23 Summer Skincare Essentials For Healthy Glowing Skin
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Ah — summertime. It’s the few months everyone waits for all year, and after a long winter, you and your skin are probably ready for a change. But summer brings its own slew of skincare challenges with it: How often do I need to reapply sunscreen? Do I really need moisturizer if my face is already oily? And why am I breaking out worse than I did in the winter?
Summer Morning Skincare Routine
Creating a perfect summer skincare regimen isn’t complicated, but there are a few crucial steps you don’t want to miss. Get that glowing summer skin you dream of with these summer skincare products:
Cleanser
Washing your face in the morning isn’t just an effective way to wake yourself up, it’s also a crucial step in your skincare routine. Cleansing your face first thing in the morning removes the dust particles, allergens, and dead skin cells that gather on your pillow and transfer to your skin while you sleep. It also eliminates oils and sweat that accumulate on your face at night, especially in the summertime when it’s warm. Not to mention, it provides a clean slate for the rest of your skincare products and treatments so that they can be as effective as possible.
Our FavoritES:
Image: Ulta
Hydrating Gentle Face Cleanser
La Roche-Posay
This hydrating cleanser gently removes impurities without stripping the skin and is free of oils, sulfates, and parabens that could cause irritation.
Image: Amazon
Acne Deep Pore Cleansing Wash
Derma-E
This daily cleanser helps to exfoliate skin and unclog pores, removing build-up that causes breakouts. Here’s to clear skin!
Image: Amazon
Kale + Green Tea Superfood Cleanser
Youth To The People
With a blend of cold-pressed antioxidants, this sulfate-free cleanser thoroughly cleans skin and minimizes pores.
Vitamin C Serum
Vitamin C has been growing in popularity over the past few years and for a good reason. Your skin faces a lot of things that can increase signs of aging and fine lines, such as air pollution, sun damage, and of course, genetics.
Vitamin C is an effective antioxidant that can help combat these effects; it is especially important in the summertime when your skin is enduring more harmful UV rays than normal. And if you’re prone to pigmentation, you probably find that it flares up in the summer. Vitamin C can help you.
Vitamin C reduces the oxidation of existing pigment, preventing it from getting darker. In other words, it prevents dark spots from forming and also fixes them after they’ve already formed. It also has anti-inflammatory properties (perfect for people struggling with acne or rosacea), helping you achieve that gorgeous, even-toned complexion you desire.
Vitamin C is a tricky ingredient: if it is exposed to oxygen for too long, it turns yellowish-brown and ineffective. Finding a great vitamin C with packaging that protects it from oxidation is crucial.
Our FavoritES:
Image: Sephora
C15 Super Boost
Paula’s Choice
Paula’s Choice C15 Super Boost offers a super light, liquid formula that absorbs quickly into your skin — perfect for the summertime when you don’t want to layer on the heavy lotions. It’s carefully packaged to avoid oxidation and dramatically brightens uneven skin tones.
Image: Sephora
Barrier Booster Orange Ferment Essence
OLEHENRIKSEN
A great vitamin C for oily or combination skin, this serum helps defend against environmental pollution and free radicals and is the perfect first step before the rest of your skincare.
Image: Dermstore
C E Ferulic
SkinCeuticals
A fan favorite, Skinceuticals’ CE Ferulic is a powerful vitamin C serum that noticeably reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Its paraben-free formula absorbs into skin to remain effective for 72 hours and is ideal for all skin types (even sensitive skin!).
Moisturizer
But it’s 80 degrees out, and my face is already oily — do I still need to moisturize? The short answer: yes. Moisturizer is key for locking the good ingredients from your skincare routine into your skin and keeping it happy. Even if your skin already feels oily, the extra layer of sweat is not a moisturizer.
However, summer is all about keeping things light and breezy, and your skin doesn’t need the same thick, heavy moisturizers it may have needed in the winter months.
Our FavoritES:
Image: Sephora
Clinique Dramatically Different Hydrating Jelly
Clinique
Acne-prevention and moisturizer all in one? Count us in. Clinique Dramatically Different Hydrating Jelly contains salicylic acid and glucosamine to help slough off dulling surface skin cells for healthy skin cell renewal. And, the lightweight, oil-free formula keeps your skin feeling hydrated, without feeling oily.
Image: Amazon
Beija Flor™ Elasti-Cream
sol De Janiero
A great moisturizer isn’t just for your face. This body cream is a collagen-boosting powerhouse that provides deep hydration to your skin to visibly plump and replenish even the driest of skin.
Image: Sephora
Ultra Repair® Cream Intense Hydration
First Aid Beauty
A combination of colloidal oatmeal and shea butter creates an ultra-rich (yet fast-absorbing) moisturizer that provides deep hydration to skin, especially for those suffering from eczema and other skin conditions.
Sunscreen
Repeat after me: if you don’t use sunscreen, your 10-step skincare routine doesn’t matter. SPF is hands-down the most important part of skincare and should be worn year-round, but especially in the summer.
Although you may love laying in the sun for hours on end, your skin feels differently. UV rays can cause both short and long-term damages to the skin, including dryness, sunburn, and long-term changes in the skin’s collagen. Changes in collagen can lead to premature aging and wrinkles. Not to mention, repeated sunburns or sun exposure can increase your risk of malignant melanoma or other forms of skin cancer.
Applying an SPF of 30 or higher to your hands and neck every day can help protect your skin from these harmful UV rays.
