Skincare For The Changing Seasons – Kat Burki, Image Skincare and More

Well, it’s happening. The nights are getting a little cooler, pumpkins have taken over grocery stores and driving back from Toronto, I saw a bunch of maple trees starting to turn orange and yellow. GAH! Fall is coming.

While pulling a light sweater out of storage for a night on a patio, I started thinking about the impending skincare change-up for the fall months. You may notice a slight change in your skin once the weather cools down…I most certainly do. The summer glow fades a bit, skin gets a little drier and those light moisturizers so perfect for hot July days just aren’t cutting it anymore.

Some of you have asked me for a post outlining how to take care of skin once the fall sets in, so here are my tips for achieving skin that is more “baby soft” than “vintage leather bag” this autumn. Also, I discussed fall skincare on CTV Morning Live. Check out the video to see my favourite products!

Kat Burki Vitamin C Nourishing Cleansing Balm and Kat Burki Restorative Dual Acid Peel

Your skin is getting super dry

Chilly weather sucks the moisture out of skin. It’s time to switch out those cleansers that were great for cutting grease and oil (gel cleansers) and reach for something a bit more comforting and hydrating for the skin. I sourced a bunch of Kat Burki products from www.murale.ca and www.beautyboutique.ca. A favourite of Victoria’s Secret models (finally, I too can have skin like Taylor Hill!), Kat Burki revolutionized the skincare game by using cold-pressed technology which better retains all of the great properties and maximum effectiveness of all ingredients used.

Kat Burki Vitamin C Nourishing Cleansing Balm for Face has a high concentration of Vitamin C, so it repairs and renews summer skin and illuminates to give you a healthy glow. It’s also great for extra hydration, along with Kat Burki Complete b Vital Hydration Face Mask which is specially formulated for dry, dehydrated, sensitive skin.

After using the mask, try out Kat Burki’s Rose Hip Revitalizing Serum. With its light rose scent and incredible moisturizing properties, I’ll admit that I’ve actually been using it alone as a moisturizer for the past few weeks. It is a literal antioxidant powerhouse and reduces damage from UVA/UVB rays. Great for reducing pores that have enlarged during the summer due to sun damage and excess oil production too.

Elizabeth Arden’s Eight Hour Cream is a beloved classic used on everything from lips to cuticles.  The Eight Hour Cream now comes in a handy Eight Hour Cream All-Over Miracle Oil that is stellar intensive moisturizer for face, body and even hair. I use a little on the ends of my hair to prevent breakage and instead of using body shimmers, I sometimes reach for this oil as it makes skin so glow.

Another great serum is Sibu’s Sea Buckthorn Hydrating Serum. All of Sibu’s products are 100% natural, cruelty free, vegan and made without parabens, sulfates and artificial preservatives. This serum is non-oily, great at brightening the complexion and is extremely hydrating. It pairs beautifully with the Sibu Sea Berry Therapy Nourishing Face Cream and Sibu Sea Berry Seed oil – which helps greatly with rosacea, discolouration and acne.

Kat Burki Complete b Bio-Correcting Face Cream is pretty much your crème de la crème of moisturizers. If your skin is inflamed at all, puffy from 25 too many sangrias or you suffer from hyperpigmentation from sun damage, this one’s for you. Sit down, La Mer. There is a way better moisturizer in town.

Your décolleté is sun ravaged and hours of beachy instagramming has left you with “tech neck”

Five words: Image Skincare is your friend.

Sitting out in the sun for hours in your bikini or cute off-the-shoulder shirts is going to cause some damage if you aren’t diligent with the sunscreen. I’ve been using Image Skincare’s Vital C Hydrating Facial Oil after spending a day on the lake not only as a facial moisturizer, but on my chest and shoulders too. It’s super nourishing, fast absorbing, smells yummy and always leaves me with that “new skin feeling” the day after.  This light oil is full of Vitamin C and is highly effective at reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

Same goes for The MAX Stem Cell Neck Lift, an intensive anti-aging cream for your neck and décolleté. Using plant-derived stem cells to rejuvenate, it greatly improves skin’s elasticity and firms sagging skin.

My absolute favourite product of this line is the Image Skincare Prime Flawless Blur Gel. WOW. Just WOW. It’s the best makeup primer I’ve ever used. It completely banished my satellite dish-sized pores and gave me porcelain-like skin after applying my foundation. This product infuses skin with stem cells and Vitamin C – more great anti-aging ingredients.

Image Skincare is paraben-free and is developed without the use of chemical preservatives.

Your pores resemble dish plates due to increased sun exposure

Sun exposure and heat cause excess oil production which along with sweat and dirt, stretch out your poor pores. UVA rays also damage the structure of skin making pores dilate. Kat Burki Restorative Dual Acid Peel reverses skin damage and refines skin’s texture by smoothing fine lines and wrinkles. This product also features glycolic and salicylic acid which cleans out pores and will eventually shrink them.

After using the peel, reach for the Kat Burki Micro Firming Wand. A very cool little tool, it begins vibrating once moisture is sensed and automatically stops once the product has completely absorbed into skin! It promises to encourage nutrients to penetrate 30% deeper and minimizes product waste. Really love this!

Suffering from peeling, sunburned skin? Once it’s no longer sore and starting to heal, scrub away the peeling skin with Sibu’s highly effective Exfoliating Face and Body Scrub. The entire Sibu range smells lightly of orange creamsicles which is reason enough to indulge. This gentle scrub promotes the growth of new skin and is great at removing excess oil.

Another all-star scrub is locally-made Scrub Inspired. This all-natural and handmade Fresh Apricot Scrub is a wonderful deep cleaning product, tightens up pores and helps with acne. It’s also gentle enough to use daily. Bonus? It smells sooo good…try not to eat it.

Once you’re done exfoliating, it’s time to moisturize the bod. Sibu’s Sea Berry Therapy Moisturizing Body Cream is a great moisturizer for those who prefer something fast absorbing. I also love good ol’ Nivea Rich Moisturizing Body Moisturizer as it’s thick and creamy, gives skin a wonderful glow, and is under $5.

You’re a Golden Goddess, and fall is not stealing that look from you

For those looking to extend their golden tans, reach for Sunescape. This brand is all about products that give you a natural looking tan while enriching skin with great ingredients (vitamins, antioxidants and hydrating oils). Made with natural ingredients, Sunescape also helps fight the aging process.

Month in Maui Mousse (best product name ever) is light-weight, easy to apply and provides instant natural colour.  It’s great at camouflaging cellulite and stretch marks too. Loaded with macadamia nut, coconut and avocado oils, this product is supremely moisturizing. For best results, use the Self-Tan Applicator Mitt.

Sunescape’s Gradual Tan Extender is a self-tanner, tan extender and moisturizer all in one. It’s special technology and naturally derived ingredients build your tan gradually and easily, while hydrating skin with coconut, macadamia nut, avocado and argan oil. This product also balances skin tone and rejuvenates with kakadu plum, papaya and goji berry extract.

Vita Liberata Luxury Tan Self-Tanning Night Moisture Mask is a pretty revolutionary product. Apply this rich formulation before bed for intense hydration and wake up with a natural, subtle, sunkissed glow.

You can find Kat Burki at www.murale.ca, www.beautyboutique.ca and Nordstrom.

Sibu can be found at larger Loblaws stores along with www.well.ca.

Sunescape can be found at www.epbeauty.ca along with select spas and salons across Canada.

Image Skincare can be purchased online at www.imageskincare.com.

Viva Liberata is sold at Sephora.

What are your tips for extending that summery glow into the fall season? Please share in the comments! Don’t forget the one major tip: lots of sleep and water!