3 Steps to Preparing Your Skin for the Summer Sun

Summer is almost here, and before it comes, your skin should be ready! The cold winter months must’ve been hard on it, so you should do all that’s necessary to prepare your skin for the hot sun. Here’s how to do so in three easy steps – exfoliation, hydration and finally introducing your skin to the summer sun.

1. Exfoliation

The process of exfoliation helps you to get rid of dead skin and dry cells; actually, this is the process during which you get rid of your ‘winter skin’. Grab exfoliating gloves and an exfoliating cleanser and exfoliate all over.

Begin at your feet and scrub your way to your neck and face. Once you get to your face, be very gentle since the skin on your face is very thick and sensitive. Exfoliation will make your skin soft and smooth, but also very dry, so your next step should undoubtedly be skin rehydration.

2. Hydration

After you’ve finished exfoliating, your skin gets very dry and even more sensitive. That’s when you should begin moisturizing and rehydrating your skin.

Use a nice amount of moisturizer and apply it to your whole body – legs, arms, back, belly, etc. Then use a hydrating cream for your face and neck. There are special creams for extremely dry skin you could use for your elbows, feet, etc. if necessary.

However, using skincare products is not the only way to rehydrate your skin and it is often not enough – you also need to drink a lot of water, at least 2l every day. This too will help you prevent dry skin.

3. Slowly Introducing Your Skin to the Sun

Remember – just like you, your skin hasn’t seen the summer sun in a very long time, so it takes a while to get used to it. To begin with, use products with a high SPF to avoid sun damage. Protect your face, neck and cleavage by wearing a hat, and make sure your arms, hands and feet are well protected, for they are usually exposed to the sun every single day.

Don’t forget to protect your face properly – make sure that you’re using a foundation with a high SPF. You should also protect your lips with a lip balm that has SPF of at least 15. Reapply your lip balm as often as possible to avoid dry, damaged lips.