Tip 1
Your summer skincare routine should be tailored to your specific skin type. The basic principle though, is to really dial down on any products that could be occlusive, pore-clogging or greasy.
Whichever products you chose, also try to avoid ingredients such as sulphates, parabens, synthetic fragrance and colors, or triclosan. Ideally try to also avoid alcohol as it can be drying, though keep in mind some form of preservative is usually needed in the product.
Tip 2
Even if you have oily skin and are sweating a lot, cleansing shouldn’t strip your skin completely of oil. Drying out your skin actually stimulates it to produce more oil to compensate.
It’s better to use two gentle facial cleansers (the first oil-based and the second water-based) rather than one harsh cleanser.
The Heimish All Clean Balm and the Farmacy Green Clean Balm, are some of the best gentle oil-based cleansers that work for us to cut down on oil, while still leaving our skin hydrated.
The COSRX Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanser (Olive Young)(Style Korean)(Althea)(Jolse) works for us, but can be too drying for others, especially if you lather up a foam with it. We recommend washing off this cleanser before it forms a foam.
By the way…some the skincare we recommend are available on iHerb, which we use to buy a lot of our organic skincare. You can use our code AEJ0519 at checkout to get 5% off.
Tip 3
Apart from using a cleanser, we use the Innisfree Jeju Volcanic Pore Clay Mask (Style Korean)(Beautynet Korean)(Jolse) to help remove sebum from the skin. We apply this only to the problem areas, leave it on for six minutes, then rinse it off straight away. Our skin feels like “normal skin” straight after this - neither too oily nor dry.
Tip 4
If your skin is too oily, try moisturizing just once a day, before bed. The COSRX Advanced Snail 92 All In One Cream (Style Korean)(Beautynet Korean)(Jolse) is great for this, as it’s super lightweight but still very nourishing for our skin. However, because it doesn’t form a good makeup base, incorporating it into your PM skincare routine works perfectly. See our breakdown of the best organic moisturizers for more recommendations to try.
Tip 5
We love using the COSRX Galactomyces 95 Tone Balancing Essence (Style Korean)(Althea)(Beautynet Korean)(Jolse) in the summer time, which contains galactomyces as well as niacinamide. The 2% niacinamide that it contains has done wonders in brightening our skin. Galactomyces is obtained from fermented sake, and is a great antioxidant, reducing sebum levels while still moisturizing the skin.
An alternative to this is the Neogen Dermalogy Real Ferment Micro Essence (Style Korean)(Althea)(Jolse), which also contain saccharomyces ferment filtrate, as well as rice ferment filtrate. Because these essences are so watery in texture, we find that they help in moisturizing our skin but don’t contribute to any pore-clogging processes.
Tip 6
Finally, if you are going outdoors (or even if you are indoors with exposure to UV light), it’s essential that you apply sunscreen as the last and final step!
UV radiation can cause pigmentation, speed up the skin’s aging process, worsen post inflammatory hyperpigmentation, and increase the risk of skin cancer. The type of sunscreen you choose will depend on your skin tone, skin type, and preference.
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P.S…this is probably obvious, but the information presented doesn’t constitute medical advice - always check with your own doctor!
