The harsh Northeast cold has returned, which can only mean one thing: It’s time to begin my hydration heavy skin-care routine. It’s like the Instagram algorithm heard my skin pleading for help (creepy much?) because slugging videos started to fill my explore page. Slugging isn’t a new trend, rather it always makes a comeback around the wintertime when everyone’s skin needs a bit more moisture and hydration.
What Is Slugging?
Slugging is the last step in your nighttime skin-care routine, using petroleum jelly to seal and lock in moisture. After patting in your usual products, sealing with jelly creates a barrier to help products sink into your skin. Petroleum jelly is already widely used on dry lips and cracked skin, for the same purpose; with slugging, you apply the jelly all over your face. The key is to use a pea-size amount, though.
Personally, I wouldn’t want to use petroleum jelly on my face because I felt like it would be heavy and would clog my pores. But I cracked. Literally. My skin cracked. The cold winds teamed up with the below-freezing temperatures and wrecked my poor skin. I already use Vaseline on my dry lips, heels, and elbows, so I gave into my skin’s plea for more moisture and added Vaseline to my skin-care lineup.
The Process
Freshly out of the shower, I made sure my skin was warm and damp as I applied my usual go-to products. I used my Naturie Hatomugi Skin Conditioner, Innisfree Green Tea serum, and my favorite Biossance Squalane Oil, and whichever moisturizer I have on deck. I opted to skip any treatment products (aka retinol) since I have sensitive skin and I wasn’t sure how my skin would react to the petroleum jelly.
I chose to use Vaseline as my slugging product, but there are many other options including ointments to choose from. I found it helps to warm up the product before applying to skin for smoother application and a more even distribution.
Ta-da, we’re glazed donuts for the next hour. I did this an hour prior to going to bed, so the Vaseline doesn’t end up on my pillowcase. And please, I know it’s tempting but don’t give kisses to your cute pets when you slug–I made the mistake and got dog fur on my cheeks.
The Verdict
I’ve been slugging for two weeks now. Most of the cracking was on the center of my face; focusing there, most of the cracking is gone. But since it snowed AGAIN where I live, I’ll be on the lookout. My skin was much more supple after one week of slugging. I did use an exfoliating pad, where I noticed a few whiteheads forming on my problem areas, but nothing too bad! But I noticed my skin looked way better adding exfoliating pads into the routine. After week two, I have no complaints. My skin isn’t clogged or cracked; it’s smooth and plump. Would I slug again? Yes, absolutely. Would I slug every day like the past two weeks? No, I’ll add slugging maybe twice a week into my routine; however, if I’m cracking like a stale, crusty doughnut, I’ll definitely be slugging until I’m freshly glazed.
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Photo: Rosdiana Ciaravolo/Getty
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