The weather in NYC went from warm enough for bare legs Thursday to pulling out the uggs and fur ear muffs Monday. While I am not quite ready for winter yet, I have the gear to keep warm. The main thing about dropping temps that drives me nuts in the dry skin and lips that come with it. To fight it, I have a spring/summer set of beauty products, and a fall/winter arsenal as well. To keep my skin soft year round, I use a mixture of Queen Helene’s cocoa butter combined with Aveeno Daily Moisture with colloidal oatmeal when it’s warm and humid. When the radiators kick on, and all the dry heat is sucking the moisture out of my skin, I switch over to my winter moisturizing regimen as soon as the temps drop. The Body Shop body butter in Brazil Nut is my favorite for keeping my hands soft against the winter chill.

I upgrade my standard face lotion to a cream formula and step it up with lotions around my eyes  which tend to dry out more quickly. I like the Boots No7 set for day, night and eyes. But you can’t forget to take care of your pout when you’re putting on all that lotion. Look for a lip balm that has three key elements. First you need a hydrating agent to keep lips smooth – think shea butter, vitamin E, or coconut oil). Then, to keep them from being damaged once you step outside, look for a balm with SPF to block sunburns (especially if you’re going skiing or hiking), and a physical block that will seal in the moisturizing ingredients while blocking out wind. While Blistex does the trick most of the year, I like The Body Shop’s Cocoa Butter Lip Care Stick and Kiehl’s Lip Balm #1 in mango to fight against the icy winter wind.