Tips to revamp your summer skincare routine

ATLANTA (FOX 5 Atlanta) - Summer can do a real number on our skin. 

Tiffany Bioski, an aesthetician and laser tech at SkinReMEDI in Virginia Highland, says the combination of the sun, the heat, and intense humidity can clog our pores.

"It's definitely a conversation I have daily, even hourly," Bioski says. "So if we're not cleansing properly, thoroughly, then things are going to stay rooted in the skin. So, you're going to deal with a lot more acne, occasional breakouts, blackheads, much more shine."

Bioski recommends changing our skincare routine like we change the clothes we wear in the summer.

Start, she says, by lightening up on the products your using.

In the winter, we tend to use cream or oil-based moisturizers.

"In the summer you want to focus on hydrating rather than moisturizing, and creating a sheath of oil or cream over the skin," Bioski says.

"You really want to focus on serums and gels and mists, because those are things that are going to feed the skin and hydrate it without stimulating it so much that it creates more oil."

Bioski sees a few common skincare mistakes in the summer. 

First, she says, we don't drink enough water, leaving our skin dehydrated, especially around our eyes and lips.

"I can always tell when someone is a heavy water drinker, and when they're not, just from standing 5 feet away from them," she says.

She recommends drinking as much water as you can.

 "Another mistake is, people start to exfoliate more because they start to be more shiny, they start to break out more, so they start scrubbing and scrubbing and scrubbing," Bioski says.

Over scrubbing will just injure your skin, causing it to produce more oil.

So, instead of scrubbing more, Bioski says to scale back.

"So, I generally recommend you should be exfoliating more than 3 times a week," she says.

In the summer, you may want to exfoliate even less.

So, taking it down to 2 times a week," Bioski says. "Or, maybe (you can switch) to a chemical exfoliant, like an enzyme peel or a salicylic acid based toner for exfoliating."

The last summer skincare mistake is a big one. 

We're not protecting our skin from the sun.

"I hear it all: sunscreen makes me feel hot, sunscreen breaks me out, sunscreen burns me," Bioski says.

"It's the number one way to prevent aging. Or to preserve age, which is what I like to say."