Skincare always seems so much easier during the summer months, doesn’t it? There’s just something about the glorious light that immediately brightens up your skin with very little effort. 

However, the sun can do a real number on your skin, ageing it up lightning fast and being the number one cause of fine lines, wrinkles, dark spots and sagging skin.

And what's certain, summertime will have made its mark on your skin, leaving you with anything from unwanted dark spots and dry patches through to dehydration or an extra line here and there.

So, here are five ways to reinvent your routine this autumn to repair a little summer damage and get your skin winter-ready...

1. Up Your Hydration

Humidity levels are much higher in the summer months which is great news for your skin as all that moisture in the air helps stop your skin from become dehydrated. However, once cooler, windier weather arrives, humidity levels drop and your skin can really suffer. Cranking up your central heating sucks even more moisture out of your skin, so whether inside or out, you can’t get away from dry, skin-destroying air during the autumn and winter.

The best way to hydrate your skin is to include ingredients in your regime that draw water to the surface of your skin. These are called humectants and include goodies like hyaluronic acid, glycerin and aloe vera – which, by the way, are all formulated into our super hydrating Pre-Eminent Beauty Serum. Hyaluronic acid, in particular, is able to hold up to 1000 times its weight in water which is pretty impressive stuff, we think you’ll agree. 

Just remember, it’s not enough to apply a humectants-rich serum to your skin without finishing with a moisturiser or facial oil to lock all that water in. Apply Imperial Moisturiser after smoothing serum on your face and neck, then finish with a few drops of our lightweight but intensely moisturising Organic Age-Defying Facial Oil.

2. Target Sun-Damaged Skin

Experts agree, applying a broad-spectrum sunscreen is the best way to avoid dark spots, but no matter how well you’ve protected your skin during summer, pesky dark patches can still creep up on you. 

A great way to target post-summer discolourations is through gentle, but regular exfoliation. Exfoliating is vital for improving cell turnover so that dead skin cells don’t hang around at the surface of your skin for longer than necessary, causing it to look dull and sluggish. 

Chemical exfoliation, with ingredients like lactic and glycolic acid is a very effective way to get the job done or you could try our Natural Luminosity Scrub which is gentle enough to use every day. Apply a small amount to moistened skin and gently massage it all over your face and neck to help improve your skin tone, brighten your complexion and bring back that healthy, summer glow.

3. Rebuild Your Skin’s Protective Barrier

Kind of like your skin’s very own bodyguard, the skin’s barrier (aka the stratum corneum) is the uppermost layer that protects it and keeps it healthy by keeping moisture in and unwanted irritants out. And bad news, people: UV radiation is a killer on your skin’s barrier function. This is why your skin can often feel dry, flaky, inflamed and often more sensitive by the time summer ends.

To help get your skin’s barrier back in shape, reduce the number of active ingredients you apply on a regular basis and avoid using hot water when you cleanse your skin.

Eat plenty of omega-rich foods such as oily fish, seeds and nuts, and look for moisturisers and treatment serums that contains things like ceramides, fatty acids, hydrating humectants (as mentioned above) and vitamin E. Vitamin E is extremely moisturising, healing and the ideal way to restore your skin’s protective barrier after the summer months.

Try our Night Elixir to get your fix every night before bed.

4. Start A Regular Retinol Regime

Retinol is fabulous all-year-round, but it can be tricky during the summertime. Contrary to popular belief, it doesn’t actually make your skin more sensitive to the sun. However, retinol can become quickly deactivated by sunlight and may disrupt your barrier function which is why some of you might experience more redness and irritation from a retinol regime during that time of year.

Autumn is the perfect time to start applying retinol as it works crazy hard to boost collagen, repair connective tissue and undo any sun-induced free radical damage. Our Pre-Eminent Beauty Serum contains a gentle, but very effective derivate of retinol called retinyl palmitate.

Retinyl palmitate is perfect for all skin types (yes, even sensitive skin) because it’s less likely to irritate your complexion than other retinoids like pure retinol or prescription tretinoin. Apply it two or three times a week to begin with, building up to twice daily as your skin acclimates.

5. Finally, Don’t Forget To Protect Your Skin From The Sun 

Word of warning: don’t shove your sunscreen to the back of your beauty cabinet just because summer is over. We will never stop drumming this into you, but sun protection is equally important in the autumn and winter as it is in spring and summer.

It’s true, the overall level of UV radiation decreases a tad after summer due to the change in the angle in which the sun’s rays hit the Earth, but UVA rays are constant all year and penetrate right through cloud and fog. This means UVA radiation is just as harmful when it’s grey and chilly outside. 

The answer, thankfully, is simple. Protect. Your. Skin. Our Organic Tinted Moisturiser with SPF 25 is fabulous every day of the year as it not only provides broad-spectrum protection (which means it protects from both UVA and UVB radiation) but it also contains a gorgeous hint of colour to even out your skin tone and add a cheeky little glow.

What’s more, you can choose from four wearable shades, so depending on your natural skin colour, we’ve got you covered. Literally!