Skoah Now Open at The Street to Tackle Winter Skin Woes

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Skoah, a Vancouver-based skincare brand dubbed as "personal training for your skin," has opened its third Massachusetts "spatique" at The Street in Chestnut Hill—the latest addition to the suburban collection of shops, salons, and restaurants on a Route 9. Owner Peter Dziedzic commissioned id8 Design Studio to plan the 1,000 square foot space, reminiscent of a Canadian cabin (custom fireplace included).

A retail space sells both the skoah line and its chiiki munki cosmetics brand, along with three treatment rooms for facials and a brow bar. When it comes to extreme weather, high performance products blending plant extracts, natural minerals, organic compounds, and active ingredients serve users well. Spa services can now be booked, while shelves of ready-to-go formulas currently await shoppers.

With the new year underway and challenging winter weather to tackle, we tapped Dziedzic for his top skincare resolutions:

Exfoliate: "Cold, dry weather doing a number on your skin Exfoliating will allow your moisturizer to work on fresh skin rather than dead skin. Clogged pores? Getting rid of dead skin helps prevent oil from being trapped (which causes clogging or breakouts). Once or twice a week should do it."

Much like fashion, change your skin care seasonally: "One thing all New Englanders like to tell folks from other parts of the country is that we love the four distinct seasons we experience here. The weather changing is not only a time to change up your wardrobe and bring out that cute new sweater you've been dying to wear, it's also time to evaluate your skin care routine and make necessary changes. In the winter, a heavy moisturizer, creamy cleanser and skin protecting products like the skoah Face Balm may be what your skin need. Then in the warmer, more humid months, a gel cleanser, lighter moisturizer with a matte finish, and oil-free hydrating masks like the skoah Hydradew get packed in the weekend bag for that trip to Nantucket."

Embrace toner: "Toners are the most misunderstood and maligned of all skin care products. Most people either confuse them with an astringent (which generally contain alcohol and are designed to tighten the skin, but really just dry you out) or think they do not really do anything. A good toner, like the skoah Tonik, helps to balance your pH levels, particularly after cleansing, and adds a dose of hydration to your skin. This prevents your skin from becoming too dry or getting irritated. At skoah, we even have a toner (the Turbo Tonik) that will help keep your pores clear! So learn to love the toner."

To encourage good skincare in 2014, Skoah is offering one (1) year-long "Skoah Gym Membership Lite" (a $400 value) to a Racked reader. Simply tweet your resolution (skin-related or otherwise) to @RackedBoston and be sure to hashtag #skoah and #shopthestreet by Friday, January 31, to enter. We will then select a winner at random. All participants are subject to the official rules, and Twitter discourages posting the same tweet repeatedly—just one will do!
· Skoah Chestnut Hill [Official Site]