Skin care is essential for anyone’s health. Especially during the summer, your skin is more susceptible to the sun’s rays and may cause damage to healthy tissue. Knowing how to properly treat your skin not only during the summer, but for all seasons, is a must in the realm of beauty and healthcare. We were able to speak to Joanna Vargas, celebrity facialist and founder of the Joanna Vargas Salon and Skincare Collection on ways to maintain healthy skin when transitioning from summer into fall.
For the warmer weather, Vargas suggests changing your skincare routine into serums.
“It improves your skin’s ability to heal and the texture of the skin. It’s so liberating to not need anything else for the skin! Plus a daytime serum is great to apply under sunscreen, which you absolutely cannot live without,” says Vargas.
From her own line, she recommends using either the daily or rejuvenating serum. The daily serum is inspired by her love of green juices, and contains oat grass juice which helps boost the lymphatic system, chlorophyll to oxygenate the face, and hyaluronic acid to keep the skin hydrated.
As for at-home remedies for to try, Vargas gave us a recipe to transform sunburned, damaged, or dry and sensitive skin:
- 3 tbsp aloe vera juice
- 1 tbsp aloe vera gel
- 2 drops rose oil
Apply with cotton ball to damaged area it all over face.
“The aloe vera juice will sink into the tissue almost immediately, which will help the damage instantly. The gel is great because to cool and repair the skin for the duration of the mask,” says Vargas. “You can leave this on the damaged tissue for as long as necessary. The rose is great for circulation which helps to heal the tissue faster.”
As far as transitioning your skin care routine from summer into fall, they way you take care of your skin in the fall should focus on repairing skin damaged from the summer. According to Vargas, fall skin care routines should also focus on moisturizing, due to the transition in temperature.
“Skin needs more TLC during the fall because the transition from humid to cold weather can be extremely drying. Dry skin is so fragile, and you have to do more to protect your lipid layer. I suggest adding a day cream to your routine that contains soothing Shea and cocoa butter – they melt at body temperature so they go right into the skin and stay there all day, so you don’t end up feeling dry halfway through the day,” says Vargas. “Also, another great ingredient to look for is avocado oil. It contains so many amazing vitamins for the skin and lymphatic system, so it will de-puff, hydrate and soothe the skin.”
To start the process of repairing dry, damaged skin, Vargas recommends starting out with a cleanser that can exfoliate dead skin and stimulate collagen production. She also recommends doing a peel to start fall off feeling refreshed; she likes both fruit and enzymatic peels. Using an intensive moisturizer is also key, as it is “the perfect time to repair the damage,” says Vargas.
She also recommends these other tips when taking care of your skin for the fall season:
- Sleep with a humidifier in your bedroom. It will add just enough moisture to the environment to give your skin the chance to do some real healing. For those who are afraid of the bacteria that sometimes can accumulate in a humidifier, you can even get a little one that attaches to a mini water bottle.
- The best skincare tip I can recommend is something I learned when my son had eczema as a baby. To this day, it is my family secret for healing dry, sensitive skin. Boil a large pot of water with one cup of chamomile tea leaves and one cup of rosemary. Cook these for fifteen minutes. Then strain and add this water to your bath. Not only will you feel relaxed from your day, this potion will soothe your skin like nothing else. Dry patches and redness will disappear overnight!
- Another great tip for curing winter skin is to throw a half an avocado into your morning smoothie. The extra fats in avocado will make your skin soft and smooth from the inside out!
- A great at-home scrub would be 1/4 cup of almond powder, plus 1/2 cup of olive oil- it’s so simple, but scrubbing this on the skin for a few minutes in the morning will soften sun damage, exfoliate dead cells and actually calm the skin. Plus, it adds a glow!
In regards to her products, Vargas absolutely swears by her line’s Daily Serum.
“It’s the top selling product in my salon because it works for everyone and it’s my secret weapon for dull skin,” she says.
We were able to try some of her products, including the rejuvenating serum and the exfoliating mask. From personal experience, I have always had acne-prone skin. However, just from using the Joanna Vargas skin care products in a short amount of time, I can already see the difference in my skin. The mask and the serum has made my skin much smoother, and the overall appearance of it looks cleaner, and has more of a glow.
Vargas takes pride on being able to help out people who have had issues with their skin their whole life.
“I’m most proud of being known as someone who encourages women to embrace what makes them unique. I don’t offer cookie cutter beauty,” says Vargas. “My proudest moments are when I can see I have really given someone a new lease on life- women come to me who have had acne their whole lives and when I cure it, I know I have changed their confidence forever.”
-by Jackie Hart
