Are you aware that you shouldn’t use the same face cream in the summer as in the winter?  The reason is not that simple, so we asked Cape Grace Spa Manager, Carryn Todd to explain.

A winter face cream is all about exfoliating, polishing, smoothing and anti-aging. It’s the time when you might have peeling or enzymatic treatments. A summer face treatment, on the other hand, should avoid the removal of superficial layers of dry dehydrated cells, as it is these cells that help protect skin from the sun. Summer face care should focus on feeding up, intense hydration, skin nutrition and protection from the sun. In other words a serum rather than a cream, along with a really good sun cream.

This explains why some people land up with uneven pigmentation and thinning of the skin that becomes visible in summer, as the skin hasn’t been given the hydration needed to give it as much resilience as possible.

Carryn says you should never skimp on the quality of your sun cream. If it’s incorporated into your face cream, Factor 15 is enough as the dual functions of absorption of the cream as opposed to the barrier effect of the SPF, do not harmonize well over 15 SPF.  Rather get a good quality sun cream (a white cream rather than clear indicates the preferred quality), that does the sole job of creating an effective barrier against ultraviolet rays. Foundation with SPF in it is a safer option as it is not designed to penetrate.

Summary of Carryn’s Summer Skin Tips:

• Three most important summer face products are: hydrating serum, eye cream and sunscreen.
• Give summer skin as much hydration as possible.
• Avoid creams with the words re-surfacing, polishing and even anti-ageing.
• Look for listed nutritional ingredients and terms like hydration.
• Buy a really good sunscreen and make sure to remove it at the end of the day.
• Use a serum as a course of treatment and when the bottle is finished ask your skincare advisor what you should focus on next.

The Spa at Cape Grace Spa provides a free skin analysis with every facial and the highly trained staff can suggest a programme of treatments that will produce tangible results. Carryn says that skincare diagnosis doesn’t waste your time or money on unnecessary or misused products. That is why a facial is not a once-off – think of it as a programme to get your skin fit.

We will be looking at how to get your body fit with the Cape Grace Personal Trainer soon.