Transitioning Your Skincare for Summer

Is it a fact or a myth that we need to adjust our skincare routine for each season? Unfortunately, the answer is not quite as simple as yes or no.

As each individual’s skin behaves vastly different to the next, many may benefit from their skincare routine remaining consistent throughout the year. Others, on the other hand, might experience dramatic changes in the skin’s activity from one season to the next.

Skincare should always be applied according to how the skin is behaving at any particular time, and there are several key behaviours commonly exhibited throughout the warmer months. If these apply to you, here is how you can transition your skin routine into summer.

Cleansers

An increase in sebaceous (oil) activity is common as the weather heats up. If you currently use a cream cleanser, for example, you may benefit from switching to a gel texture, such as our Balancing Cleansing Gel, which is more ideally suited to breaking through oil buildup and pore blockages. The presence of citrus, clover flower, and citric acid also exhibit strong antimicrobial properties, which is important to address when heat, sweat and moisture result in bacterial accumulation.

Consider the frequency of your cleansing as well. If you currently cleanse only at night, you may need to increase this to both morning and night, in the event that your skin is oily and/or sweaty upon waking in the morning.

Moisturisers

Additional oil and sweat may also trigger a need to change moisturisers. Lighter textures can provide better comfort on the skin, and reduce instances of stickiness or unpleasant caking sensations due to inhibited absorption.

For those in particularly hot climates, many light-textured moisturisers or gels contain Aloe Vera, which can provide a pleasant calming sensation and help to reduce inflammation. Antioxidants are especially important for those who experience redness or UV exposure, so you should opt for those when selecting your summer moisturiser of choice.

For added calming and antioxidant protection throughout the day, carry our Rose Blossom Hydrating Mist in your bag for a refreshing and skin-replenishing spritz when you need it.

Sunscreen

This one should go without saying at any time of year, but heading into summer is an opportune moment for a reminder to wear sunscreen, every day, both outdoors and inside.

We do not experience sunburn inside because glass blocks UVB radiation, and it is this wavelength responsible for surface burning. Glass does, however, let in UVA radiation, which penetrates through the surface of the skin without burning and is absorbed by the deeper tissue, where is causes ageing and genetic mutations leading to cancer formation.

Remember to apply a broad spectrum sunscreen daily, even when indoors.

Combatting Breakouts

Once again, the accumulation of sweat and oils can lead to additional skin issues, including breakouts. Bacteria becomes trapped within the pore, which becomes infecting, leading to what we know as a pimple, pustule, or papule. It can also become trapped within the hair follicles, leading to infection and swelling known as folliculitis. There are several steps you can take to combat this:

• The first is reducing heavier makeup, which more effectively traps microbes on the skin than lighter products.
• Second is ensuring you are regularly cleaning and disinfecting your skin tools, from rollers and Gua Shas to makeup brushes. Use the silly season and New Year’s motivation to do a deep clean of your beauty stash, and wash all brushes with warm soapy water.
• And third, utilise our Blemish Control spot treatment as needed. Updating your routine can absolutely make a large impact, but some additional breakouts can be unavoidable, and with a full social calendar, a targeted product to reduce the breakout severity can provide a major boost to your confidence.

Discarding Old Products

If you do engage in a New Year’s deep clean, take the time to consult any use-by dates on your skincare and cosmetics products. Look for the period-after-opening (PAO) symbol, which looks like an open tub. This will indicate how many months your product is recommended for use after opening. The difficulty of this is remembering when you opened that particular product! We recommend keeping a permanent marker in your cosmetics drawer or cupboard, so that you can mark down the date you first open it.

Products that are too far past their PAO dates can accumulate bacterial and fungal microbes which can then lead to skin infections. This is also an ideal time to review how and where you store your skincare products, which are typically all recommended to be kept before 25 degrees celsius.

If your products are kept in the sun or a particularly hot area, they will almost certainly expire prematurely. Keep them in the fridge or relocate them to a new, naturally-cooler location.

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There are no hard rules when it comes to skincare.

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You may find that your routine remains effective all-year round, or that just one or two of these summer skin changes apply to you. Our best advice is always to pay close attention to what your skin is saying to you, and if you adjust your skin routine to suit, your complexion will undoubtedly thank you for it.