How many small talk exchanges have you had lately about the sun and/or spring finally being here? There are daffs on windowsills, Lindt bunnies on shelves, and we're all just thrilled with our longer days, lighter coats and cheep-cheepier, bird-filled trees.
Your skin is probably happy with the change, too. Milder months give our complexions more of what they like than icy, indoorsy ones, with one very notable exception: sun damage. I don't need to tell you the very worst thing UV rays can do to your skin, but I'll happily be the 1001st beauty editor to say please, please use your best facial sunscreen with the same daily rigour you do deodorant.
On a more superficial note - I deal in exteriors, after all - now happens to be the exact time of year when, after a lovely morning coffee in the garden, we look in the mirror and think, huh, has that dark spot always been there? It has - but it's been hiding, and it needn't be with a little help from your skincare friends...
Why a targeted dark spot treatment is my beauty buy of the week
Pigmentation, with its countless causes and hyperpigmentation treatments, is a big topic - too big for the likes of Sunday Service frankly, so I'll hone in on sun spots. These patches appear when UV light causes melanocyte cells to overproduce pigment, and usually look brown when they're close to the skin's surface and greyish if they're a bit deeper.
They also fade when UV levels are low, popping back up like a springtime squirrel to sully the pleasure of feeling rays on our faces again. But the good thing about sun spots is, unlike large pores or deep lines, you can do something about them at home. Have I mentioned daily sunscreen use? Only 1002 times? Well, nothing stops pigmentation in its tracks like SPF, so I'll keep going with that.
I know what you're here for, though: a fix. Something to treat last year's - or the last three decades' - dark spots, and for that you need tyrosinase inhibitors. These ingredients reduce melanin activity, so can slowly fade existing spots, stop them darkening in the sun and limit new formations. Many topical products contain these actives, and a concentrated, light serum is the most efficient way to get them into your skin. Et voila:
Tranexamic acid and vitamin C are the key ingredients here - both effective tyrosinase inhibitors that work brilliantly alongside one another. There are hydrating ingredients, too, which never hurt, in an elegant lotion texture. Charlotte Tilbury skincare is always so well formulated and results-driven, perhaps more than you might expect from a brand known for creating joyful, glamorous makeup. Never underestimate Charlotte.
Very potent, very high-tech, very high-end. This doctor-formulated serum packs in tranexamic acid, another inhibitor called glutathione, as well as niacinamide, which blocks a different part of the melanin process. There's more. Within a loose and layerable texture lies something called NAC Y2, an antioxidant complex which this brand includes across its range, plus not one but seven brightening Alpine plant extracts. As I said, quite the cocktail. It smells good, too.
I can't write about sun spots and not mention laser treatments. Given carte blanche to treat a pigmented face, I reckon most dermatologists would go straight in with laser, which, in a very small nutshell, sends heat and energy to specific layers of the skin to break up pigment. Depending on the laser used, said energy can also boost collagen, which is a nice side effect.
I should know. I've just finished three skin-rejuvenating laser sessions at The Clinic at Strip (30-minutes, 95% comfortable, 5% ouchy, no red-faced downtime) and am stepping into spring with a clearer, perkier complexion than any March in recent memory. I'd highly recommend it as a compelling motivation to keep up with your serum and sunscreen. Sound good? Great! Let's chat next Sunday.
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