Spring Skincare Tips: How to Update Your Routine

As the seasons change, it might be time to change your skincare routine. The shift from winter to spring transforms our environment, resulting in physiological and lifestyle changes that impact the skin in different ways. 

In this post, we’ll give you our top science-backed spring skincare tips, so you can update your routine to match springtime’s changes! 

How spring impacts the skin

Depending on where you live and your individual factors, these are the main skin changes you can expect in spring: 

• In most regions, the humidity rises from winter to spring, which means your skin will be less prone to dehydration. 
• It’s also common to experience an increase in oil production during spring, which will continue to rise during the shift to summer. 
• The temperatures will rise to more moderate levels that are gentler on the skin barrier, especially compared to either winter or summer. 
• For some, pollen may lead to allergic reactions that can cause skin inflammation and dermatitis. 
• Studies show an increase in sun damage during spring (in some cases more so than in summer). This likely occurs because people spend more time outdoors in spring, but they forget to apply sunscreen since the temperatures are moderate. 

These are general trends, and of course the spring season can look a little different from region to region. Pay attention to your local climate and how your skin reacts to it, and apply our recommended spring skincare tips in the way that will work best for you. 

Use more sunscreen

We'll probably never stop yammering about sunscreen. We hope you've already been using it consistently, even in winter. Spring means more sun exposure and a slowly rising UV index. Because it’s not too hot yet, you might not notice and forget to apply sunscreen as often as you should. 

The best way to keep your skin safe from photodamage, hyperpigmentation, and premature aging, is to make it a habit to use SPF every morning as part of your spring skincare routine (and to to touch it up when you've been out for a while). 

Don’t change too much at once

It's never a great idea to switch up your routine all at once. If you like skincare science, think about it this way - changing too much at once makes it hard to analyze products and understand how they work for you. With some products (especially skin renewing formulas) there is also a risk of initial irritation at the outset, so it's better to have a clear idea of what works when. 

Amp up protection with vitamin C

Another great way to reinforce your protection is with a powerful antioxidant serum, like our Vitamin C Superserum. 

Vitamin C, particularly in its bioactive form as ascorbic acid, has powerful antioxidant effects. It's proven to help boost the stability of sunscreens and improve protection. Plus, it can also jumpstart wrinkle reduction and skin evenness! 

Apply it in the morning and allow it to sink in completely before sunscreen to ensure better protection. 

Avoid irritants in your spring skincare routine

For those with allergies, spring can be an irritating time - rashes, hives, and congestion come together to make your skin more sensitive. It's never a bad idea to see an allergist, but this is also a good time to avoid fragranced products that may cause flare-ups. 

Spring skin cleaning

You don't have to change anything about your cleansing process in springtime unless you experience a noticeable increase in sebum production or lifestyle factors means your skin gets exposed to more debris throughout the day. 

If you’ve used a gentle, moisturizing cleanser in winter, you can switch to a slightly stronger cleanser with foaming agents. If you’re happy with your winter cleanser, you can slightly increase your cleansing frequency (for example, by switching from only cleansing at night to cleansing in the morning and night). 

If you notice any roughness or dead skin buildup from winter, then spring is also a good time to add in exfoliation. Our gentle, non-drying Double AHA Cleanser is an excellent option that’ll slough off dead skin without any damage or irritation, while also removing impurities. 

Ease up on moisture (if needed)

Winter can contribute to immense dehydration, whereas spring means less transepidermal water loss and more sebum production. Another spring skincare tip you should consider is to ease up on how you moisturize by switching to lighter formulas. 

If you combatted winter dehydration with Water Lock, our matte occlusive slugging balm, you can simply use a little less of it, for milder occlusion (this is ideal if your skin produces a lot of sebum in spring). Another option is to switch to our barrier recovery-promoting Niacinamide & Hyaluronic Acid Hydration Cream, especially if you have dry or maturing skin. 

Bonus: great chance for a retinoid cycle 

If you're not using retinol year-round, our next spring skincare tip would be to add it in! This is the perfect time to infuse your skin with the gold standard of anti-aging ingredients. With the mild weather, you don't need to worry about excess dryness or extreme heat contributing to a bad retinization period. 

Most studies show that it only takes a course of retinoids to see significant skin improvement, including fewer wrinkles, improved epidermal thickness, and smoother, more even-toned skin. 

Our bottles at Protocol offer a precise 62-day dose of our retinaldehyde serum, a more bioactive form of retinol that only undergoes one conversion to impact the skin. It’ll last you just long enough to refine your skin noticeable before summer gets started!