Look, I’ll be honest, my skin gets disgustingly dry in winter. I’m talking dry and bleeding knuckles, legs that look as crackled as a drought-ravaged paddock, and tiny flakes of skin all through my clothes. One thing I’ve been doing is an in-shower moisturising sesh.
The thing about moisturising in the shower is that you’re getting your skin at a time when your pores are nice and open from all the steam happening in the shower, especially in winter because we all probably crank the hot water tap up, right?
You’ve washed off all the grime from the day and now it’s time to hydrate. Once you get out of the shower and start to cool down, it’s much harder to hydrate right down into the dermis (the layer underneath the epidermis).
Plus when you’re in the shower you get to stay nice and warm, which is a huge bonus in the middle of winter.
Nobody wants to be in the nud in winter for too long.
Think of in-shower moisturisers as a conditioner for your skin. It’s a real game-changer, especially when moisturising normally feels like you’re trying to keep a dry creek bed wet with a water pistol.
In-Shower Moisturisers That’ll Save Your Skin In Winter
I first got into moisturising in the shower when I discovered the Nivea In-Shower body lotion a few years ago.
It’s no longer around and has seemingly been replaced with a Cocoa Butter version, which is sad but I’m sure it works just as well. Cocoa butter is decadent and rich, and the added glycerine helps to form a barrier to seal in moisture.
I didn’t really see another in-shower moisturiser again until I started working at Lush Cosmetics a few years ago.
Lush made me fall in love with moisturising in the shower again, specifically with Ro’s Argan Body Conditioner. It’s thick and decadent, and all you have to do is swipe it all over your body, wait a couple of minutes, and rinse off the excess. Truly like a hair conditioner, but for your body.
It was like the gateway drug of moisturising in the shower. From there I discovered Buffy, a solid in-shower (or bath) moisturising bar with gritty ground rice and almond to help exfoliate as well — really bloody good if you get flaky skin like I do.
A shower oil is also a really nice way to moisturise in the shower or bath, and the added bonus is that it’s a cleanser as well. Oil helps to draw impurities out of the skin while also nourishing it from the dermis outwards.
There are plenty of faves around the traps, but I’m keen to try out the much-loved L’Occitane Almond Shower Oil.
The Jo Malone Lime, Basil and Mandarin shower and bath oil has also got good reviews, so naturally, I really want to try that one out too.
These two are a little more exxy and definitely sit on the more luxe end of the shower/bath moisturising spectrum, but hey we’re all allowed to treat ourselves sometimes, right?
I’ve tried out the Coco Loco shower oil from Lush (are we surprised? no) and found it to be really nice, but my skin definitely feels moisturised for longer when I use a heavier body conditioner.
SENSORI+ has a gorgeous, calming shower oil bursting with avocado oil, rose absolute and lavender. Slide that all over yourself and you’ll be nourished and nodding off in no time.
And don’t think that moisturising in the shower or bath has to just be a wintertime thing, either.
Every summer I get right around the Tingle body conditioner from Lush. It’s filled with lots of mint and menthol and makes your skin all tingly. It feels bloody incredible when you park yourself in front of the fan after a shoz.
