Words: Mary-Jane Wiltsher
Autumn ushers in new wardrobes, fashions, appetites… and a new skincare routine. As the nights draw in, temperatures cool and our environmental stressors change, it’s the perfect time for a reset – and that includes your daily skincare rituals.
How The New Autumn season affects our skin
Seasonal changes that impact our skin in Autumn can range from dialing up our central heating, to unpredictable weather conditions, along with the reality of adjusting to a new season and routine. The onset of cold and flu season, too, can make the skin around the nose dry and inflamed.
Added to that, summer’s barely-there makeup trends typically give way to heavier beauty looks, with an emphasis on highly pigmented products like eyeshadows, lipsticks and matte foundations – all of which can take their toll on our skin.
Come autumn, you may notice that your skin feels dryer than usual, particularly in prone areas like the delicate eye area, lips, cheeks and around the nose. A transitioning climate can cause dead skin cells to build up, resulting in higher levels of oil and bacteria, which can lead to breakouts. You may also experience skin struggles such as blotchiness, flaking, or an uneven tone.
DST and our body rhythms
The changing of the clocks (or DST) to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) in October has an effect on our bodies, too. Experts ranging from scientists to medical practitioners have commented on the impact of the changing of the clocks, which has been shown to affect our health, both mental and physical, as our body rhythms adjust to the change in hours.
While a one-hour transition might not seem like a big deal, studies suggest that the changing of the clocks causes irregular sleep patterns, which can increase the chance of seasonal depression, anxiety and insomnia. For our complexions, this may mean tired-looking skin, dark circles and puffiness.
Resetting your Autumn skincare routine
From investing in a more intensive moisturiser, to adding oils and vitamin C, there’s all sorts of steps you can take to autumn-proof your skincare routine. Whether you want to reduce dryness and inflammation, depuff eye circles, or simply recalibrate your daily pamper time as we head into hibernation season, read on for The Light Salon’s advice on why it’s worth adjusting your skincare routine for a new season.
Easy autumn skin care tips
Simple changes, without the need to add many additional steps, can be implemented as we head into autumn and one key focus is adding moisture back into your skin.
Layering a hydrating serum, after your vitamin C and before your moisturiser, adds richness to your routine and helps lock moisture in. In addition, switch your summer weight SPF lotion to a richer hydrating cream, which will double up as a protector against rain and wind.
Autumn is also the perfect time to up your retinol application, increasing the usage frequency or strength - do keep an eye on shedding though, and pull back if you need to, as whilst we want to target summer sunspots, we don’t want to get into a cycle of continuous shedding and the need for lashings of extra moisturiser.
The Light Salon’s autumn products solutions for autumn skin
The beauty of LED light therapy is your body will receive and process the light according to your needs at the time of use. So no matter what time of the year you are treating your skin and body with LED, the light will deliver energy, enhance cellular activity and help normalise your varying skin irregularities.
When targeting dehydration, our Boost LED Mask treats from within by increasing production of the body’s internal hyaluronic acid, whereas our Hydrating Peptide Serum soothes and smoothes visible dryness on the surface. Combined, they optimise the benefits of each other.
Our Enzymatic Cleanser and Mask will also improve visible hydration through gentle and exfoliation and its impressive hydrating properties - 70% of its active ingredients aid hydration, so leaving on as a mask for 10-20minutes, a few times a week, will brighten and smooth even the most parched of complexions.