How to get your skin back on track post-party season

Too much food, alcohol and makeup... party season tends to knock us and our skin back a little. As we settle back into the working year, there is no better time to get into good skincare habits and give our skin the post-party season love it deserves. Here are the steps to try for a seriously detoxed complexion that will be back to glowing in no time.

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See a professional

The best way to begin the process of getting your skin back on track is seeing a professional. A therapist can cleanse your skin much more deeply than you are able to at home, as well as use a cocktail of active ingredients that is far too overwhelming (and possibly unsafe) to try at home. I guarantee you will walk out with glowing, detoxified skin and (temporarily) reduced stress levels. Plus, LED light will work wonders in brightening and regeneration.

bh loves: Rationale Enzyme Reactivation Treatment (head to rationale.com.au), Melanie Grant MG Regime Facial (head to melaniegrant.com), Jurlique Detoxifying Facial (head to jurlique.com.au), Ella Bache Clear My Complexion Facial Treatment (head to ellabache.com.au)

Cleanse, cleanse, cleanse

If you can’t get to a professional however there are great deep cleansing options you can use at home. An oil cleanser or balm is great to begin with, as it melts away makeup and impurities, however if you suffer from oily skin, a micellar water also works for this first step. Once your skin is clear of makeup, follow with a deeper cleansing product. This will offer a better base for following skincare products, especially those with active ingredients. In saying this, the goal is never for your skin to feel ‘squeaky clean’, use gentle products such as oils, balms and micellar waters. These options can effectively clean your skin without drying it, leaving it feeling tight or stripping it of natural oils.

bh loves: Charlotte Tilbury Goddess Cleansing Ritual Duo (find it at charlottetilbury.com.au), Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm, Tata Harper Nourishing Oil Cleanser (find it at sephora.com.au), Tatcha The Deep Cleanse (find it at mecca.com.au), GlamGlow SUPERCLEANSE Cream-to-Foam Cleanser (find it at mecca.com.au)

Detoxify

Once your complexion is completely clean there are a few options for detoxifying your skin. If you have sensitive skin or aren’t comfortable using a chemical peel, an enzymatic peel is probably a good place to start. Often utilising fruit enzymes to gently exfoliate, this kind of mask will help rid your skin of dull and dead skin cells and reveal the fresh skin underneath.

bh loves: Andalou Naturals Pumpkin Honey Glycolic Mask, Caudalie Glycolic Peel (find it at sephora.com.au), Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel (find it at mecca.com.au)

If you’re looking for something that packs a punch, Dermalogica Rapid Reveal Peel is a professional-grade at-home peel designed to be used once a week for 10 weeks to even skin tone and texture by speeding up cell renewal (see our review of it here). Similarly, the Elizabeth Arden Prevage Progressive Renewal Treatment and The Drunk Elephant TLC Baby Facial are also beauty editor favourites (find it at mecca.com.au).

Top tip: Only use these products at night, as they will increase your sensitivity to the sun.

Protect

Ensuring your skin is fresh and clean and glowing is one thing, but a huge factor in getting your skin back in shape is protecting it from future irritants such as pollution and sun. Incorporating vitamin C into your morning routine will protect your skin from free-radicals and pollution (due to its antioxidant qualities) but it will also help even skin tone and brighten your complexion. Another hugely important factor is finding a good sunscreen to use every.single.morning...this is even more crucial if you’re using active ingredients and peels at night, as often the fresh skin that is revealed is more sensitive to the sun, for this reason an SPF50 is non-negotiable.

bh loves: Peter Thomas Roth Potent C Targeted Brightener (find it at sephora.com.au), Paula’s Choice RESIST C15 Vitamin C Booster, Ultraceuticals Ultra UV Protective Daily Moisturiser SPF50+, La Roche-Posay Anthelios Dry-Touch Sunscreen SPF50+

Give your gut some love

The reason your skin needs some extra love post-party season probably has something to do with all the rich foods and alcohol you’ve been consuming. While a good skincare routine can help get you back to glowing, so can a little help in the nutrition department. While adding more whole foods and drinking more water are the best options, adding a product such as The Beauty Chef Inner Glow Powder (find it at thebeautychef.com) or WelleCo The Super Elixir (find it at welleco.com.au) to your daily routine can help provide your body the nutrients to balance itself after a period of indulgence. A mix of probiotics and bio fermented superfoods, as well as greens work to bring your glow back from the inside out (I can personally attest to the efficacy of both these products - my skin has never been better).

What do you do to get your skin back on track? Have you used any of these products before?