A Spring Skincare Edit
With Spring in full swing and Summer under a month away, it's time to update our skincare routine, switching around the heavy creams that are more suited for Winter to light, juicy hydrators to give us healthy Summer skin.
Making sure you are using the right products for you and products that suit your skin type is the first step to finding a routine you love and tailoring your routine to each season, really helps to target any skin concerns or problems. When Spring and Summer come, I tend to stop using thick, heavy creams in the day and switch to much lighter formulations, similarly with my cleansers, I'll leave the heavy duty ones for tired, dull winter skin and bring back the oils, light balms and refreshing gels.
CLEANSERS
Effectively removing all of your makeup at the end of the day before you go to sleep is the most important step in your routine, making cleanser a pretty vital product so ensuring you are using an effective one, is vital. In S/S I still like to use something as effective as a thick cream would be in the winter but just on a lighter scale and lately, I've been using the Antipodes Juliet Cleanser* mornings and night to break down any makeup, remove impurities and to leave me with skin that feels fresh, clean and dirt free. As this is a gel consistency and Manuka Honey formula, it's ideal for stopping breakouts whilst also being incredibly brightening, helping to bring your complexion back to life. On evenings when my skin is feeling a little more clogged or dry, I'll go in with a big scoop of the Antipodes Grapeseed Butter Cleanser*; a thick, nourishing and heavenly scented balm that melts away makeup within seconds. I also love using the Eve Lom Cleansing Balm as a luxurious cleanse and Oskia Renaissance Gel for when I need to bring back some radiance!
MASKS + EXFOLIATORS
My favourite way to give my skin a pamper, treat and transformation is with face masks and I have so many favourites for Spring that help reveal radiance, clear up any blemishes, exfoliate and hydrate, all of which are perfect for Spring / Summer. Being a bit of a mask junkie, I'll start with a firm favourite from Kiehl's and this is their Cilantro & Orange Extract Pollutant Defending Masque, a nourishing formula that minimises the effects of pollution damage on the skin and a skin replenisher. I love using this in the evenings and overnight when my skin isn't feeling itself and a bit grim. To quickly inject some moisture into my skin, I'll go for my Antipodes Manuka Honey Mask*; hydrating, cleansing and delicious. Origins Original Skin Mask is great for when I need a deep clean to draw out impurities without drying or tightening my skin, the rose clay helps to hydrate whilst it works at cleaning those pores!
As we come into Summer, exfoliation is key to a natural glow and I love using either my Kiehl's Clearly Corrective Brightening Exfoliator which boosts my moisture and radiance levels whilst removing any dead skin cells or I'll use my Goldfaden MD Doctors Scrub*, a physical exfoliator that leaves the skin feeling soft and smooth and looking radiant. The tiny grains in each of these exfoliators are very effective and non irritating and the Goldfaden exfoliator contains Hyaluronic Acid to plump and seaweed to moisturise. Exfoliating masks are another way to remove dead skin cells and the LUSH Cup O Coffee Mask has been a great morning skin pick me up to really brighten my face.
TONERS
Post cleanse, I always go in with a cotton pad soaked in my favourite toner to make sure all traces of makeup have been removed and my skin is re balanced and clean, these don't tend to change from season to season but my current favourite for Spring is the Pixi Glow Tonic, a very new purchase but a product I am loving and seeing great results with. Packed full of skin boosting ingredients, this is a radiance booster in a bottle and gently exfoliates the skin to brighten and refine. If I've already exfoliated my skin, I'll use my Kiehl's Ultra Facial Toner which is ultra gentle and very soothing.
SERUMS + OILS
I always make sure I have a couple of oils and serums to pick between throughout Spring and Summer so I can tailor my choice depending on how my skin feels/look. Starting with the serums, this is where I like to add in an extra boost of hydration, fight any blemishes, tackle any damage on my face etc etc. For Spring, it's all about hydration and glow so I'm still using my Kiehl's Hydro Plumping Serum* which is like a jug of water for your skin, it's Glycerin based which works as a moisture magic and really penetrates into the skin to hydrate from within, giving you that lit from within glow. Another Spring skin serum is from Antipodes, one of my favourite skincare brands and this is there Hosanna H20 Serum* which helps to improve my skins texture and appearance. Clarins Double Serum and Clinique Smart Serum are my other two favourites for hydrated, radiant and healthy skin.
Moving into the oil territory, this is my favourite step in my morning and evening routine as it's where I can add more juice in. Rodial Snake Booster Oil* is my evening pick as it helps to really boost my hydration levels over night, giving me awake looking skin in the morning. For nourishment, I'll reach for my Jurlique Skin Balancing Face Oil* as a lighter alternative but equally as luxurious feeling and my Pai Rosehip Oil is the best multi tasking oil that is simply magic and beautiful skin in a bottle!
MOISTURISERS
One thing I look for in a moisturiser for Summer is one that contains an SPF as I find it's a good way to add in the protection without having to find a base product with one in. Recently, I've been using the Perricone MD Photo Plasma SPF 30 Day Cream* which is a light, pink cream that creates an invisible shield on the skin, protecting you from any nasties in the air and works on giving you radiant, hydrated skin that is prepped for any makeup going on top. My NUDE Radiant Day Moisturiser is my go to light weight, luxe moisturiser that gives me beautiful looking and feeling skin for the day whereas at night, I'll slather on a layer of the Rodial Bee Venom Night Gel* which is refreshing, plumping, hydrating and incredibly luxe. For SPF only, I love the Murad Invisiblur Protecting Shield SPF30* and Jurlique Sun Specialist SPF40 Protection Cream*.
EYE CREAMS
Using an eye cream has really turned around the way my eyes look and feel so picking out a good one for Summer is an important step of my routine and i've ben using two from Aurelia which come in an Eye Revitalising Duo* set for the past couple of months, one for the morning and one for the evening. In the evenings, my final step is eye cream and I pat on a tiny amount of the Aurelia Illuminate and Smooth Puff Reduction Eye Cream which is a nightly indulgence to the eye area, instantly soothing and helping to reduce those dark circles. In the mornings, I use the Revitalise and Brighten Eye Dew, a roller ball action applicator which is great for cooling and waking up your eyes bright and early. The refreshing formula reduces wrinkles, hydrates and brightens for sparkly awake eyes.
What products are in your Spring Skincare routine and how do you change your routines around?