How to Transition Your Skincare Routine from Summer to Fall (PLUS Our Best Fall Skincare Tips)

With the change from summer to fall, many skincare questions come up like, what happens to my skin in the fall? How do I transition my skincare routine from summer to fall? What should a fall skincare routine include?

Let’s take a look at these fall skincare questions so you can have your best skin all season long and focus on fall activities like enjoying PSLs, apple picking, pumpkin patches, and taking in the fall leaves.

Let’s start with our fall skincare basics: what happens to your skin in the fall weather?

The fall dries out your skin. The air inside and outside is drier, which impacts your skin causing skin concerns like dry skin and sensitive skin or worsening these concerns.

The drier air also means less oil production (InStyle). This might sound like a good thing — less oil, less acne, right? This isn’t always the case. It could mean more trapped dirt and sweat in your pores, and let’s be real, oil production is pretty important in preventing dry skin.

So what does the fall weather mean for your skincare routine?

It means that moisturizing, non-drying products will be your fall skincare holy grails. You’ll likely need to transition your skincare routine from summer to fall since your skins’ needs are going to be shifting.

What should your summer-to-fall skincare transition include?

You’ll still want to cleanse to get rid of acne but may want to consider changing your usual cleanser to something that’s also gentle and hydrating. Our Black Soap Cleanser and Radiant Glow Cleansing Oil are excellent options for this — they unclog pores and don’t dry out the skin.

You may also want to up your moisturizer game, from something lightweight to something a little bit heavier. This not only protects your skin from drier air but also restores moisture and hydration to your skin.

A few of our recommendations for a facial moisturizer that won’t clog pores include:

Your facial toner is also an important consideration in upping your moisturization. The right toners will help to prep your skin for moisturization and can even help with hydrating your skin. A few of our faves for an extra hydration boost include:

Be sure you’re getting ahead of dry cracked lips that fall weather and colder seasons can bring with a good lip butter.

What are the best fall weather skincare tips?

Moisturize

Moisturize. Moisturize. Moisturize. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again (and probably a few more times after that), moisturizing is essential. It’s essential in the summer and definitely essential in the fall and winter. And, be sure you’re doing this from head to toe (face, lips, body, and feet).

Exfoliate

Gentle exfoliation can help smooth dry skin, and even to clarify your pores. But do be careful of how often you do this, especially if you have sensitive skin. We recommend using a gently exfoliating face mask once to twice a week.

Protect

Sunscreen is important all year round, including in the fall and winter. Make sure your sunscreen remains in your skincare routine transition from summer to fall (though, you can likely reduce the SPF).

If moisturizing isn’t part of your morning skincare routine, this fall is the time to add it in. This provides a barrier to keep your skin’s moisture in as you go about your day and are exposed to the drier air.

Damage control

For your nighttime skincare routine, you may want to consider adding in a heavier moisturizer before heading off to bed. This will help combat the dry air your skin has faced all day (and will be exposed to all night), keeping your skin hydrated and radiant for the next day. (This is also a great time to moisturize the rest of your body to get ahead of dry, itchy skin and to maintain your skin with something like our Shea Body Butter or Premium Gold Oil.)