 2L of water per day to maintain our skin's moisture balance but food can also help too so opt for water-dense ingredients such as watermelon, lettuce, cucumber or avocado. 

If you're looking for a product to help you out in the hydration department then you can't go wrong with a water-based face mist to replenish moisture reserves or you can try out a face serum that's high in collagen and hyaluronic acid. 

a few last tips 

These tips are great, especially if you're one of the lucky few who experience dry and dehydrated skin at the same time! 

- don't forget to use a cleanser on your skin. Remember the cleaner your skin is, the more likely it will soak up all the extra hydration you're gifting it. 

- the more soothing a product is, the better it is for your skin.

- don't skip out on your normal skincare routine. Just because you've got problematic skin, it doesn't mean you have to be scared to use skincare products on your face. 

- always, always, always moisturise. 

That's it! Hope you guys had fun. Tune in next week for our guide on how a lack of sleep can affect your skin. Until then, XOXO