Photo courtesy of Jim Lafferty/The Licensing Project
Layering Skin Care for Summer:
A Step-by-Step Guide
Do you put sunscreen on first or last? Does the serum come before the spritz? What about the oil? Layering skin care in hot weather involves some strategy—the key is choosing textures that sink easily into skin—but the payoff is fresh, glowing, healthy-looking skin all season long.
Step 1:
Vitamin C
No matter your skin type, put vitamin C on first thing in the morning. It’s especially great in summer because it helps fight free radicals from UV rays and other environmental factors while brightening, clarifying, smoothing, and refining the texture of skin. This one maximizes potency with a two-part system that mixes 20% vitamin C powder with a hyaluronic acid serum.
Step 2:
Spritz
Because they’re water-based, spritzes clear the way for treatment ingredients (those in the spritz itself and those in products that go on afterward) to go deeper into the skin. This one is made with super soothing botanicals like witch hazel and willow bark extract for softer, ultrahydrated, practically poreless skin.
-
Rose-Infused Mist
Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence goop, $72SHOP NOW
Step 3:
Serum
With your skin damp from your spritz, a treatment serum sinks right in to address issues like breakouts, dull skin, and more. Each of these is targeted for specific benefits, and the results are powerful.
-
To Calm and Smooth Fine Lines
de Mamiel First Fix Serum goop, $216SHOP NOW -
To Hydrate and Plump
Mary Allan Skincare Pressed Flower Milk Hydrating Drops goop, $185SHOP NOW -
To Nourish and Even Skin Tone
Beauty Thinkers Antioxidant Boost Facial Oil goop, $78SHOP NOW
Step 4:
Moisturize
(If You Need It)
Most skin types benefit from extra hydration even when it’s humid out; look for lighter textures to smooth, refresh, and plump your skin.
-
The Face Oil with Clinical Results
goop Beauty GOOPGENES All-in-One Super Nutrient Face Oil goop, $98/$89 with subscriptionSHOP NOW -
Antioxidant Gel-Cream
Alpyn Beauty Triple Vitamin-C Brightening Bounce Cream goop, $49SHOP NOW -
Light-as-Air Skin-Boost Moisturizer
goop Beauty GOOPGLOW Glow Lotion goop, $58/$52 with subscriptionSHOP NOW -
Melts-in-Instantly Balm
Furtuna Skin Rinascita Delle Olive Replenishing Balm goop, $185SHOP NOW
Step 5:
Mineral Sunscreen
Because mineral sunscreen sits on top of skin to create a physical barrier from the sun, make it your last step (by contrast, chemical sunscreens, which goop recommends against, go on first, as they need to sink into skin to work).
-
Tinted to Blur Imperfections
ILIA C Beyond Triple Serum SPF 40 goop, $64SHOP NOW -
Silky-Smooth
MARA Algae + Zinc Sea Kale Sunscreen Serum goop, $52SHOP NOW -
Velvety Semimatte
EleVen Unrivaled Sun Serum SPF 35 goop, $50SHOP NOW
Before You Layer, Optimize Your Skin
No matter your skin type, cleansing and exfoliating make a huge difference in the way your skin looks and feels and also in the way your treatment products perform.
-
Gentle, Skin-Polishing Cleanser
goop Beauty GOOPGLOW Cloudberry Exfoliating Jelly Cleanser goop, $28/$25 with subscriptionSHOP NOW -
Retexturizing Toner for Baby-Soft Skin
goop Beauty GOOPGLOW Flower Acids
Resurfacing Toner goop, $45/$40 with subscriptionSHOP NOW -
Every Few Days
Facial in a Jar
goop Beauty GOOPGLOW Microderm Instant Glow Exfoliator goop, $125/$112 with subscriptionSHOP NOW -
Once a Week
Glowifying
Exfoliating Treatment
goop Beauty GOOPGLOW 15% Glycolic Acid Overnight Glow Peel goop, $125/$112 with subscriptionSHOP NOW
Every Day
Bonus: Summer Layering, Body Edition
Oils and creams leave your limbs gleamy and sexy-looking, mineral sunscreen is great for body protection, and we love aloe vera gel to soothe and cool—especially when we’ve been at the beach all day (or just had a wax).
-
The Ultimate Soothing Summer Gel
Dr. Barbara Sturm Aloe Vera Gel goop, $70SHOP NOW -
Spritzable Body Oil That Smells Like a Garden
Seed to Skin The Serenity Time Defying Dry Body Oil goop, $162SHOP NOW -
Citrusy Butter for Firm, Healthy-Looking Skin
goop Beauty GOOPGENES Nourishing Repair Body Butter goop, $58/$50 with subscriptionSHOP NOW -
Amazingly Silky SPF Lotion
Unsun Hydrating Full Coverage Body Lotion SPF 30 goop, $32SHOP NOW