Our FavoritES:
Image: Sephora
Unseen Sunscreen
Supergoop
If you hate the thick, impossible-to-rub-in nature of sunscreen, this one is for you. Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen is invisible, weightless, and scentless, with a natural finish. It even acts as a primer, with makeup-gripping properties that make it the perfect base for your foundation!
Image: Amazon
Daily UV Defense Sunscreen
innisfree
This water-based sunscreen combines green tea and sunflower oil to provide all day sun protection, with no white cast.
Image: Sephora
Max Vitamin D-Fense™ Sunscreen SPF 50
Peter Thomas Roth
Not only is this a powerful sunscreen, but it contains CoQ10, vitamin B5, vitamin E, and VitaGlow-D for healthy, hydrated skin that glows.
Summer Evening Skincare Routine
Cleansing Balm
After a day of sweat, dirt, and sunscreen, your skin needs a little extra cleansing action. Before going in with your regular cleanser, a cleansing balm helps break down any makeup, sunscreen, or extra oils that are on your face.
Our FavoritES:
Image: Sephora
Oat Cleansing Balm
The Inkey List
Effective and affordable — that’s what we like to see! This luxurious cleansing balm is formulated with colloidal oats and ceramides to help cleanse and nourish the skin. Its gentle formula cleanses without stripping the skin of its natural barrier and is perfect for sensitive skin types.
Image: Sephora
Papaya Sorbet Smoothing Enzyme Cleansing Balm
Glow Recipe
Papaya, blueberry, and apricot make up this powerful makeup remover that is ideal for sensitive skin. If you’re looking for a cleanser to remove even the most stubborn longwear makeup, this is it!
Image: Sephora
Green Clean Makeup Meltaway Balm
Farmacy
A cult-favorite, this balm melts away impurities, excess oil, makeup, and even sunscreen! It also has a gentle exfoliant to leave skin feeling smooth and extra-clean.
Cleanser
Once you’ve completed your oil cleanse, you can then go in with the same cleanser you used in the AM to get rid of any other dirt or pollution that has settled deep into your pores throughout the day.
A foaming facial cleanser is ideal for removing excess dirt and oil on your skin, and it’s also important to find one that doesn’t disrupt your skin’s natural moisture barrier.
Our FavoritES:
Image: Amazon
Foaming Facial Cleanser
Cerave
This facewash features ceramides, hyaluronic acid, and niacinamide to help brighten and hydrate the skin, and is suitable for normal to oily skin types.
Image: Amazon
Flora-Collagen Gentle Jelly Cleanser
Derma-E
Who doesn’t love a cleanser that not only removes dirt and oil from skin, but leaves it feeling soft, polished, and radiant!
Image: Sephora
Squalane + Amino Aloe Gentle Cleanser
Biossance
Amino acids in this gentle cleanser unclog pores, remove dirt, debris, and makeup, while aloe vera leaf juice hydrates, calms, and smoothes skin. The result? Healthy, soft skin that glows!
Exfoliator
I’ve cleansed my skin twice already...why do I need to exfoliate? We hear you. But believe it or not, cleansing and exfoliating are not the same. To put it simply, cleansers get rid of dirt and bacteria, and chemical exfoliators go deeper to get rid of dead skin cells that can clog your pores and cause issues, such as acne or redness. Incorporating an exfoliant into your routine at least a few times a week can help combat that pesky summer acne and keep your skin glowing!
Our FavoritES:
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2% BHA Exfoliant
Paula’s Choice
The holy grail of all exfoliants, Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Exfoliant helps unclog pores, smooth wrinkles, and brighten and even skin tone. When your skin becomes dull, dry, and congested due to the build-up of dead skin cells, beta-hydroxy acid (BHA, also known as salicylic acid) mimics the natural exfoliation process of younger skin by helping it shed extra layers while unclogging and clearing pores.
Image: Amazon
Gentle Face Scrub
Hanalei
This isn’t a chemical exfoliant — it’s a combination face scrub and cleanser. By using natural jojoba and sugar, plus a nourishing blend of vitamin E, Hawaiian Macadamia Seed Oil and Kukui Nut Oil, it not only exfoliates dead skin, but it moisturizes to reveal a glowing, healthy complexion. Perfect for all skin types and safe enough to use every day.
Moisturizer
Now that you’ve added all that good stuff to your skin, don’t forget to lock it in with a hydrating moisturizer!
Our FavoritES:
Image: Sephora
Superberry Hydrate + Glow Dream Mask
Youth To The People
The targeted combination of squalane, vitamin C, and hyaluronic acid gives skin an intense blast of hydration to plump, brighten, and firm. Antioxidants also help to combat free radicals, all while you sleep, so that you can wake up to your best skin yet.
Image: Sephora
Overnight Vitalizing Mask
Sulwhasoo
This K-beauty staple is a luxurious sleeping mask that boosts skin’s radiance and texture at night by repairing the skin’s moisture barrier and giving it a big dose of hydration.
Image: Sephora
barrier+ Skin Barrier Restoring Gel Cream
Skinfix
The perfect moisturizer for those with oily or acne-prone skin, this gel cream uses niacinamide to even skin tone and remove excess oil. A nourishing blend of ingredients nourishes the skin’s moisture barrier without causing blemishes.
Summing up Your Summer Skin Care Routine
If your usually-glowing skin starts behaving differently in the summertime, don’t freak out, it’s normal! Instead, opt for lighter products, cleanse thoroughly, and (say it with me) ALWAYS wearing sunscreen.