101 easy tips for a great summer!

Before Sun Exposure: prepare your skin

You want to get a golden tan, you want it soon, and you want it for a long time.
This is the time to think about it, before you actually get under the sun. What you do now will effect how long and how well your tan will last.
This is a reason more for you to follow these easy tips to gain a healthful complexion:

• Prepare your skin for a prolonged tan: scrub a couple of days before going on vacation. It will help you get rid of a layer od dead cells and your skin will become more "receptive" to the sunlight.
  
  
• Warning! Now that your skin has lost its oldest, more superficial layer, it is also more vulnerable: moisturize twice a day, and apply a high SPF as soon as you are outdoors. (learn what is the best SPF for your phototype).
  
  
• If you reach your holiday destination by car or by plane, pay attention to air conditioning because it dries out your skin. So keep a face moisturizer (a handy sampler will be enough) in your purse to hydrate every now and then, before you actually feel the need to.
  
  
• Drink a lot of water to mosturize from within.
  
  
• You can stimulate the production of melanin - and therefore strengthen your skin's defense against rays of light - to accelarate the tanning process. Beginning a month before your holidays, start taking supplements that contain antioxidant nutrients such as Beta Carotene, Vitamin A, C and E, which help to protect the body from excess free radicals that destroy healthy cells and promote the cell aging process.
  
  Did you know... Beta-Carotene is famous for giving carrots a rich orange color. This provitamin A is part of the Carotenoid family and readily converts to Vitamin A in the system when needed. Beta Carotene is also an immune system enhancer and antioxidant: antioxidants help fight cell damaging free radicals in the body.
  

After Sun Exposure: pamper your skin

As you know by now, the beauty of a tan begins before sun exposure. And now that you've spent the day at the beach, or your holidays are about to end, you have finally gained a beautiful golden tan.
But i can soon fade away, and you don't want that, do you? Did you know it only takes about 28 days for the cutis' (skin) cells to completely renew themselves?
This is the time to take extra-care of your skin. Here are a few important steps to cure, heal and pamper your skin in order to be make it feel even better and to mantain your beautiful sun-kissed complexion:

• Guess what, your keyword is, again: moisturize! Eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies plus drink at least l. 1,5 of water a day in order to hydrate your skin from the inside.
  
  
• Pass by the bathtub and head for the shower: soaking in warm water could make your skin scale off. You need a quick, mild cleansing instead.
  If you still want to take a bath, don't make it longer than 8/10 minutes, and get before getting in the water apply a body oil all over to shield your skin and defend it.
  
  
• Forget the "soap" for a while, and opt for something gentler, especially created for tanned skin: you need specific formulas that are kind enough to your body. Shower oils are your best friends now!
  
  
• Flaking off? Every other day, help your cells renew with a gentle scrub that also delivers moisture; our favorite scrubs are the Shea Body Scrub and the Olive Body Scrub by The Body Shop: they deliver what your epidermis needs in this delicate moment -- a gentle exfoliating scrub action that helps remove dead skin cells and leaves your skin protected, feeling soft and smooth. Scrubs will not remove the tan, on the opposite, they will emphasize it by removing dead cells from the surface, that would make it look opaque.
  
  
• Moisturize, moisturize, and moisturize again. Apply an after-sun lotion every morning, every night and after every shower. After Sun lotions are formulated for the specific needs of tanned skin, so they not only moisturize, but they refresh you and bring emollient factors that penetrate deeply in the epidermis' surface.
  
  
• Your face needs super-extra care: wash it with a fragrance free, hydrating cleanser, that gently cleans without irritating even dry, sensitive skin.
  Moreover, every two days apply a moisturizing mask to hydrate and nourish skin, leaving it soft, smooth and refreshed.
  
  
• When your tan starts fading away, revitalize it and prolong its life with sunless tanners (for the body and the face) or with bronzers (for the face). Try to make it an endless summer!