Dry skin is often temporary — you get it only in winter, for example — but it may be a lifelong condition. And although skin is often driest on your arms and lower legs, this varies from person to person. What's more, signs and symptoms of dry skin depend on your age, your health, where you live, time spent outdoors and the cause of the problem.
 
Dry skin is likely to cause one or more of the following:
--A feeling of skin tightness, especially after showering, bathing or swimming
--Skin that feels and looks rough
--Itching (pruritus)
--Slight to severe flaking, scaling or peeling
--Fine lines or cracks
--Gray, ashy skin in people with dark skin
--Redness
--Deep cracks that may bleed