Tricks for skin that glows
It has been a weird summer, many of us cooped up indoors, and our skin has noticed.
Now, in these last weeks of the season, skin care obsessives as well as the more laid-back among us are getting sick of the dull skin that has become something of a hallmark of the pandemic. Luckily, there are ways to combat it.
“There are a lot of ways to get a healthy glow,” said Dr. Paul Jarrod Frank, a dermatologist in New York. “The tricks that can help you get there are actually very easy.”
Protect yourself from screens
Sunscreen is a necessity for long summer afternoons, but it’s also important to protect yourself from the increased screen time indoors. This, according to some skin care experts, is one reason for skin dullness.
Unlike the well-known dangers of ultraviolet light, science is still debating the effects of the blue light from our mobile phones, tablets, monitors and other digital devices. We know it can cause hyperpigmentation but not how much exposure is harmful. Dr. Barbara Sturm, the German aesthetics doctor who has a namesake skin care line, argues that the blue light emitted by our electronic screens can cause significant damage.
“It penetrates deep into the skin, making it potentially more dangerous than UV rays,” Sturm said. Over time, she said, exposure to screens can cause premature aging, uneven tone, loss of firmness, dryness and impaired healing.
You can limit your exposure to blue light by switching to “night shift” on some devices and wearing mineral sunscreens with iron oxides (which have been shown to be more protective against visible light than other sunscreen options).
Sturm recommends a quick fix with anti-pollution products. Her own Anti-Pollution Drops contain cocoa seed extract to form a shield to help protect against environmental pollution, while purslane soothes and calms irritation.
Give yourself a massage
Pati Dubroff, a makeup artist and Chanel makeup ambassador, typically spends 20 minutes massaging her clients’ faces to bring out a glow before beginning a makeup application.
Sturm also recommends facial massage and applying a serum or oil all over your face and neck to reduce friction.
Beginning above the collarbone, gently massage the skin using your fingertips in downward, circular motions for about a minute. Repeat, moving up the neck, the forehead and then down, from the temples to the jawline.
Continue the motion from your chin toward your ears and from the upper lip and cheekbones outward, finally to the eye area. You’ll instantly see a bit of radiance in your complexion, she said.
Remember to hydrate
The most common cause of dull skin is dehydration. Vargas recommends using a hyaluronic acid serum for hotter months to increase moisture and luminosity.
“It absorbs very quickly into the skin without leaving a lot of heavy product on the skin that could cause further breakouts,” she said. Vargas likes Jordan Samuel Hydrate Facial Serum and Dior Sakura Body Cream.
It’s important to apply a moisturizer under makeup .
“Sometimes if someone is excessively oily, I’ll use a mattifying primer, but only strategically on the sides of the nose, top of the chin (and) top of the forehead,” Dubroff said.
There’s always makeup
The finishing touch for a lit-from-within look, say the makeup artists, is a light wash of color. After moisturizing and priming, Dubroff uses a bit of sheer foundation on the sides of the nose, top of the chin and around the mouth to get a natural highlighted look.
Then she’ll use a second, slightly deeper shade where any pigmentation occurs, then top off any spots with a concealer. She uses light washes of bronzer on the perimeter to bring more light to the face. The last step of Dubroff ’s glow routine is to tap a couple of drops of highlighting fluid around the highest points.
“That last thing is like the pop of sunlight,” she said.