Temps were in the 90s this past weekend which means I officially transitioned my wardrobe and skincare to summertime. Just like clothing, skincare routines should be tweaked and adjusted with the seasons! This is a relatively new concept for me – in the past I avoided changing my routine at all costs. Once I found something I liked (and didn’t break me out), I never wanted to try anything else! Acne fear is very real. Sadly, that fear probably ended up making my acne worse because even though I wasn’t changing my routine, my skin was changing and had different needs! Now that I’m listening to my body more and observing the shifts in my skin, I’ve gotten much better at tweaking how I respond to those changes with my skincare. I’ve written about my Winter Skin Secrets but haven’t even written up a post about how I change up my routine for warmer months so I figured I’d share my swaps before we get to deep into the season.
First things first – when thinking about making changes, first consider your skin and how it reacts to to weather and temperature changes. Generally, winter will call for more nourishment and heavier, more hydrating forumulas (think cream and oil based products) and summer will call for lighter, more breathable formulas (think gel based products, foams and spf always!). You want to treat, protect and exfoliate (more on that here) year round, but you may need to tweak how you go about doing each one, depending on your skin and local environmental stressors.
Before I dive in, let’s chat about my skin. I have combo skin that I’m constantly trying to balance. I’ve struggled with acne for most of my young and adult life, and my skin can be sensitive / reactive (on both my face and body). So, come summer, I sweat a lot and deal with oiliness, shine, redness, enlarged pores and breakouts. Obviously my routine will be reflective of my own challenges and goals, so keep that in mind.
CLEANSER: Swap Indie Lee Soothing Cleanser for Indie Lee Brightening Cleanser and Beautycounter CounterControl Clear Pore Cleanser
In the winter and spring, I deal with dryness. Come summer and early fall, I am less dry and more oily, so I swapped my nourishing cleanser (great for sensitive skin) for one with a brightening boost! TBH the Indie Lee Brightnening Cleanser is new to me – I typically use and love her Purifying Cleanser – but the Brightening forumula is the OG Indie cleanser and has a cult following. It hydrates, brightens and tightens and has acne clearing benefits in addition to being sensitive safe. Obviously I had to see what the fuss was about! I still use the Clear Pore Cleanser mornings after I use the peel (more on that here) or on nights when I’m really sweaty.
TONER: Swap Beautycounter Countertime Essence for Farmacy Deep Sweep Pore Cleaning Toner
Okay, to be clear – an essence and a toner are similar…but different. An essence is like a toner, but a bit heavier and, more nourishing and has more active ingredients! You can actually use both (toner first, essence second), which I tend to do at night. In the mornings I shifted to a lighter exfoliating toner option. This Farmacy toner is clean and alcohol-free, but the 2% BHA means it gently exfoliates, cleans pores and controls oil without over-stripping skin. Elsa introduced me to this toner when she came to visit, and I’ve been hooked ever since!
TREATMENT: Add Beautycounter CounterControl All Over Acne Treatment for body
Okay, I still use my Countermatch Intense Moisture Serum and Counter+ All Bright C Serum in the mornings (the C serum omg) and Countertime Tripeptide Radiance Serum or Counter+ Overnight Resurfacing Peel at night. What I’ve changed is that I add the all over acne treatment on my upper back, shoulders and chest. One pump really goes a long way and is really helpful in preventing pesky body breakouts! The charcoal bar in the shower helps, too.
DAYTIME MOISTURE: Swap Beautycounter Countermatch Adaptive Moisture Lotion for Beautycounter CounterControl Matte Effect Gel Cream
I LOVE the Countermatch line and am not afraid of oil (read: most of my products are not oil free), but come summer I really apprecaite a mattifying moisurizer. And I’ve tried a lot of them. Hands down my favorite is the Beautycounter Matte Effect Gel Cream. It is so smoothe, so soft and so refreshing. Sometimes I even use it as a makeup primer. I love the scent, which comes from the signature SkinBalance Complex, with wintergreen and rosebay willow. Generally it helps mattify skin, purify pores and reduces the appearance of redness while keeping skin in balance. Also, it’s not sticky or greasy and really has staying power. Personally I find that it helps combat excess shine and improves my skin’s texture without clogging my pores.
DAYTIME SPF: Add Biossance Squalane + Zinc Sunscreen
I am the clown that is guilty of not wearing SPF all the time. I KNOW. It’s horrible. But 99% of sunscreens clog my pores and make me feel congested, so I typically opt out. Not this one! Biossance launched their sunscreen last year and I love that it’s a mineral formula with their signature squalane (the only one I use). Why does that help? Well, instead of a dry white cast, this forumula rubs right in and feels lovely on the skin! I love it and always keep it in my purse.
NIGHTTIME MOISTURE: Swap Beautycounter Countermatch Recovery Sleeping Cream for Youth to The People Superberry Hydrate and Glow Dream Mask
The Countermatch Sleep Cream is such a delight – it’s effective without feeling heavy or greasy and was a total gamechanger in the winter. It’s light enough to use in the summer – for sure – but I’m a sucker for bright and glowing skin in the summer and wanted a bit of a nighttime boost. The YTP formula fit the bill! I actually got a sample in the wintertime and loved it so much I ordered the full size. A little goes a longgg way and I’m guessing the large version will last me at least 6-8 months. This isn’t a mask in the traditional sense, it’s a cream that you put on and keep on overnight. It contains anti-oxidant rich superberries, squalane (my fave hydrator) and hyaluronic acid (the queen of hydration) but also vitamic C to plump and brighten. It helps with dullness, texture, fine lines and wrinkles too!
NIGHTTIME OIL: Add Biossance Squalane + Tea Tree Balancing Oil
I still live for Biossance Squalane (and use it after my night cream on most nights) but after days where I’m feeling particularly congested I end my routine with a boost of their Balancing Tea Tree Oil to help with breakouts and clogged pores. It’s far more effective than straight tea tree oil, IMO. Fun fact – this oil is enriched with tea tree that originates from northern Australia, and is grown with the highest-quality eco-friendly, ISO-certified farming practices. So you can feel good using it in more ways than one!
SHOP THE POST
1 Comments
Comments are closed.