Summer! it’s the time when we can indulge ourselves with all the delicious tropical fruits, wear beautiful and colorful dresses, and have a fun picnic. But what about when you go out on a summer day, and the scorching sun hits your face?

The heat of the summer causes severe skin problems; tanning, burning, and pigmentation of skin occur the most. Your skin gets oilier and much more prone to pimples in summer. Skin becomes dry, rough, and dull. Our body starts to sweat excessively; it gets worse when dust from the environment clogs the skin pores.

Excessive exposure to sunlight which contains UV rays will cause mayhem on your skin like dryness, dark spots, age spots, unwanted tan, etc. UV rays are also the culprit of causing wrinkles, and cataracts. UVA raises the chance of skin cancer like melanoma. Thus, we must take special care of our skin, in particular at the summertime.

According to the season, it is necessary for you to change your skin care regimen. You can not expect winter skin care products would work in the summertime. The humidity, exposure to sunlight, the temperature all affects your skin, so you need to design a skincare routine specifically for the summertime.

Here are some tips for your skin care regimen fitting for the summer season

1. Drink plenty of water- Summer heat sucks the moisture from your body. You need to stay hydrated by drinking 8-10 glasses of water throughout the day. If your body is hydrated, your skin will be moisturized as well. Moreover, water will flush out the toxin from your body.

2. Use Enough Sunscreen- You just can not go outside without wearing sunscreen. This product is a must regardless of the season and the Summer season primarily requires it. You need to look for ones that have protection against both UVA and UVB.  Apply sunscreen at least 30 minutes before you go out. Keep a bottle of it in your purse: reapply after every two hours.

3. Use light moisturizer- Your skin should be moisturized, but you don’t want to wear thick or oily moisturizer. Opt for light and water-based moisturizer. Dry skin may need heavy moisturizer, instead of that use a few drops of rosehip oil/ almond oil/ hydrating serum with your light moisturizer.

4. Use Toner- Toner balances the pH level and removes residual dirt, oil, and makeup. Pores tend to get enlarged in the summer; using toner can keep your pores closed. Toner also calms and refreshes your skin.

5. Spray Facial Mist- Facial Mist is great for keeping your face cool, hydrated and dewy in the summer<br>6. Exfoliate often- To make your skin look fresh you need to remove all the dead skins piled up on your face. Proper exfoliation will make sure you don’t have any dead skin.It also improves blood circulation of your skin.  But you don’t want to overdo it. Depending on your skin type, exfoliate 2/3 times a week.

7. Use chemical peels- Salicylic acid-containing peel is the best to remove dead skin cells. This chemical peel tightens the pores, removes excess oil from the pores, slows the oil production and also kills any bacteria inside the pores.

8. Use Hand and Foot Cream- Don’t forget your neck, chest, hand, and feet. Exfoliate them properly. Apply both sunscreen and body moisturizer. Use a good hand and foot cream.

9. Use Powder- Sprinkle powder on the joints like the underarm, inner thighs, joint between arm and hand, etc. It will somewhat reduce sweating, rashes, itching and the growth of bacteria

10. Avoid the sun– Stay out of the sun from 10 am to 3 pm as this is the hottest time of a summer day. Try not to stay outside during this time period. The longer you stay outside, the longer you are exposed to damaging UV rays.

11. Use a lip balm with SPF– Your lips need care too. Protect your lip with SPF-containing lip balm and reapply every two hours. Try lipstick with SPF.<br>12. Use eye cream- The night regime should contain eye cream. Sun exposure causes eye wrinkles, so to prevent getting wrinkles apply eye cream before going to bed.

Now let’s see what you need to do in the morning and night –

Morning Skin Care Regimen

1. Exfoliating – For everyday use, opt for a mild exfoliating product. Exfoliate in a gentle circular motion and wash thoroughly with lukewarm water.

2. Cleansing- cleanse your face with mild cleanser; massage for a minute to promote blood circulation and then wash off with lukewarm water.

