- Ali
Have you always wanted a radiant summer complexion? Follow these top tips to ensure your skin is glowing all summer long.
Do you know the song – Wear Sunscreen by Baz Luhrmann. Ladies and gentlemen of the class of ’99 wear sunscreen. Well Baz had a point! He might think that only his comment on wearing sunscreen has any scientific insight behind it but he makes some great points and shares some amazing life lessons too. Have a listen, you’ll love it.
But what are my top tips for getting a glow on this summer?
REGULARLY APPLY A MINERAL SUNSCREEN
The biggest thing that ages us is the Sun. The second biggest thing that ages us is ‘Mineral Oil’. I avoid all products containing mineral oil for many reasons: it blocks your skin’s ability to breathe causing prickly heat; clogs pores; feels sticky and is a bi-product of the petro chemical industry. And now firefighters have realised it is highly flammable too! Yes you read that right, the expensive ‘mineral oil’ rich moisturiser you’ve just coated your entire body in is flammable! Now a mineral sunscreen is quite different from mineral oil. In fact it’s poles apart. Mineral sun screen is actually made with minerals – those precious inorganic crystals we mine from the ground. We all know that applying a high factor sunscreen is important but getting one which actually works and blocks both UVA (the rays which cause cancer) and UVB, (the rays which cause you to burn), is more difficult. That’s why I love these three amazing products – Mineral Sunscreen for body SPF 30, Mineral Sunscreen for face SPF 30 plus ABC Baby water resistant sunscreen SPF 30.
They block both UVA and UVB rays and are mineral based - there’s even a product for face. It’s the only sunscreen I’ve ever used on my face that doesn’t cause me to break out in spots 3 or 4 days later.
Remember, sunscreen is only effective if applied regularly and the first application should be half an hour before going in the sun and then at least once every hour you spend in direct sunlight. I also never go anywhere without a hat and sunglasses as protecting your eyes from the sun’s glare is equally important.
DOUBLE CLEANSE FOR GLOWING SKIN
Many of us are more prone to spots and blackheads during the summertime which may be a result of poor cleansing especially after wearing sunscreen. My skin has never looked more radiant than after I started double cleansing as a regular part of my routine in the evening. I first cleanse with a cream cleanser, here’s my favourite, then I use my RE9 ultra hydrating pearlescent wash on, wash off cleanser. Or you could cleanse with an exfoliating cleanser, here’s my favourite, then repeat your cleanse with a crème cleanser. Never double cleanse with an exfoliator as it will be too strong a treatment for most skin.
USE A HYDRATING TONER
I switched to a hydrating toner years ago and it made such a difference to my skin. Gone are the days when toners were all about stripping the oils off the surface of the skin. Now a days a good toner should be an humectant, meaning it draws other ingredient into the skin thus feeding and nourishing the skin at a deeper level. Here’s my go to product. I love to spritz this throughout the day so my skin stays super hydrated and it’s great at the beach. It’s perfect in the sun but great to ward off the drying effects of air conditioning too.
DONT SKIP THE SERUM STAGE
Adding a serum to your skincare regime will give your complexion the boost it needs. Apply it before your moisturiser, both morning and night and it will give your complexion a healthy glow. I love this Intensive Renewal Serum. It’s designed to reduce the appearance of fine lines and is packed with advanced peptides, antioxidants and essential botanicals.
BEWARE SUNBURN
If you can’t avoid spending a lot of time in the sun it’s essential to use a gentle product to heal your skin afterwards. I love the nourishing affects of Arbonne’s Intelligent Nourishing Facial Oil and layer this onto my skin before applying their Intelligence Rejuvenating cream.
These two product are so affective at healing that they have been known to reduce scarring in all areas of the body.
For a beautiful after sun body product I again opt for the Rescue and Renew range from Arbonne. The newly launched Detox Gelee couldn’t not have been launched at a more appropriate time as the UK temperatures soar and skin become easily dehydrated. I slather this product all over my body morning and night and love the cooling affect it generates. It’s great on tired, achy muscles too so is perfect after a strenuous workout or long walk.
USE A FACE MASK
If you can’t avoid spending a lot of time in the sun I’d suggest you use a face mask once or twice a week to heal your complexion from sun damage as well as deeply cleanse. An if you’re not using one of the mineral sunscreens I mention above but have a product whose key ingredient is mineral oil then a facemask is essential to removing sunscreen build up. Arbonne’s Rescue and Renew Detox Mask cleanses to draw out impurities from the skin’s surface like a magnet to reveal smaller looking pores. Packed with French Pink Clay, rosemary leaf oil and sea salt it dries to a pale hue and is hydrating as well as purifying.
FAKE YOUR TAN
If, like me, you never go brown despite your best efforts then take the ‘Fake’ approach. I avoid heavy chemical laden fake tans detesting the smell and the resulting stains on my linen bed sheets. Instead my ‘go to’ fake tan is this botanical tinted self tanner. Packed with apple extract, orange extract and green tea leaf extract is it super hydrating and conditioning
NOURISH AT NIGHT
I think Baz Luhrmann missed a trick by not mentioning the importance of night cream! During the daytime, your skin is busy trying to fight off the damaging effects of the environment, but at night it has time to rest and renew producing new skin cells and healing itself. Products are most readily absorbed at night, another good reason not to sleep in your makeup, meaning that a good night time routine and specially formulated cream can make a huge impact. This is so important year round but especially during the summer months when your skin is under extra stress from sun damage. If you do nothing else treat yourself to a decent night cream like RE9 Night Repair Cream. This ultra hydrating blend of botanicals, plus collagen, will deliver essential nourishment and maximise the skin’s natural reparative cycle. I use this nightly and help to massage it into my skin with the Genius Ultra Device. This revolutionary Ultrasound tool was designed to use alongside the Arbonne products to help to reveal more radiant, healthier looking skin. There's more on this amazing skincare tool which really will take your products to the next level on my blog.
What’s your summer skincare routine? If you’d like some advice on produces to use or improvements you could make please get in touch.
It’s my joy to help others get the glowing skin they’ve always wanted.
