Get Yourself Primped and Prepped for Beach Season

Summer is fast approaching and it’s time to start preparing to look your best on the sand this season.  From hair to face to body, here are some great tips to address all of your beach bunny needs.

Facial Care

• Gently exfoliate your face about once a week to slough away dead skin cells and expose the healthy glowing skin underneath.  Try a product like Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion in a Jar or Freeze 24/7 IceCrystals Anti-Aging Prep and Polish.
• Make sure to apply a moisturizer with UVA and UVB protection on a daily basis to face, neck, and chest, whether your going to the beach or not.  Some great brands with premium products are Murad, MD Skincare, and Natura Bisse.
• Apply a moisturizing mask onto your face after your trip to the beach.  The sea salt and minerals dry out your skin and effect your skin’s texture.  Check out L’Occitane, Philosophy, Peter Thomas Roth, Sothys, and June Jacobs.

Body Care

• First of all, wax all you’ve got.  You can’t have a sexy beach body looking like a yetti.  Make sure to use a product like Tend Skin to prevent ingrown hairs from developing.
• Exfoliate your body with products like Murad Activating Body Scrub, Neova Body Smoother, L’Occitane Almond Delicious Paste, L’Occitane Shea Butter Ultra Rich Body Scrub, and Peter Thomas Roth Botanical Beads.
• Firm and reduce the appearance of cellulite with Murad Body Firming Cream, Murad Firm and Tone Serum,  MD Skincare Alpha Beta Daily Body Peel, MD Skincare Hydra-Pure Firming Body Cream, and L’Occitane Grape Anti-Water Retention Gel.
• Once you’re on the sand, protect your skin with plenty of sunblock and sunscreen.  Several of your favorite skin care lines carry sun protection products.  MD Skincare, Murad, Natura Bisse, and Neova all provide top quality sun care products.
• When you return home, use a moisturizing body wash to replenish your skin’s moisture levels.
• Apply a body moisturizer to skin within 2-3 minutes of stepping out of the shower.  This will help keep water from evaporating and lock in your skin’s moisture.

Hair Care

• Your hair needs care too.  Apply specialized sun protection to protect your hair against the effects of sun, sea, and pool.  Rene Furterer and Kerastase carry fantastic hair protection products.
• Wash your hair with after sun hair care products.  They will help hydrate and reverse damage to hair.
• Follow with an intensive hydrating hair mask.  Try Kerastase, Matrix, or Tigi to replenish hair.
• If you color your hair, take extra caution.  Chemically treated hair is more prone to breaking and drying out.  Color hair 1-2 weeks prior to prolonged sun exposure.

Hand and Foot Care

• Treat yourself to a great manicure and pedicure.  Great shades for summer are pastels and bright colors.
• Use cuticle oil or hand cream morning and night to keep nails and cuticles hydrated.  Natura Bisse Spa Hand Silk SPF 15, Essie Smoothies, L’Occitane, and Revive Extraordinaire Hand Renewal Cream SPF15 are all great products.

Terms to Know

• UVB rays are the “tanning”, and sometimes “burning”, rays.  These rays are stronger in the summer months and penetrate the Epidermis, or top layer of the skin.
• UVA rays are the dreaded “aging” rays.  They are equally strong all year long and they penetrate through the Epidermis to the Dermis, or second layer of the skin.  UVA  rays are responsible for wrinkling, white and brown age spots, and damage to your skin’s collagen and elastin.  These rays can even penetrate through clothing and windows.
• Sunscreens chemically absorb the sun’s UV rays.
• Sunblocks physically deflect the sun’s UV rays.
• SPF (Sun Protection Factor) is a measure of the length of time a product will protect your skin from reddening by UVB rays.  SPF of at least 15 will protect you from  93 %  of UVB rays.
• Broad Spectrum Protection protects your skin against UVB and UVA rays