3. Skin Toning- close the pores and tighten the skin with toner

4. Moisturizing – apply light face moisturizer with SPF. Choose the texture of moisturizer according to your skin type. Like, dry skin should use rich moisturizer,

5. Sunscreen – Apply a generous amount of waterproof sunscreen which has SPF of at least 30.

Night Skin Care Regimen

1. Makeup Removing – It does not matter if you just wear sunblock or only tinted foundation; you need to remove every trace of the product before going to bed. Use cleansing milk or makeup remover to wipe off makeup.  

2. Cleansing- Clean your face with foam cleanser: massage at least for 2 minutes. Wash off with lukewarm water and then pat dry with your hand.

3. Toning- Make sure to use toner; it will remove any leftover traces of makeup.

4. Facial Mask – Use a facial mask that has calming and skin-replenishing property. You can buy it from beauty store or apply a homemade one.

5. Moisturizing- For the nighttime, use a nourishing nighttime moisturizer that has collagen, retinol or AHA. Or use a moisturizer that offers extra moisturizing like the ones with seaweed, snail cream.

Homemade Skin Care Products

For me, homemade masks, exfoliators, and cleansers are the best. It is very easy to make them because you already have most of the ingredients in your kitchen cabinet.

Three simple homemade cleaners: 

• Mix 1 teaspoon of Gram Flour with a little amount of water to make a creamy consistency. Apply on your face and keep it for two minutes. Wash it off with lukewarm water.
• Dip a cotton ball in milk and gently wipe your face.
• Take a tablespoon of plain yogurt and mix with two teaspoons of honey, apply this on the skin and wait for at least 5 minutes and then wash off.

Two simple homemade exfoliators:

• Take 3-4 tablespoons of rice powder (grounded rice grains), add milk or yogurt until the mixture turns into a paste. Massage in on your face gently for 2-3 minutes. Wash off with lukewarm water.
• Make a mixture of oatmeal, gram flour, and milk. Exfoliate with it for 2- minutes

Homemade Face Packs:

•  Face pack for glowing skin- Take three tablespoons of mashed papaya with 1-2 tablespoons of honey; mix them well. Spread the mixture on your face and leave it for at least 30 minutes. Wash off with lukewarm water.

Calming Face Pack-

• Take half a cucumber and blend it. Add 1 tbsp of yogurt with the blended cucumber. Apply it on the face and wait for 15 minutes.

 Face pack to treat suntan/burn-

• Juice half a lemon, dip a cotton ball in lemon juice and apply it on the sun burnt/tanned area.
• Make a juice of a tomato and add 1 cup of yogurt; spread the mixture over your face and neck.
• Blend gram flour, yogurt and juice of half a lemon; apply the mixture on affected areas
• Mix juice of potato and honey and use a cotton ball to apply it on the burnt areas.
• Make a mixture of honey and lemon juice in equal quantities, using a cotton ball apply it on the face.
•  

Healing Face Pack –

• Use aloe gel on your face, neck, and areas that are exposed to the sun.
• After applying the face pack wait for 30-45 minutes and then wash off with lukewarm water.

Extra tips advisable for summer season-

1. Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits.
2. Cut down excessive salt and sugar intake
3. Have lots of fish that are rich in omega -3fatty acids like salmon, mackerel, sardines, and tuna.
4. Take sugar-free yogurt
5. Add nuts and fish in your diet.
6. Eat fruits that have high water content such as cucumber, watermelon, grapes, and apples.
7. Reduce the intake of aerated drinks, alcohol, and coffee.
8. Eat foods that are rich in Vitamins like broccoli, spinach, carrots etc.
9. Drink coconut water to cool the body temperature.
10. Drink Green tea; it contains a high amount of antioxidants.
11. Use rose water as a toner.
12. If you have oily skin, look for “Oil-free” sunscreen.
13. Use skincare products that contain antioxidants.
14. Look for a moisturizer with natural oil, like rosehip, rosemary or almond.
15. Work out for at least 30 minutes

Hope the tips help you to have a great summer. Let your skin shine in this shiny summer, beauties.

With Love Tentgirl