When you think of summer, what comes to mind?

Summer reminds some of us to ease ourselves on the sands of the beach, letting the sound of crashing ocean waves wash away all of our stress and relax us wholly; or for others, taking a trip to the mountains for time to recharge and ease pent up tension.

Season change requires us to take extra care of ourselves. We start making adjustments to our daily skin care routine; opting for lighter formulas or all-in-one skincare products to hydrate, protect, and repair the skin.

First things first, let’s talk a bit about sun damage. While the sun’s rays can provide us with a healthy dose of Vitamin D and boost our mood, prolonged exposure to sun also can age our skin and put us at risk for issues such as skin cancer. Our skin contains the pigment melanin, which helps keep the skin safe from the sun’s UV rays. However, this melanin can only do so much and this is especially true for those with fair skin. Fairer skin has less melanin, which means that you are less protected than those with medium and dark skin.

Fortunately, there are a few easy ways to limit sun damage, including using some of our Korean skin-care products and makeup.

We introduce tips on how we keep our skin glowing but protected during the hot, summer days!

SUN CARE TIPS

AVOID PEAK SUN HOURS

Those pesky UV rays are stronger in the middle of the day, so if you want some sun, but want to reduce your risk, consider going outside before noon and after about 3 or 4 p.m.

DOWNLOAD AN APP

There’s an app for everything, including sun protection. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has developed an app that will allow you to check the UV Index in your area. It’s free and you just need to search for the EPA’s SunWise UV Index. You also can do a quick online search to check the index in your area.

But what is a UV Index? The UV Index ranges from 1 to 15, with 15 being the highest exposure. If you notice that the day has a high UV rating, be sure to limit your exposure as much as possible. As an example, if the UV Index is at 2, it takes about 60 minutes of exposure to damage skin. Crank it up to an 11 or higher and you can damage skin in as little as just 10 or 15 minutes.

EXFOLIATION & MOISTURIZE

Exfoliating will enable your skin to absorb hydration from toners and moisturizers at its fullest. We recommend using our Lifting Set to gently exfoliate our skin the night before we go out. After peeling off the mask, we love spritzing Lifting Mist to refresh and hydrate our skin throughout the day! Lifting Mist is formulated with one of nature’s most powerfully hydrating ingredients, Tremella Fuciformis, also known as snow mushroom. The incredible water-retention properties of the snow mushroom help the skin retain moisture.

HYDRATE

While out and about, your body can lose a lot of hydration without you realizing. It’s important to take care of your skin but it’s imperative to hydrate from the inside out. Drink a lot of water and eat a lot of water-rich foods, such as watermelon and oranges. Watermelons are known for their high water content and eating oranges replenish your body with potassium. Our Lifting Mist is formulated with one of nature’s most powerfully hydrating ingredients, Tremella Fuciformis, also known as snow mushroom. The incredible water-retention properties of the snow mushroom help the skin retain moisture. We love spritzing Lifting Mist to refresh and hydrate our skin throughout the day!

PROTECT

Choose a base/foundation or sunscreen with broad spectrum SPF ranging from 30 to 50, covering UVA and UVB rays to protect your skin. For those who want light to medium coverage, CCC Cream offers just that with a lightweight finish and contains broad spectrum SPF 50. 

REPAIR

We all need Vitamin D love from the sun, but too much can be damaging to the skin. After spending some time in the sun, your skin needs to rejuvenate. We use CLE Vitamin C Elixir, our bi-layer oil + serum, to heal our skin. The formulation contains beneficial ingredients to restore skin from the damages of UVA & UVB rays, pollution and free radicals.

*For more information on Vitamin C Elixir, read more here.

SPRING / SUMMER LOOK WITH CLE

Makeup in all photos : Julie is wearing CCC Cream in Warm Light 

At CLE, we favor a minimal approach to allow our skin to breathe, especially during the summer when sweating is inevitable. Instead of sunscreen, we apply CCC Cream (Broad Spectrum SPF 50) to protect our skin. Both products provide light to medium coverage but is buildable for those who want a little more love on the skin!

Have fun, enjoy some sun during the day but at night, treasure your beauty sleep! Sleep encourages healthy blood flow and your skin repairs and heals itself during sleep hours.