Summer Heat or Winter Chill? How to tailor your skincare routine to the different seasons.

The weather can wreak havoc on your skin and different times of year present different issues. So, it follows that you should use different skincare products depending on the time of year to make sure that you are correctly dealing with the environmental factors being thrown at your skin at that specific time. 

SUMMER 

The issues:

• Acne breakouts & excess oil.
• Humidity.
• Excess Sweat.
• Heat.
• Sunburn & pigmentation.

Products to use:

First & foremost is Sunscreen!

Whilst you should be wearing sunscreen all year around, it is crazy important to lather up during the hotter months. A good broad-spectrum (min 30+spf) sunscreen worn every day goes a long way to preventing sun damage through sunburn or even just everyday exposure.

If you’re finding that your sunscreen is causing you to breakout (a common issue), try opting for a natural, zinc-based sunscreen or just checking what ingredients your sunscreen uses. Some of the ingredients found in many commercial sunscreens are not tolerated well by some skin types.

Lighter weight moisturisers.

 You don’t wear your big woolly sweater in Summer, so why would you layer up your skin? Instead, choose a light-weight moisturiser (like our Light Balancing Crème) or just using a serum (like our Moisture Boost Serum) so that you are still giving your skin the hydration it needs, but allowing it to breathe / not overloading it. 

For Cactus Products this might mean that if you’re using…

• The Intense Hydrating Crème - you step down to the Nature’s Antioxidant.
• The Nature’s Antioxidant – you step down to the Light Balancing.
• The Light Balancing – you might want to use just the Moisture Boost Serum on its own in the morning & the Light Balancing at night.

The key is to experiment / mix & match until you find your Summer skin balance. You might even find that you are fine to stick with your usual routine. Everyone’s skin is different, so it is just a matter of finding what works for you.

Added to this, is removing any products from your regimen that are comedogenic (pore blocking). Instead, make sure that any moisturisers and even make-up is non-comedogenic such as lightweight mineral powder foundations instead of heavy, full-coverage products or oil-free primers etc.

Increase your exfoliation & masking.

If you’re finding a lot of excess oil, sweat and redness, try stepping up your weekly exfoliation & mask regimen to twice a week to help open blocked pores, increase cell turnover and remove those excess oils that could result in acne. Our Prep Pack is the perfect way to help regulate your oils and an added bonus is that the White Clay Mask can also be very helpful to soothing hot, sunburnt and stressed-out skin.

WINTER 

The issues:

• Cold, dry air & wind.
• Dry patches, chapped skin.
• Exposure to indoor heaters.

Products to use:

Sunscreen!

 The sun still exists in Winter, so it still needs to be on your skin! 

Heavier moisturisers, serums & oil masks.

The same applies as your Summer routine but in the opposite, step UP your hydration routine to match the drier, less humid air and cold winds.

If you’re suffering from dry skin, patchy dry skin or itchy skin, you cannot overlook a good, seriously hydrating cream moisturiser (like our Intense Hydrating Crème). For an extra boost during the day, layer your moisturiser with a serum first (Moisture Boost Serum) and then at night, look to give your skin a deep treatment with a non-comedogenic facial oil (Daily Rejuve Facial Oil).

Using a treatment for your skin overnight is really important. A lot of the repair your skin undergoes takes place at night and it is a lot easier to wake up with hydrated skin, then try to remediate it during the day. This includes remembering to use a good eye cream (like our Intense Eye Crème). The skin around your eyes is thinner, more sensitive and dries out faster than the rest of your face. Using an eye cream during Winter is an absolute must.

Drink plenty of water.

It is easy to remember to drink water in Summer because when we are hot, we actively feel like we need it. It easier to forget however during the cooler months.

Our skin is often a reflection of what is going on within our bodies, so make sure that you are drinking plenty of water during the day – particularly first thing in the morning. Our body can lose up to a litre of water overnight so load up on water as soon as you wake up and then keep topping up throughout the day.

Look at your home.

I don’t enjoy being cold inside my house, so I am definitely guilty of running the heater at warmer than in probably should be. As a general rule of thumb, the drier the air (and indoor heaters cause dry air), the drier your skin will be. If you are like me and want to keep the heater running, try placing a cool air humidifier in the room to increase the moisture levels in the room and where possible, run your heater at a low to moderate temperature rather than blazing hot.