Summertime Skin Tips

Are you a sweater? I am.  I perspire quite profusely, especially in the summertime.  But at the same time, I have very dry skin – so during the summer season my skin takes on a different life – you would think summer season would balance out my skin, but it doesn’t.  My skin, like many of you, is extremely oily coupled with perspiration.

Do you tan or burn?  Either way, you need a skin care regiment that is tailored to meeting your skin’s UV needs.  Here are a few tips and tricks I use for protecting my skin, enhancing my natural beauty, keeping sweat and oil down to a minimum and to prevent my makeup from melting.

1. Increase your SPF protection.

No matter your skin type, we all pretty much moisturize our skin daily, especially if you plan on wearing makeup.  Many foundation products already come with SPF protection in it.  Either way, increasing your SPF protection can increase your skin protection.  Here is where the problem lies: sunblock has a greasy film and can be very thick.  Here are a couple of ways to add SPF to your moisturizer or to thin out the sunblock.

SPF and Moisturizer

On my clients I use Sephora Instant Moisturizer.  It has no SPF in it what so ever. It’s a great moisturizer for underneath makeup and it makes your skin feel absolutely soft and silky.  To make your moisturizer SPF ready add your sunblock to the moisturizer. The proportion is what will control the consistency of the combination.  Use a dime size portion of the sunblock and a quarter size portion of the moisturizer.  Mix with your finger and apply to the skin.  You will get an extremely creamy and medium consistency moisturizer packed with SPF power. This combo will also allow your skin to breathe, leaves a nice sheen to the face and is best for dry skin.

De-Greasing Sunblock

“De-greasing,” sounds rather dirty, but it’s not as bad as it sounds! Sun block is a very creamy and “white” substance that requires a lot of massaging into the skin.  When you add SPF to moisturizer it gives the moisturizer an extra boost; the smaller amount of sunblock cuts down on the greasy feel, but not completely. “De-greasing” here, means to add Aloe Vera gel to your sunblock. Add a palm size amount of Aloe Vera gel to a dime size portion of sunblock (maybe a nickel, depending on where you are using the combo). This will decrease message time and take the greasy feel away from the sunblock.  At first, it will leave a nice sheen to the face that will eventually fade. But trust, your face will not feel greasy, will have SPF power and moisture! This is ideal for oily skin.

SPF and Mattifying Creams

Since I have combo skin and it tends to be more on the drier side, I have never needed or used a mattifying cream.  But I googled it for my oily skinned sistas.  So there are several brands of spf mattifying creams:

1.     Day Cream Mattifying Hydrator SPF 25 (1.7fl oz.) by Chella Skin Care

2.     PAULA'S CHOICE ~ Skin Balancing Daily Mattifying Lotion SPF 15 Normal Oily 2 oz.

3.     Seaweed Mattifying Moisture Lotion SPF 15

4.     DDF Mattifying Oil Control UV Moisturizer SPF 15

5.     Vichy Normaderm Pro Mat Ultra-Mattifying Oil-Free Lotion SPF15

2. Try not to wear as much makeup.

Less is definitely more during the summer season.  For some reason, the naturally tanned, glowy skin look has always been a classic and timeless summer style.  So does this mean no make up at all? Absolutely not! But for some – maybe.  The true summer makeup staple is the lip color, eyeliner, mascara and blush.  If you absolutely need some face coverage, I suggest powdered foundation, with a really good moisturizing regimen.  I will talk more about powdered foundation for tip #3.  Also, a good concealer for face coverage is cool. A good way to manipulate the concealer for summer weather is to add a moisturizer to it and or blend it out with a wet/ damp beauty blending sponge tool.  You do not want a look that will “melt” so waterproof products will also help in maintaining the longevity of your makeup. 

3. Use powdered foundation.

Powder absorbs moisture- period.  If you need a full face this summer, stick with a powder.  If your PF doesn’t have SPF already in it, use a SPF moisturizer.  If the PF does have SPF, it might not be necessary to wear a SPF moisturizer.  Plus SPF products reflect light for flash photography so choose your power wisely depending on your even… or tell the photographer to turn the flash off!!!  Pat the powder into the skin, then buff it out with a kabuki or flat top brush with natural hairs. 

4. Rehydrate skin at night with Aloe Vera gel.

This tip is more geared to those who burn easily.  Add Aloe Vera gel to your nighttime cream and massage into the skin.  This will cool the skin and soothe the burn.  Even if you don’t burn, Aloe Vera will calm the skin and return it to a relaxed state after being exposed to the UV rays.

I hope these tips help and please let me know how they work for you!!! Have a wonderful summer and keep your skin safe and nourished!!!