Image courtesy Jimmy Hemelin and ATOU Lifestyle
While temperatures and leaves maybe falling rapidly at this time of year, don’t fall behind on taking care of your most precious asset, your skin! All that summertime fun in the sun and time lounging at the beach or pool has no doubt left your skin a little dry and damaged. Sunspots, visible signs of ageing such as wrinkles, fine lines and dull skin are all part of too much time spent outdoors in the warmer months. Luckily there are plenty of great products available that can help ease us all into this new cooler season. Below I've outlined my best tips and a few of my personal favorite products to help get you through:
EXFOLIATION: Right now it’s the perfect time to get rid of dry, dead skin cells. A full-body version such as the Jo Malone London Vitamin E Treatment Body Scrub is a great place to start. This luxurious treatment removes dull surface skin revealing your most radiant looking body beneath. Oil based body scrubs such as this one add moisture as they remove dry and dead skin and many can be used in the shower and then rinsed away leaving you with softer, smoother and silky skin after just one application.
SWITCH TO A HEAVIER CREAM: Fall is the time to switch from your moisturizing lotion to a cream or an oil moisturizer. Creams are generally heavier than lotions and lend more protection from the cooler and drier air of fall, but heavier doesn’t mean it will weigh you down either. A cream such as DIOR Hydralife Pro-Youth Sorbet Crème has a lightweight texture and ingredients to stimulate the skins most essential hydration channels. Oil moisturizers are absorbed much faster so if you are in a rush to get out the door in the morning then you won’t have to wait before applying makeup. Try OMOROVICZA Illuminating Moisturizer with Plum Almond Oil used daily on dry skin gives a boost of needed moisture and also provides a light-diffusing effect for added radiance.
SUN SMARTS: If you’re someone that enjoys the great outdoors then you have to keep up with your sunscreen. The UV index can still be high even in the cooler months and we tend to forget about daily sunscreen application. If you are prone to forgetting then it’s a good idea to stick to a moisturizer with built in sunscreen such as ORIGINS Mega-bright SPF 30 Skin Tone Correcting Oil-Free Moisturizer. With this clinically proven skin brightener developed by Dr Weil for Origins, you get the added effect of ingredients that work to correct facial discoloration.
STIMULATE: If you find that your skin is looking sallow at this time of year, it may be due to decreased circulation that can occur due to colder temperatures. Look to stimulate blood flow by massaging skin with an antioxidant toner or lotion like FRESH Crème Ancienne Infusion Toner.
HYDRATION: Cleansers that hydrate such as the GLAMGLOW Supermud Cleansing Treatment brighten and soften skin while working to draw out dirt and congestion from pores. Your skin will look cleaner, smoother and healthier. Who doesn’t want all three of those!
MASKS: Lately one of the trendiest things out of Hollywood has been the nutritional detox. If it’s good for your body, then why not try one for your face? Overnight or Detox Masks such as the CAUDALIE Instant Detox Mask can revitalize and invigorate tired and toxic skin as ingredients such as pink clay and coffee clarify then papaya enzymes boost radiance.
PROTECT: Finally let’s not forget about Lip protection and Hand cream, these are both invaluable through fall and winter. Basics are good in this department, just be sure to go free of parabens, sulfates and phthalates. Remember that to some extent you usually end up eating some of what you apply to your lips and sometimes hands. Try CONSONANT Organic Lip Conditioner and CONSONANT Organic Hand cream. Both affordable but still luxurious and two of the products you’ll use most this season!