Make that summer glow more than just a holiday romance
Weeks of summer skin prep complete, holiday tan fully-loaded and on point… now what? You’ve got the perfect glow, now it’s time to make sure it stays put long after you’ve finished your last poolside margarita. Glow you!
Scrub yourself
If you’ve caught the sun this summer, the best way to make your tan look brighter and last longer is to give your skin a good scrub once or twice a week with an exfoliator. This will help slough away any dead skin cells and leave your skin looking its glowing best. Choose an exfoliator with moisturising properties for an added hit of hydration and work in small circular motions to make sure you’ve covered every inch.
Soothe post-summer skin
Parched skin is a complete no-no for glow-getters. The beach vibes may be behind you (for now) but that doesn’t mean you can sack off the skincare regime. If anything, now’s the perfect time to really ramp it up and make sure your summer glow goes on and on.
Face masks, mists and super-luxurious body butters are all your hydration heroes here. Spritz a face mist before your usual moisturiser to make it work even harder – pressing your moisturiser gently into damp skin (rather than rubbing it into dry skin) is a best-kept secret in the beauty industry for helping to really lock in that moisture.
Treat your skin to a face mask once or twice a week and apply a rich body butter post-shower (again, while your skin is still slightly damp) and boom, you’re good to glow!
Make it up as you glow along
The secret to helping your glowy skin go the distance might just lie in your make-up bag. Start with a dewy foundation for a soft-focus base. Next, keep the warm tone to your skin long after the sun has gone in with a sweep of bronzer - apply to the collarbones, cheekbones, temples and down the centre of the nose, basically anywhere the sun would naturally catch your face. Finish with a dot of highlighter on your Cupid’s bow, brow bone and cheekbones and you’re ready to glow!
Don’t be afraid to fake it
Glow on. And on, and on. When you feel like the real thing is starting to fade, top up your tan with a dupe designed to give those fresh-off-the-beach feels. The great thing about fake tan is you can take your pick of the bunch – there’s wash-off, quick-dry and instant varieties to name just a few, and a choice of application styles and shades to suit you perfectly. So whether you’re enhancing what you’ve already got, filling in your white bits or simply taking your colour up a notch, there’s a fake tan for all occasions.
Keeping your A-list glow is as easy as BB & CC…
…BB and CC creams, that is. If you want to let your glowy skin speak for itself, get the barely-there look with these skincare big hitters. The best thing about BB and CC creams is that they’re designed to enhance your skin’s natural beauty and simply blur away any imperfections, rather than cover you completely.
If you’re looking for more than just a moisturiser, grab yourself a BB cream! It’ll have all the benefits of a super-light foundation plus a few handy skincare extras (think SPF, antioxidants and skin-loving ingredients such as vitamin C, depending which one you choose) thrown in for good measure and extra-radiant results.
If you’ve got a summer colour to write home about but still can’t shift those pesky dark circles, dark spots or redness, then a CC cream may just become your new bestie! Apply to the centre of your face and blend out gently for a flawless-looking complexion.
Don’t forget to snack on water-rich foods like cucumber, spinach (yes, really!) and watermelon (yum), and drink water like it’s going out of fashion. Gorgeous skin will be yours long after the summer days are a distant haze. You glow, girl!