There are endless tips available about caring for your skin before venturing into the summer sun, but people aren’t talking enough about after sun skincare.
Your skin needs (and deserves) to be cared for after you’ve soaked up those glorious rays too, right? So if you’ve been searching for summer skincare tips that’ll revive your skin after a long day of relaxing in the sun, you’ve come to the right place!
5 After Sun Skin Care Tips
You’ve most likely known about the importance of using sunscreen since before you could even spell s-u-n-s-c-r-e-e-n. You probably even have many memories of your mother or father lathering every square inch of your skin in that thick, white substance.
But chances are you don’t even have the first clue as to what to put on your skin post-sunshine. Regardless of how well you prep your skin for a day in the sun, your skin can still suffer the consequences.
Thankfully, there are wonderful tips that can counteract that! So without further ado, here are your 5 summer skincare tips to follow after enjoying that summer sunshine.
1) Relieve Your Skin With Aloe Vera
This natural ingredient, derived from the aloe vera plant, has been a favorite for dealing with sunburn and other post-sun skin issues for a reason.
They not only look great aesthetically in your home, but they have also proven to be rather convenient. All you have to do is break off an aloe leaf and rub the gel directly on your sun-damaged skin!
What makes aloe vera so amazing is this… First, it has a cooling effect that will immediately soothe your sun-irritated skin. Second, it will hydrate your skin which has just been dehydrated from all those rays.
You can find aloe vera products in gel form or mixed into moisturizers for skin care. So find your favorite product and store it in a handy place to grab whenever needed.
2) Reanimate Your Skin With Moisturizer
Did you know that your skin won’t always immediately show signs of too much sun exposure? This is why moisturizing is so crucial for your after sun skin care.
Like aloe vera, moisturizing can pack a two-way punch. It will both soothe your skin and rehydrate it. As if those two points aren’t enough to convince you, here are some other benefits of moisturizing your skin after sun exposure: reduced skin redness, skin nourishment, prolonging your tanned appearance, and preventing peeling skin.
As for application, you’ll want to apply your moisturizer right after being in the sun and then apply it again after taking a cool shower (your damp, post-shower face will be more welcoming to the moisturizer as it will help to seal it into your skin)!
3) Refresh Your Skin With Cleanser
Remember that feeling of having sunscreen caked onto your face? As important as sunscreen is, it doesn’t always feel the best on your skin.
Now think about your skin’s needs after being in the sun all day and being coated in that sunscreen. What do you think the best after sun skin care tip is in this case?
If you said “cleanser”, then you’re correct! What makes cleansers so great, you ask? Well, its sole purpose is to remove impurities, dirt, etc. from your skin.
So imagine the power a really great cleanser can have at removing all the sunscreen, sweat, sand/dirt, etc. that your skin has been exposed to all day. Ahhh! Can’t you just feel that clean skin feeling already?
If you’re still searching for your perfect match of cleansers, try our Rebel Skincare Purify Daily Cleanser!
4) Protect Your Skin From Harmful Products
Now that you’ve got a better understanding of some products you CAN use on your skin post-sun, let’s discuss the products that you CAN’T (or shouldn’t) use.
Your main goal when it comes to summer skincare tips should be to rehydrate and soothe your skin. So you’ll need to avoid any products that could have the opposite effect.
One of the main products you’ll want to avoid is exfoliants. While exfoliating is great for your skin when done properly (and not too often), it’s not at all great to do to your skin after a lot of sun exposure.
Think about how your skin has felt while being sunburned. Then imagine trying to exfoliate your already irritated, sunburnt face. Ouch!
You’ll also want to avoid products that contain benzoyl peroxide and products that are formulated to combat acne, as they could dry out your skin (which is the opposite of what your skin needs after a fun day in the sun). Benzoyl peroxide could also cause your skin to become sensitive to sunlight.
5) Revitalize Your Skin By Avoiding Sun Rays
Now for the final of your summer skincare tips - avoid further sun exposure.
While it may be impossible to avoid sun exposure entirely, it is important to prevent further sun damage to your skin. So you’ll want to do your best to stay indoors as much as possible for a few days after a long day in the sun.
If you do find that you’ll need to go outdoors at all, do your best to protect your skin from further damage. Wear protective clothing and a hat. Cover the parts of your body that aren’t protected by clothing with sunscreen. Also, you should stay in shaded areas as much as possible.
Don’t Forget Your Lips
One of the most often forgotten body parts when it comes to sun protection is your lips. After a fun day in the sun, your lips can be just as sun damaged as any other part of your skin.
So the first after sun skin care tip is to use a lip scrub that can remove whatever dead skin cells have been hanging on for dear life.
Then you can finish off with a nice hydrating lip balm or lip butter to further soothe your lips.
(We recommend looking for a lip balm that is formulated to protect your lips from the sun so you can be prepared beforehand.)
Final Thoughts
By now, you should feel relieved to know that you can still enjoy your time in the sun this summer while protecting your skin (and your lips) at the same time.
Don’t forget to do these after sun skin care tips when you finish enjoying your fun days outside this summer!
If you loved this article, be sure to check out our other articles for more great skincare tips!