Designing your perfect summer skin care lineup, with help from a few springtime faves
Posted on June 4, 2020 Written by: 100% PURE ®
Still using your spring beauty products? Spring essentials like hair serum, brightening creams, matte powders, and acid exfoliators are awesome for reviving winter skin. But as summer creeps closer, it’s time for a second spring cleaning of your skin care routine!
Fortunately, many spring beauty products transition smoothly to summer skin. Warm weather beauty just means you use your products differently – especially when faced with higher levels of heat and moisture. Wondering which spring products make the cut for summer skin? We’ll break it down for you below!
While we’re more focused on transitioning our wardrobe and makeup between seasons, it’s time we put more thought into the changing of seasons for our skin. You’ve got your bike shorts and bronzer on deck – now how can you support your skin?
The general pattern during summer is that our oil and sweat glands are more active. This means more sweat and oil can mingle with dead skin cells, leading to more breakouts. You might develop more breakouts on your face, chest, and back.
If you get more sun during this time, freckles can begin to darken or develop where you get the most sun exposure. A lightweight sunscreen can help inhibit UV rays from causing DNA damage, which can darken your freckles and cause fine lines.
Dehydration is another common issue your skin can face in summer. Heat can draw moisture from your skin, and so can air conditioning. Hydration – both dietary and topical – is even more important in hotter months.
For a fresh and smooth canvas to apply makeup, you’ll need a routine that suits your summer skin needs. Considering the most common summer skin issues, let’s detail how your techniques and products might change from spring to summer!
Antioxidant Serums
Double down on antioxidants in your diet and skin care routine. They’re going to help your body neutralize free radical damage, both inside and out – this means brighter, more youthful skin. Our Multi-Vitamin + Antioxidants Potent PM Serum contains vitamin C, niacinamide, vitamin E, and retinol: four antioxidants essential to protecting and promoting both collagen and elastin.
Brightening Serums
Serums with rice water or licorice root extract are likely part of your spring skin routine, because of their ability to enliven dull post-winter skin. Vitamin C and vitamin E can also work in tandem to fight against hyperpigmentation and make summer skin glow. Use a brightening serum nightly to counteract sun spots collected during park picnics or days at the beach.
Retinol
While retinol is an anti-aging superstar, it can leave your skin a little more dry and sensitive in winter. Summer is an ideal time to try retinol with a lower chance of sensitivity – as long as you’re using the necessary precautions for using vitamin A. Use retinol at night, and make sure to follow up with a broad spectrum SPF 30 or higher the following morning.
Exfoliation
Your pores might be clogged more often in summer, because humidity can lead to more sweating. You might also be using more powder to compensate for increased oil production, and spending more time outside with environmental debris. The combination of sweat, oil, and makeup can definitely lead to congestion if you don’t cleanse well. Exfoliating cleansers and facial scrubs help clear out the gunk in your pores and prevent dead skin cells from building up.
Cleanser
At the end of a long summer day, your skin can feel grainy and sticky. The buildup of sweat and oil throughout the day means that cleansing is more important than ever in summer. Choose a cleanser that suits your needs, but make sure it’s hydrating. A harsh cleanser might feel more powerful, but stripping summer skin of lipids is only going to end in a flash of dryness – followed by a bad breakout.
Oils
The general rule is to use less oil in summer than you would in spring (during the day at least). Oil production tends to ramp up during the summer months, so your main job will be a balancing act.
You can still use oils to help moisturize your skin, but opt to use a smaller amount of a dry oil. This will ensure you aren’t left overly greasy or shiny, and will help you conserve products for fall and winter! Using an oil-based cleanser is a great way to get a quick dose of moisture, without the commitment of leaving it on your skin.
Sunscreen
Naturally, SPF is the most important step of your summer routine! It’s the key to preventing premature aging and hyperpigmentation, especially later in life. You might be getting hit with more direct summer sunlight, depending on where you live. Mountainous areas, for example, are more vulnerable to UV exposure because of the altitude.
Those living in humid summer climates will want a lightweight sunscreen like our mattifying Yerba Mate Mist SPF 30. Those living in dry heat – more arid areas – can benefit from a hydrating sunscreen, like our Green Tea SPF 30.
Now that skin is taken care of, what about your makeup? Here’s how to enhance your stunning summer skin with just a few key products!
Blush
Rosy cheeks always make up a put together look in the summertime. Choose a warm and beachy red, orange, or coral. Looking to add more shimmer to your summer skin? Try an icy pink in mauve or rose.
Bronzer
Summer is definitely the time for a dewy, sunkissed look! If you’re looking for a simple nude look to warm up your skin, add a bronzer instead of your typical blush. Brush on bronzer anywhere you want to warm or contour your face: think forehead, temples, cheeks, and nose.
PRO TIP: Our bronzer contouring guide will tell you everything you need to know!
Matte Powders
Matte setting powders can become even more essential in the summer. You might have to use them more often throughout the day, especially if your skin gets shiny as the day wears on.
If you normally don’t use matte powders, you might find you need one for your summer skin. With all the heat and humidity in the air, you don’t want to look like a hot mess! Find a powder that absorbs oil well, and won’t cake as the day wears on.
Setting Spray or Primer
Oily skin can mean major slippage: but not if you use a setting spray or makeup primer. Your skin care will help you get to the root of the problem (oil production), but properly prepping and setting your makeup is what will carry you through a day of record-breaking heat.
More Summer Skin Makeup Tips:
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Spritz your face with rose water throughout the day to cool down, control redness, and balance skin pH.
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Apply SPF every day, and reapply every two hours during prolonged sun exposure. You’ll also need to reapply after towel drying, sweating heavily, or swimming. This is especially important the morning after using vitamin C or retinol: these ingredients can make your skin more sensitive to the sun.
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Worried about extra oily skin, but still want to wear foundation? Start with a mattifying primer, then add a layer of Bamboo Blur Foundation with a makeup blender. Finish with Bamboo Blur Powder on areas of high shine.
Luminous, dewy summer skin doesn’t need to be hard to achieve. Nor do you have to completely overhaul all your spring products – just be strategic in how you use them!
We carefully hand-select products based on strict purity standards, and only recommend products we feel meet this criteria. 100% PURE™ may earn a small commission for products purchased through affiliate links.
The information in this article is for educational use, and not intended to substitute professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment and should not be used as such.
